Engineering Identity: Nurture Engineering Identities and Mindset
Students develop interest, knowledge, abilities, and identities by engaging in authentic engineering practices from a young age. These early, successful experiences build students’ confidence in and affiliation with engineering and encourage a problem-solving mindset.
“Who Can Be an Engineer? You Can!”
A teacher discusses engineering careers with her young students. Watch & Reflect:
Related Engineering Practices: Communicate Effectively, Identify as Engineers
Reflection Questions
She calls them engineers.
She provides evidence of their engineering.
She allows students to share how they think they are engineers.
Students form their identities as a collection of all the different experiences they have throughout their life. Having early, positive experiences in which they can see themselves as engineers makes it more likely they will continue in STEM fields and have the possibility of a career in engineering. Not all students will be engineers—we still need doctors, teachers, and firefighters—but we want all students to feel that engineering is possible for them!
“I’m Starting to Love Science”
Students work on creating a wall as a team. Watch & Reflect:
Related Engineering Practices: Use a Structured Problem-Solving Process, Persist Through and Learn From Failure, Apply Math Knowledge to Problem Solving
Reflection Questions
In engineering, students are expected to talk with one another and collaborate to solve problems. Students create novel solutions to problems, using materials they explored to make something new.
When the Engineering Design Process is introduced to students as a way that engineers conduct their work, students can connect the activities they do with simple materials to being an engineer.