HR: 1340h
AN: ED53A-0327    [Abstracts]
TI: Improving Attitudes Toward STEM By Providing Urban-Based Environmental Science Research Opportunities
AU: * Cuff, K E
EM: kcuff@berkeley.edu
AF: University of California at Berkeley, Lawrence Hall of Science, Berkeley, CA 94720 United States
AU: Molinaro, M
EM: mmolinaro@ucdavis.edu
AF: University of California at Davis, Center for Biophotonics Science and Technology, Davis, CA 95616 United States
AB: Over the past decade, numerous calls have been made for the need to increase the participation of the nation's underrepresented population in science, technology, engineering, and technology (STEM) fields of endeavor. A key element in improving the less than impressive conditions that now exist with regard to this issue, is the development of effective approaches that result in positive changes in young people's attitudes toward education in general, and STEM subject matter in particular during the early stages of their intellectual development. The Environmental Science Information Technology Activities (ESITA) program provides opportunities for under-represented grades 9 - 10 students in the East San Francisco Bay Area to learn about and apply key STEM concepts and related skills. Consisting of two-year-long after school programs at community center and school-based sites, as well as a Summer Research Institute, the ESITA program engages participants in a combination of STEM content learning activities and environmental science research projects that address issues relevant to their communities. Design of the ESITA program has been informed by: 1) pilot-study data that indicated key elements necessary for ensuring high levels of participant enthusiasm and interest; 2) a conceptual framework for development of instructional materials grounded in recent research about student learning of STEM content; and 3) research about effective after school programs that present academic content. Throughout the program's two-year existence, ESITA students have participated in the following projects: investigations of the distribution of elevated lead levels in drinking water samples from Washington, D.C.; air and water quality studies in and around a popular lake situated within the nation's oldest wildlife refuge, located in downtown Oakland, California; and studies of the relationship between airborne particulate matter concentrations in Richmond, California, and activity at local petroleum refineries. As participants have used newly acquired skills and understandings while performing such investigations that are directly linked to relevant, real-world environmental problems and issues, they have: significantly increased their understanding of the process and nature of science; enhanced their intellectual self-confidence with regard to STEM; developed a deeper appreciation of how scientific research can contribute to the maintenance of healthy local environments; developed a greater interest in participating in STEM-related courses of study and after school programs; improved their general attitudes toward STEM. All of these gains significantly increase the capacity of participants to enroll and perform successfully in STEM courses in the future, which together enhances their chances of deciding to pursue STEM careers.
DE: 0805 Elementary and secondary education
SC: Education and Human Resources [ED]
MN: Fall Meeting 2005