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Transformative experience refers to learning episodes in which students use ideas from the science classroom to see and experience the world differently in their everyday lives. The construct is defined by three characteristics: (1) motivated use (application of learning in “free‐choice” contexts), (2) expansion of perception (seeing objects, events, or issues through the lens of the content), and (3) experiential value (valuing content for how it enriches everyday experience). To enhance conceptions of engagement in science, the current study sought to identify and describe profiles of transformative engagement by investigating levels and combinations of the three characteristics of transformative experience. In addition, it examined how learning and instruction relate to these profiles. Sixty‐five middle school science students were interviewed and responses were coded for the three characteristics of transformative experience. Scores on these characteristics were used as variables in cluster analysis and representative clusters were identified. Profiles of transformative engagement were developed and described based on these clusters. Profiles representing greater transformative engagement were associated with greater learning. Relative to a comparison condition, instruction designed to foster transformative experience yielded a higher percentage of students in the profile reflecting engagement in a genuine transformative experience.

We used the social‐cognitive choice model (Lent et al., 2018) as a framework for investigating academic and career choice in the domain of geoscience for male and female students. In addition, we explored the role of perceived connection to instructors and transformative experience as additional factors in the social‐cognitive choice model. A total of 525 individuals from six geoscience departments participated. We conducted three path models with confidence in geoscience among majors (Model 1), intent to major in geoscience among non‐majors (Model 2), and intent to pursue a career in geoscience (Model 3) as outcome variables. Overall, the baseline social‐cognitive choice model explained a moderate amount of variance with variation by model and gender. Students' interest in and identification with geoscience was an important direct predictor of outcomes in all three models. Adding connection to instructor to the baseline model significantly increased the model fit and contributed to the amount of variance explained in Models 2 and 3, but not Model 1. Further, connection to instructor was found to mediate the relation between interest/identity and outcomes as well as directly predict outcomes in Models 2 and 3. These results held for male and female students. Adding transformative experience to the baseline plus connection to instructor model further increased the model fit and contributed to the amount of variance explained for female student in Models 2 and 3, but not for Model 1 and not for male students. Further, transformative experience was found to mediate the relation between interest/identity and outcomes as well as directly predict outcomes in all three models, but only for female students. These results suggest instructors may strengthen geoscience pathways by developing students' interest in geoscience, establishing connections with students, and, for female students, fostering transformative experiences.

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