To educate engineers or to engineer educators?: Exploring access to engineering careers

Abstract

Although studies claim increases in underrepresented populations choosing STEM majors, barriers to retention, and higher education degree completion in STEM still exist. This study examined efforts of a prominent technical university to attract and retain urban high school graduates through a tuition scholarship program. We sought to determine the trajectories of recruited urban high school graduates and explored students reasoning behind their choice of STEM majors. Findings revealed unforeseen obstacles prohibiting students from pursuing STEM degrees despite free tuition and other benefits of the diversity recruitment program. Student obstacles included: (i) logistic barriers; (ii) academic resources access; and (iii) social/cultural support. A secondary but related finding was the self-realization of engineering faculty culpability in the attrition they observed. This critical account of race and privilege told by insiders to the engineering discipline speaks directly to the failure of educational institutions to address essential components of the economic and academic segregation which currently exists against a backdrop of reform calls which aim to diversify the engineering workforce. Implications for future research and recruitment efforts are discussed. # 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 9999:XX-XX, 2017 Keywords: at-risk-students; opportunity gaps; critical race theory; engineering education; privilege; STEM major selection; urban education; assessment driven instruction; equity and diversity; ethnography In response to concerns the United States is losing ground in technical and innovation capabilities (National Science Board, 2014), there have been numerous calls to action to strengthen the STEM pipeline by enrolling and graduating more students from university programs in STEM. In 2004 alone, "Thirteen federal civilian agencies spent approximately $2.8 billion . . . to increase the numbers of students in STEM Fields and employees in STEM occupations and to improve related educational programs" (Ashby, 2006, p. ii). By increasing the number of individuals entering STEM fields, the goal of these measures is to support U.S. efforts to ". . . continue to innovate, lead, and create jobs of the future" (NGSS Lead States, 2013, p. 1). With predictions that by 2018 the growth rate of many science and engineering occupations will be faster than average (National Science Board, 2010), failure to strengthen the STEM pipeline could potentially erode the U.S.'s ability to remain competitive in a global economy. Engineering education reform documents continue to call for diversifying the ranks of engineers, yet the complexion of the engineering workforce has remained relatively static in its representation, expanding its non-White male membership from 9% to only 13% in over three decades (Landivar, 2013). As many studies reveal (Brandt, 2008;Brown et al

The Gifted Gap, STEM Education, and Economic Immobility

“…Although White students and students from underrepresented groups express similar levels of interest in pursuing STEM degrees (44% for both groups), only 27% Black and Latinx students who initially declare interest graduate with a STEM degree compared with 46% of White students (Hurtado, Newman, Tran, & Chang, 2010). These disparities occur, in part, due to the lack of opportunity for advanced STEM coursework in high school (Eastman, Christman, Zion, & Yerrick, 2017;Tyson, Lee, Borman, & Hanson, 2007). In 2011-2012, Black and Latinx students made up 16% and 24% of the public school population, respectively, but only 7.5% and 13.5% of the students enrolled in AP science courses (U.S. Department of Education, 2016).…”

Exploring the White and male culture: Investigating individual perspectives of equity and privilege in engineering education

“…Critical race awareness and recognition of racial disparities can and should permeate conversations about diversity in engineering, but how do we initiate these conversations? Only after directly engaging with college students traditionally underrepresented in STEM did engineering faculty begin to fully appreciate the disparity of educational opportunity between urban and suburban landscapes (Eastman, Christman, Zion, & Yerrick, ).…”

Uso combinado de software libre y de técnicas analíticas para facilitar la comprensión de los diagramas de equilibrio químico

“…La formación de profesionales en el ámbito de las enseñanzas universitarias técnicas y de ingeniería (conocidas en inglés por las siglas STEM, Science Technology Engineering Mathematics) se ha caracterizado tradicionalmente por tener unas tasas de finalización de estudios más reducidas que en otras áreas de la enseñanza superior (Eastman et al, 2017). En el caso de los estudios en ingeniería química, algunos autores destacan la relación entre los alumnos que encuentran dificultad en aprobar las asignaturas de química general y los que abandonan los estudios prematuramente (Lou & Jaeggi, 2020).…”