Integration of K-12 outreach with design projects in an introductory mechanical engineering course

The design project in a required undergraduate course in Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University was updated with components of K-12 outreach. Academic goals included improving technical communication; developing analysis and critical thinking; experiencing team dynamics and the design process; and expanding expertise in materials related to the course. Side benefits of the K-12 interactions included learning through communication of concepts to the community and increased student awareness of service-learning in engineering. Student teams researched topics, wrote papers, and designed hands-on demonstrations for an engineering open house. The audience included the Stanford community and approximately fifty 7th graders and parents from a small, local pilot school charged with retaining girls' interest in science and math. Although the K-12 interactions were deemed a success from community partner surveys, reactions from the engineering students were mixed