Abstract
AbstractBackgroundCalls to improve learning in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), and particularly engineering, present significant challenges for school systems. Partnerships among engineering industry, universities, and school systems to support learning appear promising, but current work is limited in its conclusions because it lacks a strong connection to theoretical work in interorganizational collaboration.Purpose/HypothesisThis study aims to reflect more critically on the process of how organizations build relationships to address the following research question: In a public–private partnership to integrate engineering into middle school science curriculum, how do stakeholder characterizations of the collaborative process align with existing frameworks of interorganizational collaboration?Design/MethodThis qualitative, embedded multiple case study considered in‐depth pre‐ and post‐year interviews with teachers, administrators, industry, and university personnel during the first year of the Partnering with Educators and Engineers in Rural Schools (PEERS) program. Transcripts were analyzed using a framework of interorganizational collaboration operationalized for our context.ResultsResults provide insights into stakeholder perceptions of collaborative processes in the first year of the PEERS program across dimensions of collaboration. These dimensions mapped to three central discussion points with relevance for school–university–industry partnerships: school collaboration as an emergent and negotiated process, tension in collaborating across organizations, and fair share in collaborating toward a social goal.ConclusionsTaking a macro‐level look at the collaborative processes involved enabled us to develop implications for collaborative stakeholders to be intentional about designing for future success. By systematically applying a framework of collaboration and capitalizing on the rich situational findings possible through a qualitative approach, we shift our understanding of collaborative processes in school–university–industry partnerships for engineering education and contribute to the development of collaboration theory.
Highlights
As initiatives to improve K-12 student learning in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), and engineering, have grown in recent years, so has the burden on teachers and school systems
Looking across the results from the cross-case in the broader context of the literature, we developed three major discussion points that extend our understanding of the collaborative processes involved in school–university–industry partnership: school collaboration as an emergent and negotiated process, tension in collaborating across organizations, and fair share in collaborating toward a social goal
Thomson and Perry (2006) hold nothing back when expressing the importance of establishing a strong conceptual understanding of partnership, and others have echoed the warning that interorganizational collaboration could default to ideological rhetoric over substance if steps are not taken to think critically about the process involved (Longoria, 2005)
Summary
As initiatives to improve K-12 student learning in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), and engineering, have grown in recent years, so has the burden on teachers and school systems. The empirical work on interorganizational collaborations (i.e., collaboration across organizations) in the K-12 STEM context is primarily descriptive or emphasizes teaching and learning outcomes (e.g., Buxner et al, 2014; Hamos et al, 2009; Pawloski et al, 2011; Rogers & Cejka, 2006), or focuses on specific dimensions of collaboration such as mutual benefits (e.g., Radinsky et al, 2001) These works fall short of building new interpretations about the underlying relationships and connections that the literature on collaboration would suggest might be important to explore for the ultimate success of those collaborations. By systematically applying a framework of collaboration and capitalizing on the rich situational findings possible through a
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