Reliability and Validity for a 3-D Modeling Self-Efficacy Scale for Pre-College Students

Engineering graphics education has long been a required component of technology and engineering education at the university level. In middle and high schools, the number of computer-aided design (CAD) programs continue to proliferate and grow. Lacking in the research related to these programs is the effect on non-cognitive factors such as self-efficacy. Self-efficacy is a predictor of success and perseverance and is an important consideration in technology and engineering education. This research investigates the psychometric properties of an instrument designed to measure the three-dimensional modeling self-efficacy among middle and high school students. This study found the Three-Dimensional Modeling Self-Efficacy Scale to be a reliable measure within this population with strong evidence of validity. Based on these findings, the scale was revised, and recommendations for future study were made. This research begins to fill a gap not only in research related to engineering graphics self-efficacy but also within a pre-college population, especially those who are historically underrepresented in engineering disciplines, in this case, female students.

The Impact on Technology and Engineering Education Programs Based on their Academic Homes

Technology and Engineering Education programs are housed in a number of different types of colleges and departments. This paper explores the curricular impact on technology and engineering programs based on the college and department that are the academic home for the program. The study found that there were four categories of colleges (Education, Technology, Engineering, and Arts and Sciences) and departments (Education, Technology, Technology Education, and Engineering) that serve as the academic homes of the 40 technology and engineering education programs that were examined. The plans of study for each program were examined and courses were divided into 12 codes within the categories of general education, content courses, and education and methods courses. An ANOVA was used to determine if any significant differences existed between the quantity of credit hours in each code and whether the program was housed in an education or non-education department. No significant differences in the coursework were found between programs housed in education departments and programs in non-education departments.