Effective: 2016-2021

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Allan Wigfield

Institution: University of Maryland, College Park

Concern about students' participation and performance in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) courses and choice of STEM occupations has shifted from a focus on overall lack of participation in STEM careers to the underrepresentation of women and certain minority groups such as African Americans in careers in engineering and the sciences. As researchers attempt to uncover why some students are more likely to pursue STEM careers, they increasingly have focused on motivational...

Effective: 2016-2021

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigators: Kevin Haudek, Jonathan Osborne, Mary Anne Sydlik, Christopher D Wilson

Institutions: Michigan State University, Stanford University, Western Michigan University, BSCS Science Learning

Argumentation is fundamental to both science and science education. This perspective is reflected in the Next Generation Science Standards where argumentation is presented as one of eight fundamental science and engineering practices through which students learn both the core ideas of science and the crosscutting concepts of science. Argumentation, however, is not measured well using standard multiple choice items. An alternative that is well suited to measuring argumentation skills is the...

Effective: 2016-2021

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Curtis Tatsuoka

Institution: Case Western Reserve University

The broad objective of this study, led by a team of researchers at Case Western Reserve University, is to further understanding of the neural and cognitive basis for mathematics learning. The focus will be on mathematics problem-solving strategies used by adolescents, and how these strategies are adopted and changed as problems become systematically more difficult. The project will examine the association of these strategies with mathematics-related cognitive skills, scores on tests of...

Effective: 2016-2021

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Michele M Mazzocco

Institution: University of Minnesota-Twin Cities

Individuals with mathematics learning disabilities are at risk for lifelong underachievement in mathematics, which can affect broader education and career related outcomes. The early development of mathematics learning disabilities is poorly understood. The learning of number words is important but often difficult for young children and could be critically important. The expression "one bin of apples" conveys an image of many more apples than the expression "two apples." Yet, "one" is smaller...

Effective: 2016-2021

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: John D Gabrieli

Institution: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Difficulties in math and reading prevent many students from succeeding in STEM education which demands both math and reading skills. Dyslexia is the most common type of learning disability affecting reading proficiency but many students with dyslexia also exhibit dyscalculia, or math disability. To date, little research has sought to understand the extent of the neurobiological connections between dyslexia and dyscalculia. This proposal will explore the cognitive underpinnings of dyscalculia...

Effective: 2016-2021

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: John C Stewart

Institution: West Virginia University Research Corporation

Researchers at West Virginia University will develop a new theoretical framework for STEM departure that will detail the reasons why students leave STEM majors. The research extends Tinto's university departure model to include the career exploration process where a student leaves STEM but remains in college. The framework will be developed and tested by extensive measurement of demographic, social, academic, affective (self-efficacy, self-esteem, belonging), career exploration/aspirations and...

Effective: 2016-2021

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Paul Morgan

Institution: Pennsylvania State Univ University Park

Executive function (EF) deficits may explain lower math and science achievement for students with and without disabilities and therefore may be essential targets for intervention. Current research in this area often relies on cross-sectional studies using smaller samples of middle and high school students and so this study fills a critical gap by examining relationships between executive function and math and science achievement with younger students in a large, nationally representative...

Effective: 2016-2021

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigators: Ryan Baker, Gautam Biswas

Institutions: Teachers College, Columbia University, University of Pennsylvania, Vanderbilt University

This project aims to enhance theory and measurement of students' self-regulated learning (SRL) processes during science learning. SRL refers to learning that is guided by metacognition (thinking about one's thinking), strategic action (planning, monitoring, and evaluating personal progress against a standard), and motivation to learn. The project will accomplish this by developing a technology-based framework which leverages human expert judgment and machine learning methods to identify key...

Effective: 2016-2020

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Laura L Watkins

Institution: Maricopa County Community College District

Community colleges serve a large portion of students who require mathematics at the undergraduate level and play an increasing role in STEM workforce development. There is a growing national interest in the role of community colleges for undergraduate education. The proposal seeks to investigate the conditions under which instruction in community college algebra courses can be associated with student learning gains and course performance. This information can be used to design programs to...

Effective: 2016-2020

Funding Type: Conference

Principal Investigator: Kathy DeerInWater

Institution: American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES)

This project will result in a literature review of studies of American Indian, Alaskan Native, and Native Hawaiian and STEM education and learning as well as studies that include Indigenous populations as part of a larger underrepresented racial and ethnic minority group. The ultimate educational significance of this project is to identify practical strategies to address the extreme dearth of Native Americans in STEM education and careers. The outcomes of this project will set the stage for...

Effective: 2016-2020

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Marie S Hammond

Institution: Tennessee State University

Researchers at Tennessee State University will study the role of professional, social, and cultural identities on career choice and commitment among underrepresented minorities. They will expand the Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) by examining factors such as problem solving, decision making, goal setting, and managing goal pursuit that are not articulated in the current model. As critical as self-efficacy is in the process of developing one?s interests, making career choices, and...

Effective: 2016-2020

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Pamela Anderson

Institution: ETR Associates

Researchers at ETR Associates will conduct a mixed methods longitudinal study on the malleable factors that affect community college students? persistence in information and communications technologies (ICT) classes and careers. The project involves a partnership between a research organization, about 25 community colleges, and five external advisors with expertise in higher education research, policy, and teaching. It will test and extend theories of student persistence and build on the team?s...

Effective: 2016-2020

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Cindy F Miller

Institution: Arizona State University

Increasing concern in recent years has highlighted the low percentage of adults who are earning degrees and pursuing careers in engineering, and this is especially true for female and ethnic minority individuals. Given that early experiences have a profound effect on later skill development and one's motivation to learn, it is essential to target children's early beliefs and experiences to better understand and change occupational disparities later in life. Very few studies have been conducted...

Effective: 2016-2020

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Nong Ye

Institution: Arizona State University

This project targets three significant gaps in the current state of knowledge relevant to engineering retention and success: 1) lack of knowledge on engineering retention and success characteristics based on interactive, concurrent effects of multiple factors, 2) lack of knowledge about engineering retention and success characteristics based on the modeling of variable relations that exist for some but not all values of variables or are different for different value ranges of variables, and 3)...

Effective: 2016-2020

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Preeti Gupta

Institution: American Museum Natural History

This longitudinal research study will contribute to a broader understanding of the pathways of STEM-interested high school students from underrepresented groups who plan to pursue or complete science studies in their post-high school endeavors. The project will investigate the ways that formative authentic science experiences may support youth's persistence in STEM. The study focuses on approximately 900 urban youth who are high interest, high potential STEM students who participate in, or are...

Effective: 2016-2020

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigators: Mick Cunningham, Jennifer DeBoer, Julie Kmec

Institutions: Western Washington University, Purdue University, Washington State University

Non-technical AbstractWomen's participation in engineering is a crucial national priority. The shortage of engineers in the US weakens the country's position as a leader in the global market and restricts our capacity to solve infrastructural challenges. This project involves research in four countries (Jordan, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, and Tunisia) to assess the contextual factors that encourage women's participation in engineering in tertiary education and as a career. In three of the four...

Effective: 2016-2019

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigators: James F Bowring, Louise Lyon

Institutions: College of Charleston, ETR Associates

ETR Associates and the College of Charleston will conduct a collaborative research project that is designed to increase diversity in computer science by exploring whether boot camps build students' adaptive expertise and how the actual preparation aligns with computing workforce expectations for knowledge and competencies. The study will be conducted in Silicon Valley in California and Silicon Harbor in South Carolina and will yield (1) models of the attributes of effective software developers...

Effective: 2016-2018

Funding Type: Conference

Principal Investigator: Linda Coats

Institution: Mississippi State University

The ECR program emphasizes fundamental STEM education research that will generate foundational knowledge in the field. This conference proposal focuses on developing a research agenda that will explore ways to help African American female faculty at predominantly white institutions navigate the promotion and tenure process. The conference will establish a platform for intergroup discussions about diversity in the workplace, illuminate gaps in existing literature to help target future research,...

Effective: 2015-2023

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigators: Erin A Cech, Tom J Waidzunas

Institutions: Regents of the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor, Temple University

This award is supported the EHR Core Research (ECR) program. ECR emphasizes fundamental STEM education research that generates foundational knowledge in the field. This research project is making contributions to the field in the areas of STEM workforce development and broadening participation in STEM. The proposed work is advancing basic understanding about the intersectional mechanisms of disadvantage, at the interpersonal, organizational and professional levels, for underrepresented groups...

Effective: 2015-2023

Funding Type: CAREER

Principal Investigator: Mary C Murphy

Institution: Indiana University

The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) program is a National Science Foundation (NSF)-wide activity that offers awards in support of junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through outstanding research, excellent education, and the integration of education and research within the context of the mission of their organizations. Why do women thrive in some STEM classrooms and drop out of others, and how does this impact whether they will continue on in a STEM major? While...

Effective: 2015-2022

Funding Type: CAREER

Principal Investigator: Sarah Ovink

Institution: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) program is a National Science Foundation (NSF)-wide activity that offers awards in support of junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through outstanding research, excellent education, and the integration of education and research within the context of the mission of their organizations. In a post-recession context of rising income inequality, the importance of a college degree to the attainment of financial stability remains...

Effective: 2015-2021

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: David Marx

Institution: San Diego State University Foundation

This proposal was submitted in response to EHR Core Research (ECR) program announcement NSF 15-509. As part of ECR, this project is funded by the Research on Gender in Science and Engineering (GSE) program. GSE seeks to understand and address gender-based differences in STEM education and workforce participation through education and implementation research that will lead to a larger and more diverse domestic STEM workforce. Stereotype threat and feelings of not belonging are suggested as...

Effective: 2015-2021

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Mark Warschauer

Institution: University of California-Irvine

The multi-year project will study 50 flipped, hybrid, and online courses offered in the three major STEM Schools at the University of California, Irvine (UCI). Higher education institutions are increasing the number of courses they offer that use elements of virtual instruction in the belief that these courses will lead to better learning, lower costs, greater access, and higher graduation rates. However, recent meta-analyses of virtual learning in higher education all conclude that there is a...

Effective: 2015-2021

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Kimberlee Shauman

Institution: University of California-Davis

This proposal was submitted in response to EHR Core Research (ECR) program announcement NSF 15-509. As part of ECR, this project is funded by the Research on Gender in Science and Engineering (GSE) program. GSE seeks to understand and address gender-based differences in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education and workforce participation through education and implementation research that will lead to a larger and more diverse domestic STEM workforce. This study will...

Effective: 2015-2021

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigators: Lance C Perez, Sheryl A Sorby

Institutions: University of Nebraska-Lincoln, University of Cincinnati Main Campus, Ohio State University

Engineers are known problem-solvers and the engineer of the future will be tasked with solving traditional problems as well as the ill-defined interdisciplinary problems faced by our society. Engineers will need to be able to think holistically about a myriad of factors and visualize a solution that solves the technical problem while satisfying cultural, environmental, societal, and economic constraints. Spatial visualization skills have been linked to success in engineering and mathematics as...

Effective: 2015-2021

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Chad E Forbes

Institution: University of Delaware

This proposal was submitted in response to EHR Core Research (ECR) program announcement NSF 15-509. As part of ECR, this project is funded by the Research on Gender in Science and Engineering (GSE) program. GSE seeks to understand and address gender-based differences in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education and workforce participation through education and implementation research that will lead to a larger and more diverse domestic STEM workforce. This project will...

Effective: 2015-2021

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigators: Maura J Borrego, David Knight

Institutions: University of Texas at Austin, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University will conduct a mixed methods research project to better understand how various mechanisms of funding - fellowships, research assistantships, teaching assistantships, etc. - influence students' pursuit of doctorates in STEM and subsequent employment. The project will produce empirical evidence and a conceptual framework to inform the improvement of graduate student funding policies and...

Effective: 2015-2020

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Jennifer Wiley

Institution: University of Illinois at Chicago

A majority of people experience illusions of understanding when reading explanations of scientific phenomena. That is, people generally think they understood what they read better than they actually did. This self-assessment skill (referred to as monitoring) is critical in order for students to regulate their own learning and tailor their study behaviors so that they develop deep understanding of science topics. Interestingly, a number of recent studies have demonstrated that illusions of...

Effective: 2015-2020

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Jacquelynne Eccles

Institution: University of California-Irvine

The study, conducted by researchers at the University of California-Irvine, and the University of Michigan, will examine the underrepresentation of Hispanics in STEM fields. Hispanic youth, the largest minority and fastest growing demographic group, are the most likely to drop out of the STEM pipeline before college and are the least likely to complete college STEM training. Understanding the psychosocial non-cognitive influences on Hispanic youth's educational and occupational decisions is...

Effective: 2015-2020

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigators: Jason Owen-Smith, Bruce A Weinberg

Institutions: Regents of the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor, Ohio State University

Ohio State University and the University of Michigan are investigating factors that affect graduate student pathways to non-academic careers. The interdisciplinary research team examines two research questions: (1) What are the pathways that graduate students take into non-academic careers? and (2) What is the role of their training environments, including faculty sponsors and networks, in guiding those pathways? To investigate these questions, the researchers will develop a data infrastructure...

Effective: 2015-2020

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Ebony O McGee

Institution: Vanderbilt University

The ECR program emphasizes fundamental STEM education research that will generate foundational knowledge in the field. Investments are made in critical areas that are essential, broad and enduring: STEM learning and STEM learning environments, broadening participation in STEM, and STEM workforce development. As part of ECR, this project is funded by the Research on Gender in Science and Engineering (GSE) program. GSE seeks to understand and address gender-based differences in science,...

Effective: 2015-2019

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigators: Tracy Noble, Philip Vahey

Institutions: TERC Inc, SRI International

The goal of the project is to bring together research about English-language learners with the use of dynamic representational technology for middle school quantitative reasoning. Dynamic representation technology allows learners to work with multiple representations of a problem simultaneously. These representations include, for example, graphs of an equation, a table of values and a simulation of the real-world phenomenon to understand concepts such as linear functions and rates of change...

Effective: 2015-2019

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Russell M Gersten

Institution: RG Research Group

Learning of fractions is a significant barrier for many in further study of mathematics and thus other science, technology, and engineering disciplines. Many students identified as struggling learners of mathematics are provided with interventions that focus on simplifying the complexity and breaking up the task into small discrete pieces, which is counter to the recommendations on supporting students in learning mathematics from the mathematics education community. The rigorous, large-scale...

Effective: 2014-2021

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Nilanjana Dasgupta

Institution: University of Massachusetts Amherst

In the past thirty years a national debate has been brewing about the scarcity of women and racial/ethnic minorities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), and its grave implications for the American workforce in the 21st century. From middle school through college, girls and women have performed less well on standardized tests in science and mathematics than their male peers and express less confidence and aspirations in these fields. Similar findings emerge for Black and...

Effective: 2014-2020

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigators: Lisa Y Flores, Rachel L Navarro

Institutions: University of Missouri-Columbia, University of North Dakota Main Campus

The project aims to investigate the longitudinal effects of social cognitive, cultural, personality and contextual factors on engineering students and workers satisfaction, engagement, and persistence as posited by Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT). The longstanding underrepresentation of White women and Latina/os in engineering majors and jobs provides the rationale for this investigation of psychological factors leading to their academic and career satisfaction, engagement, and...

Effective: 2014-2020

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Gladis Kersaint

Institutions: University of South Florida, University of Connecticut

The purpose of this study is to broaden understanding about how social capital and cultural models of engineering success (CMES) contribute to the retention and degree attainment of women and minority engineering undergraduates, traditionally under-represented in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Social capital refers to the social connections of students and the resources available through those connections. CMES refer to beliefs about how to succeed in an engineering...

Effective: 2014-2020

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Catherine Riegle-Crumb

Institution: University of Texas at Austin

This study makes a major contribution to the literature on disparities in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education by providing new information about the STEM trajectories of boys and girls from various racial/ethnic subgroups from middle school through the end of college. Using five comprehensive, large-scale and longitudinal datasets, researchers from the University of Texas at Austin will examine differences between subgroups in intended as well as actual STEM...

Effective: 2014-2019

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: George E DeBoer

Institution: American Association for the Advancement of Science

This project, conducted by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), seeks to improve assessment of science understanding in K-12 students. The project will cover a wide range of 16 topics within science education. When a student takes a science test, performance will depend on cognitive factors, what the student knows, and linguistic factors, related to language. This project aims to distinguish cognitive and linguistic factors, with a focus on English language learners....

Effective: 2014-2019

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigators: Kevin J Crowley, Rena Dorph

Institutions: University of Pittsburgh, University of California-Berkeley

This project, conducted by the University of Pittsburgh and the University of California, Berkeley, seeks to discover what makes middle school students engaged in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The researchers have developed a concept known as science learning activation, including dispositions, practices, and knowledge leading to successful STEM learning and engagement. The project is intended to develop and validate a method of measuring science learning...

Effective: 2014-2018

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Ellen Schiller

Institution: SRI International

Students with learning disabilities and those with autism spectrum disorder represent the largest and fastest growing groups of students with disabilities in U.S. public schools. These students are underperforming in STEM achievement as compared to their non-disabled peers, and these students are underprepared for college entry and success. This capacity building project will contribute to foundational knowledge about what is already known, and what needs to be studied, about K-12 online STEM...

Effective: 2014-2017

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Merle Froschl

Institution: Family Health International

The Educational Equity Center at Family Health International 360, IMPAQ International, and the New York Academy of Sciences will partner to implement a three-year education research capacity-building project to support the groundwork necessary to advance research on middle school girls' math identity. The focus will be on girls in grades 4-8, critical years when they face transitions from elementary school to middle school and from middle school to high school. This effort will ultimately lay...

Effective: 2013-2019

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigators: Megan E Bang, Beth Warren

Institutions: University of Washington, TERC Inc

AbstractExpansive Meanings and Makings in ArtScience will design and develop an innovative model of ArtScience learning for middle and high school age youth from communities underrepresented in STEM fields. ArtScience is an emerging movement emphasizing commonalities in thinking practices used by artists and scientists as they explore complex 21st century problems. Youth will engage in ArtScience inquiries in two scientific domains of significance to them and their communities: climate change...

Effective: 2013-2019

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigators: Chandra L Muller, John R Warren

Institutions: University of Texas at Austin, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities

This collaborative study is investigating how the STEM skills and training that individuals from underrepresented groups acquired during high school and postsecondary education have contributed to their STEM workforce success and the types of occupations they now enjoy in midlife. It is uses the High School & Beyond (HS&B) database, a nationally representative study of high school sophomores from 1980. HS&B contains a large sample of African Americans and Latinos, women, and people...

Effective: 2013-2017

Funding Type: ECR:Core

Principal Investigator: Jon D Miller

Institution: Regents of the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

This project is initiating a new cohort of 7th grade students and extending the Longitudinal Study of American Youth (LSAY) to a new generation. In 1987, the LSAY began with national cohorts of 7th and 10th grade students selected from a stratified probability sample of public schools in the U.S. The LSAY has provided a valuable longitudinal record of the development of student attitudes and experiences into young adult life plans, careers, and new families. The original LSAY cohorts have...