Becoming an Author: Engaging High School Students in Disciplinary Practices

Abstract

It is generally considered that students who want to become scientists engage in scientific practices as university students, particularly when pursuing postgraduate studies. However, schools and teachers can help students participate in authentic scientific and disciplinary practices, such as data sampling and analysis, in high school. The authors explore the case of a Mexican high school student whose experience in becoming a published scientific author was afforded through the synergy of different factors, such as a specific school’s curriculum, a teacher’s pedagogy based on his real experience as a scientist, and an institutional context that favors scientific endeavors. The findings are discussed based on Moje’s framework of common disciplinary practices and Knorr‐Cetina’s definition of habitual and epistemic practices.

Empowering future scientists: Mentors employ various strategies to engage students in professional science disciplinary literacy practices

“…The way in which mentors mechanize their values will provide insight for future research on mentoring relationships. Although much research has been deployed to understand the mentor-mentee relationship and impact, no research presently exists (that we could find) on mentor perceptions and enactment of professional disciplinary literacy skills as part of the research process for pre-college students (García-Verdugo et al, 2020; Ian O’Byrne et al, 2021; Spires et al, 2018). In this study we seek to answer the following research questions: ● What are the mentors’ perceptions of the disciplinary literacy practices of peer-review and publication, particularly for the pre-college students they are mentoring? ● Why are mentors motivated to guide their students in publication? ● How do mentors support their students in peer-review and publication? ● What do the mentors experience in the mentorship process? …”

“…The way in which mentors mechanize their values will provide insight for future research on mentoring relationships. Although much research has been deployed to understand the mentor-mentee relationship and impact, no research presently exists (that we could find) on mentor perceptions and enactment of professional disciplinary literacy skills as part of the research process for pre-college students (García-Verdugo et al, 2020;Ian O'Byrne et al, 2021;Spires et al, 2018). In this study we seek to answer the following research questions:…”