There is little attention and consensus in science education for gifted learners, leading to insufficient support and understanding of their needs, which hinders their potential development as future scientists and professionals. Utilizing a narrative research design, the study explores the experiences of nine scientists identified as gifted in childhood, through semi-structured interviews, questionnaires, and document reviews. The research addresses three pivotal questions: (1) How do scientists, who were identified as gifted in their childhood, navigate their gifted identity from childhood to adulthood, and how does this affect their social relationships and self-perception? (2) How do scientists, who were identified as gifted in their childhood, perceive and describe the critical elements that contribute to their exceptional performance? (3) How do scientists, who were identified as gifted in their childhood, reflect on the impact of their K-12 science education on their development and career choice? Findings reveal that participants’ exceptional performance in science was influenced by various factors such as individual abilities, family background, motivation, support, opportunities, and luck, and education. The impact of K-12 science education varied, with dissatisfaction in early years due to a lack of challenging curriculum, but more satisfaction in high school due to advanced classes and programs. These insights contribute to the development of educational policies and programs that better meet the needs of gifted learners in science, ultimately helping them to realize their full potential as future scientists and professionals.

While Asians are overrepresented in science and engineering, they receive limited scholarly attention in sociology of science. To fill the knowledge gap about this understudied group, this study examines the effects of race, nativity, degree origin, gender, field, employment sector, and nationality on the earnings of Asian computer scientists and engineers working in the U.S. Data are derived from the National Survey of College Graduates, 1993 and 2003. Using quantile regression, this study has the following findings. First, race and nativity had some effects on the earnings of Asian computer scientists and engineers in 1993 at both 90th and 50th quantiles, but they disappeared in 2003 with one exception. Degree origin had an effect in 1993 in some cases at the 90th quantile but across gender, field, and two sectors at the 50th quantile. However, it disappeared in 2003 with two exceptions. Second, all the four women's groups--white, Asian American, U.S.-, and Asian-educated immigrant women--earned less than their male counterparts in 1993 or 2003 at either quantile. Furthermore, U.S.-educated immigrant women suffered from the double bind effect, or being disadvantaged due to both their gender and race, at the 50th quantile. Third, computer scientists earned slightly more than their engineer counterparts in both years at both quantiles. Fourth, educational institutions and state/local government paid less than industry in 1993 and 2003 at both quantiles. Federal government eliminated the gap in 2003 at the 50th quantile. Finally, this study finds that a few but not all nationality groups suffered from earning disadvantages in 1993 or 2003 at either quantile. Furthermore, the findings suggest that the earnings of workers in the upper tail (90th quantile) are less influenced by factors that this study examines than those at the median (50th quantile). Overall, the findings partly reaffirm the structural barriers that some groups, notably women, racial/ethnic minorities, and immigrants, face in the U.S. workplace. The degree origin effect in 1993 could be due to the lower quality of degrees from Asia. The disappearance of such an effect in 2003 could be due to the interactions between structural forces and human capital.

This thesis explores the role of Quaker women in science in an attempt to arrive at some understanding of what motivated Quaker women in nineteenth century America to go into the sciences. George Fox founded the Society of Friends in the mid-seventeenth century in England and the Quaker theology centered on the concept of the Inner Light, which is the idea that everyone has the capacity to perceive, recognize, and respond to God. Following their Inner Light to find God, Quakers also referred to themselves as "seekers of truth." Additionally, Quakers have believed since their inception in the equality between men and women. Given the Quaker desire to pursue truth and their belief that women have the same capacity to do so as men, it is not surprising that there were a number of Quaker women in science. Through an examination of three Quaker women in science, I discuss the Quaker influences in their lives and works with the larger goal of demonstrating the inherent connections that exist between Quaker theology and the pursuit of science in the nineteenth century. One such connection lies within the tradition of natural theology, which was prevalent in the larger scientific community in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The connection that is unique to Quakers, though, relates to their idea of the search for truth, which led many Quakers to employ scientific methods. The three Quaker women examined in this study, astronomer Maria Mitchell, naturalist Graceanna Lewis, and medical doctor Ann Preston, were all truth-seekers in some sense who wanted to find evidence of God's work within nature. / Graduation date: 2005

The role of depicting and analysing scientist images to reveal gender-science stereotypes among students in K-12 classrooms is an ongoing research trend in science education literature. The study reported here carries on this research trend but focuses on preservice elementary teachers' images of scientists. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between preservice elementary teachers' gender and ethnicity and their drawn images of a female scientist, male scientist, and teacher as a scientist, respectively and the similarities and differences among images. In this study, preservice elementary teachers were asked to draw a female scientist, male scientist, and teacher as a scientist, respectively. One hundred and fifty participants indicated their gender and one hundred and twenty-five indicated their gender and ethnicity. Five hundred and eighty eight images were analysed. The data was analysed using a modified Draw-A-Scientist-Test Checklist (DAST-C) and chi-square tests. The results of this study indicate that gender-science stereotypes held by preservice teachers exist among genders and ethnicities. Factors that contribute to diminish or promote stereotypical images of scientists are age, education, culture, role models, and inquiry-based instruction. Also, similarities and differences between images of a female scientist, male scientist, and teacher as a scientist show that preservice teachers know how to draw scientists with physical indicators but do not include a realistic environment or activities for the scientist.

No description available.

The study aims to see whether there are differences in the nature and patterns of computer usage for communicating research between disciplines in the social sciences in Brazil and, if so, whether they can be related to factors which can affect the process of communication. The theory embedded in the research model states that pressures that accompany the introduction of information technologies into a university environment are significant factors in the use of such technologies. These pressures produce differences in the communication process itself. Furthermore, there may also be a relationship between individual factors and the use of IT for communication. The research data were collected via a survey using two instruments. Firstly, mailed questionnaires were sent to 760 academic researchers in sociology and economics in Brazil, working in post-graduate programmes. A response rate of 64.1 percent was achieved. Secondly, 36 interviews were carried out with a sample of the most productive researchers in the two subjects studied. The interview sample included both respondents and non-respondents to the questionnaire. A small sample of 1I British academic researchers was included in the interview survey, in order to allow comparisons and see whether Brazilian academics lag behind IT front-runners. Data collected revealed that there is an impact of computer usage on the scholarly communication process, especially in terms of informal communication. Such an impact can be related to changes in the social interactions that underlie knowledge creation among researchers, and also relates to differences in patterns and processes of computer usage between the chosen disciplines. Formal communication has experienced a gradually growing impact by electronic media on the well-established print environment, with the likely co-existence of the two media for some time to come. The results obtained showed that Brazilian researchers do not lag behind the British ones. Not many differences, but most similarities were found between economists and sociologists in both Brazil and the UK.

The purpose of this phenomenological multi-case study and three-person interview, was to discover what select prominent African-American scientists perceived were obstacles to overcome to be successful leaders in their professional lives, and the opportunities that aided in their professional growth. Through the addition of the threeperson interview, the researcher discovered commonalities between the perceived obstacles and opportunities of current science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) professionals and the perceptions of selected historically prominent scientists. This study examined documents of the period and relics of prominent African- Americans who were in STEM fields and lived from 1860 to 1968. A description of the setting that influenced how the scientists perceived the phenomenon was written with the approach being anchored in the social constructivist tradition. Commonalities emerged through coding experiences of the individuals, which yielded patterns to help explain the phenomenon. By investigating their perceptions, insight was gained into understanding the attributes, tools and skills, and tailored experiences that encouraged Thomas Burton, Kelly Miller, George Carver, Daniel Williams, Matthew Henson, Ernest Just, Charles Drew, Percy Julian, William Cobb, and Benjamin Peery to achieve success in STEM fields between 1860 and 1968. The significance of the study is multifaceted: understanding the obstacles that African-American scientists had to overcome in their professional lives can result in the development of science educators who are better informed regarding the appropriate types of assistance that can be provided to aid their students in overcoming obstacles. This can hopefully increase their opportunities to succeed within the science field. This study can result in the development of science educators who are more sensitive in addressing the needs of the developing minority student, and can encourage, educate, and enlist more individuals to enter into the dialogue regarding the disparity of minority representation in STEM fields. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2017. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Thesis. 1978. M.S.--Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Alfred P. Sloan School of Management. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND DEWEY. / Includes bibliographical references. / by Joseph M. Gutwein and Earl J. Montoya. / M.S.

O presente trabalho elabora uma biografia coletiva dos professores e alunos da Universidade de São Paulo, que, em 1958, começaram a ler O Capital de Karl Marx. Contrastadas as leituras esparsas anteriores e posteriores à constituição desse grupo, esta se caracteriza pela convergência de esforços de áreas diferentes, pela insubordinação à disciplina partidária e às vulgatas dela decorrentes pari passu a adesão e defesa da disciplina scholar; pela ênfase em questões de método e pendor teórico, mobilizadas, segundo a área de cada um dos participantes, para a elaboração de teses que dialogam entre si. A reconstituição das linhas de força condicionantes dessa inovação pressupõe acompanhar percursos de mobilidade social, filiações magistrais, tensões geracionais, gradiente de autonomização, profissionalização e diferenciação disciplinar. A cristalização das relações horizontais com os amigos de seminário; e verticais com os catedráticos a que estão ligados encontra-se em seus doutoramentos. Para que a análise realçasse tais dimensões, refizemos o percurso dos seminaristas, da graduação ao doutorado, acompanhando rotações institucionais que marcaram o itinerário coletivo. O exame se concentra mais detidamente entre o início das atividades e a publicação da última tese oriunda desses estudos (1958-1978). / The present work develops a group biography of the professors and students from the University of São Paulo which started to read Karl Marxs Capital. Having contrasted the sparse readings made before and after the constitution of this group, this study is characterized by the converging of endeavors from different areas, by the insubordination to the party discipline and to the vulgates due to them simultaneously to the adhesion and support of the scholar discipline, by the emphasis in questions of method and theoretical penchant, mobilized, according to the area of each of the participants, to the elaboration of thesis which dialogue among themselves. The reconstitution of the conditioning lines of force of this innovation assumes following trajectory of social mobility, magisterial affiliations, generational tensions, gradient of empowerment, professionalization and discipline differentiation. The crystallization of horizontal relations with friends from the seminar; and verticals with the professor who they are connected with is present in their doctorate works. In order to enhance the analysis of such dimensions, the trajectory of the seminar students was retaken, from the undergraduate course to the doctorate, following institutional rotations which marked the group itinerary. The examination concentrates itself more accurately between the beginning of the activities and the publishing of the last thesis originated from these studies (1958-1978).

Este trabalho procura responder a questão: \"quais as barreiras conceituais que impedem a compreensão da segunda lei da Termodinâmica pelos estudantes? A partir de três questões apresentadas a estudantes do terceiro ano do ensino médio e do primeiro ano do curso superior de licenciatura em física, foram coletadas as respostas produzidas; posteriormente analisadas, permitiram a explicitação de concepções que, confrontadas com as idéias da Termodinâmica clássica, revelaram um raciocínio inadequado. A idéia de sistema centrado no objeto, parece constituir uma barreira conceitual difícil de transpor; assim também ocorre com os conceitos de processo e transformação exibidos pelo senso comum. Tais conceitos são fundamentais para o estabelecimento da Termodinâmica e devem ser pensados no trabalho em sala de aula capaz de produzir conflitos cognitivos com meta a uma mudança conceitual. Por outro lado, numa perspectiva histórica, foi possível identificar alguma ressonância entre as idéias dos estudantes e o desenvolvimento da concepção de calor; focalizamos especialmente as idéias de Carnot e de Clausius ao longo da elaboração das leis da Termodinâmica. O trabalho também identificou lacunas decorrentes da forma como os conteúdos científicos são apresentados na sala de aula e nos livros didáticos o que pode explicar as dificuldades encontradas. Finalmente, o trabalho apresenta subsídios de relevância pedagógica que podem contribuir para a melhoria do ensino da Termodinâmica no nível médio, com atividades especiais que tocam nos pontos conflitantes entre as concepções dos estudantes e o conhecimento científico. / This work aims to answering the following question: what are the conceptual barriers that prevent students from understanding the second law of Thermodynamics ? Starting from three questions that were proposed to third year secondary school and to first year physics teaching university students, the collected answers were analysed and led to an explicitation of conceptions that disclose inadequate reasoning when confronted with the ideas of classical Thermodynamics. The idea of a system centered on the object seems to be a conceptual barrier that is difficult to overcome and the same happens with the concepts of process and change that are usual in commonsense. But these concepts are essential for the fundamentals of Thermodynamics and should be used in class work to create cognitive conflicts aiming to a conceptual change. On the other hand, from a historical perspective, it was possible to identify some of the students ideas in the development of the concept of heat particularly in the development of the ideas of Carnot and Clausius in the elaboration of the laws of thermodynamics. The work has also identified gaps resulting from the way scientific contents are presented in the classroom and in textbooks that could explain the students difficulties. At last, the work presents pedagogically relevant contributions that may be helpful in teaching thermodynamics in secondary schools with special activities that touch points that are conflicting between students conceptions and scientific knowledge.