This innovative practice study submitted in the “Competencies Development” category is a multi-methods case study that aims to examine the impact of a unique Mentoring Triad Model on enhancing research skills in undergraduate students, mentoring skills in graduate students, and professional growth in faculty mentors. The Mentoring Triad consists of an undergraduate student, graduate student, and faculty member collaborating on a semester-long research project within the context of a large Midwestern research university. Data was collected from each participant through surveys, interviews, observations, and document analysis. Results indicate the Mentoring Triad Model facilitated significant growth in research skills, psychosocial development, and professional competencies for all participants. The undergraduate student developed research abilities, intercultural competence, communication skills, collaboration, and self-regulation. The graduate student enhanced their mentoring, research, empathy, project management, adaptability, and collaboration skills. The faculty mentor refined their team management, mentoring, time management, openness to feedback, and collaborative capacities. Findings support the Mentoring Triad as an effective model for integrating research and multilevel mentorship to advance the holistic development of aspiring researchers and professionals in higher education, with implications for replication across disciplines and institutions.

This research-to-practice paper explores learnings from a study abroad program through the lens of intercultural competence. Intercultural competence, the ability to effectively navigate and engage with diverse cultures, is increasingly rec-ognized as a critical skill in our interconnected global society. This competence is particularly important for pre-freshman students, who are at a formative stage of their educational and personal development. Recognizing the need to cultivate these skills early, this study evaluates the effectiveness of a structured study abroad program at a large Midwestern univer-sity, aimed at enhancing intercultural competence among pre-freshman students. Fifteen participants completed the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) assessment before and after a two-week program in Germany and Spain and maintained reflective journals. A mixed-methods approach was employed, with quantitative analysis of IDI scores and qualitative analysis of journal entries using thematic analysis. The results indicate a significant increase in IDI scores, with students moving from Polarization (86.37) to Minimization (94.36) on the Intercultural Development Continuum, suggesting enhanced intercultural understanding. Qualitative data revealed themes such as increased adaptability, deeper cultural insight, and enhanced self-awareness in students, illustrating the program's transformative potential. Overall, the study highlights the effectiveness of structured study-abroad programs in fostering intercultural competence. Immersive experiences, coupled with reflective practices, can promote multidimensional growth. These findings advocate for the integration of structured international experiences into pre-freshman curricula to foster global readiness and intercultural skills. Future research should expand to other institutions and incorporate longitudinal studies to further validate and refine these educational initiatives.

Incorporating the social science lens into the engineering curriculum is crucial to creating solutions that are ethi-cally sound, socially responsible, and equally accessible to people of diverse backgrounds. By understanding human behavior, needs, and societal structures, engineers can design technologies and systems that address the complexities of real-world problems. This interdisciplinary approach fosters innovation through diversity of thought and problem-solving strategies, allowing for more creative and effective solutions. It also helps in addressing systemic inequities, ensuring that technologies do not reinforce biases but rather promote inclusivity and fairness. The current study delves into the impact of an online module focused on social justice and hostile design on 22 engineering technology students enrolled in a human factors course. This module was divided into two segments: the first part introduced the concept of social justice, examining systemic racism and environmental injustice within engineering contexts. The second segment delved into the concept and application of hostile design in real-world scenarios. The module was designed to be interactive and engaging and consists of videos, readings, case studies, surveys, and reflection, to deepen students' understanding of these critical issues. The study used a multi-method design to assess the effectiveness of this module on students. The quantitative data was collected in the form of pre- and post-surveys focused on social justice and hostile design. The qualitative data was in the form of final written reflections. The survey data was analyzed using a paired sample t-test. Results indicated that students found the module effective in raising their awareness about social justice and hostile design issues and their application in engineering. Further, thematic analysis of students' final reflections revealed their key takeaways and future intentions. The themes for key takeaways revealed that students emphasized the importance of societal inclusivity and fairness, recognized the impacts of hostile design and systemic racism, and expressed the need for comprehensive solutions to homelessness and public space accessibility. Moreover, the themes that emerged for future intentions were that students felt that as future engineers, they were committed to integrating ethical considerations and inclusivity into their designs, raising awareness of hostile design among their peers, and utilizing their enhanced knowledge for professional and personal growth. In conclusion, the integration of social sciences into engineering education is not just beneficial but essential. The findings from this study emphasize the transformative potential of such interdisciplinary approaches in shaping future engineers who are not only technically skilled but also ethically conscious and socially responsible. By embracing these principles, the next generation of engineers are better equipped to create innovative, equitable, and just solutions.

Developing an interculturally competent STEM workforce has become increasingly crucial in today's globalized environment. Intercultural competence is an important skill as it enables individuals to interact and behave effectively across different cultures. Higher Education Institutions (HEls) are thus encouraging educators to integrate intercultural competence into their curricula. However, research has revealed that STEM educators and program leaders often feel ill-prepared to weave intercultural learning outcomes into their curriculum. Although training and workshops work to bridge this knowledge gap, they demand significant resources, financial cost, expertise, and time commitment. In light of these challenges, our study investigates the role of an open-access intercultural learning science gate-way, The Intercultural Learning Hub (HubICL), designed to equip STEM educators and program leaders with the necessary resources and activities to foster intercultural competence in learners. It is important to note that intercultural competence is a rapidly growing field; the HublCL serves and supports 1000 unique users monthly ranging from various disciplines across the globe. Therefore, to understand the impact of the HubICL, we conducted in-depth interviews with prominent HublCL users. The interview data was qualitatively analyzed using narrative inquiry. In the interviews, participants reflected on various aspects of the HublCL such as: i) an educational platform for imparting intercultural competence. ii) a developmental tool for enhancing the intercultural competence of instructors and program leaders. iii) a source of experiential learning opportu-nities within classrooms to refine pedagogical approaches. iv) a repository of activities for instructors to actively engage students, allowing them to explore and develop intercultural competencies firsthand. Participants also provided feedback to improve the usability and maximize the potential of the platform. The findings of the study demonstrate that the HublCL is a great asset for STEM educators and program leaders seeking to integrate intercultural competence into their curricula or programs. The HublCL serves as a bridge between educators and students by providing educators with the resources and knowledge to integrate intercultural competence into their learning outcomes. Implications of these findings extend beyond resource provision; they emphasize the necessity of integrating accessible, compre-hensive resources like the HublCL in educational settings to promote intercultural competence. As STEM educators continue to seek efficient means to develop and impart intercultural competence to align with HEI goals for learning outcomes, platforms like the HublCL offer promising solutions to overcome existing barriers to seamlessly integrate intercultural learning into STEM curricula and programs. This study suggests a shift towards leveraging digital platforms for educator development and calls for continued investment in such technologies to enhance the intercultural competence of future STEM students.

This full research paper assesses the climate literacy of engineering undergraduate students via simulation-based learning. Climate change is listed as one of the global challenges of the United Nations global issues humanity faces today. The impacts of climate change are global in scope. Rising sea levels and an increased risk of flooding are among the chief concerns faced by nations. This, in turn, has become a threat to global food production which can negatively impact all lives. Therefore, it is important to develop climate literacy by understanding how climate influences us and society at large and how we, in turn, influence the climate. Climate literacy has taken on renewed importance in recent years with the United Nations and numerous national governments employing coordinated efforts to bolster climate education. As such, there is an immediate need for the development of climate literacy as this would help to increase awareness of climate consciousness in society. This study focused on characterizing the climate literacy of undergraduate engineering students as given by the Global Learning VALUE rubric. The students were exposed to climate modeling and simulation exercises using the En-ROADS climate change solution simulator. Students worked in teams and reflected on ways to mitigate climate change and have a best-case scenario that aims to lower the global temperature by 2 degrees Celsius. As there is a great emphasis on integrating education for sustainable development in higher education institutions, this study specifically focuses on using simulation tools as a technological device in classrooms to inspire young engineers to combat global climate challenges. This study aims to create and increase global climate change awareness among young engineers and give them scientific tools to explore strategies for tackling the climate change problem by creating a sustainable environment. This manuscript details a mixed-methods approach guided by the following research questions: i) How can the climate literacy of engineering students be characterized using the Global Learning VALUE rubric, specifically through the use of a simulation-based learning tool? ii) What were the strategies proposed by the students to combat climate change? The results suggest that climate simulations can be valuable tools in exposing students to climate literacy while also having the ancillary benefit of introducing variables that they originally may not have considered. The analysis of the student reflections and proposals using the Global Learning VALUE rubric revealed that students demonstrated a high level of personal and social responsibility and understanding of the global system. Students also demonstrated a good understanding of global awareness. They were able to understand the problems from various perspectives and were able to apply their knowledge to propose feasible solutions to the problem.

This full research paper seeks to understand the self-efficacy of engineering students in a research communication course. Grounding our investigation into Bandura's assertion that personal beliefs about one's effectiveness are pivotal for motivating actions, we hypothesize that students' self-efficacy and their positive perceptions of their abilities are crucial for enhancing their learning experiences. Self-efficacy in general is a well-researched area in undergraduate education but there are very few studies that focus on research self-efficacy of undergraduate engineering students. This study was conducted in an undergraduate-level engineering classroom at an Engineering University located in India. The goal of this research was to assess the research self-efficacy of students enrolled in a research communication course. A multi-methods approach was used to assess the self-efficacy development of 77 students. A pre-post 5-point Likert Scale survey was used to collect the quantitative data and the results of the analysis revealed that students showed a statistically significant gain in research self-efficacy from pre to post test, suggesting that the course effectively improved the research self-efficacy levels of the students. The qualitative data was collected using an open-response tool. The responses were analyzed using thematic analysis; the results highlighted that the students expressed the need for mentorship and guidance on research. The students also showed eagerness and a positive attitude to learning research techniques. Further, the post-survey questions were analyzed, and the analysis revealed that upon completion of the course, students felt competent in conducting literature reviews. They also felt more confident in framing the research problems, writing academic papers, and doing presentations. This improvement illustrates the impact of the course in improving research self-efficacy and also in equipping students with skills crucial for academic and professional success. However, some students also expressed challenges with designing their research methodology sections. This indicates the areas where further support and instructional focus could be beneficial. Overall, the findings of the study highlight the course's success in enhancing students' research self-efficacy and skills, while also pointing to the necessity of continuous support and targeted instruction to address identified challenges.

The ability to work on a diverse team is among the desirable skills for college graduates. Especially in STEM, students are expected to work with people from backgrounds different from their own. Research has shown that STEM students find working with people from diverse backgrounds to be challenging because their education has not prepared them to do so. It is crucial for educators to take the initiative and integrate the concepts of intercultural competence into the curriculum from the first year onwards. In this work-in-progress paper, we discuss the impact of an interactive online module on the development of the intercultural competence of twenty-five first-year computer science students. After completing the online module, students were required to reflect on a scenario where the student's role was to manage a culturally diverse team. The students were asked to identify the cultural differences that could lead to conflicts on the team and to reflect on the ways cultural differences could benefit the team. The study used a qualitative approach to analyze students' final reflections. The data were analyzed using inductive thematic analysis to identify the emerging themes and patterns. The results of the study showed that students recognized the following challenges: i) a mix of individualist and collectivist orientations, ii) differences in work orientations (task vs relationship-oriented), iii) age and seniority differences among employees, and iv) differences in communication styles (direct vs indirect). The corresponding benefits identified for each challenge were: i) facilitating team process, ii) promoting team bonding and task completion, iii) developing different approaches to solving problems using multiple lenses, and iv) promoting adaptation and creating learning opportunities. Overall, the results of this study are encouraging as they show that after engaging in an online module which incorporates elements of transformative learning, especially self-reflection, and the ARCS model for developing engaging activities, first-year computer science students are able to identify elements of different worldviews impacting culturally diverse teams and the potential challenges and benefits stemming from them.

Intercultural competence has taken on renewed importance due to the increasingly diverse nature of work environments. The prevalence of virtual and remote teams in recent years has also contributed to the growing need for an interculturally trained workforce. There is a demand for graduates to be able to effectively work with those from cultures and backgrounds different from their own. Several higher education institutions in the United States have responded to this by first assessing their students using various assessments to determine their intercultural competence. Universities have further incorporated concepts of intercultural competence into their regular curriculum of study with the goal of equipping students with the skills to be successful in intercultural environments. This study is situated in a STEM classroom at the Polytechnic Institute of a large midwestern university. This study also attempts to address the dearth of literature pertaining to intercultural development in STEM fields with a specific focus on the cybersecurity discipline. This study is guided by the research question, how can intercultural competence be characterized for students enrolled in a first-year introductory cybersecurity course? The students enrolled in this course were provided trainings using portable intercultural learning modules (PIMs) focused on productive conflict management as well as the cultural influences on the intent and impact of communication practices. A rubric adapted from the behavioral rubric of Intercultural Skills Development was used to score 50 student reflections following the aforementioned intercultural training. The data was analyzed using a mixed-methods approach. Descriptive statistical analyses were conducted to understand the overall intercultural gains for all students. Furthermore, hierarchical clustering was used to analyze the data. The clustering algorithm helped to divide the students into two clusters, with one displaying high intercultural competence and the other exhibiting low intercultural competence. In addition, patterns of intercultural competence were disclosed in the form of sample quotes from the student reflections. Overall, the results are encouraging as they add to the body of literature at the intersection of cybersecurity education and intercultural competence.

With the increasing technological innovation, the application of technology to the STEM classroom for purposes of teaching and learning has gained importance. Research has demonstrated that many STEM concepts are abstract in nature, and students find it difficult to comprehend them fully during lectures. Therefore, using a simulated real-world environment to engage students in experiential learning can help them to learn and internalize the concepts better. In this pilot research case study, our aim was to study student engagement and cognitive load during a visual experiential learning task using eye-tracking, which is an established method of studying user engagement and cognitive load. Seven undergraduate students enrolled in an Engineering Technology course were taught the 5S framework, a Lean concept in a lecture, and then asked to analyze its real-world implementation at workplaces in a 2-part experiential learning activity, involving two pictures and a video of 5S transformation at different workplace settings. The students had to identify the changes implemented as part of 5S transformation and eye-tracking data was recorded while they performed the above analyses. Students also wrote a reflection on their learnings and completed an online survey upon completion of the activity. The study used a multi-method design to answer the following research questions: What were the engagement levels, emotions, and cognitive load experienced by the students when engaged in the visual experiential learning activity? What learning gains were reported by the students upon completion of the activity? The results of the study demonstrated that students experienced a higher level of positive emotion and low negative emotions while engaged in the learning activity. The overall cognitive load of the students was low as a whole, but results did indicate that students reported a high cognitive load for the ‘performance’ construct of the NASA TLX scale. The analysis of the ocular parameters obtained from the eye tracker indicated that students demonstrated the highest average fixation duration (indicator of engagement level) for the video component of the activity, followed by picture 1 and picture 2. Further, it was observed that average pupil dilation was highest for picture 1, followed by the video and picture 2. Lastly, the student reflections were qualitatively analyzed to determine the students' learning gains. The analysis revealed that students demonstrated metacognition, self-belief and acquired new knowledge as an outcome of this activity. Students also acknowledged that they acquired new knowledge by participating in the activity.Overall, the study results indicate that allowing students to participate in intentionally designed simulations can help students to understand the application of the concept in a real world-setting.

Commitment is a multi-dimensional construct that has been extensively researched in the context of organizations. Organizational and professional commitment have been positively associated with technical performance, client service, attention to detail, and degree of involvement with one’s job. However, there is a relative dearth of research in terms of team commitment, especially in educational settings. Teamwork is considered a 21stcentury skill and higher education institutions are focusing on helping students to develop teamwork skills by applied projects in the coursework. But studies have demonstrated that creating a team is not enough to help students build teamwork skills. Literature supports the use of team contracts to bolster commitment, among team members. However, the relationship between team contracts and team commitment has not been formally operationalized.This research category study presents a mixed-methods approach towards characterizing and operationalizing team commitment exhibited by students enrolled in a sophomore-level systems analysis and design course by analyzing team contracts and team retrospective reflections. The course covers concepts pertaining to information systems development and includes a semester-long team project where the students work together in four or five member teams to develop the project deliverables. The students have prior software development experiences through an introductory systems development course as well as multiple programming courses. The data for this study was collected through the team contracts signed by students belonging to one of the 23 teams of this course. The study aims to answer the following research question: How can team commitment be characterized in a sophomore-level system analysis and design course among the student teams?A rubric was developed to quantify the team commitment levels of students based on their responses on the team contracts. Students were classified as high or low commitment based on the rubric scores. The emergent themes of high and low commitment teams were also presented. The results indicated that the high commitment teams were focused on setting goals, effective communication, and having mechanisms in place for timely feedback and improvement. On the other hand, low commitment teams did not articulate the goals of the project, they demonstrated a lack of dedication for attending team meetings regularly, working as a team, and had a lack of proper coordination while working together.

This full research paper looks at data science, which is an increasingly important topic of interest across all academic disciplines and industry sectors. As such, the need for curricula and learning designs for teaching data science has never been greater. One increasingly useful institutional initiative for building critical skills is living learning communities. This study reports on a data science learning community, called The Data Mine. As part of this learning community, students worked on similar tasks, took classes together, and participated in industry related assignments. This exploratory study aims to understand how students navigated learning challenges, what self-regulation strategies were adopted, and what students ultimately learned through participating in the Data Mine Learning Community. Students were grouped into achievement categories using a developed rubric on course assignments and their responses to open ended questions were evaluated for patterns among those in their achievement group. The results indicate that the highest performing students avoided coding errors and were highly focused on learning gains.