A case study of long-term engagement and identity-in-practice: Insights into the STEM pathways of four underrepresented youths

Abstract

Our longitudinal study unpacks how an informal summer science and mathematics enrichment program influenced the educational pathways of four first-generation college-bound students. Through the lens of identity-in-practice and navigations, we explore their figured worlds of science, positioning and authoring of self in science as they applied to the program, as they participated in the program and later, in light of their college pathways. We explore the range of social and material supports the program made available to the four youth. We also show how they became consequential and for some facilitated navigations into college and STEM degrees while others experienced uncoordinated practices over time that pushed them out of science. Our study of local struggles at three pivotal moments in time attests to the agentive side of youth as they navigate in and out of science and engage in improvisational acts to get educated despite being tangled up in a matrix of oppression. At the same time, our study calls for systemic approaches that bring formal and informal science venues together in a more seamless manner. We call for a strength-based model that recognizes and leverages youths' figured worlds, positionings, and authored selves in science across context and over time in ways that they become consequential, empowering, and supportive of STEM pathways. We also call for more longitudinal studies committed to a theoretical grounding in identity-in-practice and navigations. # 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 53: 2016

Emotional and motivational outcomes of lab work in the secondary intermediate track: The contribution of a science center outreach lab

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Equity in college physics student learning: A critical quantitative intersectionality investigation

“…For example, Black women face marginalization from White men, White women, and Black men in their physics education (Dortch & Patel, ). The studies examining the intersection of physics student races and genders have used qualitative methods to investigate the experiences of women of color (Fries‐Britt, Johnson, & Burt, ; Fries‐Britt, Younger, & Hall, ; Holmes, ; Hyater‐Adams, Williams, Fracchiolla, Finkelstein, & Hinko, ; Johnson, ; McGee & Bentley, ; Ong, ; Rahm & Moore, ; Rosa & Mensah, ). The present study differs from these prior studies by using a CQI framework to operationalize equity and explore the intersectional experiences of college physics students using statistical models.…”

Early informal STEM experiences and STEM identity: The importance of talking science

“…growing evidence supporting the importance of these early experiences, like tinkering with electronics and attending science camps, it remains unclear which ones are the most formative in terms of long-lasting impact on STEM career intentions (Dabney et al, 2012, Maltese, Melki, & Wiebke, 2014, National Research Council, 2009, Sahin, 2013. A large body of qualitative research has connected early informal experiences to science identity development (e.g., Barton et al, 2013;Maltese & Tai, 2010;Rahm & Moore, 2016;Zimmerman, 2012), which in turn has been found to be a robust lens for understanding why students make certain career choices (Carlone & Johnson, 2007;Godwin, Potvin, Hazari, & Lock, 2016). However, the relationship between early informal learning experiences, STEM identity, and STEM career intention is not well understood.…”