Translating Engineering Research K-8 (TEK8) is an outreach program developed by the Colleges of Engineering and Education and Human Ecology. The program communicates the broader impacts of federally funded engineering research while increasing urban middle school students’ interest in engineering and preparing practicing teachers and engineering students to introduce middle school students to the engineering design process. An end product of TEK8 are project-based lessons around engineering design challenges created by engineering students and teachers. The design challenges have been tested in an after-school setting and expose students to the essence of engineering: design and problem solving. Mathew’s challenge was to communicate to 3rd and 4th grade students how a catalyst works and how it can be controlled to mediate chemical reactions.
Read more about the outreach program here.