Predicting Engineering Integration in K-12 from the Perspective of Pre-Service Teachers

The integration of engineering content at the pre-college level is gaining global traction as a strategy to improve learning outcomes and to promote inclusion and diversity in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). Preservice teacher (PST) programs have become natural insertion points for integration efforts by providing future K-12 teachers with the resources and preparation to teach engineering as part of their academic preparation. There is a need to understand the socio-cognitive mechanisms by which teacher preparation programs can help teachers to integrate engineering in their future classrooms. This work examines how an innovative cross-disciplinary program impacted important social-cognitive drivers of engineering integration. We used mediation analysis to understand a successful pathway to engineering integration as a result of exposure to a cross-disciplinary collaboration with engineering students. This study revealed how participation in the program as part of their academic preparation increased PSTs' confidence to teach engineering and their beliefs about the importance of engineering content, which in turn, increased their intention to integrate engineering in the classroom.