Despite the demand for a diverse STEM-educated population and workforce, college students have consistently turned away from these disciplines in large numbers, creating a persistent problem that many are trying to address. The aim of the National Science Foundation's Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program is to inspire, attract, and retain STEM majors. Funding supports undergraduate STEM students' engagement in real-world research alongside STEM mentors. As colleges and universities compete for funding for REUs, it is important to understand the mechanisms within summer research programs that resonate most deeply with undergraduate STEM researchers. While many studies reveal strong correlations between research experiences and STEM aspirations, less is known about the mechanisms within REU programs that support these gains. My research used quantitative and qualitative self-reported data from 20 REU students, 18 of whom were underrepresented minorities in STEM. Over two summers, these students, in cohorts of ten, came to the University of Vermont to participate in a team-oriented, 10-week REU: Interdisciplinary Research on Human Impacts in the Lake Champlain Ecosystem. Two mixed-methods studies, guided by the frameworks of the theory of possible selves, theory of self-efficacy for research, and social cognitive career theory, revealed four important program mechanisms that gave rise to gains in research skills, confidence and self-efficacy for research, and STEM career aspirations, particularly for individuals from underrepresented minority groups in STEM. Findings suggest that the program fostered student capacity building within a safe, inclusive, and positive setting where students experienced what it feels like to be an active participant in the world of research. Within this context, critical mechanisms that gave rise to gains in research skills, confidence and self-efficacy for research, and STEM career aspirations included: (1) experiential education through interdisciplinary research experiences, (2) student independence and ownership balanced with expert researcher guidance and support, (3) formal and informal mentoring networks where students were mentored and where they mentored others, and (4) the establishment of an intentional learning community that advanced leadership, research skill building, perseverance, and reflection. Results from this research cannot be generalized beyond the context of the Lake Champlain REU, however, findings are in alignment with the body of literature that highlights the positive effects of REUs on STEM majors' research skills, confidence and self-efficacy for research, and STEM career aspirations. Using mixed methods to identify and understand the within-program mechanisms that support student gains is a valuable new research approach for this field. Recognizing programmatic mechanisms across REU programs can lead to expansion, replication, and application of these models beyond one institution, resulting in more positive gains for more undergraduate STEM researchers.

Federal and state agencies in the United States have pressured institutions in higher education to increase the number of graduates in STEM disciplines and supply an educated workforce for the increasing shortages in the STEM economy. Undergraduate research experience is one potential mechanism for supporting retention and student success within STEM disciplines. Most evaluations of the impact of undergraduate research to this point have been qualitative research studies. The purpose of this study was to use a quantitative model to examine domain knowledge, domain interest, and career aspirations in undergraduate biology majors and how participation in research experiences may impact each of these aspects. Path analysis was performed with data collected from an online survey that was administered to six upper level biology courses during one semester. Domain interest and career aspirations was the only significant relation in the path model. Research experiences may indirectly impact career aspirations by increasing domain interest, but additional work is needed to examine this relationship. Stakeholders in undergraduate research at institutions may consider the implications of this study as they develop policies to reduce barriers for student participation in research.

This research investigates the impact a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) program has on student interest in, and perception of, technology and engineering (sTEm). ROV programs embed areas of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) into their curriculum; however, emphasis for this study is placed on interest and perception of the "T" and "E" of STEM. Although there are many articles detailing the benefits of ROV programs, there is little empirical data documenting the impact on student interest and perception of sTEm. This study outlines the background of a few major ROV programs in the U.S.; specifically Utah Underwater Robotics (UUR), an ROV statewide program within a landlocked state, the methods for gathering data and findings from a sTEm survey instrument administered to over 300 students ranging from 6th to 12th grade who participated in a five-month ROV program and near 50 students who did not. Key findings include: 1. Males were more interested in technology and engineering than females, regardless of whether they participated in the UUR ROV program. 2. Male and female students in the UUR program were more interested and had a more positive perception of engineering than those who did not participate in the UUR ROV program. 3. Females in the UUR program reported more interest in engineering careers and activities than females not in the program. 4. Females in the program reported more interest and self-efficacy in science than females not in the program. 5. Males in the UUR program reported more awareness of the positive and negative consequences of technology and engineering than those who did not participate.

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Transmedia books are new and emerging technologies which are beginning to be used in current classrooms. Transmedia books are a traditional printed book that uses multiple media though the use of Quick Response (QR) codes and augmented reality (AR) triggers to access web-based technology. Using the transmedia book Skills That Engage Me students in kindergarten through second grade engage in curriculum designed to introduce science skills and careers. Using the modified Draw-a-Scientist Test (mDAST), observations and interviews, researchers analyzed pre and post data to describe changes students have about science and scientists. Future study may include the development and validation of a new instrument, Draw a Science Student, and examining the mDAST checklist with the intention of updating the parameters of what is considered positive and negative in relationship with work a scientist conducts.

<p>Black men experience numerous systemic challenges in pursuit of their education, yet they also possess strength to achieve academic goals. The purpose of this autoethnographic study is to describe the meaning of my experiences at an undergraduate engineering program at a historically White institution to increase awareness of the ways that Black men experience undergraduate engineering programs at historically White institutions. The overarching research question is: How do I make meaning of the formative experiences along my engineering education journey at an historically White institution through the lens of African American Male Theory? To answer this question, I chose critical autoethnography because it enabled me to use my role as the researcher along with my own experiences as part of the topic and group of study. Through this methodology, I described my experiences through the lens of African American Male Theory, which was not available to me at the time the events were occurring. I analyzed personal memory data (e.g., poems, speeches, applications, resumes and interview transcripts) and my researcher journal to provide a thorough personal account of my collegiate experiences and relative perspectives on those experiences. The findings of this study provide an in-depth understanding of how I experienced an engineering program at an HWI in such a way that offers insights to better support Black men in engineering. As such, this study calls for holistic support for Black male students in engineering through interventions such as culturally relevant curriculum, narrative evaluation, standards of inclusion for classrooms, culturally competent counselors, and hiring minoritized faculty. Finally, this study appeals for more research to investigate how Black men experience freedom while pursuing their engineering degree at HWIs. </p>

Although early mathematics instruction is predictive of future mathematics achievement, the effects of STEM-based mathematics instruction on mathematics gains in elementary school have been largely unexplored. The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine whether mathematics scores from third grade student state-mandated standardized mathematics test differ between students who were enrolled in STEM schools and students who were enrolled in non-STEM schools in the largest school district located in a Southwestern state in the United States. Polya's problem-solving heuristics formed the theoretical framework because of their relevance to concepts on the third grade mathematics test. Two research questions focused on intraindividual changes and interindividual changes over time in standardized mathematics test scores of third grade students who were enrolled in 18 STEM and 18 non-STEM schools. Analyses included growth curve modeling and a one-way random effect ANOVA to determine individual growth trajectories of mathematics test scores from individual schools over time from 2012 through 2017. The results indicated that there were no intraindividual differences in growth over time within schools, and there were interindividual changes in growth over time between schools, but the changes could not be explained by the independent variables, STEM and non-STEM schools. Findings were not consistent with the literature, which indicated early STEM-based mathematics instruction is more beneficial than traditional instruction. This study offers implications for positive social change by demonstrating equivalent results of STEM to non-STEM instruction, which may encourage more hands-on, inquiry-based learning for all children.

Recent developments in educational research raise important questions about the design of learning environments—questions that suggest the value of rethinking what is taught, how it is taught, and how is it assessed. During the past few decades, STEM disciplines began formally recognizing and integrating discipline-based education research (DBER) into their research programs to improve STEM education. One of the less literature-affluent areas of DBER addresses curriculum order and design appertaining to concept types and the order in which we teach those concepts. As educational researchers, we pose the question: does content order matter? In this project we designed, implemented and analyzed a concrete-to-abstract curriculum as a way of teaching and learning that not only builds off what students already know but how their intellect develops throughout the learning process. This semester-long curriculum design is scientifically supported and provides a learning environment aimed to not only building a student’s declarative knowledge of the subject but procedural knowledge as well and a way of developing scientific reasoning skills. This design also aimed at enhancing a student’s ability to make connections between biological concepts despite being classified as different biological concept types (e.g. descriptive, hypothetical, and theoretical concepts) as described by Lawson et al (2000). The reasoning behind and development of this project was based from Jean Piaget’s proposed stages of intellectual development, which supports the concrete-to-abstract theory. We found that, when compared to a traditional biology course (abstract-to-concrete in terms of content order), a concrete-to-abstract order of content resulted in significantly higher biological declarative knowledge and ability to make concept connections. While we failed to detect a significant difference between the two courses in terms of how quickly scientific reasoning skills are developed or how students’ scores on scientific reasoning skill assessments, the concrete-to-abstract course did show significantly higher gains in reasoning between the start and end of the semester. In addition to this project, a significant amount of time was also allocated to the design and evaluation of a health promotion and education program in Samoa. We developed a program which centered on a principal-run caregiver meeting as a means to expand health promotion and prevention efforts concerning Rheumatic Heart Disease, which is a significant cause of child morbidity and mortality in Samoa. We found that training principals on how to inform their student’s caregivers was an effective way to increase RHD awareness and disseminate correct health information including what to do if their child presents with a sore throat.

Active learning methodologies (ALM) are associated with student success, but little research on this topic has been pursued at the community college level. At a local community college, students in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) courses exhibited lower than average grades. The purpose of this study was to examine whether the use of ALM predicted STEM course grades while controlling for academic discipline, course level, and class size. The theoretical framework was Vygotsky's social constructivism. Descriptive statistics and multinomial logistic regression were performed on data collected through an anonymous survey of 74 instructors of 272 courses during the 2016 fall semester. Results indicated that students were more likely to achieve passing grades when instructors employed in-class, highly structured activities, and writing-based ALM, and were less likely to achieve passing grades when instructors employed project-based or online ALM. The odds ratios indicated strong positive effects (greater likelihoods of receiving As, Bs, or Cs in comparison to the grade of F) for writing-based ALM (39.1-43.3%, 95% CI [10.7-80.3%]), highly structured activities (16.4-22.2%, 95% CI [1.8-33.7%]), and in-class ALM (5.0-9.0%, 95% CI [0.6-13.8%]). Project-based and online ALM showed negative effects (lower likelihoods of receiving As, Bs, or Cs in comparison to the grade of F) with odds ratios of 15.7-20.9%, 95% CI [9.7-30.6%] and 16.1-20.4%, 95% CI [5.9-25.2%] respectively. A white paper was developed with recommendations for faculty development, computer skills assessment and training, and active research on writing-based ALM. Improving student grades and STEM course completion rates could lead to higher graduation rates and lower college costs for at-risk students by reducing course repetition and time to degree completion.

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