EDC is serving as the external evaluator for Columbia University School of Engineering and Applied Sciences’ Hk Maker Program.

The Hk Maker Lab is an intensive six-week summer program for high school students to learn the foundations of engineering design. Focusing on addressing a global health problem, students work in teams to prototype and test a biomedical device and develop an associated business plan.

High school STEM teachers from throughout New York City also join the program and work to develop novel engineering courses for their schools. Through a series of collaborative workshops, teachers adapt components of engineering design to meet the education needs of the students at their home schools. During the academic year, Hk Maker Lab lends material and instructional support as teachers implement the new course materials.

EDC is providing ongoing evaluation support for the courses and content arising from the Hk Maker Lab. Evaluation activities will proceed in three phases across five years of program development and implementation, providing both formative feedback and evidence of impact as the program team runs the Hk Maker Lab and assists in the development of high school curricula, expanding their efforts to other underserved secondary schools. The evaluation addresses three primary goals:

1.     Inform the refinement of both the Hk Maker Lab and the resultant engineering design-focused curricular elements so that they are responsive to the needs and priorities of teachers and students;

2.     Test the program’s ability to have a significant impact on participating students’ knowledge of the targeted STEM-related practices and their knowledge and attitudes about STEM careers;

3.     Develop assessment mechanisms that can support the program beyond the scope of this particular grant.