Inquiry, Design, and Ethical Action Scholars (IDEA-S) Certificate

Trina Davis Texas A&M University, Cheryl Craig, Texas A&M University, Michele Norton, Texas A&M University, Sara Raven, Texas A&M University, Claire Katz, Texas A&M University

Program Description

The Inquiry, Design, and Ethical Action Scholars (IDEA-S) Certificate Program is designed for incoming STEM and STEM education freshmen. Scholars will navigate through a series of virtual and in-person design thinking and inquiry-based experiences during the summer months leading up to their freshman year. Each experience will be intentionally designed to build participants' capacities to take ethical action and impact change within the context of STEM-related issues. At the culmination of this interdisciplinary certificate program, scholars will apply the inquiry, design, and ethical reasoning skills learned to solve complex problems in high-need communities.

Goals of Program

To face emerging and unprecedented challenges in the STEM fields, it is essential for stakeholders to not only have foundational disciplinary knowledge but to understand and appreciate the broad impacts STEM has in underserved communities. IDEA Scholars will consider the roles inquiry, design-thinking, and ethics play in essential issues and problems within STEM spaces. By focusing on the issues in high-need communities, we hope to empower scholars to be future advocates for ethical practices in STEM. Designed for incoming freshmen at Texas A&M University, this program will not only provide rich learning experiences but cultivate a community of scholars who can reciprocally support the transition from high school to college. IDEA Scholars will be matched to mentors with a wide array of backgrounds and experiences to provide support through the first year and beyond. Through authentic collaborative experiences, IDEA Scholars will learn the historical contexts of STEM fields, explore ambiguities in STEM practice, and critically examine both the positive outcomes and negative consequences. Scholars will work to broaden and deepen their decision-making processes, considering not only foundational knowledge but humanistic and meta-knowledge, as they work to design the best and most ethical solutions to STEM challenges. Every innovation in STEM has a ripple effect: understanding these effects is essential for future STEM professionals.

Design Philosophy

This program was developed to explore connections between scientific inquiry, design thinking, ethics, and philosophy in a way that encourages scholars to feel empowered to take action. The IDEA experiences were designed around the Stanton et al. (2016) design thinking framework, adapted from IDEO (see below). The process helps broaden problem-solving, design, and innovation decisions within a particular social justice context.See more details about the program design »

Learning Outcomes

IDEA Scholars (IDEA-S) will be able to:

Thoughtfully consider the roles that inquiry, design thinking, ethics, and philosophy can play in exploring solutions to open-ended questions and complex/multidimensional problems; (Meta Knowledge)
Critically examine philosophical and ethical questions that cannot be answered by appealing only to scientific investigation or sense experience; and (Humanistic Knowledge)
Actively engage in inquiry-based and design projects where they apply humanistic, meta, and foundational knowledge to formulate and solve essential problems (e.g., community health, better quality of life in high-need contexts). (Humanistic, Meta, and Foundational Knowledge)

Assessing Program Outcomes

Assessing Program Outcomes:

An important component of the IDEA-S certificate program is the capstone project in which students design a project that applies the Design Thinking for Social Justice model (Staton et al., 2016., adapted from ideo.com).

[** Click on the table image to enlarge and review the Formative and Summative Assessment Table or view the attached PDF].

Table for IDEA-S Certificate.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 143kB Oct9 20)

Implementation and Next Steps

Seek buy-in from senior leadership
Seek internal funding from department, college, and university to fund the IDEA-S pilot program
Gather data on the pilot program to support a proposal for outside funding (e.g., NSF).