04/11/2024
By Hsien-Yuan Hsu
Time: Noon to 1 p.m.
Speaker: Eunsil Lee (University of Buffalo)
Topic: Rethinking Sense of Belonging in Engineering Education
Location: Coburn 245 and via Zoom
Abstract
Sense of belonging refers to the fundamental human need for social bonds and connections. As an affective factor of learning, this construct plays a crucial role in students’ learning and educational journeys, influencing their engagement with learning tasks, academic achievement, and retention. It also serves as an indicator of students' perceived inclusiveness, significantly impacting the creation of an inclusive learning environment. Sense of belonging holds particular significance within the context of engineering education, where certain populations (e.g., historically underrepresented racial or ethnic minorities) often experience feelings of isolation that can potentially hinder their learning and growth as engineers. Consequently, integrating theory-driven and evidence-based strategies to enhance students’ sense of belonging into the development of support structures, content and practices in teaching and learning, and appropriate assessment tools is a necessary step forward in engineering education. As an engineering education researcher focusing on sense of belonging, my research goal is to contribute to these objectives by: 1) understanding “What it means to belong?”, 2) examining “What role sense of belonging plays?”, and 3) incorporating conceptual knowledge of sense of belonging into the development and implementation of strategies and measurements, for diverse student groups within different learning environments. Achieving these aims would benefit individuals in finding their own spaces in engineering, regardless of any differences they may have.
In this talk, I will present some of my efforts in answering the above questions through research, teaching, mentoring, and other aspects of my life in academia. I hope you will leave this talk with ideas on Why sense of belonging matters, What matters for sense of belonging, and What we can do to help develop sense of belonging for others and ourselves in our community.
Bio
Eunsil Lee (she/her/hers) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Engineering Education at University at Buffalo, the State University of New York. She received a B.S. and M.S. in Clothing and Textiles from Yonsei University (South Korea) with a concentration area of Nanomaterials and Biomaterials in Textiles. She began her Ph.D. study in Textile Engineering but shifted her path toward Engineering Education, earning her Ph.D. in Engineering Education from Arizona State University. Her own experience of dropping out of a traditional engineering doctoral program led her to discover a passion for the construct of sense of belonging in engineering education, with the goal of supporting individuals in engineering to feel accepted and valued for who they are.
*Dean Falcón has generously offered to provide lunch for attendees who come in person. Therefore, we encourage you to attend in person, enjoy lunch, and participate in the talk.