Mobile Making: A Research-Based Afterschool Program Led by STEM Undergraduates Serving as Near-Peer Mentors

Making is a design-based, participant-driven endeavor based on a philosophy of “learning by doing.” Formal and informal educators at science museums, libraries, and universities see Making to engage youth in authentic experiences involving science and technology. However, there is a lack of ethnic, gender, and socioeconomic diversity among Makers. With the goal of broadening participation in Making, we used six research-based design principles to develop and implement an afterschool STEM-based Making program for middle school students. As part of the program, teams of diverse undergraduate science and math majors lead weekly sessions that introduce middle school students to a variety of Making activities. A two-year pilot at four middle schools involved over 200 middle school participants and 46 undergraduate facilitators. Observations, focus groups, and surveys investigated the integration of design principles and documented increases in the participants' interest and self-efficacy related to Making and STEM, as well as their perception of the relevance of STEM/Making in everyday life. This paper describes the complex interplay between design principles, program implementation and refinement, and participant outcomes, with implications for others seeking to broaden participation in Making and STEM through informal education experiences.