AOLME

Advancing Out-of-school Learning in Mathematics and Engineering

Research in the U.S.A. suggests that middle school students, especially students from under-represented groups, often lack experiences and knowledge about engineering. This situation prevents a great number of them from becoming interested in engineering. Additionally, there is a shortage of students pursuing STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) fields. Our goal, as an out-of-school learning initiative, is to promote middle school students' awareness of both: (a) a set of mathematical practices different from, but still related to the one they have experienced at school; (b) a set of meaningful experiences in engineering through the processing of digital images and video.

Find Out More

About

The Advancing Out-of-School Learning in Mathematics and Engineering (AOLME) project is an interdisciplinary effort -from faculty with areas of expertise in bilingual education, mathematics education (Prof. Sylvia Celedón-Pattichis and Prof. Carlos A. LópezLeiva), and electrical and computer engineering (Prof. Marios Pattichis and Dr. Daniel Llamocca)- designed to support interactive and visual learning in engineering and mathematics of middle school students, especially from underrepresented groups. Through an integrated curriculum, the AOLME project provides engaging experiences in engineering through the use of digital image and video processing examples. Additionally, this curriculum provides a set of mathematical practices different from but related to school mathematics.
The projet has two programs, (i) A mathematics-engineering summer school (ME-S2), which was implemented during the Summers of 2012 and 2013, (ii) A mathematics-engineering club (MEC) which was implemented during the Springs of 2013 and 2014.
These programs comprise a pilot study in the development and implementation of level one and two of an integrated curriculum. The main goal of this after-school initiative is to explore efficient ways to support the learning and active engagement of middle school students in mathematics and engineering related activities. Additionally, the program attempts to expand its curriculum in a series of levels (applied through the ME-S2 and MEC programs) from middle school through high school with the long-term goal of motivating and supporting a pipeline for these students into STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) fields at college levels.

Short Video Introduction

Members

From left to right, top to bottom: Gulnara Kussainova, Sravani Teeparthi, Luis Sanchez Tapia, Keven Flores, María Ruiz, Liset Trigo, Judith Solis, Gangadharan Esakki, Gabino Noriega, Wenjing Shi, Sylvia Celedón Pattichis, Marios Pattichis, José Antonio Lecea Yanguas, Hector Triana, Carlos López Leiva, Hector Triana Ruiz, Venkatesh Jatla.

Publications

Website

Web App

Book Chapters

  1. LópezLeiva, C. A., Pattichis, M. S., & Celedón-Pattichis, S. (2019). Modelling and programming of digital video: A source for the integration of mathematics, engineering, and technology. In B. Doig, J. Williams, D. Swanson, R. Borromeo Ferri, & P. Drake (Eds.), Interdisciplinary mathematics education: The state of the art and beyond (pp. 135-153). Cham, Switzerland: Springer Open.
  2. LópezLeiva, C., Celedón-Pattichis, S., Pattichis, M. S., & Morales Flores, J. (2017). Teaching and learning number systems for computational thinking: Underrepresented students accessing high-quality STEM practices. In A. Fernandes, S. Crespo, & M. Civil (Eds.), Access and equity: Promoting high-quality mathematics, grades 6-8 (pp. 89-103). Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
  3. LopezLeiva, C., Celedon-Pattichis, S., and Pattichis, M.S., “Participation in the Advancing Out-of-School Learning in Mathematics and Engineering (AOLME) project: Supporting middle school Latinas’ bilingual and STEM identities,” in B. Polnick, B. Irby, & J. Ballenger. (Eds.). Girls and women of color in STEM: Navigating the double bind. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing Inc, accepted, to appear, 2016.

Published Conference Proceedings

  1. Shi, W., Pattichis, M., Celedón-Pattichis, S., and LópezLeiva, C., “Dynamic Group Interactions in Collaborative Learning Videos,” 2018 Asilomar Conference on Signals, Systems, and Computers, 2018.(pp.1528-1531).IEEE
  2. Stubbs, S., Pattichis, M., and Birch, G., “Interactive Image and Video Classification using Compressively Sensed Images,” 2017 Asilomar Conference on Signals, Systems, and Computers, pp. 2038-2041, 2017.
  3. Jacoby, A., Pattichis, M., Celedón-Pattichis, S., and LópezLeiva, C. (2018). Context-sensitive Human Activity Classification in Collaborative Learning Environments. IEEE Southwest Symposium on Image Analysis and Interpretation, pp. 141-144, 2018.
  4. LópezLeiva, C., Celedón-Pattichis, S., Demir, I., Lecea Yanguas, J. A., & Pattichis, M. S. (2018). Attitude scale results of student confidence over time: Participation in an integrated mathematics/computer programming curriculum. Conference Proceedings of the International Colloquium on Languages, Cultures, Identity in School and Society. Soria, Spain.
  5. Shi, W., Pattichis, M., Celedón-Pattichis, S., and LópezLeiva, C. (2018). , Robust Head Detection in Collaborative Learning Environments using AM-FM Representations. IEEE Southwest Symposium on Image Analysis and Interpretation, pp. 65-68.
  6. Pattichis, M. S., Celedon-Pattichis, S., and LopezLeiva, C., “Teaching image and video processing using middle-school mathematics and the Raspberry Pi” , 2017 IEEE International Conference on Acoustics, Speech and Signal Processing (ICASSP), New Orleans, LA, 2017.
  7. Eilar, C. W., Jatla V., Pattichis, M. S., LópezLeiva ,C., and Celedón-Pattichis S., “Ditributed video analysis for the advancing out of school learning in mathematics and engineering project” , 2016 50th Asilomar Conference on Signals, Systems and Computers, Pacific Grove, CA, 2016. pp. 65-68.
  8. LopezLeiva, C., Celedon-Pattichis, S., and Pattichis, M.S., “Integrating mathematics, engineering and technology through mathematics modeling and video representations,” accepted, 13th International Congress on Mathematical Education, Hamburg, Germany, 2016.

Refereed Journal Article

  1. Celedón-Pattichis, S., LópezLeiva, C.A., Pattichis, M.S., and Llamocca, D. (2013). An interdisciplinary collaboration between computer engineering and mathematics/bilingual education to develop a curriculum for underrepresented middle school students. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 8(4), 873-887, doi: 10.1007/s11422-013-9516-5. (url)

Refereed Papers/Presentations at International/National Professional Meetings

  1. Celedón-Pattichis, S., & LópezLeiva, C. A. (2018, July). In-between languages and in-between roles: Latinx middle-school students using translanguaging to enact computer-programming teaching identities. In L. A. Maldonado (Chair), Translanguaging and mathematics:Recognizing and capitalizing on the brilliance of bilingual children. Symposium submitted to the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Toronto, Canada.
  2. Lecea, J. A. (2018, July). Attitude scale results of student confidence over time: Participation in an integrated mathematics/computer programming curriculum. Presented at the annual meeting of the IV International Colloquium on Languages, Cultures, Identity in School and Society, Soria, Spain.
  3. LópezLeiva, C., Celedón-Pattichis, S., Lecea-Yanguas, J. A., & Demir, I. (2018, June). Supporting the development of mathematical and computer programming identities through co-facilitator roles. Paper presented at the TODOS: Mathematics for ALL Conference, Scottsdale, Arizona..
  4. Celedón-Pattichis, S., LópezLeiva, C. A., & Pattichis, M. S. (2018, June). Broadening the participation of Latinx students in learning mathematics and computer programming: Affordances and challenges. Presented at the annual meeting of the Discovery Research PreK-12 and STEM + C PI Meeting, Washington, D.C.
  5. Celedón-Pattichis, S., LópezLeiva, C. A., Barraza, M., Vennard, L., Lecea Yanguas, J. A., Pattichis, M. S., & Cavazos DeLa Rocha, I. L., Noriega, G., Kussainova, G., Demir, I., & Triana Ruiz, H. (2018, March). Bilingual middle school students learning to code with their teachers: Affordances and challenges. Presented at the annual meeting of the National Association for Bilingual Education, Albuquerque, New Mexico.
  6. Lecea Yanguas, J. A., Noriega, G., Barraza, M., & Cavazos DeLaRocha, I. L. (November, 2017). Conexiones entre lenguaje académico bilingüe y sistemas numéricos matemáticos y de programación. Presented at the annual meeting of La Cosecha de Otoño, Two-Way Dual Language Immersion Conference, Albuquerque, New Mexico.
  7. Noriega, G., Lecea Yanguas, J. A., Cavazos DeLaRocha, I. L., & Vennard, L. (November, 2017). Professional development that supports Bilingual STEM communication and collaboration practices. Presented at the annual meeting of La Cosecha de Otoño, Two-Way Dual Language Immersion Conference, Albuquerque, New Mexico.
  8. LópezLeiva, C. A. (2017, April). Thriving in STEM: Middle school students' narratives on accessing STEM practices. In Yeping Li (Chair), We can succeed in STEM: Ensuring equitable opportunities and support to all. Symposium conducted at the 2017 NCTM Research Conference. San Antonio, TX.
  9. Celedón-Pattichis, S., LópezLeiva, C. A., & Pattichis, M. S. (February, 2017). Teaching and learning number systems: Bilingual students accessing high quality STEM practices. Paper presented at the National Association of Bilingual Education, Dallas, Texas.
  10. Eilar, C., Jatla, V., Pattichis, M. S., Celedón-Pattichis, S., & LópezLeiva, C. A. (November, 2016). Distributed video analysis for the advancing out-of-school learning in mathematics and engineering project. Paper presented at the 2016 Asilomar Conference on Signals, Systems, and Computers, Asilomar, California.
  11. Celedón-Pattichis, S., LópezLeiva, C.A., Pattichis, M.S., & Llamocca, D. (2014, April). "At first it was very hard, then it was fun": Conjecturing a learning trajectory for underrepresented middle school students in mathematics and engineering. In K. Gomez (Chair), Creating contexts of pedagogical and curricular support for non-English background students in mathematics and science. Symposium conducted at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association. Philadelphia, PA.
  12. Celedón-Pattichis, S., LópezLeiva, C.A., Pattichis, M.S., & Llamocca, D. (2013, October). Advancing out-of-school learning in mathematics and engineering. In R. Gutiérrez (Chair), Learning to do math inside and outside of school - fostering productive mathematical practices and identity development for Latin@ youth. Scientific Research Symposium presented at the annual meeting of the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in the Sciences, San Antonio, TX.
  13. Orozco, I. (with Dr. Sylvia Celedón-Pattichis as McNair Scholar Mentor). (October, 2013). Research within the advancing out-of-school learning in mathematics and engineering (AOLME) project: Addressing Latino/a students' identity development in the field of engineering. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in the Sciences, San Antonio, TX.
  14. LópezLeiva, C.A., Celedón-Pattichis, S., Pattichis, M.S., & Llamocca, D. (2013, September). Image representation in a middle school afterschool program. Paper presented at the 4th International Realistic Mathematics Education Conference, Boulder, Colorado. (abstract)
  15. LópezLeiva, C., Celedón-Pattichis, S., Pattichis, M.S., & Llamocca, D. (2013, April). Successes and challenges of supporting interactive learning in a mathematics and engineering afterschool program for middle school students. In M.Q. Foote (Chair), Issues of Equity and Diversity in Mathematics Education. Paper presented in roundtable session at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco, CA.
  16. LópezLeiva, C., & Pattichis, M.S. (2012, October). "With our feet on the ground:" Affordances and challenges of developing an integrated STEM approach for Latina/o middle school students. In S. Celedón-Pattichis (Chair), Making our voiced heard: Negotiating the promises and challenges of STEM education for historically underrepresented youth. Scientific Research Symposium presented at the annual meeting of the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in the Sciences, Seattle, WA.

Theses

Hand Movement Detection in Collaborative Learning Environment Videos, 2018

This thesis explores detection of hand movement using color and optical flow. Exploratory analysis considered the problem component wise on components created from thresholds applied to motion and color. The proposed approach uses patch color classification, space-time patches of video, and histogram of optical flow. The approach was validated on video patches extracted from 15 AOLME video clips. The approach achieved an average accuracy of 84% and an average receiver operating characteristic area under curve (ROC AUC) of 89%.
UNM Digital repository Download Software

Context-Sensitive Human Activity Classification in Video Utilizing Object Recognition and Motion Estimation, 2017

This thesis explores the use of color based object detection in conjunction with contextualization of object interaction to isolate motion vectors specific to an activity sought within uncropped video. Feature extraction in this thesis differs significantly from other methods by using geometric relationships between objects to infer con- text. The approach avoids the need for video cropping or substantial preprocessing by significantly reducing the number of features analyzed in a single frame. The method was tested using 43 uncropped video clips with 620 video frames for writing, 1050 for typing, and 1755 frames for talking. Using simple KNN classification, the method gave accuracies of 72.6% for writing, 71% for typing and 84.6% for talk- ing. Classification accuracy improved to 92.5% (writing), 82.5% (typing) and 99.7% (talking) with the use of a trained Deep Neural Network.
UNM Digital repository Download Software

Human Attention Detection Using AM-FM Representations, 2016

The thesis explores phase-based solutions for (i) detecting faces, (ii) back of the heads, (iii) joint detection of faces and back of the heads, and (iv) whether the head is looking to the left or the right, using standard video cameras without any control on the imaging geometry. The proposed phase-based approach is based on the development of simple and robust methods that relie on the use of Amplitude Modulation - Frequency Modulation (AM-FM) models.For the students facing the camera, the method was able to correctly classify 97.1% of them looking to the left and 95.9% of them looking to the right. For the students facing the back of the camera, the method was able to correctly classify 87.6% of them looking to the left and 93.3% of them looking to the right. The results indicate that AM-FM based methods hold great promise for analyzing human activity videos.
UNM Digital repository

Distributed and Scalable Video Analysis Architecture for Human Activity Recognition Using Cloud Services, 2016

This thesis proposes an open-source, maintainable system for detecting human activity in large video datasets using scalable hardware architectures. The system is validated by detecting writing and typing activities that were collected as part of the Advancing Out of School Learning in Mathematics and Engineering (AOLME) project. The implementation of the system using Amazon Web Services (AWS) is shown to be both horizontally and vertically scalable. The software associated with the system was designed to be robust so as to facilitate reproducibility and extensibility for future research.
UNM Digital repository

Lesson Plan and Workbook for Introducing Python Game Programming to Support the Advancing Out-of-School Learning in Mathematics and Engineering (AOLME) Project

The Advancing Out-of-School Learning in Mathematics and Engineering (AOLME) project was created specifically for providing integrated mathematics and engineering experiences to middle-school students from under-represented groups. The thesis presents a new approach to introducing game programming to middle -school students that have undergone AOLME-training while still maintaining a fun and relaxed environment. The thesis provides a discussion of three different educational, visual-programming environments that are also designed for younger programmers and provides motivation for the proposed approach based on Python. The thesis details interactive activities that are intended for supporting the students to develop their own games in Python.
UNM Digital repository

Projects

“Fast Image Classification using Compressively Sensed Images”, Jaclynn J. Stubbs, Spring 2017.

Undergraduate Projects

“A WebApp to Support Digital Video Database Annotation”, Abby Jacoby and Alexander Kaberlein, 2015 - 2016.
GitHub

Matlab code

Matlab Video Labeler CropImage matlab file