Researchers are often interested in identifying homogeneous subgroups within heterogeneous samples on the basis of a set of measures, such as profiles of individuals' motivation (i.e., their values, competence beliefs, and achievement goals). Latent Profile Analysis (LPA) is a statistical method for identifying such groups, or latent profiles, and is a special case of the general mixture model where all measured variables are continuous (Harring & Hodis, 2016; Pastor, Barron, Miller, & Davis, 2007). The tidyLPA package allows users to specify different models that determine whether and how different parameters (i.e., means, variances, and covariances) are estimated, and to specify and compare different solutions based on the number of profiles extracted. The aim of the tidyLPA package is to provide a simple interface for conducting and evaluating LPA models. Given that LPA is only one type of mixture model, we do not expect it to replace the more general functionality of other tools that allow for the estimation of wider range of models. Nevertheless, this package provides convenient methods for conducting LPA using both open-source and commercial software, while aligning with a widely used coding framework (i.e., tidy data, described more below). In doing so, tidyLPA allows researchers with and without access to proprietary tools, such as MPlus, to conduct LPA.

Science education reform efforts in the Unites States call for a dramatic shift in the way students are expected to engage with scientific concepts, core ideas, and practices in the classroom. This new vision of science learning demands a more complex conceptual understanding of student engagement and research models that capture both the multidimensionality and contextual specificity of student engagement in science. In a unique application of person-oriented analysis of experience sampling data, we employ cluster analysis to identify six distinct momentary engagement profiles representing different combinations of the behavioral, cognitive, and affective dimensions of student engagement in high school science classrooms. Students spend a majority of their classroom time in one of several engagement profiles characterized by high engagement on one dimension, but low levels on the others. Students exhibited low engagement across all three dimensions of engagement in about 22% of our observations. Full engagement, or high levels across all three dimensions, is the least frequent profile, occurring in only 11% of the observations. Students' momentary engagement profiles are related in meaningful ways to both the learning activity in which students are engaged and the types of choices they are afforded. Laboratory activities provided especially polarized engagement experiences, producing full engagement, universally low engagement, and pleasurable engagement in which students are affectively engaged but are not engaged cognitively or behaviorally. Student choice is generally associated with more optimal engagement profiles and the specific type of choice matters in important ways. Choices about how to frame the learning activity have the most positive effects relative to other types of choices, such as choosing whom to work with or how much time to take. Results are discussed in terms of implications for practice and the utility of the methodological approach for evaluating the complexities of student engagement in science classrooms.

Supporting productive peer-to-peer interaction is a central challenge in online courses.  Although cooperative learning research provides robust evidence for the positive outcomes of face-to-face cooperative learning (Johnson & Johnson, 1989), online modes of cooperative learning have provided mixed results. This study examines the effects of synchronous versus asynchronous interaction on students’ sense of cooperation, belonging, and affect in online small-group discussions. Fifty-two undergraduate students were assigned to synchronous and asynchronous interaction conditions.  The findings support prior research that asynchronous communication interferes with the relationship between cooperative goals and the outcomes of cooperation. Results inform theory and practice, by showing that asynchronous cooperative learning may not work as designed because the presence of cooperative goals do not predict cooperative outcomes.

Out‐of‐school‐time programs for youth that are focused on STEM content are often seen as affording opportunities to increase youth engagement, interest, and knowledge in STEM domains, yet we know relatively little about how youth actually experience such programs. In this article, we explore how experiences and activities employed in the delivery of summer STEM programs are associated with youth engagement during programming, and whether youth characteristics moderate these relationships. Data were collected from 203 youth (ages 10–16) in nine summer programs using multiple methods including video, experience sampling, and surveys. Through the use of cross‐classified, multi‐level models, we found that youth reported higher engagement in program activities they perceived to be more challenging and relevant, and in activities, they perceived to have more affordances for learning or developing skills. Gender moderated these relationships such that the positive relationships observed among males were muted or nonexistent for girls. We further identify that program activities are differently associated with fostering challenge, relevance, and learning. Findings have implications for out‐of‐school STEM programming for youth.

Motivation is a subject that is constantly discussed in the field of education. Teachers are taught not only to teach their students, but to motivate them to want to learn. As students get older, intrinsic motivation tends to decrease; therefore it becomes more difficult for teachers to motivate students (Ryan and Deci, 2000a). According to self-determination theory (Ryan and Deci, 2000a, 2000b), students' needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness must be met in order to experience positive social development and growth. When these needs are met, students experience high levels of self-motivation. Offering choice in the classroom is one way to increase student motivation by appealing to students' needs for autonomy and competence. In the fields of marketing, economics and social psychology, decision-making research is examined as a way to shape consumers' preferences. This literature review will aim to utilise and possibly translate some of these findings to an educational setting. By examining the aspect of choice in separate fields, it can be seen that there is still much to be researched in the field of education. Recommendations for future research on choice in the field of education are made.

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We tested the long-term effects of a utility-value intervention administered in a gateway chemistry course, with the goal of promoting persistence and diversity in STEM. In a randomized controlled trial (N = 2,505), students wrote three essays about course content and its personal relevance or three control essays. The intervention significantly improved STEM persistence overall (74% vs. 70% were STEM majors 2.5 y later). Effects were larger for students from marginalized and underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, who were 14 percentage points more likely to persist in STEM fields in the intervention condition (69% vs. 55%). Mediation analysis suggests that the intervention promoted persistence for these students by bolstering their motivation to attain a STEM degree and by promoting engagement with course assignments. This theory-informed curricular intervention is a promising tool for educators committed to retaining students in STEM.