Abstract

AbstractWith schools and educational centers around the country moving from in-person to emergency remote learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic, education faces an unprecedented crisis (Hodges et al., Educause Review 27, 2020). This case study presents the efforts and impact of Full STEAM Ahead (FSA) launched by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in response to the pandemic to support remote collaborative learning for K-12 learners, parents, and educators. We present two FSA initiatives: (1) weekly themed packages with developmentally appropriate activities for K-12 remote learning and (2) Full STEAM Ahead Into Summer (FSAIS), an online summer program for middle school Massachusetts students, specifically targeting students who are at risk for “COVID Slide.” (Institute-wide Task Force on the Future of MIT Education-Final Report: http://web.mit.edu/future-report/TaskForceFinal_July28.pdf?) Our operative theory of change is that we can improve K-12 remote collaborative learning experiences through developing and sharing a curriculum that exemplifies the minds-on and hands-on approach advocated by MIT, strategically leveraging existing structures and projects within MIT, and establishing partnerships with the local and international community. We gauge the effect of these efforts on contributing members of the MIT community and targeted learners by analyzing data gathered through participant surveys and artifacts such as the website, packages, modules, and student projects created during the summer programs. Our findings indicate that existing structures and resources – with community building – facilitated the achievement of our goal to develop and distribute problem-based learning activities and that interaction and community building were central in meeting those goals. This work contributes to the knowledge base regarding emergency online learning and the development of effective university outreach efforts.

Highlights

  • Within the short span of a few months in early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic rapidly impacted and transformed the world

  • Full STEAM Ahead (FSA) learning packages provided an opportunity for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) community to mobilize their capacities and efforts towards common goals

  • We believe our results support our hypothesized theory of change, which was that a minds-on and hands-on approach can be applied to remote learning experiences by strategically leveraging existing structures and projects within MIT and through external partnerships

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Summary

Introduction

Within the short span of a few months in early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic rapidly impacted and transformed the world. This case study focuses on Full STEAM Ahead (FSA) – MIT’s response to this educational crisis. We present the design and development of two related Full STEAM Ahead initiatives. The first initiative was FSA learning packages – a curated collection of theme-based science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) learning activities for K-12 educators, students, and parents. The second initiative, Full STEAM Ahead into Summer (FSAIS), was conceptualized as the pandemic threatened to significantly disrupt summer learning opportunities for all students. FSAIS utilized resources curated from the spring FSA learning packages and other STEAM camp modules. Money for the materials kits was raised from an external donor, the MIT Office of Government and Community Relations, and families who donated funds to cover the cost of those materials

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