Toward Sustained Cultural Change through Chemistry Graduate Student Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Communities

Deng, Jacky M.; McMunn, Leah; Oakley, Meagan S.; Dang, Hoang T.; Rodriguez, Rebeca S.

doi:10.1021/acs.jchemed.1c00485

Cited by 9 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 59 publications

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“…opportunities for all people by eliminating prejudice and discrimination 1,2 . The existence of a diversity deficit in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) has prompted a lot of research and discussion about how to create a more diverse student body and workforce.…”

Section: Rebalancing the Historical Female Under-representation In Ed...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…DEIR (Diversity, Equality, Inclusion, and Respect) aims to ensure equal treatment and opportunities for all people by eliminating prejudice and discrimination. , The existence of a diversity − deficit in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) has prompted a lot of research and discussion about how to create a more diverse student body and workforce. All students gain from connecting with various viewpoints when STEM faculties understand how to make use of diversity .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rebalancing the Historical Female Underrepresentation in Education

et al. 2022

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Women are increasingly present in the field of engineering, and despite a significant female presence, it has been found that the programmes continue to make no reference to women scientists. In chemical engineering, for example, all the names of scientists mentioned in the programmes belong to men only. To test this hypothesis of the overrepresentation of men in the programmes, a series of random opinion surveys were launched among 600 students from 5 universities to find out whether they had noticed this over-representation and what they thought about it. The results showed that the vast majority did not realize that the scientists presented as examples in classes were all men. In fact, 90% of the student panel were unable to identify a woman in the chemical engineering field, and the remaining 10% could cite only one or two -who were among the most recent and had received most attention from the media. The issue of inequalities between girls and boys and between women and men in education remains central to understanding and combating gender inequalities and to enabling people to develop as persons free from the limitations imposed on them by gender stereotypes. However, these inequalities cannot be explained exclusively by the issue of access to education but must also take the type and content of education into account. This article is a call for reflection on the content of university curricula and has a twofold objective: on the one hand, to raise awareness of this imbalance in representation among students, both male and female, and, on the other hand, to launch reflection on this "invisibility of women" and to propose some avenues for debate.

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Section: Rebalancing the Historical Female Under-representation In Ed...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rebalancing the Historical Female Underrepresentation in Education

et al. 2022

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“…These communities allowed trainees to navigate their common challenges by sharing strategies, inspiring each other, and providing each other with emotional support. 48,49 When asked what advice she would have for other Eng+ trainees, Marjan focused on the importance of seeking out social events to find friends and establish a support system (Table 4a). Daniella recalled a moment when other Eng+ trainees saw her present at a conference, expressing to her that they felt inspired and reassured hearing her speak (Table 4a).…”

Section: Learning and Communication Challenges Contribute To Delays I...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Or should we instead direct our efforts to better support Eng+ trainees as colleagues, supervisors, and institutions, especially as our community strives to create more equitable, inclusive, and diverse research and learning environments? 49,53,54 The following section details themes related to strategies and supports that Eng+ trainees viewed as helpful and/or needed in navigating language challenges in chemistry.…”

Section: Learning and Communication Challenges Contribute To Delays I...mentioning

confidence: 99%

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“I am working 24/7, but I can't translate that to you”: The barriers, strategies, and needed supports reported by chemistry trainees from English-as-additional language backgrounds

Deng

Flynn

2022

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Having a shared language such as English facilitates globalization of science but it can also limit science by poses barriers for those who have learned English-as-an-additional language (Eng+). There is currently no research focused on the experi-ences of Eng+ graduate students and postdoctoral researchers (“trainees”) in chemistry and related sciences, despite the grow-ing prominence of Eng+ trainees and ongoing calls for improving equity and inclusion in the sciences. Without research focused on Eng+ trainees, we risk losing out on a diversity of perspectives and expertise that might otherwise strengthen scientific progress. This study represents a first step in developing and evaluating strategies that effectively support Eng+ chemistry trainees by investigating their experiences with learning, communicating, and doing chemistry in English. This research was guided by three research questions: (1) What are Eng+ chemistry graduate students’ and post-doctoral research-ers’ (i.e., trainees) language experiences before entering English-dominant research programs? (2) What language barriers have trainees faced in learning, communicating, and doing chemistry? and (3) What strategies and supports have been helpful or needed? To investigate these RQs, we conducted semi-structured focus groups and interviews with 18 Eng+ chemistry graduate students and post-doctoral researchers, followed by qualitative analysis to identify key themes. We found that trainees had diverse language experiences before entering English-dominant research programs and faced challenges working in an English research environment. Trainees described research impacts that included avoiding interactions with colleagues, exacerbated feelings of imposter syndrome, needing extra time to learn or communicate, and not being able to fully express their knowledge. They expressed an ongoing desire to learn English and described their various independent strategies, demonstrating resilience and growth mindset to navigate challenges. All participants believed that research supervisors and institutions needed to play a larger role in supporting Eng+ trainees, such as empathetic supervisors who offer personal and professional support, and institutional supports that provide chemistry-specific knowledge-building and networking opportunities. Based on the findings, we recommend approaches that supervisors and institutions can enact that may improve linguistic equity in the chemical sciences.

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“I Am Working 24/7, but I Can’t Translate That to You”: The Barriers, Strategies, and Needed Supports Reported by Chemistry Trainees from English-as-an-Additional Language Backgrounds

Deng

Flynn

2023

J. Chem. Educ.

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Having a shared language such as English facilitates the globalization of science, but it can also limit science by posing barriers for those who have learned English-as-an-additional language (Eng+). Research on the experiences of Eng+ graduate students and postdoctoral researchers ("trainees") is needed as our scientific community becomes more diverse and continues working toward improving equity and inclusion; without such research, we risk losing out on perspectives and expertise that might otherwise strengthen scientific progress. We investigated three research questions: (1) What are Eng+ chemistry trainees' language experiences before entering English-dominant research programs? (2) What language barriers have trainees faced in learning, communicating, and doing chemistry? and (3) What strategies and supports have been helpful or needed? In focus groups and interviews with 18 Eng+ trainees, participants described having diverse language experiences before entering English-dominant research programs and faced challenges working in an English research environment. Participants reported avoiding interactions with colleagues, exacerbated feelings of imposter syndrome, needing extra time to learn or communicate, and not being able to fully express their knowledge. Participants expressed an ongoing desire to learn English and described various independent strategies to navigate challenges. All participants believed that research supervisors and institutions needed to play a larger role in supporting Eng+ trainees, such as supervisors who offer personal and professional support, and institutional supports that provide chemistry-specific knowledge-building and networking opportunities. Based on the findings, we recommend approaches that supervisors and institutions can enact that may improve linguistic equity in the chemical sciences.

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Toward Sustained Cultural Change through Chemistry Graduate Student Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Communities

Cited by 9 publications

References 59 publications

Rebalancing the Historical Female Underrepresentation in Education

Rebalancing the Historical Female Underrepresentation in Education

“I am working 24/7, but I can't translate that to you”: The barriers, strategies, and needed supports reported by chemistry trainees from English-as-additional language backgrounds

“I Am Working 24/7, but I Can’t Translate That to You”: The Barriers, Strategies, and Needed Supports Reported by Chemistry Trainees from English-as-an-Additional Language Backgrounds

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