Beyond Student Factors: a Study of the Impact on STEM Career Attainment

Ketenci, Tuba; Leroux, Audrey J.; Renken, Maggie

doi:10.1007/s41979-020-00037-9

Cited by 26 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…Generally, private high schools offer more advanced mathematics and science courses and have a higher socioeconomic and college preparatory profile (Lee et al, 1998). As such, students in private schools are better positioned for postsecondary STEM majors and STEM careers (Ketenci et al, 2020). School urbanicity matters as well.…”

Section: Disparities In Us Postsecondary Stem Education and Beyondmentioning

confidence: 99%

Perceived abilities or academic interests? Longitudinal high school science and mathematics effects on postsecondary STEM outcomes by gender and race

Zhao

Perez‐Felkner

2022

IJ STEM Ed

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Purpose of the study Previous literature has examined the relationship between high school students’ postsecondary STEM major choices and their prior interest and perceived ability in mathematics. Yet, we have limited understanding of whether and how perceived ability and interest in science and mathematics jointly affect students’ STEM major choices. Results Using the most recent nationally representative longitudinal cohort of U.S. secondary school students, we examine the degree to which students’ perceived mathematical and scientific abilities and interests predict their STEM major choices, employing logistic regression and a series of interaction analyses. We find that while both mathematics and science perceived ability positively influence STEM major selection, academic interest in these subjects is a weaker predictor. Moreover, across a series of analyses, we observe a significant gender gap—whereby women are less than half as likely to select STEM majors—as well as nuanced distinctions by self-identified race. The relationships among perceived ability, interest, and STEM major choice are not found to meaningfully vary by race nor consistently by gender. However, perceived ability has a more positive effect for men than women who are pursuing Computing/Engineering majors and a more positive effect for women than men who are pursuing other STEM majors, including less applied Social/Behavioral, Natural, and Other Sciences. Implications These findings suggest potential opportunities to enhance their perceived mathematical and scientific abilities in high school, positioning them to potentially enter STEM fields. School sites with more resources to support the ambitions of STEM students of all backgrounds may be better positioned to reduce postsecondary disparities in STEM fields. Given existing opportunity gaps and resource differentials among schools, corresponding recommendations are suggested.

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Section: Disparities In Us Postsecondary Stem Education and Beyondmentioning

confidence: 99%

Perceived abilities or academic interests? Longitudinal high school science and mathematics effects on postsecondary STEM outcomes by gender and race

Zhao

Perez‐Felkner

2022

IJ STEM Ed

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“…This finding coincides with the results of the research conducted by Ciftci et al (2020) andKoyunlu Ünlü &Döküm (2020). Similarly, there are studies showing boys are more interested in engineering than girls and the perception that engineering is a more suitable profession for men (Capobianco et al2011;Ketenci et al, 2020;Knight & Cunningham, 2004;Yıldırım & Türk, 2018). There are also studies indicating that student's attitudes towards STEM change depending on gender (Christensen & Knezek 2017;Karakaya et al, 2018).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is striking that although the girls have high attitudes towards mathematics; their attitudes towards engineering and technology are low. If there is no intervention in the primary school period, it may continue during the middle and high school periods (Ketenci et al, 2020). Therefore, instructional activities can be organized to increase girls' engineering and technology attitudes.…”

Section: Implications For Policy and Practicementioning

confidence: 99%

STEM in Transition from Primary School to Middle School: Primary School Students Attitudes

Karalar¹,

Sidekli²,

Yıldırım³

2021

iejee

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This study aims to examine the STEM attitudes of primary school fourth-grade students who are in the transition period from primary school to middle school. More specifically, this study examines whether the students' attitudes towards STEM significantly differ according to gender, parents' educational background, science achievement, and mathematics achievement. The data obtained from 221 fourth-grade students through the STEM Attitude Scale were analyzed by independent sample t-test and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). The research results revealed that students move from primary school to middle school with a high STEM attitude. In this transition, girls' attitudes towards mathematics and boys' towards engineering and technology were higher. The tendency in engineering and technology attitudes differs only in favor of male students but does not differ significantly in parents' educational background, science, and mathematics achievement. While there was no significant difference in general STEM attitudes of the students in terms of gender and mother's education, there was a difference in father's education, mathematics, and science achievement. Following, the research results were discussed, and recommendations for policymakers and practitioners were presented.

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“…That is, we estimated the relations between parents' STEM support and adolescents' later STEM motivational beliefs for adolescents with similar math achievement levels to start with. Lastly, demographic factors (i.e., parent education level, adolescent gender, family income) and adolescents' school type were incorporated as covariates to account for some unobserved biases in the broader contexts that adolescents are embedded in (e.g., Jiang et al, 2020; Ketenci et al, 2020; Nasir & Vakil, 2017; Svoboda et al, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Longitudinal associations between parent degree/occupation, parent support, and adolescent motivational beliefs in STEM

Hsieh

Simpkins

2022

Journal of Adolescence

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Introduction The United States struggles with racial/ethnic disparities in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) degrees and occupations. According to situated expectancy‐value theory, the experience and knowledge parents gain through STEM degrees and occupations shape the STEM support they provide and relatedly their adolescents' STEM motivational beliefs. Methods We analyzed data from the High School Longitudinal Study (N = 14,000; 50% female; Mage = 14 years old at 9th grade), which is a recent U.S. data set that surveyed a nationally representative sample of adolescents. Results and Conclusions Results showed that parent STEM support in 9th grade and adolescent STEM motivational beliefs in 11th grade were lower in families where parents did not have a STEM degree/occupation than in families where at least one parent had a STEM degree/occupation. Our within‐group analyses suggested that parents' STEM support was generally positively related to adolescents' STEM motivational beliefs among families where parents did not have a STEM degree/occupation for all racial/ethnic groups except Black adolescents. However, these relations were not significant among adolescents who had a parent STEM degree/occupation. Furthermore, although Asian and White adolescents' parents were more likely to hold a STEM degree/occupation than Latina/o and Black adolescents' parents, the associations between parent STEM support and adolescents' STEM motivational beliefs emerged for Asian, Latina/o, and White adolescents.

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Beyond Student Factors: a Study of the Impact on STEM Career Attainment

Cited by 26 publications

References 41 publications

Perceived abilities or academic interests? Longitudinal high school science and mathematics effects on postsecondary STEM outcomes by gender and race

Perceived abilities or academic interests? Longitudinal high school science and mathematics effects on postsecondary STEM outcomes by gender and race

STEM in Transition from Primary School to Middle School: Primary School Students Attitudes

Longitudinal associations between parent degree/occupation, parent support, and adolescent motivational beliefs in STEM

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