Reimagining International Research for Students in a (Potentially More) Virtual World
Workshop Th3: Nov 11, 12:35 PM
Description of Workshop:
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, international collaborations and programs for students have faced challenges in continuing their typical operations. Additionally, even at the best of times, many students are not able to participate in programs that require traveling abroad. To improve access to and resilience of international research experiences for students, we are exploring the future of international research experiences for STEM students in the post-COVID era. Building on our prior work understanding student experiences and program structures for these programs, we will convene stakeholders to think creatively about how similar experiences can be provided for students in a virtual environment. Ideas from this conversation will feed into data collected as part of an NSF project entitled Reimagining International Research for Students in a Virtual World (OISE-2106093/2106100). This session will be run as an interactive focus group where participants will work together to propose design ideas for virtual implementation of international research experiences for students. The goal of the session will be to identify challenges and constraints to shifting to virtual environments and then build on those ideas to collaboratively develop designs for new program structures. We welcome any conference attendees to engage in this conversation. The topic will be of particular relevance to individuals who have worked with students/faculty as they seek funding for, prepare for, design, support, engage in, host, and reflect on international research experiences. However, conference attendees who regularly work on facilitating students’ international experiences of all kinds should find meaningful ways to connect and contribute to the conversation. Participants will be invited to sign a consent form to allow de-identified data to be used as part of our study.
Presenters and Authors:
Kirsten Davis is an assistant professor in the School of Engineering Education at Purdue University. Her research explores the intentional design and assessment of global engineering programs, student development through experiential learning, and approaches for teaching and assessing systems thinking skills. Kirsten holds a B.S. in Engineering & Management from Clarkson University and an M.A.Ed. in Higher Education, M.S. in Systems Engineering, and Ph.D. in Engineering Education, all from Virginia Tech.
David B. Knight is an Associate Professor in the Department of Engineering Education and Special Assistant to the Dean for Strategic Plan Implementation at Virginia Tech. He is also Director of Research of the Academy for Global Engineering at Virginia Tech and is affiliate faculty with the Higher Education Program. His research tends to be at the macro-scale, focused on a systems-level perspective of how engineering education can become more effective, efficient, and inclusive, tends to leverage large-scale institutional, state, or national data sets, and considers the intersection between policy and organizational contexts. He has B.S., M.S., and M.U.E.P. degrees from the University of Virginia and a Ph.D. in Higher Education from Pennsylvania State University.
Dr. Nicole Sanderlin serves as Director of Global Engagement in the College of Engineering. She provides leadership for international initiatives and works closely with engineering faculty to develop new institutional partnerships and international opportunities for engineering students. She provides support to the college's International Alumni Planning Board and serves as the Direct of Programs for the Academy for Global Engineering. Nicole holds a Master’s and Ph.D. from Virginia Tech's School of Public and International Affairs. Her research focuses on internationalization of higher education, faculty engagement, and international program assessment.
Addiditional Authors:
Dr. Rob Emmett serves as Assistant Director for Global Engagement in the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech and focuses on intercultural skills, connecting classroom learning with sustainable community development, and online engineering education. He is the author of Cultivating Environmental Justice: A Literary History of US Garden Writing (University of Massachusetts Press, 2016) and with David E. Nye, Environmental Humanities: A Critical Introduction (MIT Press, 2017). With Gregg Mitman and Marco Armiero, he edited the collection of critical reflections and works of art, Future Remains: A Cabinet of Curiosities for the Anthropocene (University of Chicago, 2018). His humanities scholarship has appeared in the journals Interdisciplinary Studies in Literature and Environment, Environmental Humanities, Resilience and elsewhere orcid.org/0000-0002-4526-6094).
Siddhant Sanjay Joshi, from Pune, India is a graduate student pursuing his Ph.D. in the School of Engineering Education at Purdue University. Prior to starting his Ph.D., Siddhant completed his M.S. in Aeronautics and Astronautics from Purdue University and a B.E. in Mechanical Engineering from MIT World Peace University. To complement his academic experience, Siddhant has a year-long experience working as a Lean and Operational Excellence trainee at Sandvik Asia. At Purdue University, Siddhant is also an instructor for two courses at the Gifted Education Research and Resource Institute Summer Residential program and has recently introduced a new course for aspiring engineering students. Apart from academics, Siddhant currently serves as the Treasurer of the American Society of Engineering Education - Purdue Chapter with focus on ensuring a better engineering experience for undergraduate and graduate students.
Natasha Watts, Virginia Tech