STEM High School Communities

Abstract

Using observations and interviews, the researchers explore the experiences and perspectives of students, teachers, and administrators at six specialized high schools with a focus on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) as they pertain to the practices and structures affecting student outcomes. Four themes were found to be common across schools: a culture of intellectualism and inclusion, a valuation on research, the role of inquiry, and the importance of personal responsibility and independent learning for students. Nuanced differences were noted across sites, notably the difference in student-reported levels of stress; however, substantial differences in student experiences based on STEM school model type were not observed.

Variations in the Intensity of Specialized Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) High Schools

“…As noted above, common themes across specialized STEM schools are evident and are not differentiated by model type (full-time residential, pullout, full-time nonresidential or university based; Tofel-Grehl & Callahan, 2014). Yet, there were differences across schools, so the next apparent step was to attempt to discern ways in which the schools might differ according to other categorization schemes.…”

“…For a more complete explanation of various model types of STEM schools refer to Tofel-Grehl and Callahan (2014) or Thomas and Williams (2009). However, briefly, there are roughly five different school models frequently employed for specialized STEM schools.…”

“…1 Common model types include school-within-a-school model, pullout programs, stand-alone schools, residential schools, and university-based schools. Each model type possesses unique programmatic features; however, model type has not been observed to be a key variable affecting student learning opportunities (Tofel-Grehl & Callahan, 2014). It bears noting that model types are often not entirely independent; often schools employ mixed model types to best develop a unique learning experience.…”

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Educators and policymakers in the United States advocate the development of specialized STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) schools, but little is known about the unique features and practices of these schools. Because no meaningful differences have been found attributable to model type (Tofel-Grehl & Callahan, 2014), the current study purposefully sampled 6 specialized STEM schools in the United States that provided different levels of STEM experiences for students related to highly varied goals and missions using a grounded theory approach. Schools were found to fall into two categories, high and low STEM intensity, based on five major traits.

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Mathematics achievement in the secondary high school context of STEM and non‐STEM schools

“…The growth of STEM-focused schools in the United States has been investigated and confirmed by several researchers whose findings show the increasing prevalence of these specialized schools among other forms of schools in the nation. By 2007, there were 315 STEM-focused public schools active in the U.S. (Means, Confrey, House, & Bhonot, 2008), and in 2014, extensive research identified 358 STEM-focused public and private schools (Tofel-Grehl & Callahan, 2014). This number is expected to increase substantially in response to the initiative of President Obama's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST, 2010;Raju & Clayson, 2010).…”