A Twin Cities Public Television Project - stelar.edc.orgstelar.edc.org/sites/stelar.edc.org/files/SciGirls Strategies Final Research Report... · A Twin Cities Public Television Project

A Twin Cities Public Television ProjectFunded by the National Science Foundation

SciGirls Final Report 2018

Inspiring girls in STEM.

Science

Experiential

ciSX Experiential Science EducationResearch Collaborative

2 | SciGirls FINAL REPORT 2018

STEM Program Impacts...“I enjoy STEM subjects. I just think they’re a great way to reach out to new things and I think all STEM subjects can be found and applied in your everyday life. It’s most often in subtle ways but it’s really easy to find reasons how, like I did with my video about the science behind baking.“- SciGirls Student Journal


STEM Program Impacts...

Executive SummarySciGirls Strategies: This report presents findings of the SciGirls Strat-egies quasi-experimental mixed methods study, investigating the experiences and outcomes of fe-male high school students in classes taught by Sci-Girls-trained educators in terms of STEM-related identity construction. The STEM-related identity framework and research model used to guide this investigation is presented along with the study’s research questions: 1) How does the experience of participating in all of the SciGirls Strategies project components impact girls’ STEM-related identity development?; 2) What are the impacts of individual project components, with a focus on the use of role models in classroom instruction?; and 3) What modifications to the STEM identity framework are indicated by the findings?

Findings indicate female student experiences in classes led by ScigGirls-trained educators showed significant results towards the development of more positive STEM-related identities. The re-sults of both quantitative and qualitative compo-

nents of this mixed methods study support the growth of STEM-related identity in seven of nine key composite indicators, including: Personal Relevance, Agency, Emotional Connection, Con-tent Confidence, Enjoyment of Science, Science Career Interest, Technology Career Interest, En-gineering Career Interest, Mathematics Career Interest. Case studies provided important in-sights of how lived experiences including those dimensions unfold in the personal lives of girls, including the importance of STEM-learning-re-lated risk experiences and social factors as im-portant components in forging agency and emo-tional connections to STEM.

The engagement of role models was revealed to be a significant and complex factor in the develop-ment of positive STEM-related identity. The use of female STEM by educators showed statistical-ly significant advantages over no use. In-person role model interactions showed advantage over video based and/or article-reading exposure to role models. However, the case studies revealed


the outcomes for girls engaging with the project’s strategies and deliverables, including in-class ex-periences with SciGirls-trained teachers, and ex-plores how those experiences contribute to their STEM-related identity development. n-person role model interadThe larger context in which this study is posi-tioned to contribute is the challenge of girls’ entry into scientific and technical fields, which includes the challenge of developing a positive science identity against gender stereotypes (Notter, 2010; Brickhouse, Lowery, & Schultz, 2000) and main-taining that identity within a prevalent anti-sci-ence attitude among America’s youth (Osborne, Simon & Collins, 2003). This challenge is ampli-fied for girls as research indicates that sustained engagement of girls with STEM activities and career opportunities requires elements not tradi-tionally included in STEM education: holistic hu-man experiences that include emotions and social components, such as role modeling, integrated in the learning of content and process knowledge (Notter, 2010). If SciGirls Strategies can demon-strate successes (or failures) in integrating STEM into the processes of identity development for girls, it will generate knowledge important to the field for promoting positive STEM-related iden-tities as an important precursor to STEM literacy and STEM career choices. It is hoped this study will also be important for educators attempting to reach learners who do not traditionally self-select for STEM learning; consider themselves cultural-ly positioned for STEM; think themselves “smart” or “capable” enough to engage in STEM; or who actively seek to avoid the social stigma costs of participating in STEM beyond K12.

Role ModelsThe project placed particular emphasis on inte-grating role model strategies into the educator professional development for more gender equi-table teaching. Role modeling has been shown to be an important factor in generating awareness

the concept of “role models” to be somewhat alien to girls, in favor of a broader concept of “personal influencers” in their lives. These were most often relatives or friends who had a high degree of personal relevancy for girls. These findings are discussed in terms of the need to recognize and articulate different kinds of role models in service to broadening participation in STEM for non-majority group students. Viewed through a social identity theory lens, it is argued necessary to unpack the monolithic concept of ‘role model’ to differentiate role, so-cial, and personal influencers who exhibit traits and behaviors that inform these different levels of identity.

Finally, indicated adjustments to the concep-tual framework and research model are dis-cussed along with recommendations for future research. trategies quasi-experimental mixed methods study, investigating the experiences and outcomes of female high school students in classes taught by SciGirls-trained educators in terms of STEM-related identity construction. it

Program IntroductionSciGirls Strategies was a National Science Foun-dation–funded project led by Twin Cities PBS (TPT) in partnership with St. Catherine Uni-versity, the National Girls Collaborative, and XSci (The Experiential Science Education Re-search Collaborative) at the University of Col-orado Boulder’s Center for STEM Learning. This report presents the methods and findings of a quasi-experimental mixed-methods study designed to contribute to improved program-ming and knowledge in STEM-related identity development. The study tests the hypothesis that girls will develop more positive STEM-re-lated identities when their educators employ research-based, gender-equitable and culturally responsive teaching practices enhanced with fe-male STEM role models. The effort focuses on


and expectations regarding role-based identity development within society (Stryker & Statham, 1985) and in promoting interest and self-efficacy among students, including minorities, in STEM fields (Aschbacher, Li & Roth, 2010; Buck et al., 2007; Ntiri, 2001; Greenwald & Davis, 2000). Multiple studies demonstrate that connecting stu-dents to STEM professionals can increase knowl-edge of, awareness and interest in STEM careers. Specifically, several studies show that role mod-els can increase positive attitudes towards STEM subjects, improve self-concept in STEM, and in-crease greater self-efficacy in STEM (Fuesting, 2017; Clark, 2016; Herrmann, 2016; Shin, 2016). These psychosocial factors are thought to be key in promoting investment, engagement, and per-sistence in STEM.

However, programs directed at addressing gen-dered STEM interest and self-concept disparities have historically aimed to cultivate girls’ STEM competences, skills and confidence within the classroom (Häussler & Hoffman, 2002). Less of-ten, have they sought to provide positive female role models and other forms of support through internships, mentoring, and other research expe-riences (Hunter, Laursen & Seymour, 2006).One of the aims of this investigation was to better understand positive STEM identity role model-ling for girls a sound theoretical research base so it may translate into better educational strategies for girls and boys alike at those critical teenage years where deterministic attitudes and deci-sions about STEM careers occur in concert with intense identity construction. In particular, this project sought to examine differences in how role models may be introduced, especially compar-ing video-based role models with in-person role models and/or no role models.

Research ModelThe conceptual framework for this research is Social Identity Theory as described by Tajfel and

Turner (1979) and later synthesized into Identi-ty Theory by Burke and Stets (2000), which en-compasses different types of program influenc-es on identity development. Specifically, these include:

(1) Role identity: the meanings an individu-al assigns to different positions/functions they hold or perform in society;

(2) Social identity: the meanings an individu-al incorporates into their sense-of-self based on affiliation with or formal/informal membership in social groups (gender, age, family, class, eth-nicity, interests), and;

(3) Personal identity: the meanings an indi-vidual incorporates into their sense-of-self as unique or distinct from others (what makes us different).

Together, these categories influence our ideas of who we are and who we want to (and attempt to) become, guiding our self-perceptions and our choices, including what we believe we can do (and what we cannot do) (Burke & Stets, 2009). In this investigation, the research team was es-pecially interested in any positive STEM-relat-ed identity development, or the degree to which one integrates STEM into their sense-of-self as a result of their participation (McLain, 2012).

To guide the investigation, XSci began with a theoretical framework that identifies distinct STEM identity construction zones. Construc-tion zones include the cognitive factors of agen-cy, content confidence, emotional connection and personal relevance, and associates these factors with specific behavioral outcomes im-portant in STEM-related identity development (capacity, STEM concept, attitudes and self-effi-cacy, future choices) (see Figure 1).


STEM Related Identity Construction Zones (Figure 1)

The STEM Related Identity Construction ZonesTo guide the investigation of program influences (role, social and personal idenity), XSci began with a theoretical framework that identifies distinct STEM identity construction zones. Construction zones include the cognitive factors of agency, content confidence, emotional connection and personal relevance, and associates these factors with specific behavioral outcomes important in STEM-related identity development (capacity, STEM concept, attitudes and self-efficacy, future choices) (see Figure 1).


Research QuestionsQuestion 1How does the experience of participating in all of the SciGirls Strategies proj-ect components impact girls’ STEM-related identity development?

Question 2What are the impacts of individual and project components: classroom instruc-tion, role models, and videos and autobiographical story sharing?, with a focus on the use of role models in classroom instruction?

Question 3What modifications to the STEM identity framework are indicated by the findings?

0

75

25

5

35

20

0

80

20

10

90

0

15

5

80

0

75

25

5

35

20

0

80

20

10

90

0

15

5

80

0

75

25

5

35

20

0

80

20

10

90

0

15

5

80


In four out of the six cases, there was strong evidence of positive impacts on STEM-related identity development (see full case analysis). In two of those cases, these gains were strongly linked to in-class SciGirls-related experiences.

But in the other two cases, the positive results were not strongly linked to in-class SciGirls-related experiences, if at all. In the case one participant, there is some evidence that her STEM-related identity gains occurred in spite of some negative SciGirls-related experiences. And for two of the six cases, there were no notably positive STEM-related identity impacts linked to in-class SciGirls experiences. For one student, whose entire STEM-related identity was based in math, there was relatively little growth in broader STEM-related identity development with no major changes indicated. In the case of the one participant whose participation in SciGirls-related experiences were destructive to

her STEM-related identity development, her overall STEM-related identity still managed to survive as positive by the end of the semester.

Based on this framework and the findings, it is necessary to unpack the monolithic concept of ‘role model’ to differentiate role, social, and personal influencers who exhibit traits and behaviors that inform these levels of identity.

(For full cross case analysis please see full report)

Case Study HighlightsResearch Questions

How does the experience of participating in all of the SciGirls Strategies project com-ponents impact girls’ STEM-related identity development?

What are the impacts of individual and project components: classroom instruction, role models, and videos and autobiographical story sharing?, with a focus on the use of role models in classroom instruction?

What modifications to the STEM identity framework are indicated by the findings?

0

75

25

5

35

20

0

80

20

10

90

0

15

5

80

“What is the science behind having a crush on someone? What sort of chemical reaction does your body go through when your mind decides it likes another person?”.

- SciGirl Journal


Learning has always been a highlight of my life, but school always hasn’t... I’ve recently come to the realization that my life is full of challenging moments. And everyone is tested on their perseverance at some point or another. And I think as long as I can stick with what I love, I’ll do just fine.

- SciGirls Participant Video Narration

“

“


1

FINALRESEARCHREPORT

2018

BradleyMcLain,PH.D.

Science

Experiential

ciSX Experiential Science EducationResearch Collaborative

SciGirls Strategies Research Final Report

2

FINALREPORTTableofContents

QUANTITATIVERESEARCH 3

QUALITATIVERESEARCH 9

CASESTUDIES 11

CROSSCASEANALYSIS 80

CONCLUSIONS 97

REFERENCES 99

APPENDIXA.COMPOSITESANDCORRESPONDINGSURVEYITEMS 101

APPENDIXB.DESCRIPTIVESTATISTICSFORSURVEYITEMS 103


3

QuantitativeResearchSurveyMethodsTo measure the impact of the SciGirlsproject on students, responses from acomposite survey administered beforeand after exposure to the intervention(treatment) were compared to beforeand after responses from similarstudents who were not exposed(comparison). The composite surveyconsistedofthecombinationoftheSTEMCareerInterestSurvey,includingallfoursubscales (Kier, Blanchard, Osborne, &Albert, 2014);The Girls’ Interest inNature and Science Scale (modified)(Flagg, 2015), and the Science IdentityScale,currentlyundervalidationtesting(McLain,2015).The combined survey resulted in 69common items, which align to severalkey concepts. For each key concept acomposite scorewasgenerated1. SeeAppendix A for a list of thecorresponding item for each concept.Eachcompositescorewascalculatedbysumming the responses to the itemsassociatedwiththatcomposite(reversescoringwhenappropriatefornegativelywordeditems)andthendividingbythetotal number of items. The followingcompositeswerecreated:

• PersonalRelevance• Agency• EmotionalConnection• ContentConfidence

1 Cronbach alpha coefficients were computed to examine the reliability of each composite. The Cronbach alpha coefficients indicated good reliability (above 0.80) for the composites related to career interest and enjoyment of science. Agency and Emotional Connection composites were slightly lower, but still considered acceptable (above 0.70).

• EnjoymentofScience• ScienceCareerInterest• TechnologyCareerInterest• EngineeringCareerInterest• MathematicsCareerInterest

Respondents Respondentswereurban and suburbanhigh school students identifying asfemale in and around the Twin Citiesmetropolitan area in Minnesota, USA,constituting a convenience sample ofstudents whose teachers were in theSciGirls professional developmentprogram (treatment) and a comparisongroupwhoseteacherwerenot involvedin SciGirls professional development.Therewere547studentswhocompletedthebefore-intervention(pre)surveyand315 who completed the after-intervention(post)survey.Ofthose,thebefore- and after-intervention surveydata were able to be linked for 295participants. The 295 person sampleincluded 232 students of 17 differenteducators in the intervention(treatment)conditionand63studentsof3 educators in the comparison group.Surveyswerecollectedduringyear3oftheproject.Thesurveyalsoaskedseveralquestionsabout students’ background. ThemajorityofrespondentswereWhite(62percent), although the student racialbackground looked somewhat differentacross the experimental conditions.While 58 percent of students in the

Personal Relevance and Content Confidence were lower still (.65-.69). The decision was made to analyze these composites, but to treat results more tenuously since there is less confidence in the assumption that these items accurately measure a singular construct.


4

comparisongroupwereWhite, only33percent of students in the treatmentcondition were White. Students werespread across grades nine throughtwelve, with the greatest concentrationin freshman and sophomore grade (72percent). There were largerconcentrationsofupperlevelhighschoolstudents in the treatmentcondition(34percent)ascomparedtothecomparisoncondition(8percent).

AnalysisFirst,baselineequivalencewasexaminedbetween the treatment and comparisongroupsoneachoftheoutcomesusinganindependentsamplest-test. Therewerestatistically significant differences atbaseline within the STEM-CIS forengineering, technology, andmathematics career interest(independent samples t-test; p < 0.05).However, in all three cases, the averagescores were higher for the comparisongroup. These results support baselineequivalence for most outcomes, and forthosewhereinequivalencewasfound,theadvantage is in the direction of thecomparisongroup.Toassess the impactoftheSciGirlsinterventiononstudents,aseries of multiple regression analyseswereconducted. Theanalysis lookedatthe effect of the intervention on each ofthe9keycomposites.Becausethisstudyinvolvesmultiplecomparisonsofrelatedoutcomes,theFalseDiscoveryRate(FDR)method2wasusedtomaintainanoverallTypeIerrorrateof5percent.In this kindof analysis, differences oneachoutcomebetweeninterventionand

2 The false discovery rate method adjusts the alpha level required for statistical significance. Benjamini, Y. & Hochberg, Y. (1995). Controlling the false discovery rate: a practical and powerful approach to multiple testing. Journal of the Royal Statistical Society, B, 57, 289–300.

comparison groups is examined,controlling for student outcome scorebefore the intervention, whether thestudentwas in theuppergrades(11thor12thgrade)andwhetherthestudentwas of color. To see if the observeddifferences in composite scores werestatisticallysignificant(andthus,highlyunlikely to be due to random chance)ninemultipleregressionanalyseswereconducted;oneforeachcomposite.

Results&DiscussionTherewere seven significant differencesfound between before-intervention andafter-intervention composite scores.Students reported higher rates of thefollowing after exposure to theinterventionascomparedtocounterpartsand after controlling for baselinedifferences, race, and grade level(multipleregression;p<0.05):

• Personalrelevance;• Agency;• Emotionalconnection;• Contentconfidence;• Enjoymentofscience;• Interestinscience&mathematics

careers•

There were no statistically significantdifferences in interest in technology orengineering careers. Table 1 providesdescriptive information on compositescores at both time points for eachexperimentalcondition. Effectsizes3arenoted for statistically significant results.Notethatforeachsignificantfinding,theeffect size is small, ranging from0.23 to

3Effectsizesofabout0.20aretypicallyconsideredsmall,0.50medium,and0.80large.Cohen,J.(1988).Statisticalpoweranalysisforthebehavioralsciences.Hillsdale,NJ:LawrenceErlbaumAssociates


5

0.39. This indicates that while theprogram did indeed affect STEM-relatedidentity for female students, the

magnitude of that effect was relativelysmall.

Table1.CompositeScores(onascaleof1to4),byTimeandCondition(Comparisonvs.Treatment)

CompositeGroup

Time

Mean

Std.Deviation

EffectSize

PersonalRelevance C Pre 2.72 0.62 0.39Post 2.57 0.67

T Pre 2.62 0.69Post 2.80 0.69

Agency C Pre 2.63 0.63 0.37Post 2.50 0.72

T Pre 2.57 0.74Post 2.75 0.75

EmotionalConnection C Pre 2.37 0.61 0.27Post 2.32 0.59

T Pre 2.33 0.63Post 2.48 0.66

ContentConfidence C Pre 2.65 0.65 0.31Post 2.62 0.71

T Pre 2.67 0.67Post 2.89 0.66

EnjoymentofScience C Pre 2.78 0.61 0.28Post 2.68 0.65

T Pre 2.71 0.73Post 2.86 0.72

ScienceCareerInterest C Pre 3.92 0.68 0.36Post 3.81 0.73

T Pre 3.93 0.62Post 4.07 0.67

TechnologyCareerInterest

C Pre 3.94 0.61 --Post 3.87 0.63

T Pre 3.75 0.66Post 3.85 0.69

EngineeringCareerInterest

C Pre 3.73 0.61 --Post 3.61 0.66

T Pre 3.53 0.70Post 3.57 0.72

MathematicsCareerInterest

C Pre 4.03 0.54 0.23Post 3.90 0.76

T Pre 3.79 0.70Post 3.90 0.72


6

Additionally,analyseswereperformedtolookatdifferences inoutcomesbasedonteachers’ implementation of rolemodeling. Note that due to a largevarianceinthewaysrolemodelsandrolemodel videoswere used by educators, itwas not possible to analyze differencesbetween the specific types of rolemodellingparadigmsoriginallyproposedin the project (CTE-STEM role modelvideos, near peer videos of girlsinteracting with CTE-STEM role models,videosmadebygirlsforothergirls,andin-personrolemodelinteractions).However,based on findings from the project’sevaluationeffort,treatmentteacherswereclassifiedintofournewrolemodelgroups:Liverolemodelsonly(n=5),rolemodelingdepicted through videos or readingarticles(n=5),both(n=10),andneither–no role models used in classroominstruction (n=3). 4 These four groupswere compared to each other and thecomparison condition using a similarmultiple regression model to the onedescribed previously. (Total studentsample size of 286). Only the sevenoutcomes for which there was astatistically significant treatment effect

were examined. The goal was to betterunderstandhowthetypeofrolemodelingused may have influenced theeffectivenessofthetreatment.Intheanalysesofallsevenoutcomestherewasastatisticallysignificantandfavorableeffectofusingbothkindsofrolemodelingrepresentations (multiple regression;p<0.05). See Table 2. Interestingly, for allseven outcomes there was also astatisticallysignificantandfavorableeffectof using just live role models (multipleregression; p < 0.05). In four of sevenoutcomes,studentsof teachersusing justliverolemodelsoutperformedstudentsofteachers using role models in videos orarticles alone (multiple regression; p <0.05). Similarly, in three of sevenoutcomes,usingbothkindsofrolemodelswasmore beneficial than just using rolemodels in videos or articles (multipleregression;p<0.05).Takentogether,theresultssuggestthatthereisanadvantageto using role models in theimplementation of SciGirls, and thatadvantage is largelyattributedtotheuseofliverolemodels.

Table2.ComparisonsofRoleModelingTypeAcrossOutcomes;StatisticallySignificantResults

Indicatedbyan“X”

KeyComparisons

PersonalRelevance

Agency EmotionalConnection

ContentConfidence

Enjoy-mentofScience

ScienceCareerInterest

MathCareerInterest

Both>Comparison

X X X X X X X

JustLive>Comparison

X X X X X X X

JustVideo>Comparison

Neither>Comparison

X X X X

4 There were six treatment teachers for whom information about whether role modeling was

incorporated into their implementation was unavailable. They were excluded for this analysis.


7

Both>JustLive

Both>JustVideo

X X X

Both>Neither X JustLive>JustVideo

X X X X

JustLive>Neither

X X

Neither>JustVideo

X

Participantswerealsoaskedabouttheirbeliefs about science (science concept)beforeandaftertheintervention,aspartoftheScienceIdentityScale. Theywerepresentedalistofresponsesandaskedtoselectallthatapplied.ResponsepatternsbeforeandafteraredisplayedinTable3.As the table shows, students in thetreatment and comparison conditionsheld similar beliefs before theintervention.Treatingeachoptionchoiceas an outcome, the changes frompre topost-intervention by group wereanalyzedusinglogisticregression.Therewere three statistically significant

differences, all favoring the treatmentgroup (logistic regression; p < 0.05).Students in the treatment group weremore likely tohold the followingbeliefsafter the intervention as compared tothose who did not receive theintervention:

• Scienceisaprocessormethodforinvestigatingquestions;

• Scienceisaspecialwayofthinkingaboutorviewingtheworld;

• ScienceissomethingIlike.

Table3.%ofRespondentsSelectingEachResponse,Before/AftertheIntervention,byTreatmentGroup PercentCheckedIconsidersciencetobe(selectallthatapplytoYOURopinion):

Comparison Treatment

Knowledge,facts,orcontent Pre 75 79Post 67 79

Thegroupofpeoplewhodoscience Pre 8 8Post 8 13

Aprocessormethodforinvestigatingquestions Pre 71 71Post 56 78

Aspecialwayofthinkingaboutorviewingtheworld

Pre 60 64Post 52 69

SomethingIlike Pre 46 53Post 40 57

SomethingIdislike Pre 13 9Post 14 7


8

In summary, results show a significantprogram impact within 7 of 9 keycomposites of STEM-related identitybased on the original research model.This indicates broad multi-dimensionalgrowthoffemalestudents’STEM-relatedidentity after exposure to SciGirlsteaching strategies introduced by theirteachers -- a definitive success of theprogram. However, it should also benotedthatforeachsignificantfindingonthe 7 composites, the effect sizes wererelatively small. This may indicate theareaswhere theprogramison therighttrack for impacting female students’sense of STEM-related identity, butpoised todobetter inmaximizing thoseimpactsthroughimprovedprogrammingand/ormoresustainedeffortsovertime.Especially compelling is the significantgrowth found in science concept afterexposure to SciGirls teaching strategiesover comparison groups (Science is aprocess or method for investigatingquestions; Science is a special way ofthinkingaboutorviewingtheworld;andScienceissomethingIlike).Thisshowsaprogresstowardamoreaccurateviewofwhatscienceisatthesametimeasmorepersonal affinity to it, contradictingnumerous prior findings that interest insciencewanes as children age and theirunderstanding of it becomes moreabstractandcomplex.Theseencouragingresultsarestronglyreflected in thecasestudy findings presented in the nextsection.A challenge to understanding whichcomponentsoftheprogramweremoreorlesseffectiveinbringingaboutthisresultis that there was no fidelity ofimplementation. That is, the projectdesign included no provisional structureorrequirementsforwhatorhowteachers

who were engaged in the SciGirlsprofessionaldevelopment trainingwouldthen utilize program elements in theirclassrooms.Rather,educatorswerelefttotheir own counsel andexperience in thisregard – making the program less of atraditional “intervention”andmoreofana-la-carte menu of teaching strategies.While arguably a positive feature of theprofessional development design (forexample, it maximizes flexibility foreducators), theresult isahighlyvariablerange of SciGirls-related classroominstructionstrategiesunder investigationinthisstudy,ratherthanaclearlydefinedintervention (see the project evaluationreport for details on the impacts onteacherpractice).Itisalsonotpossibletoadequately examine the concert effect ofmultiple teaching strategies employedtogether or in sequence (the sumvs. theparts) that may be in play for studentSTEM-related identitydevelopment. It isworth noting that of the 17 educatorswhose students were in the treatmentgroup,6of themrepresented thebulkofthesignificantfindings--witharange10to 65 respondents for each showingsignificantgainsinallormostofthe7keycomposites. Therefore a closerexaminationofthestrategiesemployedbytheseeducatorsbyprojectleadersmaybewarranted.Despite these challenges, the use ofdifferent kinds of role modelling wasemployed widely enough to draw somefascinatingconclusions.First,rolemodelsmatter, validating numerous otherfindings and ample practitioner wisdom.There is a distinct advantage inintroducingfemalerolemodelsto femalestudents in the context of studentclassroom experiences. Further, andperhaps not surprisingly, it appears thatadvantage lies more with in-person role


9

model interactions over video or article-readingbasedrolemodelexposure. Alsoperhapsnotsurprisingly,anytypeofrolemodellingconferredadvantagestoSTEM-relatedidentitydevelopmentovernorolemodelling.Asdiscussedinthecasestudiesinthefollowingsection,itappearsevenasingle exposure to a strong female rolemodelcanpositivelyimpactfemaleSTEM-relatedidentitydevelopment.

Inthenextsection,multipledetailedcasestudiesarepresentedtodivedeeperintothemechanismsandpersonalexperiencesbehindthedifferentSTEM-relatedidentitydevelopmentcategoriesbroadlyexaminedinthequantitativeinvestigation.

QualitativeResearchCaseStudyMethodsThe teamused individual case studies toinvestigate girls’ personal learningexperiences and individual meaningsconstructed from them, guided by thetheoretical framework. Since theprojectsoughtinsightonhowgirlsmakemeaningand forge personal relevance fromclassroom strategies for equitable STEMexperiences (to the extent of potentialidentityimpacts),casestudyallowsfortheinterpretive, descriptivedepthneeded todeal with the complexity of humaninteractionsfromaSTEM-relatedidentitytheoreticalperspective.Theresultisasetof six individual within-case analysespresented here along with a cross-caseanalysis.The bounded system for this study wasone semester in an urban high schoolwhere participants’ teachers receivedSciGirls teacher training. There werethree teachers and two STEM areasrepresented in the cases: biology andchemistry. There was no formalcurriculum, activity, or interventionexpectedof the teachers (asnotedabovein the discussion of fidelity ofimplementation).Rather,theywerelefttotheirowncounselonwhetherandhowto

implement SciGirls-related programelements. Of an original 14 girlsparticipating in the case studies, 8completed the requirements, and6wereselectedasfinalcases.Thegirlsageswere14-17.Datasourcesforthecasestudiesincluded:

• Multiple semi-structured (guided)interviews, dubbed the “IdentityInterviews” which employedtechniquesandexercisesbasedonpriorsocialidentityresearch;

• Journaling, using prompts andsemi-structuredformatand;

• Autobiographicalvideonarratives,using analysis techniquesdeveloped specifically forexamining participant-createdvideosforidentityresearch.

For case study data analysis, the designdescribedbyStake(1995)wasappliedtoformulate a detailed description of eachcase. These descriptions include casehistory,significanteventsandquotations,interpretations, and utilize a codingprocess (described below) to identifythemes based both on the researchquestionsandthetheoretical framework.The cross-case analysis examined theemergent themes across all the cases to


10

identify the themes and meanings thatseemtobesharedamongallparticipantsand yield an understanding of what theSciGirls-relatedexperiencewaslikeacrossall-cases,whatmadeitimportanttotheirSTEM-related identities (if it was), andhowparticipantsintheirinterpretationoftheirexperiences,mademeaning.

For coding, the team used thematicanalysis techniques based upon identitytheory and the theoretical framework,including: Agency (one’s beliefs abouttheir STEM performance/competence);Reflected self-appraisals (perceivedrecognitiontheyreceivefromothersinthecontextofSTEM),and;PersonalinterestinSTEM (including content confidence,emotionalconnection,personalrelevance).And Behavioral outcomes including:Capacity (to engage in STEM);Understanding of STEM concepts;Attitudesandself-efficacyregardingSTEM,and;ChoicesorfutureaspirationsrelatedtoSTEM.

For the analysis of participant-createdautobiographical videos as data sources,the team used a narrative analysisapproachdevelopedbyXScithatconsiderseachvideoasaholisticstoryaswellasadeconstructionofitselementsinordertobetter elucidate the multi-dimensionalmeaningofthevideos(McLain2012).Thisapproach is informed by previousapproaches (Greene, Burke, & McKenna,2018; Benmayor, 2008; Yussen & Ozcan,

1997; Clandinin & Connelly, 2000) andfollows a coding strategy of multiplereviews(8 to10)ofeachvideo to revealthemes: Visual coding to examine theimagery/visual themes chosen by thevideo creators (code-by-code andemergent); Verbal-linguistic coding ofdialogue and/or narration based on atextualtranscriptionofeachvideo’saudioand on-screen text (code-by-code andemergent); Analysis of the director’scommentary as a self-interview inwhichvideo creators record a separate audiotrack with comments in real-time abouttheir video-creation choices, decisions,and intentions; Scene-by-scene plotmapping to create a code-by-codeconceptualmapofeachvideotoexaminetheorder, content (includinganymusic),salience, and code classification of eachscene.

Pseudonyms were employed for allparticipants, their teachers, and otherpeoplementioned.

Finally, itshouldbenotedthatthisstudywas NOT program-centric; it was NOTintendedtobeadirectassessmentoftheSciGirls Strategies interventions orprogram-related resources, trainings, orstudent academic performance results.Rather,itwasparticipant-centric;seekingto explore participant identity indevelopment in the presence of SciGirls-related influences as part of the largercontextoftheirlivedexperiences.


11

CaseStudy:Jane

ProfileJane was a 16 year-old high schoolsophomoreinSt.PaulMNatthetimeofthestudy. She is theoldestof fourchildrenandtheonlygirlinherfamily.Sheenjoysart, reading hockey, music, cooking, andpottery. She also enjoys STEM subjects,learningnewthings,andapplyingSTEMtoher everyday life. She loves baking andblending it with science to increase herlearningandcreatenewthings.

SciGirlsTeacher:Ms.R,

Class:Chemistry1.Pre-Analysis(InitialConditionsatthestartofthestudy)A.SelfPerceptionsAt the beginning of the study, Janedescribed herself as a friendly, creative,and supportive leader. She did notconsiderherselftobeselfish,ignorant,norclose-minded.Whenaskedtolistandrankher perceived identities, here were herresponses:

Table4:Jane'sPREIdentitySort

Importance TimeSpentasEach MosttoLeastPleasing IdealSelf

1.Sister 1.Friend 1.Friend Allinonepile,andI’mqueenoftheuniverse

2.Friend 2.Student 2.Sister

3.Avidreader 3.Sister 3.Avidreader

4.Student 4.Avidreader 4.Hockeyplayer

5.Hockeyplayer 5.Hockeyplayer 5.Petenthusiasm

6.Petenthusiast 6.Petenthusiast 6.Student

For Jane, STEMwas included within her“Student” identity. And while she laterstressedherloveofbakingandevenusedit as the subject of her video narrative,beingacookorbakerdoesnotappearonheridentitylist.B.Rolemodels:During the pre-interview, Jane was verydetailed in describing her role models.Heretheyareinorderofimportance:

• HerMom:“SheisWonderWomanto me.” She does data analysis,directs two teams, gets up at

6:00amdaily,getsthefamilygoingeachmorning,worksallday,takescareofeveryone,andalwaysstayspositive.

• Grandmother: (mom’s mom) and“wheremymomgetsher‘bad-ass-ery from.’” She was a nursepractitioner,andforgedpathwayinMassachusettstoallowfathersintodeliveryroomswhenthatwasnotan accepted practice. She alsoeducated couples on birthingpractices out her living room. “Asupersupportiveperson.”


12

• HerDad:Spenthislifemovingalot,had five step-fathers growing up,later joined the Navy, now doeseverythingtosupporteducationforhis kids, learns alongside them inordertohelpthemimprove.

• RobertDowneyJunior:Becausehehada rough spotwithdrugabusebut turned his life around andbecamea“reallygoodperson.”

TwooftheserolemodelsrelatestronglytoSTEM (Mom and Grandmother) and alsooverlap with being extremely personallyrelevanttoJane.C.ConceptionsofScienceorSTEMJane’s conception of science was quitesophisticated, almost “textbook.” Shedescribedscienceasthestudyoftheworldthrough experiments and modeledanalysis. This hefty description wasaccompanied by a fairly robustunderstanding,asrevealedinJane’sotherreflections(presentedbelow).D. Self-Perceptions Related toSTEMSelf-AppraisalsandReflectedSelf-AppraisalsWhenaskedifsheconsideredherselftobe“STEMperson,”Janeresponded:Kindof.IamsomeonewhoenjoysSTEMandplanningaSTEMcareer.ButIhaveno

ideawhatIwanttodowithmylife.Pre-interview

Whenaskedifotherswhoknewherwouldconsider her to be “STEM person,”(reflected self-appraisal) she likewiseresponded,“kindof.”

STEMCommitmentEmotionally, Jane described herrelationship with STEM as variable,sometimes excited; sometimes confused;sometimes no emotion at all. On somedays,sheexpressedgreatenthusiasmforSTEM:Scienceistheshit!BillBillBillBillBillBill

Nyethescienceguy. Journal

Additionally, she spent an estimated 15hoursperweekonSTEMandidentifiedasocial cohort around her STEMengagements of around four otherstudents that she considered to be closefriends.2.SciGirls-RelatedExperience(Experiencesduringthecourseofthesemester)A.ReflectionsLikeallthecasestudies,Jane’sexperienceswith her particular teacher who wasengaged in SciGirls trainingwas blendedandcontextualizedintoalargersphereoflifeexperiences.Janebeganwithahighlyfunctional and activated scienceperspective coupled with a moderatelypositive STEM-related identity. Notablyevident in Jane’s interviews, journaling,and video narrative was her scientificprocess literacy and scientific habits ofmind -- a tendency to ask curiousquestions about the world and apply ascientificlenstothem.Forexample,whendiscussing an incident in which hermother had baked cupcakes for thechildren Jane coached in hockey, shenoted:


13

Theyweregoodcupcakesbutdidn’ttasteliketheynormallydo.WhenIaskedmymomaboutitshetoldmethattheonlybuttershecouldfindwhilebakingwasbutterthathadbeensittinginourfridgeforawhile.NobodygotsickbutIwas

wonderingifithadtodowiththebutter’sfermentationprocessinthefridgeandhow

thatcouldaffectthetaste.Journal

JOrthisexample:Whatisthesciencebehindhavingacrush

onsomeone?Whatsortofchemicalreactiondoesyourbodygothroughwhenyourminddecidesitlikesanotherperson?

JournalJ

Her overall engagement with STEMbeyond her classroom experiences issummedupinthefollowingjournalentry:DoesSTEMapplytome?Yes,mostSTEMsubjectscanbefoundinorappliedtoyoureverydaylife.It’smostoftensubtlebutit

appliesinmanyways.Journal

Jane’sSciGirls-trained teacherwasMs.R,whom she had for Chemistry. Shedescribedherin-classlearningexperienceasfun,includingacombinationofprojects,PowerPoint presentations, experiments,independentexploration,andhomework.Her classroom was an open-learningenvironment with high interactivity andoften innovatively incorporatingartsandcrafts within the science context. Herexperiences inchemistryclasscorrelatedwith her application of chemistry tobaking -- the theme and focus of Kim’svideonarrative:

Whythescienceofbaking?BakingissomethingIenjoyanddooften.Breaking

downthethingsImakenotonlyallowsmetounderstandhowtheingredientsactandreactwithoneanotherbutIcanusetheknowledgetobranchoutsandcreatemy

ownthings.Journal

JanealsoindicatedthatMs.Rincorporatedcollaborationamongstudents,personallyrelevant, hands-on and somewhat open-endedprojects,positiveand constructivefeedback,andencouragedcriticalthinkinginherclass.Thesecharacteristicsoverlapwith the elements that formed thebackboneoftheSciGirlseducatortraining.B.SciGirlsRoleModelImpactsJaneidentifiednoSTEMrolemodelsbeingbroughtintotheclassroombyherSciGirlsteacher,Ms.R.However,itisnotablethatforJane,Ms.RherselfservedasapowerfulSTEM rolemodel who had the ability toestablish personal relevance andemotional connection to STEM that waslikelynotpossiblewithanyoneelse:Her[Ms.R]fatherjustpassedawayfromcancerandwewerelearningaboutcellsatthetime.Shetooklikeawholedaytotelluswhathadhappenedwithherfatherandwhat’sgoingonwithherself--becauseshehasI-melanoma.AndshetalkedaboutwhatcancerwasandwhatitdoestoyourbodyandIhadanauntpassawaylastJanuary…fromcancer…thatstuckwithme.Iwasgladshetookthetimetomakesureweallknewwhatwashappening.I

wasverygratefulforthat.Post-interview

PLater in thestudy, Janebegan to refer toMs.RasafriendsheknewbecauseofherSTEMinterests.Clearly,Ms.RwasabletosuccessfullylinkSTEMlearningtoreallifewithinthecontextofachemistryclass.In


14

thisway,forJaneatleast,shewasabletopowerfully bridge her role as teacher tooneofrolemodelaswell.C.VideoNarrativeAnalysisJane’s video narrative theme was thatSTEMisallarounduseveryday.Thetitlewas,“TheS.T.E.M.andI:AnExperimentalProcess.” It included an introductorysequence set to a simple iMovie musictrack and explaining who she is, bothrelated to and independent from STEM,includingherloveofreading,hockey,art,music,pottery, andbaking. Thiswas setover shots of groceries in a cart beingpusheddown the isle of a store, intercutwithshotsofhermakingpottery,followedby a brief discussion stating herperspective of STEM being embedded ineverydaylifeallaroundus:IenjoySTEMsubjects.Ijustthinkthey’reagreatwaytoreachouttonewthingsandIthinkallSTEMsubjectscanbefoundandappliedinyoureverydaylife.It’smostofteninsubtlewaysbutit’sreallyeasytofindreasonshow,likeIdidwithmyvideo

aboutthesciencebehindbaking.Director’scommentary

Theremainderofhervideoisanextendedexampleofthisideathroughthescienceofbread baking. Within it, she seamlesslyand repeatedly transitioned back andforth fromacookingtutorial toasciencelab investigation -- all done there in herkitchen.Itdemonstratedbothherscienceliteracy (buildingheavilyonherSciGirls-related chemistry class) as well as thepersonalrelevancesheperceivedthroughher “STEM is all around us everyday”theme:

IdecidedtodothatbecausebakingissomethingthatIdooftenandthoroughlyenjoy.Itnotonlyallowsmetounderstandjusthowbakingjustkindofinvolvesscience-notonlythroughhowthe

ingredientsinteractandreactwithoneanother--butjusthowtobranchoutmyknowledgeandmakemeablesoIcan

createmyownnewthings.Videonarration

Thescene-by-sceneplotmapprovidesanat-a-glance overview of the content andnarrativenatureofhervideo(FigureX).Itincludes a statement of purpose and/orinformation contained in each scene andwas coded according to research modelandthencolor-codedasfollows:1.SelfConcept

• Agency(self-efficacy)• Contentconfidence(+attitudes)• Rolemodels• Reflectedself-appraisals

2.STEMConcept3.STEMCommitment

• Personalrelevance&Emotionalconnection

• Peerinfluence&Communitybelongingness

• Aspirations4.STEMliteracy(CapacitytounderstandanddoSTEM)

5.Choices(STEMrelatedandpeerrelated)6.TimespentonSTEM(behavioralvs.perceivedcommitment)


15

Figure1:Jane’sVideoPlotMap

Note that Jane’s video expresses fourthemes(showningreen,orangeblue,andyellow):(1)Self-concept,includingagencyand STEM confidence, coupled with hermost important role models; (2) STEMcommitment, including mostly personalrelevance and emotional connection; (3)STEMconcept,throughherperspectiveofSTEMbeingall arounduseveryday, and;(4)STEMliteracyasdemonstratedinherbreadbakingtutorialsequence.Interestingly, through her choice toinclude the cooking science tutorial, Janealso showcased a merging of her STEM-related identitywith that of her “leader”identity,whichemergedoverthecourseofthe study. By casting herself into aneducator role for this sequence, shepersonified her emotional connection toSTEMthroughsomethingshelovestodo,aswellasherabilitytocommunicateand

share her theme of ‘science around useveryday.’3.Pre-PostAnalysisAsdescribedinthemethods,theboundedtimeforthestudywasroughlyoneSpringsemester of high school. For each casestudyparticipant,thismarkedthein-classlearning experience they had with aneducator who had just completed theSciGirls Educator training (described inthe appendix). This pre-post analysisexamineschangesoverthattimeperiod.A.Self-PerceptionsJaneadded“adventurous”and“ambitious”toherself-descriptionover thecourseofthe study. Listedbeloware thepre-postcomparisons for Jane’s perceivedidentities for the ranking of ImportanceandTimeSpentasEach.

Table5:Jane'sPre-PostIdentitySort

ImportancePRE ImportancePOST TimeSpentasEachPRE

TimeSpentasEachPOST

1.Sister 1.Friend 1.Friend 1.Friend

2.Friend 2.Sister 2.Student 2.Student

3.Avidreader 3.Daughter 3.Sister 3.Leader

4.Student 4.Leader 4.Avidreader 4.Daughter

5.Hockeyplayer 5.Student 5.Hockeyplayer 5.Girlfriend


16

6.Petenthusiast 6.Girlfriend 6.Petenthusiast 6.Sister

7.Athlete 7.Athlete

8.Artist 8.Artist

Jane added “Leader,” “Daughter,”“Girlfriend,” and “Artist” to her list ofidentitiesoverthetermofthestudy.Shealso replaced “Hockey player” with themoregeneral“Athlete,”anddropped“Avidreader,”and“Petenthusiast”fromherlist.“Leader” featuresmid-way inherrankofimportance(cominginat#4)whilemostof the others stayed roughly the same.Janedescribedhernew“Leader” identityaslinkedtobothherschoollifeandbeinga leader in her classes and among herfriends, and also with her home life asbeingtheoldestoffoursiblings.

The other new identities were added totheendforbothrankorders.Intermsoftimespent ineach,herpost-rankingwasoneshewasnothappyabout,asitdidnotalignwellwithherprioritiesasindicatedin the importance ranking. As before,Jane’s STEM identity was mostlyintegrated into her “Student” identity intheselists.B.RoleModelsJane’s list ofmost important rolemodelsPre-Postwereasfollows:

Table1:Jane'sRoleModels

RoleModelsPRE RoleModelsPOST

1.HerMom(dataanalyst,WonderWoman)

1.Herparents

2.HerGrandmother(nurse-practitioner)

2.Friendsandteachers

3.HerDad(supportive,co-learner)

3.LisaKudrow(whohasbothascienceeducationandalife)

4.RobertDowneyJunior(turnedlifearound)

Jane also lists the celebrity actress LisaKudrowcitingthatsheearnedadegreeinsciencebutstillwasabletoexploreotherareasandpotentials in life -- inthiscase,becomingasuccessfulactressaswell.ThisissomethingJaneadmired.

C.ConceptionsofScienceorSTEMJane’sconceptionofSTEMchangedalittleoverthecourseofthestudytoemphasizethe notion of experimentation as anecessary process for learning anddiscoveringnew things. This isa criticalcomponenttoascientificworldview.She

attributed thisawareness toMs.R inherSciGirls-relatedclassbutalsomentionedit

as a component of her experiences as acasestudyparticipantinthisresearch:


17

It[SciGirlsgatherings]hasreinforcedSTEMiseverywhere.WetalkaboutallsortsofstuffatourSciGirlsmeetingsandit’salwaysfun.It’salwaysinterestingtohearotherpeople’sthoughts.Itwasa

differentsettingthanclasswasandIlikedthefactthatitwasjustgirls.There’s

nothingwrongwithboys--itjustgivesusmoreofanopportunitytoconnectand

relatedtooneanother.Post-interview

Similar to what emerges in other casestudies,hereJaneobservedsomepositiveeffects of having the case studyparticipants gather weekly to work ontheirjournalsandvideonarratives.Thisisdiscussed further in the cross-caseanalysis.D.SelfPerceptionsRelatedtoSTEM

Self-AppraisalsandReflectedSelf-AppraisalsJane’s self-appraisal as a “STEM person”changed to a definitive “yes” over thecourse of the study. Her reflected self-appraisal (whether others think of her a“STEMperson”) also changed from “kindof” to become more definitive, with thisinterestingstatement:Mostwouldsay‘no’justbecausethewayIviewSTEMisit’sinalmosteverythingthatyoudo.…Ithinkalotmoreaboutthatnow.Youseemoreworldcontextkindofstuff…IwoulddefinitelysaytheclassesI’vetakenherehaveputitintoamuchbigger

perspective,suchasMs.R’sclass.Post-interview

Importantly,JanemakesadirecttietoherSciGirls-related classroom experienceswith this comment. Although shepossessed such a tendency or habit ofmind to a scientific perspective at thebeginning of the study, her classes withMs.R(andothers)reinforcedit.

STEMAgencyandSelf-EfficacyJane’s perceived ability to understandSTEMremainedthesamethroughoutthesemester. Her perceived ability toparticipate in and contribute to STEMactivitiesincreasedduringthetimeofthestudy,indicatingahigherdegreeofSTEMagency, self-efficacy and contentconfidence.Heracademicperformanceinterms of grades also remained highthroughout.STEMCommitmentJane’s STEM commitment and emotionalconnectionalsoincreasedduringthetimeofthestudy.Shemodifiedheremotionalfeelings about STEM from variable(sometimes excited, confused, or noemotion at all) to state that shenow felt

STEMwasmoreimportanttoherandthatshe was interested and curious aboutSTEM.ShealsostatedherinterestinSTEMincreased over the course of the studybecauseshe:Canseeitinabiggersensenow.Ms.Rhelpedmeseeitrelatetoeverything--aslowrealizationorlengtheneda-ha

moment.Post-interview

PHere again, Jane explicitly credits herSciGirls-trained educator withcontributing powerfully to her ability torecognizeSTEM ineveryday life and thischange in her STEM-related self-perceptions.Shepointsoutthatthiswasagradualbutsignificanttransformation.


18

GivenhernewlyacquiredperspectiveonSTEM, when asked about her biggestchallenges and frustrations regardingSTEM,sheobservedthatitwasthatSTEMisnotalwaysexact.Butitisafrustrationsheframedpositively:Sothewholethingwithscienceisthat

thereislikenocorrectanswer,right?Andsoit’saboutwhatyoulearnandwhatyoufind.Ilovethat,butatthesametimeit’skindoflikeIlikeknowingthatthere’ssomeform--likemath...there’swaystomake

sureyougetacorrectanswer.Post-interview

PInterestingly, the time she estimatedspending on STEM each week droppedover the course of the semester from15hoursto8-10hours,howeveratthetimeof the post-interview (near the end ofSpringsemester)shehadalighterloadformost classes. Her perceived ability tobecome excited about STEM learningremains high throughout the study andher social connection to STEM remainedconsistent,with twoto fourclose friendsinSTEM.Finally,Janeevolvedheraspirationsoverthetimeofthestudyfromhavingnone,to:Travel,definitelysomethinginscience,mid-wife,pharmaceuticalsmaybe.

Post-interviewE.SurveyResultsAmore in-depthdiscussionofcasestudyparticipant survey results will becompleted when the final overallquantitativestudyiscomplete.Note:JanecompletedtheVNOSsurveyaspre and post but did not complete anyotherpost-surveysforcomparisons.

ScienceIdentityScalePre:3.0GirlsInterestinNatureandScienceScalePre:3.9STEMCareerInterestSurveyPre:3.9VNOS:Novice,mintomodgrowth

Sciencecanbemanythings,but

mostlyitisaprocessofexperimentationandlearning.

VNOS-post4.DiscussionWithJane,weseeagirlwhobeginswithafairly positive STEM-related identity butdeepens and strengthens her STEM self-perceptions through the course of thesemester. Her existing positive STEM-related identity was reinforced throughher experiences in her SciGirls-relatedchemistryclasswithMs.R,whomshealsoconsideredtobeafriendandde-factorolemodel. Her STEM-related self-appraisaland her reflected self-appraisals bothbecame more definitively positive as aresult of her in-class experiences. HerSTEM concept became more refinedthroughin-classexperiencestoincludethenotion of learning throughexperimentation.Herperceivedabilitytoparticipate in STEM increased and hersocio-emotionalconnectiontoSTEMgrewoverthecourseofthesemester.Most of the reinforcement of her STEM-related identity development, however,fell under the category of establishinggreater personal relevancy for STEM byopening her eyes to STEMall aroundus,


19

everyday -- also the theme of her videonarrative.Additionally,asJanewasincreasinglyabletoseeSTEMinhereverydaylife,shebeganto apply her existing curiosity to morescientifichabitsofmind,bothinthewaysshe framed questions and in what sheframed question about. Scientificquestioning became applicable to

everything for her. At the same time,Jane’sconceptionofscienceandSTEMwasexpandedalongwithherself-perceptionsofhowitwasrelevanttoher.IntermsoftheeffectsofSciGirlseducatortraining,itisclearthatMs.R,employingmostofthepractices identified in SciGirls training,was able to facilitate important STEM-relatedidentitygainsforJane.


20

CaseStudy:Laura

ProfileLaurawasa14year-oldhighschool

studentinSt.PaulMNatthetimeofthestudy.Sheenjoysnature,beinga

daughter,afriend,andateammateinsports.ShealsolovesSTEM.

SciGirlsTeacher:Ms.R,

Class:Biology1.Pre-Analysis(InitialConditionsatthestartofthestudy)A.SelfPerceptions

Intalkingaboutherselfatthebeginningofthe study, Laura emphasized herrelationship with nature as a way tocombineherpassionfortheoutdoorswithher love of STEM. Conservation is animportantmotivator for her and she hasbeen active in preserving the naturalworld in large and smallways. She alsodoesvolleyball,photography,readingandwriting. She does not, however, considerherself to be artistic, extroverted, orsomeonewhotakes“quickaction” inanysituation.Whenaskedtolistandrankherperceived identities, here were herresponses:

Table2:Laura'sPREIdentitySort

Importance TimeSpentasEach MosttoLeastPleasing

1.Daughter&Friend(tied)

1.Needer 1.Adventurer

2.Adventurer 2.Confused 2.Learner

3.Learner 3.Consumer 3.Friend

4.Needer 4.Friend 4.Daughter

5.Comforter 5.Daughter 5.Conservationist

6.Student 6.Student 6.Comforter

7.Athlete 7.Athlete 7.Writer

8.Teammate(volleyball)

8.Reader 8.Reader

9.Giver(advice) 9.Peer 9.Discoverer

10.Confused 10.Owner 10.Dreamer

11.Conservationist 11.Learner 11.Athlete

12.Listener 12.Giver 12.Listener

13.Taker(ofhelp) 13.Photographer 13.Teammate

14.Consumer(over-consumer)

14.Dreamer 14.Photographer


21

15.Peer 15.Explorer 15.Giver

16.Explorer 16.Listener 16.Explorer

17.Owner(mythings)(materialist)

17.teammate 17.Helper

18.Discoverer 18.Helper 18.Hoper

19.Reader 19.Comforter 19.Student

20.Helper 20.Taker 20.Confused

21.Hoper 21.Hoper 21.Peer

22.Dreamer 22.Adventurer 22.Taker

23.Writer 23.Conservationist 23.Owner

24.Photographer 24.Discoverer 24.Needer

25.Writer 25.Consumer

Lauraproducedalengthylistofidentities,reflectingahighlymulti-dimensionalandself-aware concept of Self. Many of heridentitieswere connected to her passionfor conservation and her exploration ofthistopic.Forexample,beingan“Owner”of things and a “Consumer” are bothrelated to her “Conservationist” identity,but in anegativeway. Shedoesnot likethese things about herself butacknowledgesthemaspartofwhosheis.Clearly she had done some reading anddeep thinking on this topic and how itpersonallyrelatestoher,herlifestyle,andherchoices.Ofnote,fiveofheridentitiesclearly deal with Laura’s STEM-relatedidentity: “Conservationist,” Learner,”“Student,” “Explorer,” “Discoverer.” Thelast four feature Laura’s spirit of inquirythat sheemploys innearlyevery facetofherlife.B.Rolemodels:Duringthepre-interview,Lauralistedherrolemodels.Itwasaready-mademental

list that shekeepsanddubbedher “herolist.”Hertheyareinorderofimportance:

• 2nd Grade teacher Mr. Carver:Influential, “cool,” and “insanelykind,” involved in school patrol, afossildiginIowaonce,travelledtoAfricatohelpbuildaschool,Laurastrivestobelikehim--his“wholepersonality.”

• SigridOlson(author):Forhisbookson environmentalism, she shareshisoutlookontheworld.

• Parents: Because they are reallyrelaxed, “easy come, easy go” andareableto“handlestuff,”whichsheaspirestodoaswell.

• Best friend Angel: For the samereasons at her parents and forAngel’stheoryof“dowhatyoucanfor the storybecause that’s allwehaveintheend.”

• Mysterious#11, She is a junior inhigh school, volleyball player onanother team: “Because she’s socommitted,” which Laura also


22

aspires to be no matter what thetopicoractivity.

TwooftheserolemodelsrelatestronglytoSTEM:Her2ndgradeteacherwhoengagesin STEMactivities andwithwhomshe isstillincontact;andtheauthorSigridOlsenwho wrote about and active inenvironmentalism, conservation, andcaringforthenaturalworld.C.ConceptionsofScienceorSTEMLaura’s conception of science was fairlysimpleandstraightforward:[Scienceis]theexplorationofwhatwedon’tknowtofindoutwhatwedo.

Pre-Interview

Doing science means, she said, is theprocess of figuring things out in acontinuouscycle:Ibelieveitsnothingreallydefinite.That’swhatmy8thgradescienceteachertoldme

--thatthere’sawholerecycleofinformation.Sometimeagoeveryonewasconvincedthetruthistheworldwasflatandnowit’sthatit’sround.Andwhat

peoplebelievenowproblywillbedisproveninthefutureandthatwillbedisprovenagainandit’sjusttryingtofigureout

what’sgoingon.Pre-Interview

This conception is science is somewhatunclearmurky.Itaffirmstheexploratorynatureofsciencebutwithoutawarenessofitsmethodsandprocesses.However,theidea of the cycle of science as a featurereflectsgoodintroductorySTEMlearningexperiences.D. Self-Perceptions Related toSTEM

Self-Appraisals and Reflected Self-AppraisalsLaura entered the study consideringherself tobe “STEMperson”because sheenjoys and is interested in STEM andinvolved in STEMactivities and learning.ToLaura,askingquestionswasalmosttheequivalentofdoingSTEM,andshemadeahabit of doing so as part of her normalthinking:I’vealwaysaskedquestions.ImeanI’veaskedmyteachersquestionstheycan’tanswer,especiallylikeHOWthingsgot

figuredout.Pre-Interview

“How”ismyfavoritesciencequestion.It’s

whatIalwayswanttofigureout.Journal

Whilewatchingavideoinbiology,Ihadtowonderaboutthevideographyinvolvedinthenaturalworld.Howaretheseamazing

videostakenwithoutdisturbingthewildlifeorhavingthemrunorflyaway?Eventhesepartsofscienceamazeme.

JournalIntermsofSTEM,shestatedthatshedidnot like math as much as science, butrealized that she had to learn math inordertopursueherpassionforscience.Forherreflectedself-appraisals(whethershethoughtothersthinkofherasa“STEMperson”), she perceived that others(friends and family) think of her as a“STEMperson”aswell. Interestinglysheindirectly commented on STEM-relatedstereotypeswiththisstatement:MyfriendsthinkthatI’maSTEMperson.AndwhenItoldmyfriendIwascomingheretodothis(theSciGirlsresearchinterview),shesaid‘Ohman,you’rea


23

genius’orsomethinglikethat.I’mlike‘I’mjustinterested,’it’sOK.Andmyparentsareproblyannoyedbyallofmyquestions

(laughs).Pre-Interview

In this case, being labeled a “genius”becausesheisinterestedinSTEMwasnotnecessarily a compliment, nor was thecommentaboutannoyingherparentswithendless questions about how the worldworks. Yet she discussed both with alaugh and a smile, indicating she wasawareof the stereotypesassociatedwithSTEM but did not let that stop her frombeingunabashedlya“STEMperson.”AlthoughhighlyengagedandinterestedinSTEM, Laura initially rated her ability tounderstand STEM concepts at onlymoderate. Regardless, she rated herability to participate and contribute toSTEMactivitiesashigh.STEMCommitmentLauraestimatedshespent15to17hoursonSTEMeachweek. Sheroutinelyreadsnon-school-related STEM oriented booksand described her out-of-school STEMactivitiesas:Iconductmyownscienceresearchanddo

photography.Pre-Interview

She also identified a group of five or sixfriends she knows because of her STEMengagement. Three of these sheconsidered close friends, indicatinginfluential social support forherpositiveSTEM-relatedidentity.

2.SciGirls-RelatedExperience(Experiencesduringthecourseofthesemester)A.ReflectionsLike all the case studies, Laura’sexperiences with her particular teacherwhowasengagedinSciGirlstrainingwasblended and contextualized into a largersphere of life experiences. Laura beganwith a highly positive STEM-relatedidentity thatwas closely tied inwithheridentityasaconservationist. Herjournalentries indicated a highly reflective,frequent, and pondering self-discoursethatoftencenteredonthenaturalworld:

Iwasfeelingverydetachedthenightbeforethe1stmeeting[oftheSciGirlscasestudyparticipants].ThisledtoastronglongingforthenaturalworldthatI,andmostoftheworld,havebeendeprivedofforsolong.Theword‘save’makesyousoundlikeahero,butto‘savetheEarth’wouldnotbeanactofheroismbutanactofrecovery.It’syourjobfromthestart.You’rethevillaininthestory,notthehero.

Everyonehurtsthesameearth.Journal

Laura’sSciGirls-trainedteacherwasMs.R,whomshehadforBiology.Shedescribedher in-class learning experience asinteractiveandhands-on,includingdoinglabs, exploring real world examples, andeven role-playing as carbonmolecules intheclassroom.Shelikedandappreciatedthis approach to learning biology, whichwas tied to her extra efforts to get goodgrades,“especiallyinthatclass,”assheputit.Lauraalsoobservedthatas thesemesterwent on, Ms. R changed her classroompracticeslightlytospendmoretimeone-


24

on-one with students versus alwaysaddressingthewholeclass.ShenotedthatMs. R also made efforts to explain thescience content in different ways todifferent students during theseinteractions in order to best facilitateunderstanding, recognizing differentstudents may need different approachesordifferent examples.Thisdifferentiatedlearning strategy was included in theSciGirls educator training as a techniqueforfacilitatingpersonalrelevancy.Notably, her experiences in biology classcorrelated with her application for aGlobalLeadershipAdventuresprogramtodoworkonturtleconservationscienceinthe Galapagos Islands over the followingsummer:IhopesomuchthatIgotothistolearnaboutthescienceinvolvedinconservingtheseamazingplaces.IonlywishIcouldincorporatevideosofmytripintomy

SciGirlsevent.Journal

Itwasrevealedinherpostinterviewthatshewasindeedacceptedintotheprogram,whichwasto last twoweeksand includethenaturalgeologichistoryoftheislandsaswellasthebiologyandconservationofGalapagostortoises.Fulfilling her self-described role as an‘Asker,’ Laurawas very interested in thereasonsbehindtheSciGirlsresearcheffortitself, and wanted to discuss this onmultipleoccasions.Uponsomereflection,sheofferedthefollowinginherjournal:It’snotthatschoolitselfishard.It’sthatsometimesit’sverydifficulttofindthetimeforeverything.Iwanttodowellinschoolandvolleyballandvolunteerworkandbeinvolvedinscience,butthere’sminimal

time.Ithinkthat’swhythewholecasestudyisaboutwhyinhighschoolgirlsloseinterestinscience.I’msureboysdotoo

becauseweallhavealotlesstime.Andforpeoplewhofindaninterestinsciencebutaren’tobsessedwithit,theymighthavetoputitoutoftheirlivestomakeroomforincreasedschoolwork,sports,andstress.

It’shardtodoitall.Journal

Thisnotionofcompetingresponsibilities,interests, and activities that may inhibitSTEMpursuitsorcreatebarriersforentryintoaconsiderationofSTEMasapotentialinterest for students is important. Laurarecognizes that shehas a strongpositiveSTEM-relatedidentityandlotsofsupportand personal commitment to STEM. YetshecanalsoseethatforstudentswhoaremorecasuallyinterestedinSTEMorhavenotyetreachedapointofbeingreadyfora greater commitment to STEM, thechancestheywillhavetimetodevelopthatcasual interest and mature it, is slim.Laura herself resolved this issue bydevelopingastrongpositiveSTEM-relatedidentity early and maintaining it as a‘normal’ priority in the swim of otherdemandsonherlimitedtimeandenergy.B.SciGirlsRoleModelImpactsLaura identified no STEM role modelsbeing brought into the classroom by herSciGirls-trainedteacher.However,shedidstatethattheyoftendiscussedthestoriesofhistoricalscientistsinadditiontootherbiologycontentalone.Forexample,Lauramentioned studying the story ofWatsonandCrick,whoarefamousforarticulatingthe structure of DNA, but largely basedtheirworkonRosalindFranklin’sideas--whoalmostnobodyremembers.ShealsomentionedthepostersthatMs.Rhadupin


25

the classroomdepictingwomen in STEMrolemodelsandcareeroptions.C.VideoNarrativeAnalysisLaura’s video narrative started off withthisstatement:Hi,mynameis[Laura].I’mastudent.I‘madaughter.I’mafriendandateammate.AndpartofmeisinlovewithSTEM.

VideoNarrationHer central themewas the unification ofherlovefornatureandconservationwithSTEM learning. Throughout her shortvideo, she presented a holistic andseamless integration of these passionsalong with elements of her life that areimportant to her. In segueing from herslice-of-life intro scenes, she bridged herhabitofconstantlyaskingquestionsaboutthe world around her, toenvironmentalism,toSTEM:MypassionshavechangedsinceIhave

grown,I’vealwaysbeenextremelycurious.I’vealwayswonderedabouttheworldaroundme;whythingsarethewaytheyare.Whythatrockendedupwhereitisandnotthreefeettotheleft.Whythatriverrunsthewayitdoesandnot

somethingelse.Whyanimalsandpeopleandevenmachinesdothethingstheydo.Questionshavealwaysbeenaconstantpartofmylife.AndonceIreachedmiddleschool,evenmyscienceteacherscouldn’tanswerthecomplexquestionsIhadabout

scienceandthenaturalworld.Videonarration

Though simple and brief, Laura’s videonarrative worked powerfully as anextended identity declaration, showingher adventures in nature, stating herconservationist values, and explaining

howSTEM(biologyinparticular)informsandenrichesherlife:Ialwayswonderaboutwhat’shappeninginourworldandwhatIcandoaboutit.I’llspendmyfreetimeresearchingtopicslikeoceanacidificationanddeforestation.Thisinteresthasgivenmeanextremeloveforscience.EverywhereIlook,natureandthe

wildernessisfilledwithbiologyandscience.Andtheonlywaytokeepthewild

aliveisthroughscience.VideoNarration

HervideoalsodepictedherinvolvementinthesciencemarchonEarthDay,2017.AsshestatedinherDirector’scommentary:Ialsodecidedtoincludeacouple[videoclips]fromthesciencemarchonEarthDay.IthoughtthatthatwouldshowmyinterestinthescientificcommunityandhowI’mtakingactioninwhatIbelievein.

Director’sCommentaryImportantly, in this sequence, Laura istying together her passions forenvironmental conservation and STEM,and then connecting both to herexperience in biology -- a class that hasclearly influenced Laura’s thinking.However,shealsoreflectedonherpassionforlearningsometimesbeingatoddswithherschoolexperiences:Learninghasalwaysbeenahighlightofmylife,butschoolalwayshasn’t.Justlikeanyotherstudent,Igetstressedandhavetroublecopingattimes.Slowly,I’m

learninghowtodealwiththis.I’verecentlycometotherealizationthatmylifeisfullofchallengingmoments.Andeveryoneistestedontheirperseveranceatsomepointoranother.AndIthinkaslongasIcanstickwithwhatIlove,I’lldojustfine.

VideoNarration


26

Intheendingoutroscene,LaurasummedupherhopesforhervideoinherDirector’sCommentary:Overall,Ihopedmyvideoconveyedasenseofmypersonalbeingandhowthatis

connectedtonature,andhowitmightbeconnectedtoitinthefutureandaswellas

science.Director’sCommentary


• Agency(self-efficacy)

• Contentconfidence(+attitudes)• Rolemodels• Reflectedself-appraisals






Figure2:Laura’sVideoPlotMap

Notethathervideoexpressedfourthemes(shown in green, orangeblue, andpink):(1) Self-concept, including agency andSTEMconfidence;(2)STEMcommitment,including mostly personal relevance andemotional connection; (3)STEMconcept,through her perspective of STEMconnectedtoconservationand;(4)STEM-relatedchoices.Laura’sportrayalofher life, infusedwithnatureandSTEMlearning,iscenteredonthe science of biology and the coursetaught by her SciGirls-trained educator.

ThesethemesreflectapathwayLaurahasforgedtotranslateherinclassroomSTEMexperiencesintoherownworldoutsideofschool,whereshehasgreatercontrolandagency.There was no music in Laura’s videonarrative,onlyhernarration. Therealsowerenoscenesinhervideoofschool,herteachers, or her biology class, suggestingthat hermost personally relevant STEM-related identity construction is takingplace out of school -- but informed andinfluencedbyherclassroomexperiences.


27

3.Pre-PostAnalysisAsdescribedinthemethods,theboundedtimeforthestudywasroughlyoneSpringsemester of high school. For each casestudyparticipant,thismarkedthein-classlearning experience they had with aneducator who had just completed theSciGirls Educator training (described in

the appendix). This pre-post analysisexamineschangesoverthattimeperiod.A.Self-PerceptionsListedbelowarethepre-postcomparisonsforLaura’s identity list fortherankingofImportanceandTimeSpentasEach.

Table3:Laura'sPre-PostIdentitySort


TimeSpentasEachPOST

1.Daughter&Friend(tied)

1.Friend 1.Needer 1.Needer

2.Adventurer 2.Daughter 2.Confused 2.Student

3.Learner 3.Adventurer 3.Consumer 3.Player

4.Needer 4.Conservationist 4.Friend 4.Teammate

5.Comforter 5.Idealist 5.Daughter 5.Asker

6.Student 6.Volunteer 6.Student 6.Stressful

7.Athlete 7.Asker 7.Athlete 7.Daughter

8.Teammate(volleyball)

9.Teammate 8.Reader 8.Thinker

9.Giver(advice) 8.Guide 9.Peer 9.Friend

10.Confused 10.Reader 10.Owner 10.Idealist

11.Conservationist 11.Helper(topeople) 11.Learner 11.Helper

12.Listener 12.Thinker 12.Giver 12.Reader

13.Taker(ofhelp) 13.Player 13.Photographer 13.Peer

14.Consumer(over-consumer)

14.Needer(food,water,friends,support)

14.Dreamer 14.Sleeper

15.Peer 15.Sleeper 15.Explorer 15.Volunteer

16.Explorer 16.Peer 16.Listener 16.Adventurer

17.Owner(mythings)(materialist)

17.Student 17.teammate 17.Conservationist

18.Discoverer 18.Stressful 18.Helper 18.Guide

19.Reader 19.Comforter


28

20.Helper 20.Taker

21.Hoper 21.Hoper

22.Dreamer 22.Adventurer

23.Writer 23.Conservationist

24.Photographer 24.Discoverer

25.Writer

Withanidentitylistthislong,itisdifficultto remainprecisely consistent over time.Additionally,participantsarenotprovidedtheirpriorsetofidentitysortcardstore-use. Rather they are asked to generatenewresponsesexpresslyforthepurposesofcomparison.HerewithLaura,weseeanumber of post-sorting modifications toher identities compared to her prior list.However, both lists are notably multi-dimensional and self-aware. Theidentities of “Owner” and “Consumer”dropped off the post list -- the twoidentitiesLauraexpresslydidnotlike.Aswell, “Hoper,” “Dreamer,” “Writer,”“Photographer,” and “Confused” droppedoff the post list,while “Idealist,” “Asker,”and“Volunteer”wereadded.

Interestingly,sheranked“Student”atthebottom of her ranking for importance.Alongwithherothercommentsregardingstrugglesinschool,thismayindicatethatherloveoflearningismostlyexperiencedoutsideoftheschoolsetting.Yetshealsoobservedthatherlearninginbiologyclassinformedherindependentlearningoutofschool, in nature, and through specialprograms such as the GLA program shewasacceptedintointheGalapagos.B.RoleModelsLaura’slistofmostimportantrolemodelsPre-Postwereasfollows:

Table4:Laura'sRoleModels


1.2ndGradeteacher,Mr.Carver

1.2ndGradeteacher

2.SigridOlson,environmentalauthor/activist

2.8thGradeearthscienceandforensicsteacher,Ms.Linus

3.Herparents,relaxedbutsupportive

3.Herparents,forhavingadventuresandasuccessfullife

4.Angel,bestfriend 4.SigridOlson,idealistviewofindividuality

5.#11ofopponentvolleyballteamforlevelofcommitment

5.Angel,bestfriend

6.#11ofopponent


29

teamLauraaddedher8thgradescienceteacherhere for her patience with andencouragementofLaura’stendencytoaskmanyquestions,includinghardquestions.Prior to this teacher,Laurareportedthatshe received mostly intolerance anddismissal from her friends and teachersforaskingSTEM-relatedquestions.None of her cited role models resultedfrom experiences in her SciGirls-relatedbiology class. However, as discussedabove, her explorations of womenscientists in her biology class did have apositiveimpactonLaura.C.ConceptionsofScienceorSTEMLaura’s conception of STEM (science inthis case) evolved and became moresophisticatedoverthecourseofthestudy.From what she stated it in the pre-interview:[Scienceis]theexplorationofwhatwedon’tknowtofindoutwhatwedo.

Pre-Interview

Tothefollowinginthepostinterview:

Iwoulddefinescienceasastudyofunexplainedthingstotryandgetagreaterunderstandingbyfindingthemostlogical

conclusionbasedonevidence.Post-Interview

Incourseofonesemester,Lauraexpandedupon her prior conceptualization ofscience to include the idea of forgingunderstanding based on logic andevidence -- a central tenet of scientificinvestigation.

D.SelfPerceptionsRelatedtoSTEMSelf-Appraisals and Reflected Self-AppraisalsLaura’sself-appraisalasa“STEMperson”remained un-changed over the course ofthe study. Her reflected self-appraisal ofwhether she thinks others thinkof her a“STEMperson”alsoremainedunchanged--bothunambiguouslyaffirmative.STEMAgencyandSelf-EfficacyLaura’s perceived ability to understandSTEMincreasedslightlyoverthecourseofthe study, as did her perceived ability toparticipate in and contribute to STEMactivities, indicating a higher degree ofSTEM agency, self-efficacy and contentconfidence.Laura’sacademicperformancein terms of grades also remained highthroughout.Interestingly, Laura pointed out that herrecent success in volleyball has alsocontributedtohersenseofSTEMagency:Irecentlygainedalotofconfidenceinmyplayingabilityforvolleyball…It[recenttournamentplay]wasthisbigconfidenceboostforme,like,‘hey,Icanactuallydothis.IknowwhatI’mdoing.Thisismy

sport.’Recentlyourcoachaskedus,‘wouldyouratherplaywithsomeonewhowaslackingself-confidenceorcocky?’Andwewere,like,‘oh,problysomeonelackingself-

confidence.’Andthenlateronwe’velearnedthatbeingalittlecockydoesn’thavetobebadbecauseitgivesyoutheconfidenceto,like,dothingsyouwouldn’tnormallydo.ThatmightbewhereI’matrightnow.ItookanAPtestandIdidn’tdo


30

wellonitand…I’mnothavingtheanxietyIfeelIwouldnormallyhavewiththat.AndmaybethattransferstolikenowI’vebeenthinkingabouthowmaybemyjuniorandsenioryearIshouldtryandtakemultiplescienceclasses.Myfriendsarelike,‘you’renotgonnawanttodothat,’andI’mlike,‘nonono,Icandoitnow.’BeforeIwaslike,‘ohmaybethey’reright,’butnowit’s

like,IthinkIcandoit.Post-Interview

Thisobservation isa fascinatingexampleof harmonious identity overlap. Laura’sidentity and successful role performanceas a volleyball player complimented herSTEM-related identity in a positive wayandeventransferredagencytoLaura’sselfperceptionsassomeonewhocandoSTEM.The resultwas that Laurawaswilling totakegreaterintellectualriskinsigningupformorescienceclassesinthefuture.STEMCommitmentLaura’sSTEMcommitmentandemotionalconnection to STEM remained highthroughthestudy:[Ifeel]proudsayingIcanbepartofit[STEM],andsayingIcanbepartof,like,thisgroupofpeoplewho’vefiguredoutallthesegreatthings.AndthenalsoexcitedbecauseIknowI’mgoingtobemore

involvedinthefuture.Post-Interview

Laura’s comment indicates an awarenessand satisfaction about belonging to thesocial community of “STEM people” andcommunicates her excitement inanticipation deepening that connection.This supplements her concept of whatSTEM is to also include who does STEMand her sense of validation and socialidentitywiththatgroup.

HermainfrustrationwithSTEMremainedthesameaswell--math.ThetimesheestimatedspendingonSTEMeachweek increased fromapproximately17hourstoanestimated35hours,duetoan increase in both her personal pursuitandSTEM-relatedreadingathomeaswellas increased homework load. Laura’ssocialconnectiontoSTEMthroughfiveorsix friends remained the same over thecourseofthestudy.Finally, Laura modified her careeraspirations over the time of the studyfrom, “Commercial airline pilot oroceanographer or environmental law orFBIagent”toabroaderdescription:IknowIdon’twantanofficejobnomatterwhat.Soprobablydoingsomesortof

researchinalaborbuildinguptoworkinginalab--aresearchassistant.

Post-InterviewShestillincludesbecomingapilotaswellinherlistofaspirations.E.SurveyResultsAmore in-depthdiscussionofcasestudyparticipant survey results will becompleted when the final overallquantitativestudyiscomplete.ScienceIdentityScalePre:3.3Post:3.6GirlsInterestinNatureandScienceScalePre:3.6Post:4.0STEMCareerInterestSurveyPre:3.5


31

Post:4.2VNOS: Novice, consistent, min to modgrowthScientistsproducescientificknowledge.Someofthisknowledgeisfoundinyour

sciencebooks.Doyouthinkthisknowledgemaychangeinthefuture?:

Scienceconstantlyfluxesbasedonavailableevidence.Ifuhavealimitedamountofevidencethenumustmakealimitedconclusionastechnologyadvances

moreevidencearises”Howissciencedifferentfromtheother

subjectsyouarestudying?

Itisbasedonevidenceandit'sfun.

VNOS-Post4.DiscussionWith Laura, we see a passionate STEMenthusiast -- prior to, during, and at theconclusion of the study -- whose STEM-related identity grewevenmorepositiveasaresultofseveralfactors,includingherexperiences in Ms. R’s SciGirls-relatedbiologyclass. Laura’spathwaytoSTEMwas conservation related to biology andenvironmental science. This was themeans bywhich shewas able to forge ahighdegreeofpersonalrelevancetoSTEMand it was the means by which thisrelevancewas reinforced throughout thesemester.Laura also demonstrated a high capacityfor wonder and curiosity for the worldaroundher,unafraidtoaskhardquestions

andtopursueheranswers. Notably,sheindicated that her earlier tendency to dothis in school was discouraged; so shedevelopedthispartofheridentityout-of-schoolthroughherownhobbies,reading,explorations, and friendships. However,this began to change with her 8th gradeearth science teacher, whom she alsoidentifiedasan importantrolemodel forher. She was able to show patience forLaura’s hard questions and evenencouragethem.Fromthattimeonandwiththesupportofmorescienceteachers,Laurawasable toincreasinglyblendher in-schoolandout-of-school STEM pursuits and therebymature and solidify her STEM-relatedidentity.Thisinfluenceofrolemodelsandsupportive teachers is a criticalcomponent in Laura’s development andalthough it started relatively late, hadalready resulted in a deep and validatedpassion for STEM and participation inexciting extracurricular STEM learning,such as the Galapagos summer researchexperience.Finally,welearnfromLaura’scase about an interesting harmoniousidentity overlap between her roleperformanceasavolleyballplayerandherSTEM-relatedidentity.Itisanexampleofpositive inter-identity reinforcement. ItresultedinLauraconsideringtakingmoreSTEM-relatedrisksandadoptingagreatergrowth mindset. It is also not hard toimagine how this same effect can swingnegativeforchildrenwhoareinvalidatedinoneimportantidentityandseearippleaffect into others. In the end, Laura’sexperiences in the Spring semester,including her SciGirls-related learning,verifiedherexistingSTEM-relatedidentityandenhancedit.


32

CaseStudy:Kim

ProfileKimwasa15year-oldhighschool

sophomoreinSt.Paul,MNatthetimeofthestudy.Sheisthemiddlechildof

three,allgirls,withbothparentslivingathomeandbothofthemcollegeSTEMprofessors.Sheisahighlymotivated

athleteandstudent,ofCaucasiandescent,andlovesreading,hiking,photography,

andmostofallNordicskiing.

SciGirlsTeacher:Mr.C.Class:Chemistryaccelerated

1.Pre-Analysis(InitialConditionsatthestartofthestudy)

A.SelfPerceptionsKiminitiallydescribedherselfthisway:Iamaloverofnatureandphotography.Myidentityiscloselylinkedtomyloveof

scienceandNordicskiing.Pre-Interview

She considered herself kind, not lazy orunmotivated,someonewholovesreadingand school but identifies the most withskiing. When asked to list and rank herperceivedidentitiesherresponseswere:

Table5:Kim'sPreIdentitySort


1.Daughter 1.Skier 1.Skier 1.Daughter

2.Sister 2.Loverofschool 2.Reader 2.Sister

3.Goodfriend 3.Sister 3.Daughter 3.GoodFriend

4.Skier 4.Daughter 4.Upbeatperson 4.Upbeatperson

5.Upbeatperson 5.Goodfriend 5.Goodfriend 5.Skier

6.Loverofschool 6.Upbeatperson 6.Sister 6.Reader

7.Reader 7.Reader 7.Loverofschool 7.Loverofschool

Interestingly, Kim listed “Skier”mid-waydownthelistintermsofimportance,afterfamily and friend identities that sheconsidered higher priorities. “Skier”topped the Time list, however, as theidentity she spent the most time in.Notably regarding her STEM identity,uponprobingKimincludedSTEMinbothher “Lover of school” identity when itrelatedtoherinclassSTEMlearning,but

also in her Nordic skiing. She discussedhowshethinksalotaboutandwouldliketo learnmoreabout thescienceofskiing(types of snow, ski shape, waxes andeffects, techniques) as away to combineherpassionsforboth.B.Rolemodels:


33

During the pre-interview, Kim listed herrole models in order of importance asfollows:

• Her parents: Both collegeprofessors in STEM (mom inmicrobiologyanddadincomputerscience) and responsible forincluding STEM in her life assomethingnormalandaccepted.

• One of her ski coaches: Who alsohappens to be an astrophysicistand therefore inspiresher inbothdomains.

• Heroldersister:Whoisincollegestudying political science andcomputerscience.

Notice thatall threeof theserolemodelsrelate strongly toSTEMandalsooverlapwithbeingextremelypersonally relevanttoKim.C.ConceptionsofScienceorSTEMKim’sconceptofsciencewassimple:Scienceisstudyoflivingthings.It’smoreexpansivethanthat,butIalwaysthinkof

biologywhenIthinkofscience.Pre-Interview

For biology, this was of course is anaccurate general description. Herawarenessofsciencebeinglargerthanthefieldofbiology is there,butdoesnotyetseemtoencompasswhatshelovedabout(orgetsexcitedabout)science.She further unpacked the idea of doingscienceinthisway:Doingscienceislearningwhatsomeoneelsediscovered.I‘mjustreviewingand

reframinginadifferentway.

Pre-Interview

She added that someday perhaps shewouldbeinvolvedindirectdiscovery,butfelt that thiswasnotaccessible toher inhercurrentclasses.D.Self-PerceptionsRelatedtoSTEMSelf-AppraisalsandReflectedSelf-AppraisalsKimbeganthesemesterwithamoderatelypositive and relevant STEM-relatedidentity. During the pre-interviewassessment of her self-appraisal, sheacknowledgedthatshethoughtofherselfasa“STEMperson,”statingagainthatshe“loved bio” and was “trying to getinterested in computer science.” (Pre-Interview).SheratedherabilitytounderstandSTEMashighandherability toparticipateandcontribute to STEM activities as high,indicating a high sense of STEM agencyandconfidence.Whenaskedifotherswhoknewherwouldconsider her to be “STEM person,” (herreflected self-appraisal) she hesitated,guessing that most of her friends wouldnotthinkofherinthiswayandthateveninherownfamilyshewasknownmoreasareader(apparentlydistinctfrombeingaSTEM person). The only possibleexception, she observed, was her mom,whomightknowthatshewasinterestedinSTEM.STEMCommitmentEmotionally, Kim expressed that biologymadeherhappybut thatmathmadehermostlyfrustrated.SheratedherabilitytogetexcitedaboutSTEMingeneralashigh.SheestimatedthetimeshespentonSTEMactivities and learning at about 15hours


34

perweek.HersocialconnectiontoSTEMwaslowbutimportanttoher;shecountedtwoofthepeoplesheknewthroughSTEMasclosefriends.Finally,Kimdescribedherinitial career aspiration as, “biology-something”(Pre-Interview).2.SciGirls-RelatedExperience(Experiencesduringthecourseofthesemester)A.ReflectionsLikeallthecasestudies,Kim’sexperienceswith her particular teacher who wasengaged in SciGirls trainingwas blendedandcontextualizedintoalargersphereoflifeexperiences.ForKim,thisbackgroundcontext of her STEM-related identitydevelopment is important forunderstanding the impact of herexperiencesduringtheSciGirlsproject.WhenaskedtofocusonherSTEMlearningexperiences and the SciGirls project as acase study participant, Kim chose toincorporateherreflectionintoanarrativeextendingbacktoelementaryschoolyearsand through what she called “a rollercoaster ride with science” in the face ofseveralupsanddowns.Intheend,ithassomethingimportanttoteachusaboutthestruggle to develop and maintain apositiveSTEM-relatedidentity.To beginwith, both of her parentswerecollegeprofessorsinSTEMfields,makingscienceaneverydaypartofherearlylife.Throughout school, she developed anincreasingly positive STEM-relatedidentity.Asshewroteinherjournal:Ienjoyedsciencethroughelementaryschool…[butlater]Iwasreadyfor

somethingmoreadvanced.

JournalHerpassionforsciencereallyignitedin7thgrade genetics class, where “everythingclickedforme,”assheputit:In7thgradeIlovedscience.IwasfinallyabletoexplorethethingsIhadalwayshad

questionsabout.Journal

But her newfound love for biology wasquickly followedbyan8thgradephysicalscience class, which she hated. Notably,she specifically called out that she hatedthe teacher; suggestive of how closelyperceptions of STEM can be tied to thepersonalityoftheeducator.SheemergedwithherinterestinSTEMintactenoughtobecomeexcitedSTEM-excitedagainby9thgrade:Ihadneverbeeninterestedinearthquakesoranythinglikethat.Thatyear[8thgrade]wrappedupandmypassionforsciencewasstillalive.My9thgradeyearItookbiology.Ilovedeverythingwelearnedabout.Iespeciallylovedlearningaboutcells.Iwasamazedathowsomethingsosmallcouldmakeupmywholebody.Ispedthroughbiologyalwayswantingtolearnmore.My9thgradeyearendedonahappy

note.Journal

Whileherexperiencein8thgradewasherfirstbittertasteofscience,itwasnottobeher last. Throughout her journal entries,which she used as draft scripts for hervideonarrative,Kimcontinuedtostruggleto express her STEM-related identitydevelopmentinpositivetermsamidstherongoing personal battle with negativeSTEMexperiences, includingherSciGirls-related10thgradechemistryclass:


35

Thisyear[sophomore,age15]hasbeenmuchharder…Idon’tenjoychemistryasmuchasIenjoyedbiology.TokeepmyselfmotivatedIhadtofocusonothersubjects

inschool.Journal

Kim described her SciGirls-trainedteacher, Chemistry teacher ‘Mr. C,’ asrunning a very self-directed class thatsomewhat de-emphasized notes andlecture, and instead stressed doing labswherestudentsweregiventhebasicsandthen left tomake leaps of understandingfor themselves. When asked if thatteachingstyleworkedforher,Kimsaid:

Itwasunique.ItwasOK.Igetgoodgrades,butIdon’tenjoyit.It’shardtoconnecttorealworldsituations.

Post-Interview

Whenaskedifshelikeherchemistryclassshesaid:Chemistryhasnotbeenmyfavoritesubject.IreallylovedbiologyandI’mhavingahardertimeapplyingchemistrytomypersonallife,eventhough,Imean,your

bodyhassomanychemicalreactionsgoingon.Ihaven’tbeenasabigofafan.

Post-Interview

Thislackofpersonalrelevancytranslatedtoastruggletostaymotivated.Eventuallyhowever, she stuck it out and completedthecourse.

Igotthroughtheyearknowingthatchemistryisimportanttomyeducation.Myrollercoasterridewithsciencehas

taughtmebeingmotivatedwhenitcomestoacademicsisextremelyimportant.

Enjoyinghighschoolisveryimportanttomyhappiness.Scienceisanintegralpart

ofsocietythatIlove.

JournalIntheseexcerpts,Kimisworkinghardtoframeher negative chemistry experiencein apositive light,while also recognizingand emphasizing how difficult it is topersist and succeed when one is notmotivated. Notably, she recognizes hownot beingmotivated negatively impactedherhappiness.YetshestillemergedwithapositiveSTEM-related identity intact, ifsomewhat battered, chalking it up to a“rollercoasterridewithscience.” This isalso reflected in her pre-post scores oneach of the STEM-related identity scales,which all showed marked declines overthe course of the semester. Whilecertainly not a resounding bolster of herSTEM-related identity, did showremarkable self-reflection, grit, andpersistenceforSTEM.B.SciGirlsRoleModelImpactsKim mentioned that one day Mr. C hadbroughtinaSTEMrolemodeltovisittheclass and share her story -- a womanchemicalengineerfrom.Asitturnedout,Kim had often babysat for this woman’schildrenbuthadnopreviousknowledgeofherprofessionallife:ItwasreallycoolbecausebeforethatI’donlyseenherlifewhenshe’satherhome,whichdoesn’tinteractwithherprofessionatall.Soitwasreallycooltoseeshe’sgotthesetwolovelykidsandherpersonallifeANDthisgreatprofessionandisableto

kindofdoitall.Post-Interview

As a result of the role model visit, Kimimagined herself working at 3M andconsideredittobearealpossibility. Shealso had summer plans to attend theMichigan Tech STEM Camp for “Intro to


36

Engineering,” and learned that this rolemodelhadgonetothissamecampinheryouth. Kim’sdesire topursue thisSTEMcampwasaresultofadifferentvisitfromanother3MpersonwhoMr.C.hadinvitedintotalktotheclassaboutthecampandinform them of an available scholarship.Kimappliedforandwonthescholarship-- joking that now she might HAVE toconsiderherselfaSTEMkid.C.VideoNarrativeAnalysisKim’s video paralleled hercontextualization of her current SciGirls-relatedSTEMlearningexperiences intoalarger narrative. It was arrangedchronologically, featuring both olderfamily photos as well as current videofrom her SciGirls-related chemistry lab.Her theme was ‘how she feels aboutscience,’ as she related in her director’scommentary:IreallyjustwantedtoshowaglimpseofmeandwhatIfeltaboutscienceandwhat

Ilikedaboutscience. Director’scommentary

With a simple iMovie music track, sheincluded a contextual set-up, completewith familypicturesandasenseofplaceand history for her position within herfamilyandhowthatrelatestoSTEM.…Iwastryingtoshowwhatmyfamilywaslike,whatI’dgrownuparoundthatledmetoreallyenjoyscience.IalsowantedtotalkaboutmyparentsbecausetheyareabigreasonwhyIamsoinvestedinscienceandIsucceedtoday.Theyarealwaystheresupportingmeandalwaysreadyto

partakeinsciencewithme.Director’scommentary

However, upon switching from theintroductoryscenestowardsadiscussionof science (which included her dislike ofherchemistryclass),herremainingvideoconsisted of only two scenes: (1) Labsessions depicting typical activities theyroutinelydo,and(2)Anaction interviewwithoneofhergoodfriendsinchemistrylab. Forthe former,she includedavoiceover narration recounting her STEMjourney through the grades, notablysummarizing her experiences thus far inthisway:…Ithink[mySTEMclasses]havehelpedmetorealizewhattypesofscienceI’m

interestedinandwhattypesIwouldratherstayawayfrom.Videonarration

Her last scene depicting her friend wasintended, she said, to convey the idea ofhowimportantherfriendsandherfamilyare in supporting her STEM learning,especially when it is hard to staymotivated.Thescene-by-sceneplotmapprovidesanat-a-glance overview of the content andnarrativenatureofhervideo(FigureX).Itincludes a statement of purpose and/orinformation contained in each scene andwas coded according to research modelandthencolor-codedasfollows:1.SelfConcept




37





Figure3:Kim’sVideoPlotMap

Note that her video expressed only twopredominantthemes(showningreenandorange):(1)self-concept,includingagencyand STEM confidence, and; (2) STEMcommitment, including mostly personalrelevance and emotional connection (orlack thereof regarding her chemistryclass).Sheincludednodetails,discussionnor insight thatmight revealmoreaboutwhyshedislikedchemistry.As she focused on how she felt aboutsciencethatyear,weseeonceagainhowshe resolved the conflict of having anegative experience by placing a silverliningattheend--hergoodfriendandonebright light in thechemistryclass,withavoice over about the importance of herfriends and family in helping her endurethe class. Clearly, she considered herchemistry class more of an ordeal to bemanaged, rather than an opportunity to

advanceinSTEM.Andyetintheend,shedemonstrated her persistence andcapacitytointegratenegativeexperiencesinto positive STEM-related identitydevelopment.3.Pre-PostAnalysisAsdescribedinthemethods,theboundedtimeforthestudywasroughlyoneSpringsemester of high school. For each casestudyparticipant,thismarkedthein-classlearning experience they had with aneducator who had just completed theSciGirls Educator training (described inthe appendix). This pre-post analysisexamineschangesoverthattimeperiod.A.Self-PerceptionsListedherearethepre-postcomparisonsfor Kim’s identity sort for the ranking ofImportanceandTimeSpentasEach.


38

Table6:Kim'sPre-PostIdentitySort


TimeSpentasEachPOST

1.Daughter 1.Daughter 1.Skier 1.Daughter

2.Sister 2.Sister 2.Loverofschool 2.Sister

3.Goodfriend 3.HighSchooler 3.Sister 3.Highschooler

4.Skier 4.Skiingcaptain 4.Daughter 4.Skier

5.Upbeatperson 5.SkierReader 5.Goodfriend 5.Skiingcaptain

6.Loverofschool 6.Reader 6.Upbeatperson 6.Lifeguard

7.Reader 7.Knitter 7.Reader 7.Reader

8.Lifeguard 8.Knitter

Kimaddedthreeidentitiesoverthetimeofthe study: she was made “ski captain”shortly after the pre interview (ofwhichshe was very proud); she became a“lifeguard” and got a job working at theschool’spool(whichwouldextendintothesummer); and “knitter.” Two identitiesdisappearedfromher lists: “Goodfriend”and“Upbeatperson.“Loverofschool”was

modified into simply, “high schooler,”perhapsindicatingherstruggletoremaina “lover of school” while stillacknowledgingherstudentidentitystatus.B.RoleModelsKim’s list ofmost important rolemodelsPre-Postwereasfollows:

Table7:Kim'sRoleModels


1.Herparents(bothcollegeSTEMprofessors)

1.HerMom(microbiologyprofessor)

2.Skicoach(whoisalsoanastrophysicist)

2.Dad

3.Heroldersister(whoisincollege)

3.SkiCoach

4.Heroldersister

In the post-interview, Kim went deeperintothestoryofhowherMominspiresherbecauseshetookseveralyearsofftoraisethreekidsandstruggledtogetbackintheworkforceonlyaftertheyoungeststartedkindergarten.Itwasdifficultforhermom

tofindagoodjob,oftengettingbeatoutbyyounger candidates, but she eventuallydid. For Kim, her Mom set a powerfulexample of sacrifice, persistence, andachievement.ShealsoexploredherDadasarolemodelabitmore,citingthathe(like


39

Kimherself) isashyperson,but inspiresherbygettingupandteachinginfrontofaclassnevertheless.Also, she again listed her ski coach, butwiththeaddeddetailsthatthereasonKimis inspired by her is due in part to hersimilarstruggletofindajobthatallowedher to combine her passions for science,skiing,andfamily--somethingKimstatedis an aspirationof hers. Before strikingthat life balance, her ski coach wouldspendtimeawayfromfamilyinAntarcticatoconductresearchbecause“itwasreallygood money,” echoing the theme ofsacrifice for achievement shown in herMomasanimportantrolemodeltraitforKim.Finally,sheagainlistedheroldersisterasarolemodel,whowasincollegeandhadrecently inspired her by planning to jointhe National Guard. Although notcompletely understandable to Kim, sheadmiredhersistersimplyfor“goingforit,”andbeinghighlydrivenandmotivated.C.ConceptionsofScienceorSTEMNotably, Kim’s STEM concept wasexpanded as a result of her chemistrycourseoverthetermofthestudy:I’vealwaysviewedscienceasthestudyoflivingthings,especiallyhumans.Ofcourseit’salotbiggerthanthat.NowespeciallythatI’vetakenchemistry,it’sexpanded.…Ikindofviewitaslikesolvingaproblemthatrelatestotherealworldinthesenseofsomethingaliveintheworld.…WheneverIthinkofsciencemyfirstthingIthinkofiscellsandverybasicbiologystuff.Nowit’salsobalancingequationsandallthe

chemicalreactionsthatarehappeningintheworld.

PostinterviewNotsurprisingly(andasreflectedinothercase studies in the study), sometimesimportant gains in STEM-literacy andSTEM-relatedidentitydevelopmentoccurin spite of a student not liking, or evenactively hating, a STEM learningexperience. This is not an argument orjustificationforlackofpersonalrelevancyandengagementinSTEMlearning,butitisa demonstration (as Kim provides here)that when a student possess of positiveSTEM-related identity going in, evennegative experiences can be framed tocontribute to positive STEM-relatedidentitydevelopment.D.SelfPerceptionsRelatedtoSTEMSelf-Appraisals and Reflected Self-AppraisalsKim’s self-appraisal as a “STEM person”alsochangedsomewhatoverthecourseofthestudy.Whereasbeforeshestatedthatshe was a “STEM person” but actuallyfavored reading, she later offered thisobservation of her changing self-perceptions:IalwaysconsideredmyselfabigEnglishnerd.Ireadalot.ThemoreI’vedonetheSciGirlsandthemoreadvancedchemistryandbiologyclasseshereI’veconsidered

myselfmoreSTEM-leaning.Post-Interview

Here Kim refers to having “done theSciGirls.”Asweseeinothercasesaswell,manyofthecasestudyparticipantsregardtheirweekly gatherings toworkon theirjournalsandvideonarrativesasa‘SciGirls


40

club’ofsortsandincludethatexperiencein their personal observations andreflection.Moreonthistopicisdiscussedinthecross-caseanalysis.Kim’s reflected self-appraisal (whethershethinksothersthinkothersasa“STEMperson”)remainedlargelyunchanged:Idon’tthinkso.Oneofmygoodfriends,she’sreallyreallybigintoSTEM,some

nexttoher--Ijustkinda--IlookmorelikeI’manEnglishnerd.She’sREALLYinto

science.Post-Interview

STEMAgencyandSelf-EfficacyKim’s perceived ability to understandSTEMdecreasedslightlyoverthecourseofthesemester,fromhightomoderate.Herperceived ability to participate in andcontribute to STEM activities remainedhigh throughout the semester.Additionally, despite her struggles inchemistry,Kim’sacademicperformanceinterms of grades remained highthroughout.Shemaintainedstraight‘A’s.STEMCommitmentKim’s STEM commitment and emotionalconnection also remained high over thetimeof thestudy. Sheconsistentlyratedher ability to get excited about STEM ashigh despite her struggles to staymotivated in chemistry. Her socialconnectiontoSTEMdroppedfrom2closeSTEMfriendsto1.Thetimesheestimatedspending on STEM each week droppedfrom15hoursto8hours,howeveratthetimeofthepost-interview(neartheendofSpring semester) she did indeed have alighterloadformostclasses.Finally,Kim’scareeraspirationschangedonlyslightly:

[Mycareeraspirationsare]bio-something.Oraneditorofnovels.CanIcombinethis

withbiology?Post-Interview

E.SurveyResultsAmore in-depthdiscussionofcasestudyparticipant survey results will becompleted when the final overallquantitativestudyiscomplete.ScienceIdentityScalePre:2.9Post:2.4GirlsInterestinNatureandScienceScalePre:3.3Post:2.3STEMCareerInterestSurveyPre:4.5Post:3.9VNOS:Novice,consistent,no-growth

Scientiststrytofindanswerstotheirquestionsbydoinginvestigations/

experiments.Doyouthinkthatscientistsusetheirimagination&creativityintheir

investigations/experiments?

…IfeelthatmostexperimentsliketheonesIdoinmyscienceclassesarelackingincreativitybecausetheyareextremely

prescribed.Thestudentsdon'tgettodecidewhattheydoatall.

VNOS–Post4.DiscussionWith Kim, we see a girl who enters hersophomore year with a relatively highSTEM-related identity despite a mix andpositiveandnegativeSTEMexperiencesinher past. It is clear that influencers androle models in her life, including her


41

parents as STEM professors and othersoutside of school, had a large impactinghelpinghermaintain thispositiveSTEM-related self-perception in the face ofdifficulties.During thecourseof this study,Kimwasexperiencing another largely negativeSTEMlearningexperienceinherclasswithSciGirls-trained teacher, Mr. C. Herexploration and reflections of thisexperiencewithinthecontextofherlargerlifeandherpastSTEM-relatedexperiencesprovidesuswithanimportantwindowonhowapositiveSTEM-relatedidentitycanbolster a student through hard times intermsofstruggle,motivation,persistence.Notably, Kim had some important gainswithinherSci-Girls-relatedclasswithMr.C.Mostimportantly,thiscameintheformoftherolemodelsMr.CbroughtintotheclassandthebigimpacttheyhadonKim’s

planstoattendasummerSTEMcamp(andwinningascholarshiptodoso)aswellasimagining possible STEM-related careerpathwaysforherselfthroughcontactwitha personally relevant STEM professionalfrom 3M who shard her story in class.Additionally,Kimshowedtremendousgrittomaintaingoodgradesinthefaceofherfrustrationswithherchemistryclassandultimatelywas able to expand her STEMconceptand literacybeyondtherealmofbiology.Butintheend,despitethesegains,weseeKim’s STEM-related identity somewhatbatteredbytheendofthesemester,withadecrease in most of her STEM-relatedmeasures (STEM agency, STEMcommitment,andallsurveyresults),whilestill tenaciously holding onto a positiveSTEMself-appraisal.


42

CaseStudy:Gina

ProfileGinawasa15year-oldhighschool

studentinSt.PaulMNatthetimeofthestudy.Sheistheoldestofsevenchildren(fivebrothersandonesister)andisof

Thaidescent.Sheisextremelydrivenandhardworking,spendingthebulkofhertimeonherstudies.Sheisveryattentivetohergradesandacademicperformance,makingapointtotake“thehardclasses”despitethestressandtimemanagementthatcomeswithherbusyschedule.

SciGirlsTeacher:Ms.R

Class:Biology1. Pre-Analysis(Initial

Conditionsatthestartofthestudy)

A.SelfPerceptionsGina initially described herself as anintrovertedandquietpersonwhoprefersalone time to social gatherings. As theoldest of seven siblings in a family thatimmigrated from Thailand in 2003, shethinksofherselfasinexperiencedand:…withoutknowledgeintheeducationsystemandotherstuffsuchasschoolor

othersocialactivities.Pre-Interview

Whenaskedtolistandrankherperceivedidentities,herewereherresponses:

Table8:Gina'sPreIdentitySort

Importance TimeSpentasEach MosttoLeastPleasing IdealWorld

1.Daughter 1.Daughter 1.Daughter 1.Daughter

2.Oldest 2.Oldest 2.Oldest 2.Challenger

3.K-Popfan 3.Girl 3.K-Popfan 3.Risktaker

4.Mathclubmember 4.Introvert 4.Girl 4.Oldest

5.Highschoolstudent 5.K-Popfan 5.Highschoolstudent 5.Girl

6.Sophomore 6.Highschoolstudent 6.Mathclubstudent 6.Mathclubmember

7.Risktaker 7.Mathclubmember 7.Risktaker 7.Highschoolstudent

8.Challenger 8.Risktaker 8.Challenger 8.Sophomore

9.Girl 9.Challenger 9.Sophomore 9.K-popfan

10.Introvert 10.Sophomore 10.Introvert 10.Introvert


43

Notably, Gina listed her two mostimportantidentitiesasthoseinrelationtoher familyand thenshifted (after “K-Popfan”)toherrolesatschool,with“Mathclubmember”rankedhigherthan“Highschoolstudent.” This suggests that math has ahigher priority for Gina than othersubjects, which is supported alsosupportedbyotherevidence.She then listed more general identities,“Risk taker” and “Challenger.” Ginadescribedheridentityasa“Risktaker”asbeingsomeonewhotriesnewthingsshe’snever done before (like the SciGirls casestudy participation, she cited as anexample). These are things that herfriendsandmostotherpeopledonotdo,she said. This self-perception becomesimportant in understanding how sheviewed her life and responsibilities,describedlateron.Interestingly, her “Girl” identity rankednearthebottomforimportance,justabove“Introvert,”suggestingaminimizingoftheimportanceofhergenderidentity.Andyet“Girl” ranks 4th in her list of her mostpleasing identities. Finally, “introvert” islisted last in all the sorting categoriesexceptTimespentaseach(whereitis4th),suggesting that among all her identitiesshe may not have been entirelycomfortable with this particular self-appraisal.B.Rolemodels:During the pre-interview, Gina listed herrolemodels.Shehadonlyone,herfather,whomsheadmiredforhismotivationandhardwork:EversincewecamefromThailandhedideverythingbyhimselflikegotajobhimself,heactuallywentbacktoschoolbyhimself,

learnedEnglish…withouthismotivationhewouldn’tevendothat.

Pre-InterviewC.ConceptionsofScienceorSTEMGina’sconceptionofsciencewas:

Thestudyofnatureandhowthingsevolved.Reallyjustthestudyofhowthingswork.WhenI’mdoingscienceI’mlearningaboutthenaturalprocessesofthingsby

experimentingordoinglabs.Pre-Interview

In this explanation, Gina began with abiological reference to evolution andnature, but then expanded STEM to allthings. Importantly, she included thenotion of learning throughexperimentation, a critical component ofSTEM conceptualization, and indicatingmorehighlydevelopedsenseofit.D.Self-PerceptionsRelatedtoSTEMSelf-AppraisalsandReflectedSelf-AppraisalsGinaconsideredunambiguouslyherselftobe“STEMperson”andindicatedthatotherpeople would also consider her to be“STEM person” as well (reflected self-appraisals), including both friends andfamily.Within STEM Gina repeatedly expressedanaffinityformathinparticular.Ironicallyhowever, this was reflected in hernumerous journal entries describing heranxietyand,attimes,lowself-efficacyandcontentconfidencefordoingmath:Mathteamtodopracticeroundsforthepurplecomet[competition]andIfeltsostupid.Thisismaybethenormalfeeling


44

formewhenIgotherebecausepeopletherearesosmart.Iamthedumbest

there.IgothereeverydaybutthereisnotmuchimprovementbecauseIdon’tthinktheyknowthatIdon’tevenunderstand

whatconceptstheyaretalkingaboutwhentheyareexplainingtheproblems.The

purplecometisinApril.IfeellikeIshouldjustdropout.

JournalWedidpermutationsandcombinationsquiztodayinmath.It’ssounfair!Thereare5questionsand50pointsarethemaxamountofscorethatyoucanget.Igotone

wrongandpercentagewiseit’s80%.Journal

Statements such as these obviouslycommunicate her great stress aroundmath,butalsoindirectlydemonstratehowmuchshecaredaboutdoingwellinMath-- part of taking on the harder challengesabove what she believes most otherswoulddo.Theyalsorevealherexperienceofagreatdeal of pressure in terms of academicperformance,asreflectedthroughoutherjournal as she repeatedly discussed thestress of getting schoolwork andhomework done (time management),getting good grades, and feelings ofuncertaintyandacademicinsecurity.Yet,Ginaratedherabilitiestounderstandand contribute to STEM learning andactivitiesashigh.ItseemedasthoughGinawas in a cycle of doubt and uncertainty,driving high levels of effort and timedeployment,allgovernedbyherdesiretoachieve and improve in terms of gettinggood scores and good grades in school,makingagoodshowinginmathclub,andperhapslivinguptoherfather’sexampleasarolemodel.

STEMCommitmentEmotionally, Gina described herrelationshiptoSTEMaschallenging:IfeelthatSTEM…it’sreallychallenging

cuzmostpeople,andmealso,wethinkthatSTEMisathingthatyouhavetoworkreallyacademicallyandreallychallengeyourselfinthere.Problypeopledon’twant

toinvolvetoomuchtimeintoSTEMbecausetheywanttodomoreactionorvisualthings.…It[STEM]makesmemainlyfrustratedbutIlikeit.Butwhenthere’s,like,abunchofstuffwithallof

themtogether,it’sfrustrating.Pre-Interview

However,GinaalsoratedherabilitytogetexcitedaboutSTEMashigh.Additionally,shespentanestimated15hoursperweekon STEM. Importantly,when asked howmanypeopleshewouldlosecontactwithifshestoppeddoingSTEMaltogether,Ginasaid 40 to 50. Of those, she considerednine of them to be close friends. ThisindicatesthatSTEMisaprimarypathwayfor Gina’s social connections to otherchildren.GivenherhighlypositiveSTEM-related identity combined with herintroversion, this was perhaps notsurprising, but did serve to furtherincreaseherconnectionandcommitmenttoSTEMasanimportantpartofhersocio-emotional,aswellasherintellectual,life.When askedwhat career aspirations shemighthave,shesaid:

Ikindofwanttobecomeabio-psychologist.Butit’snotareallypopularmajor.…Becauseitinvolvesthementalthinking.It’sjustcooltolookatother

people[behaving].Pre-Interview


45

2.SciGirls-RelatedExperience(Experiencesduringthecourseofthesemester)A.ReflectionsLike all the case studies, Gina’sexperiences with her particular teacherwhowasengagedinSciGirlstrainingwasblended and contextualized into a largersphereoflifeexperiences.Ginabeganthestudyalreadyconsideringherselfa“STEMperson”withanaffinityformath.Overthecourse of the semester, Gina’s journalrevealed her to be quite driven, self-critical, and somewhat stressed most ofthetime:TodayistheduedateofmyMYPproject.Iamplanningonstayingupallnighttofinishmyproject.Inowlearnthatmy

procrastinationisahorriblethingbecausenowIhaveareportpaperdueandalsothe

scienceworksheetthat’sdue.Journal

IamsonervousbecauseIdidsharethe

documentwiththeteachersbutIforgottosharethefolderandaccidentallysentitwhenitwas12:00AM.Iwashappythattheydidn’tmind.Ifeltaweightliftedoff

myshouldersnow.Whewwww!Journal

Ihavesomanyassignmentsduetoday!IhaveanonlineassignmentonhierarchyofserviceandwhataT-Rextasteslike.I

don’treallymindtheT-RexbutfortheAPhumangeohomework,it’sthesame

amountofresearchasaresearchpaperbecauseit’ssometimesreallyconfusing;somethingsthatwehadtofillthetableindon’tevenhaveananswer.Anyways,I’m

DONEwithitSOYAYME!Journal

Todayisreallystressful!Iamreallystressedaboutthepresentationtestin

mathandscience.Idon’tknowwhichoneIshouldstudyfirst.Thisunorganizedlifemademeprocrastinatemore.Igotmygripat8:00PMandstayedupuntil12to

domystudyingandpracticefortomorrow’spresentation.

JournalAn important part of Gina’s drivingmotivationforacademicperformancewasa sense of competition, bothwith othersand herself, to constantly improve thatexistsbothinandoutofherschoollife:

TodayisSaturdayandthedayofmySaturdayAcademy.IwokeupandcheckedmysocialmediawhenIrealizedsomethingBIG.MycousinpostedaboutgoingonastudyabroadtriptoJapan.Atthat

moment,Ifeltidiotic.SheisimprovingherlifeandexperiencewhileI’msittinghereprocrastinatingaboutmyassignments.Throughouttoday,IfelttotallydownbecauseIamnotasgoodasmycousin.

JournalThis kind of self-criticism and self-doubtshadowedmuchofGina’sreflectionduringthecourseofthestudy.However,shewasalso capable of positive self-talk andfeelings of accomplishment andsatisfactionwithherperformance:

IwasluckythatIstudiedforthequizbecausethequizwasaneasyAforme!Iamsooooproudofmyself.Butthethingisthatthere’smoreassignmentscomingupthataregoingtohavetobepacedbyme

carefully.Journal

Iamsohappyeverythingisover!Todayis

myMom’sbirthday.Journal


46

Her remark about being happy thateverything was over is interesting. Itdemonstrates an attitude of relief atbecoming unburdened and un-stressedregardingherSTEMlearning. Othercasestudy participants framed their STEM-related learning experiences in terms ofenjoyment and wonder, whileacknowledgingsomestressaswell. Ginatook the opposite view of consideringSTEMastressorinherlife,alongwithallherotherschoolwork.However,herfast-paced, high-stress outlook was notnecessarily a negative thing in Gina’sperspective. In fact, she reflectedon theabsence of her hectic activity while onspringbreak:…I’menjoyingmyselfbutIfeellikethedaysaregoingbytooslow.IthoughttodaywasalreadyFriday!Thereason

maybebecauseIdidnothingnewoverthecourseofthelastfewdays.ThiswholetimeIspentwashingdishes,eatingand

watchingdramamovies.Ifeltlessanxiousoftheschoolworkbecausetherewasn’tmuchhomeworkgiven,soIalready

finisheditonMonday.Journal

This love-hate relationship with beingincrediblybusyandchallengedwasGina’snormal operatingmode. Without it, shefeltrestlessandeagertogetbackintothedailygrind.Inthisway,Gina’sidentitiesasa “Risk taker” and “Challenger” wereactivated and framed positively by Gina.But she paid a high price in terms ofanxiety,lackofsleep,andself-doubt--alltiedinwithherSTEM-relatedidentityasastudent.In this context, it is interesting that shechose teenage depression as one herschoolpresentationprojects:

There’sthisMYPprojectdaywherewebringourcompletedprojectwithan

exhibitionboardandpresentittoothers.Whentheeventstarted,Isawmanyothergreatprojects,varyingfrompotterytosculpturetoarobothand!MineseemsalittlelamebecauseIdiditonawebsite.Mywebsitewasaboutteenagedepression.AtfirstIdidn’tknowwhattopicIshoulddo,sowhentheteacherasked,Iunknowinglysaid‘depression’becauseitisreallywell

knowtoday.Journal

Although Gina did not seem to bedepressed,itseemsshewasveryawareofhowhecticandstressedherschoollifewasand the toll it took on her. This entrystandsoutasanunusualonecomparedtotheothers.Gina’sSciGirls-trainedteacherwasMs.R,whomshehadforbiology.Atthestartofthe semester, she described her in-classlearning experience as fun, including acombination of labs, ‘cahoots,’assignments,slidesshows,andnotes.Shealsodoes‘firstfives’thatwedoeverymorningto--it’skindofsortoflike

interestingfactsoranoverviewthatwemight’veforgottenorjustleftout.…[herteachingstyle]kindofworksformebecauseIhaveotherclassesalso,so

sometimesIjustdoitsoIcangetitdoneinsteadoflookingdeeplyintoit.…Ireallyenjoyit[Ms.R’sclass]becausetheroomisbigandsheteachesgreat,isfun,funny.

Pre-InterviewHer journal entries regarding Ms. R’sbiology class focused on the study ofSticklebacks(fish):


47

Wearenowdoinganassignmentinbiologyaboutsticklebacks.Iamtiredofsticklebacks,butitisinterestingandkindoffuntogoindepthwithaspeciesbecauseweusuallyjustbrieflygooveratopicwithbriefexamplesandthenmoveon.Inmath

wehaveaunitcircletestandIamprepared.Iwentafterschooltogetsomehelpmanytimesbeforeandeventoday.

JournalHerewecanseeGinacommentingonherbiology experience, but then quicklyturningbacktomath,whichwascommonthroughoutherjournalentries--mathwasnever far fromhermind. Theentryalsoshowedhereffortstogoaboveandbeyondfor her math studies, as compared tokeepingherworkinbiologytowhattheydoinclassoronlywhatwasrequiredforthecourse.Near the end of the semester, Ginachanged the way she described Ms. R’sclass:

Shemakesusdoexamplestogetusinvolvedsowecangetmoreintothe

experimentsormoreintothetopicwearelearning.Soit’smoresimpletolearn.It’smucheasier.WhenIfirststartedIwasreallyconfusedaboutallthecontent

becauseIdon’treallyknowmuchaboutbiology.[Now]Iknowmoreaboutit.WedomorelabsnowandIliketoexperienceitmorethanjustreadingitallinbooks.

Post-InterviewB.SciGirlsRoleModelImpactsGina did not identify any STEM rolemodels that she worked with in Ms. R’sclass.Butshedididentifytwopeoplewhocame into class one day to talk about a

marine science program students couldapplyfor.C.VideoNarrativeAnalysisGina’s stated video narrative theme washer ‘STEM improvement journey.’ Thesubtext of her video was her diligentattention to her scores combined with ahopefulmessageandfirmbeliefofsuccessthroughdeterminationandhardwork.The introduction title sequence showedherpreparingforamathteamcompetitionand included a metaphorical shot ofclimbingstairstoreachthetop(success).She thenopenedwith a shotof getting abad academic score on one of hertrigonometry tests, benchmarking herstarting place on this journey. Thiswasfollowed by time-lapsed scenes of herworking hard, studying in differentlocations,withthemessage:Imayfailtogetgoodgradesnow…butifItrymybest,studying,andattempting…

Videotextnarration

And then over a shot of her not-so-greatSciGirls-relatedbiologytestscores:…eventhoughIfailatimproving,thereis

alwayshopeinothersubjects.Videotextnarration

Shethendeclaredaphilosophicalstanceintheformofaself-pep-talk:Youdon’tfailallsubjectsjustbecauseyoudidbadinone.Ifyouputinmoreeffortinoncesubject,thatsubjectwillalwaysget

betterresults.Videotextnarration

To this point, her video narrative wasmarked by issues of her time spent on


48

STEM,herlevelofSTEMcommitment,herSTEM-related choices (choosing to putforth such a high degree of effort), andsome elements of STEM agency andliteracy.She then shifted the narrative to exploreseveral obstacles through self-video logs(vlogs). These included: “emotionalbreakdowns” (where she discussed thestressofhermom’sillness);“overlappingprojects/tests;” “procrastination;” and “abusy schedule.” Each of these obstaclesdirectly or indirectly dealt with Gina’schallenge of time management and herSTEM commitment. Regarding thissequence, in her director’s commentarysheexplainedherreasonsforincludinganexploration of these obstacles, whichshedslightonthedifferentlifestressorsinplayonherjourney:[Reemotionalbreakdown]…ofhowmy

momgotsickandhowitaffectedmyscoresalittlebitbecauseIcan’tgoafterschoolandgetafterschooltutoringcausemyDad’swatchingmymomandthere’sno

transportation.Thenextone[overlappingprojects/test]isofmetalkingabouthowIhaveabunchoftestsandIaddedthistoshowthatit’snotjustonetestthatI’m

tryingtoimprove,I’mtryingtoimproveonallofmytests,butalotoftestsaregoingon,soyouhavetochooseatestorprojectorsubjecttofocuson…it’screatingaconflictbetweenthem.AndIhavesix

classesandonlyonestudyhallsoIhavetobereallyprecisewithmytime

management.Director’sCommentary

Finally,shepresentedtheoutroscene--ashot of scores on paper showing herincreasingly bettermath scoreswith themessagethat:

Theimprovementswillbeworthit.

VideotextnarrationMathwasthesubjectsheputmoreeffortinto and thus achieved these results -- astatement of both STEM agency/efficacyandSTEMliteracy,butnotdirectlyrelatedto experiences she haswith her SciGirls-trainededucator.Thescene-by-sceneplotmapprovidesanat-a-glance overview of the content andnarrativenatureofhervideo(FigureX).Itincludes a statement of purpose and/orinformation contained in each scene andwas coded according to research modelandthencolor-codedasfollows:1.SelfConcept








49

Figure3:Gina’sVideoPlotMap

Note that Gina’s video expressed threeprimarythemes(showninorange,brownand pink): (1) STEM commitment; (2)Time spent on STEM, and; (3) STEM-relatedchoices(whichcorrespondtobothSTEM commitment and time spent onSTEM).According to her journal andherinterviews,Ginaspentthemajorityofherenergy and attention on timemanagement,improvingherscores,andagreatdeal of concernand thinkingaboutthe choices around each, so it is notsurprisingthisisreflectedinhervideoaswell.Interestingly, Gina also included two keyscenes that communicate STEMagency/self-efficacy and STEM literacy.Shepresentedtheseasthepromiseattheendofherjourney:(1)Herphilosophicalbeliefsthathardworkwillpayoffintermsof achievement, and; (2) Her partingmessage of the outro that it (being thehard work and time managementchallenges)willallbeworthit intheendandholdingup improvedmath scoresas

evidenceof this. This is in linewithherjournalentriesaswell,includingbriefbutsignificant messages of hope and self-encouragement that broke up theotherwisedailystressfuljugglingactofherjourney. So in the end of the videonarrative, Gina was vindicated andrewardedforherefforts.3.Pre-PostAnalysisAsdescribedinthemethods,theboundedtimeforthestudywasroughlyoneSpringsemester of high school. For each casestudyparticipant,thismarkedthein-classlearning experience they had with aneducator who had just completed theSciGirls Educator training (described inthe appendix). This pre-post analysisexamineschangesoverthattimeperiod.A.Self-PerceptionsListedbelowarethepre-postcomparisonsforGina’s identity rankingof ImportanceandTimeSpentasEach.


50

Table9:Kim'sPre-PostIdentitySort


TimeSpentasEachPOST

1.Daughter 1.Daughter 1.Daughter 1.Daughter

2.Oldest 2.IBperson 2.Oldest 2.Teenager

3.K-Popfan 3.Mathteammember 3.Girl 3.IBperson

4.Mathclubmember 4.Teenager 4.Introvert 4.Mathteammember

5.Highschoolstudent 5.Challenger 5.K-Popfan 5.Sophomore

6.Sophomore 6.Opportunityseeker 6.Highschoolstudent 6.Challenger

7.Risktaker 7.Sophomore 7.Mathclubmember 7.Opportunityseeker

8.Challenger 8.SciGirls 8.Risktaker 8.Mathperson

9.Girl 9.NHSmember 9.Challenger 9.Researcher

10.Introvert 10.Mathperson 10.Sophomore 10.SciGirls

11.Researcher 11.NHSmember

Ginahadanumberofinterestingpre-postchanges in her identity lists. First, anumberofidentitiesdroppedfromherlist.Beingthe“oldest”ofhersiblings(theonlyreference to her siblings in her list)droppedfromherlist,asdid“K-Popfan.”“High school student” merged withsophomoreinthepostlistand“risktaker”disappeared but “challenger” stayed.Significantly both “girl” and “introvert”droppedfromthelist,suggestingGinamayhave grown less concerned with theseidentities in the post list. As these bothwererankedatthebottomofimportancein the prior list, it may be that Gina’snewfoundvalidationthroughseveralnewidentities that emerged in the post listpushedtheseout.Theseaddedidentitiesincludedbecomingan “IB person” (member of the

internationalbaccalaureateprogram),andan“NHS”member(nationalhonorsociety)--bothquitenoteworthyaccomplishmentsforGinaonlybeingasophomore,andshewas clearly proud of them. Gina’s mathclub member identity from the pre listsplit intotwomathidentities inthepost:“Mathteammember”and“Mathperson,”suggestingadifferentiationofherin-classand out-of-classmath roles, andperhapsanincreaseinhercommitmenttoamathidentityoverall.Inanycase,itcontributedtoherSTEM-relatedidentity,butwasnotalignedwithherexperiencesinclasswithherSciGirls-trainededucator.Ginaalsoaddedtheidentity,“Opportunityseeker,”which seemed to subsume “Risktaker” from the prior list, as well as“Researcher,”whichshedescribesas“if Iam confused by something I will go and


51

find and learn all about it” (Post-Interview).Finally,sheadded“SciGirls”toherlist.Asindicatedinothercasestudies,somegirlsseemed to consider the semi-weeklygatherings of the SciGirls case studyparticipants(tocheckinandprovidetimeandspacetowokonjournalsandvideos)asacomponentoftheprograminadditionto(orinsteadof)theSciGirlstrainingtheireducatorsreceived.Ginalisting“SciGirls”as an identity here seemed to expressaffinitytothisgroupofgirls,andthereforefalls intothecategoryofasocial identity.Certainly, given her extensive journalentries and the analysis of her videonarrative, it seems these gatherings andher related efforts at collecting, shapingand reflecting on her thoughts and

experienceswereimportanttoGina.Itisalsopossible,however, that she included“SciGirls”inheridentitylistknowingthatthe interviewerwasaSciGirlsresearcherand she desired to make a goodimpressionofsomekind.Notably, Gina’s most salient identity inimportanceandtime,inbothpreandpostlists,was consistently thatof “Daughter.”This fact, coupled with her named rolemodelofherfather,helpsustounderstandwhy she worked so hard and felttremendous drive aswell as pressure tosucceed.B.RoleModelsGina’s listofmost important rolemodelsPre-Postindicatednochange:

Table10:Kim'sRoleModels


1.HerDad(self-driven,risk-taker,hardworker,achiever)

1.HerDad

No new rolemodelswere added and nochange inher fatherasheroneandonlyrolemodel(orthereasonswhyhe isherrolemodel)wereindicated.Sheadmiredhim for being a highly motivated, hardworking, self-made “risk taker” (one ofGina’sowninitial identities). Hewasnotonlyanexamplesheaspiredto,hewastheexample. In combination with her mostsalient identity, “Daughter,” we see thestronginfluenceofthisrolemodel inherlife.Additionally,asGinawastheoldestofsevensiblings(including5brothers),sheshouldered a lot of pressure, whetherinternallyand/orexternallyimposed.

C.ConceptionsofScienceorSTEMGina’s conception of STEM changed onlyslightly over the course of the study.Where before she described science as“thestudyofhowthingswork,”attheendof her SciGirls semester she reflected ontheubiquityofscience:[Scienceis]theexplanationforeverything--foreverydayeverything.Todosciencemeanstojustlive.Becauseeverythingyoudoisscience.Soifyou’reliving,you’re

doingscience.Post-Interview


52

GiventhatGina’spriorconceptofscienceincluded both exploring andexperimenting, it seemsmore likely thatherlaterdescriptionofsciencewasmoreofarecognitionthatscienceisallaroundus,ratherthanaliteralbeliefthatanythingandeverythingisscienceorthatscienceisnotinanywaydifferentfrom,say,art,forexample.D.SelfPerceptionsRelatedtoSTEMSelf-AppraisalsandReflectedSelf-AppraisalsGina’s self-appraisal as a “STEM person”remained strong over the course of thestudy, as did her reflected self-appraisalthat she believed others (friends andfamily)seeherasa“STEMperson”aswell.STEMAgencyandSelf-EfficacyGina’s perceived ability to understandSTEMremainedquitehighduringthetimeofthestudy,asdidherperceivedabilitytoparticipate in and contribute to STEMactivities.Gina’sacademicperformanceintermsofgradeswasvariable,ofwhichshewas acutely aware and she workedextremelyhardtoimprovehergrades(thethemeofhervideonarrative).STEMCommitmentHowever, her STEM commitment andemotional connection to STEM remainedhighduringthetimeofthestudy,despitethispressure:STEMisexciting.Especiallywhenthere’sanewproblemforyoutosolve.Especiallyinmathorscience.…Ialsodoexperimentsathomewithfood.Itdoesn’tgothatwellbecauseone,youmessupthedishesandyouhavetowashandtwo,there’snofood

afteryouexperiment--mostofthetimeitdoesn’tgowellsoitendsupinthetrash.

Post-InterviewHer description of experimental homecooking as an example of STEM furtherindicatesherhighpersonal relevancy forSTEM, as well as an element of play ordoingitforfunbeyondlearningalone.As before, forGina’s social connection toSTEM,shecitedlargenumbersofstudentsthatsheknows,andseveralsheconsidersher close friends, as connected throughher STEM classes and math club,reinforcing that STEM was a primarypathwayforhersocialconnections.AttheendofherSciGirlssemester,whenaskedwhat career aspirations shemighthave,Gina repeatedherdesire topursuesomekindofpsychologyorneuroscience.Whenaskedwhynotmathshesaid:Math--it’sgoodwhenyoudoitbutthenwhenyouhavetoexplainittoothersanduseittotellotherpeoplewhatyou’redoingit’snotthatfunanymore.…I’mnotgoodat

explainingstufftopeople.Post-Interview

E.SurveyResultsAmore in-depthdiscussionofcasestudyparticipant survey results will becompleted when the final overallquantitativestudyiscomplete.Note:GinacompletedtheVNOSsurveyaspre and post but did not complete anyotherpost-surveysforcomparisons.ScienceIdentityScalePre:1.9


53

GirlsInterestinNatureandScienceScalePre:3.1STEMCareerInterestSurveyPre:3.7VNOS:Novice,consistent,growth

Scientists try to find answers to their questions by doing investigations /

experiments. Do you think that scientists use their imagination & creativity in their

investigations/experiments?

“I think that they use their imagination in all parts of the investigations. Examples would if we were to do an experiment, thinking of

what to do requires the person's creativity to think of something. As for experimenting,

their creativity also helps them create procedures and directions as to where the experiment is aiming at. And for making

observation and analyzing data, if there was no imagination, nothing would be noticed about the data because no thought was put into observing the results of the data. And

lastly, for interpretation and reporting results, they both also involves imagination

and creativity because if for example we were to do an experiment on baking soda and vinegar, the person could've just said that the baking soda caused the vinegar to bubble up BUT for people with creativity, they would think of the deep reason behind the chemical reactions, not just point it out.

VNOS - Post

4.DiscussionGina presents an interesting case,combining a well-developed initialpositive STEM-related identity with anegative reinforcement mechanism that

evidently resulted in improvement andachievement.Gina’stremendousdrivetosucceedacademicallywasaccompaniedbytremendous stress (typically about timemanagement and grades) as a normaloperatingmodethatworkedforher-- tothe extent that grades are a proxy forlearning.However, there are two elements thatneed to be pointed out. First, Gina’spositiveSTEM-relatedidentitywasalmostexclusivelycenteredonmath.ForGina,itdid not even extend to math that wasembeddedwithinothersubjects,butpuremath in the formofmathclassandmathclub.Therefore,itwouldbemoreaccuratetodiscussGina’s identitydevelopment intermsohhermathidentityinparticular.Second,thereisverylittleindicationthatGina’s STEM-related identity (or mathidentity)developedatalloverthecourseof the semester. It started high andremained high. Her hard work,determination, and personal sacrifice allpaid off in the end as she presented herreward in the form of -- what else --improvedmath scores. Her experienceswithherSciGirls-trainededucator,Ms.Rinbiology class, had little or no impact onGina.However,itisabundantlyclearthatGina’sworkstyleandworkethicweremodeledon her father, further demonstrating thepower of rolemodels and influencers onbehavior. What remains unclear iswhetherGina’sperceivedresponsibilitytolive up to her father’s example wasinternally by her, or externally regulatedby him. Either way, it resulted in thepressure that drove Gina to succeedacademicallyandtheaccomplishmentshefeltwhenvindicated.


54

CaseStudy:Sofia

Profile

Sofiawasa16year-oldhighschooljuniorinSt.PaulMNatthetimeofthestudy.Sheisamiddlechildwithonesisterandthreebrothers.SheisofLatinxdescent,isveryself-awareandintrospective.Sheenjoysbeingactive,doinggymnastics,hiking,

andmusic(sheplaystheguitar).Shealsoenjoyslearningandisadedicatedstudent,especiallyinscience--butit

wasn’talwaysso.Herloveofschoolandscienceinparticularisarecentdevelopment,beginninginher

sophomoreyearandcontinuingtothepresent.

SciGirlsTeacher:Mr.V.

Class:chemistryaccelerated

1.Pre-Analysis(InitialConditionsatthestartofthestudy)A.SelfPerceptionsSofia initially described herself as adiligent student who cares about herfuture and tries hard at everything shedoes. After ameanderingmiddle schoolexperience, including switching into andout of an art school in order to find the“right fit” for her, she described her 10thgradeyearasthetimeshereallystartedtoapply herself and became interested inSTEM.Nowinherjunioryear,shewantedto“doubleup”onscienceandwastakingboth biology and accelerated chemistrybecauseshe“wantedachallenge.”Whenaskedtolistandrankherperceivedidentities,herewereherresponses:

Table11:Sofia'sPreIdentitySort


1.Friend 1.Student 1.Loverofpeople 1.Student,Loverofeducation,Performer

2.Loverofpeople(extrovert),Loverofeducation

2.Friend,Loverofeducation

2.Friend,Loverofeducation,Performer

2.Friend,Loverofpeople

3.Sister,Student,Daughter

3.Sister,Loverofpeople

3.Student,Loverofmusic

3.Sister,Loverofmusic,Daughter

4.Performer(gymnastics,circus,guitar),Loverofmusic

4.Performer,Loverofmusic,daughter

4.Sister,Daughter

For Sofia, STEMwas includedwithinher“Loverofeducation“identity,butwasnot

includedasitsownseparateidentity.Alsoofinterestisthenumberoftiesineachof


55

her initial rank orders, suggesting sheperceived a high degree of overlap andsynergyamonghervariousidentities--aholisticsenseofself.B.Rolemodels:During thepre-interview,Sofia listedherrolemodels.Thereweretwo:

• Valerie Taylor: A computerscientist and innovative softwaredesigner.“Shewasanadvocateforminorities in STEM fields andwomen,”Sofiasaid.

• Mr. V.: Her SciGirls-trainededucatorandchemistryteacher.

Importantly, Sofia referenced a recentactivityinMr.V’sclassinwhichtheymadein-class presentations on relativelyunknown/unsung scientists, and that iswhyshefoundValerieTaylor.So,bothofherlistedrolemodelswereSTEM-relatedand one of them gave cause to Sofia’sidentificationoftheotherassomeoneshelearnedtoadmireandemulate.C.ConceptionsofScienceorSTEMSofia’s initial conception of science wasprovincial in that it referenced whatsciencelookedlikeinschool.Butnotablyit also includedbothdifferentdisciplinesor areas of science aswell as knowledgeaboutourselveswithinitsgrandscope:…thedifferentdisciplines of exploringandlearning new things about the world andourselves. …Finding out the reasons whythingshappen.Takingaconceptyoulearnin class and applying it to a lab… andmaking the connection of the things youlearninlabtoreallife.

Pre-Interview

D.Self-PerceptionsRelatedtoSTEMSelf-AppraisalsandReflectedSelf-AppraisalsWhenaskedifsheconsideredherselftobe“STEM person,” Sofia cringed, citing thather ACT ELA scores were much higherthanherSTEMscores,but:IlikeSTEMalot.Ithinkit’samazingbut

I’mjustnotthatgoodatit.Pre-interview

Soherconclusionwasthatshewasnota“STEMperson.”Whenaskedifotherswhoknewherwouldconsiderhertobe“STEMperson,” (reflected self-appraisal) shethoughtherparentswouldmaybethinkofherthiswayduetotheirawarenessofheraffinity to STEM, and also reluctantlyconcludedthatsincesherecentlydecidedto take two science classes in her junioryear thatnowmostofher friendswouldalsorecognizeherasaSTEMperson.SofiaratedherabilitytounderstandSTEMaslowatthebeginningofthestudy. Sherated her ability to contribute to andparticipateinSTEMactivitiesasmoderate.STEMCommitmentEmotionally,Sofiaratedherabilitytogetexcited by STEM as extremely high. Shedescribedhowshereally likedSTEMbutwishedshewerebetterat it,particularlymath--whichshehasstruggledwithsincekindergarten,shesaid.Thispresentedherwith challenges when it came toperforming statistics in lab write-ups inbiologyandchemistryclasses.Perhaps most tellingly regarding herSTEM commitmentwas the fact that sheelectedtotaketwoscienceclasses inherjunior year, including a two-year long IB


56

biologyclass,whichshebroughtupmorethanonceandwasclearlyproudof--bothfor taking on the challenge and forperformingwellacademicallyinthefaceofthechallenge.Additionally, she spent an estimated 10hoursperweekonSTEMandidentifiedasocial cohort of acquaintances she knewthrough her STEM of six, but only oneconsidered a close friend. She alsoexpressed an interest in participating inthe ScienceOlympiad (an extracurricularSTEMactivity)buthadnotactedonityet.Her initial career aspirations includedvague ideas around physical therapy orbiotechnology--bothSTEM-relatedfields.2.SciGirls-RelatedExperience(Experiencesduringthecourseofthesemester)A.ReflectionsLike all the case studies, Sofia’sexperiences with her particular teacherwhowasengagedinSciGirlstrainingwasblended and contextualized into a largersphereoflifeexperiences.Atthetimethestudy began, Sofia was fresh from abreakthrough experience in 10th gradebiology with a newly acquired love andagency for STEM. This fueled her topursue STEM above and beyond therequiredcoursestotaketwoelectives:IBbiologyandchemistryaccelerated.Atthesametime,Sofiastillthoughtofherselfasamediocrestudent,tentativeinherSTEMconfidence, and in need of furthervalidationinordertobeconfirmedinherSTEMchoices.Her journal entries for the semester didnotbeginuntilmid-April(halfwaythroughthestudyperiod),butclearlyreflectedthistensionbetweenherinterestinSTEMand

her low sense of STEM agency andconfidence,andtherecurringthemeoflowconfidenceinmath:I’mgettingstressedaboutchoosingclassesfornextyear.IwannatakeIBphysicsnextyear,butI’mscaredIwon’tbeabletokeepupwiththecalculusaspectofit.I’vealwaysstruggledwithmathandit’s

extremelydifficulttolearnitatafastpace.Iwouldreallyliketobegoodatit,butI’msofarbehindmypeersitdoesn’teven

matter.Journal

Two of Sofia’s identities, “Friend” and“Lover of people,” centered around herextroversion,which she explainedasherjoy to shareexperienceswithothersandher need to re-charge by being aroundfriends. Thiselementofhersense-of-selffigured intoherSTEM-related identityaswell, as she noted her value of the onecloseSTEMfriendshehad:Meandmybestfriend[Sarah]lovesciencesomuch.I’mgladIhavesomeonetonerdoutaboutsciencewith.NoneofmyotherfriendsareveryinterestedinSTEM.

Journal

ThisentryshowsusmultipleaspectsofthesocialcomponentofSofia’sSTEM-relatedidentitydevelopment. First,itisastrongexampleofSTEM-relatedpeeraffinityandinfluence.Thisaspectofaclosefriendshipintegrated intoherSTEMexperienceandoverlapping with two of her otheridentitiesstrengthenedboththepersonalrelevanceofSTEMforSofiaandherSTEMcommitment.Additionally, it indicates a highly valuedreflectedself-appraisal--whatshethinksSarah thinks of her, and their mutual


57

friendshipasbeingable“tonerdoutaboutscience”together.Eventhoughitwasonlyone friend, the fact that it was her bestfriendmeansthatsuchanappraisalservesas a powerful validation mechanism forherinterestinSTEM.Thefactthattheyareboth in Sofia’s SciGirls-related classtogetherwasafortunatecircumstanceandareminderofhowcriticalsocial learningisforSTEM-relatedidentitydevelopment.Finally,herentryalsorevealsthatnoneofSofia’s other friends were interested inSTEM,andthereforelikelynotsharingherexcitementforlearningSTEM.Morethana non-validation of Sofia’s STEM-relatedidentity,thiscouldbeanegativevalidationforitintheformofperceivedpressurenottopursueSTEM.InSofia’scasehowever,itseemedonlytoamplifytheimportanceofherfriendshipwithSarah.Sofia’sSciGirls-trainedteacherwasMr.V.,whomshehad forchemistryaccelerated.Sheinitiallydescribedhisteachingstyleasone that used a lot of metaphors andsimiles to help students understand“structural things.” And that he wouldoftengooffontangents,tellsstories,talkabout“randomstuff,”andis“reallyfunny.”Sofia relayedall thisbetween laughsandbrandishingabigsmile.Shealsosaidthatthisstyleworkedwellforher,notingthatMr.V.movedataslowpacewitha lotofdetail:Hemakessurepeopleunderstandwhathetalkingabout,whichissomethingthat’sniceformebecauseusuallyscienceis,like,

hardformetounderstand.Pre-Interview

She remarked on Mr. V’s ability totranslate complicated ideas to commonunderstanding, thereby increasing theirpersonalrelevancyforstudents:

Hemakesconceptsinchemistry,hejustputsinmuchsimplertermssothatit’seasiertounderstand.Like,hecompares

chemicalreactionsto,like,arecipe,baking,orwhatever.Sohejustrelayscomplextopicsintokindoflikeeverydaythings.

Pre-InterviewHowever, near the end of her semesterwithMr.V.,shewrote:Ifeellikemychemistryclassistooeasyforme.It’snicethatIunderstandeverythingandthereisnohomework,butIdon’tfeelpreparedforcollegechemistryatall.I’mnotgoingtohaveaclueaboutwhat’s

goingoninOrganicChemclassincollege.Journal

This entry marked a change from herearlier lower STEM confidence. Also,while the observation is negative, itdemonstratesanincreasedsenseofSTEMagency, increased STEM personalrelevance, and increased STEMcommitment for Sofia, as she is talkingabout definite plans to pursue organicchemistry in college -- an upper levelSTEM major elective -- an alluding to ahigh STEM literacy and STEM capacitycausinghercurrentchemistryclasstobe“tooeasy.”Certainly,all theseoutcomesarepositivefor teacher and student alike. However,the concern she expresses indicates thatSofia’spriorpreference forMr.V.’sslow-paced and detail oriented approachmayhave evolved. Alternately, it could alsosimplyindicateaprojectionofherworriesand self-doubt in STEM to an imaginedfuture circumstance in college (e.g. howwould she know what good preparationfororganicchemistryentails?).


58

SofiaalsolaternotedthatshethoughtMr.V. employedmore lecture thanhands-oninstruction:Sometimeswe’lldolikeanoccasional

experimentorsomethingandIdon’treallythinkithelpsmethatmuch.SometimesI

kindofjustsitandlisten.Post-Interview

B.SciGirlsRoleModelImpactsSofia identifiedone “possible” STEMrolemodelbrought into theclassroombyherSciGirls teacher during the semester. Itwas a woman recruiting students for asummerengineeringprogram.Otherwise,there were no in-person or video basedrole models that she could recall, asidefromtheprojectearlierinthesemestertoexplore notable but unknown scientists,leading toSofia’s listingofValerieTaylorasarolemodel.However,anysignificantordurableimpactsofSciGirls-relatedrolemodeleffortsseemtobenon-existentforSofia.C.VideoNarrativeAnalysisSofia’s video narrative was anintrospectivestoryofhowshecametoherloveofSTEMandwhatobstaclesshefacedalongtheway,sofar.HerthemewashowSTEMisintegratedintoherlifestoryandwhosheis.ItopenedwithmontageofSofiaengagedindifferentactivitiesandinterestsimportantinherlife(outsideofSTEM),followedbythe set up of her story over a visualsequenceofSTEM-relatedshots:studentsinaplantbiologylab;Mr.V.performingafirey chemistry demonstration; jellyfishandseahorses:

Thismaysoundoddcomingfromme,butupuntilrecentlyI’veneverreallyshown

muchofaninterestinscience.ThroughoutallofelementaryschoolandmiddleschoolIwasundertheimpressionthatIjustdidn’thavetherighttypeof

brainforSTEMsubjects.Thiswasmostlycausedbymylackofconfidenceinmyacademicabilities.Manyofmyteachersandpeersreinforcedtheideathatyouwereeithergoodatscienceandmathoryouweren’t,andIbelievedforthelongesttimethatIjustwasn’tgoodatitandIshouldnoteventrytobettermyself.Myself-confidenceplummetedevenfurtherwhensometimesmypeersandevenmyteacherswouldteasemebecauseIwasn’tverygoodatparticularSTEMsubjects.Andwhat’sworstofallisthatIbelievedwhatmypeerssaid.IbelievedthatIwasn’tverysmarttobeginwithandIdefinitelywasn’t

verygoodatmathandscience.Videonarration

Thissetupcommunicatedamoreorlesstypical STEM experience that manystudents,especiallygirls,havethroughtheearly grades. Notably, it included theunchallengedbeliefthatoneiseithergoodatSTEMorisnot.This‘youeithergotitoryou don’t’ notion is indicative of a fixedmindset,commontomanystudents’self-perceptionsregardingSTEM.Next,Sofiadiscussedhowallthatchangedduring her breakthrough experience,presented over a visual sequence of herandherfriendexploringchemistrylab(inher SciGirls-related chemistry class) andshotsofatidepoolinbiology:ButeverythingchangedwhenIenteredtenthgrade.Ihadnervouslysignedupforanacceleratedbiologyclass.Iwasveryveryunsureofmyself.Butastheyear

progressedIrealizedthatIreallyenjoyed


59

biologyandIwasactuallyprettygoodatit.Iwasabletomaintainasolid‘A’

throughouttheentireyear.IwasalwaysinterestedinwhatwewerelearningandIneverwantedtostop.IbelievethatoneofthemainreasonsIwassosuccessfulwasbecausemyamazingteacherMr.K.always

believedinmeandsupportedmethroughouttheentireway.Heeven

encouragedmetodoubleuponscienceclassesthefollowingyear.

VideonarrationHerewe learn thatSofiahada trajectorychangingexperience, as farasSTEMwasconcerned, and that she attributed itlargelytoherformerbiologyteacher.Wealsolearnthatsheperceivedherdecisionto take that biology class as a bigemotionalandintellectualriskthatslowlypaidoffasshediscoveredshewasgoodatit.Whilewedon’thavemanydetailsaboutwhatherformerteacheractuallydid,sheattributedmuchofhersuccesstohimandhisunwaveringsupport,incontrasttoallherpreviousteachersandpeers.Inthenextsegment,overadditionalshotsofherchemistrylabwork,Sofiaprovidedan update on her current status afterchoosing to attend the two classes herformer teacher encouraged her to take:chemistryacceleratedandIBbiology:IlovebothoftheclassessomuchandI’velearnedtoappreciatescienceandwhatitmeanstome.Forme,sciencerepresents

overcominghardshipsandthebarriersyoufaceinyourlife.Withscience,IknowthatI

canachievealmostanything.Videonarration

Inthisexcerpt,Sofiatellsusshelovesbothofhercurrentclasses,includingchemistryaccelerated(herSciGirls-relatedclass),incontrasttoherothercommentsaboutthe

class being too easy and inadequatepreparation forcollegechemistry. Thislends some credence to the suppositionthatherearliermusingsweremorelikelya projection of her concerns and self-doubtsforperformingwellincollegethanwithdissatisfactionwithMr.V’sclass.Most notably in this scene, Sofia sharedwhatsciencemeanstoher.Thiswasmorethan simply a statement of her scienceconcept or what any expert would saySTEM is. Here she was speaking of thesymbolic representation of heraccomplishmentsinSTEM(somethingshewastoldandbelievedshecouldneverdo)as a major component not just of herpositive STEM-related identitydevelopment, but of her overall identitydevelopment as someone who canovercome obstacles and “achieve almostanything.” By thisstroke,Sofia investedtremendous personal meaning andcommitmentinSTEM.Thisseemstobeadirect result of her breakthrough 10thgrade experience, followed by thecontinuedvalidationofherSTEM-relatedidentity within her SciGirls-relatedchemistryclassandherbiologyclass.Finally, Sofia’s outro discusses her STEMmotivationandwhereitmaytakeher:IthinkthatalotofmymotivationcomesfromreallycomesfromreallyexcellingandsteppingupinthatbiologyclassIhadintenthgradeanditgavemetheconfidencetogoonandtrymuchharderthings.Asofrightnow,I’mconsideringpossiblefuturecareersinbiologyandotherscientificresearchfields.Idefinitelywouldn’tbe

whereIamnowwithoutthesupportofmyteacherfromtenthgradeandIhopethatgirlsacrosstheworldwillbeabletohavethesamebreakthroughmomentthatIdid.

Videonarration


60



2.STEMConcept

3.STEMCommitment





Figure4:Sofia’sVideoPlotMap

Sofia’s video narrative expresses fivethemes (shown in green, blue, orange,yellow, and pink): (1) Self-concept,including agency and STEM confidence,beginning with her low sense of STEMagencyandarcing to amuchhigherone;(2)STEMconcept,brieflyappearingassheexpressed what STEM means to herpersonally and symbolically; (3) STEMcommitment, recurring throughout mostofhervideointermsofpersonalrelevanceofSTEMandtheinfluenceofherpeersandcommunity - again beginning withnegative influences and arcing towardpositives ones; (4), STEM literacy asdemonstratedneartheendasshebrieflydescribed her performance in biology,and;(5)STEMchoices,showingupinherinitial risky choices to take 10th gradebiologyandlaterhertwoSTEMcoursesin

junioryear, and thenmentionedagainatthe end when she discusses her STEMfuture.In fact, the only coded theme notrepresented in Sofia’s video narrative is‘Time spent on STEM.’ However, in herpost-interviewSofiadiddiscussher tightschedule and her competingresponsibilities for lacrosse, gymnastics,circus,andschoolwork.3.Pre-PostAnalysisAsdescribedinthemethods,theboundedtimeforthestudywasroughlyoneSpringsemester of high school. For each casestudyparticipant,thismarkedthein-classlearning experience they had with aneducator who had just completed theSciGirls Educator training (described in


61

the appendix). This pre-post analysisexamineschangesoverthattimeperiod.A.Self-PerceptionsSofia added to her self-description overthecourseofthestudytoinclude“aperson

who loves putting themselves in newsituations,” which tracks well with hernewlymintedpursuitofSTEM.Listedbelowarethepre-postcomparisonsforSofia’s identityrankingofImportanceandTimeSpentasEach.

Table12:Sofia'sPre-PostIdentitySort


TimeSpentasEachPOST

1.Friend 1.Student 1.Student 1.Student

2.Loverofpeople(extrovert)Loverofeducation

2.Explorer(ofnewideas,theories,andoutdoors)

2.Friend,Loverofeducation

2.Athlete

3.Sister,Student,Daughter

3.“Researcher”(formoreschool-relatedactivities)

3.Sister,Loverofpeople

3.Friend

4.Performer(gymnastics,circus,guitar)Loverofmusic

4.Friend 4.Performer,Loverofmusic,daughter

4.“Researcher”

5.Someonewhotriestomakethingsfun/enjoyableforeveryone

5.Explorer

6.Someonewhotriestohelpothers

6.Someonewhotriestohelpothers

7.Athlete 7.Someonewhotriestomakethingsfun/enjoyableforeveryone

There are several important changes toSofia’s identity lists. First, she added“Explorer”and“Researcher”andfeaturedthemhighonher listof importance. Shedescribed them both as STEM-related.These replaced “Lover of education” andfurther specified it. To point out thesignificance of this delineation, she alsoaddedthatshehadbecomesomeonewho“hates humanities” including languages,Englishandhistory.EventhoughI’mbetteratthehumanities,I

don’tlikeit.It’ssoboringforme.Post-Interview

What’snotableaboutthiscommentisthatherperceptionofriskfortakingSTEMatthe onset of the study was much higherandherSTEMagencyandconfidencewerecorrespondingly low. As this shiftedtowardsalowerSTEMriskperceptionandgreaterSTEMagencyandconfidence,herdesire to pursue or even enjoywhat shehadalwaysbeengoodat(thehumanities)decreased. So rather than the blanketidentity “Lover of education,” SofiabecamealoverofSTEMmorespecifically.ThiswouldalsoseemtoindicatethatSofiaembraced a growth mindset in her


62

approach to learning -- as in, ‘don’t dowhatiseasyjustbecauseitiseasy,ratherdowhat is hard and grow from it, if youloveit.’Notably,“Friend”fellfromthefirstrankofimportance to the fourth, behind“Student,” “Explorer,” and “Researcher,”furtherindicatingashiftinherpriorities.Also,herprioridentity,“Loverofpeople,”expanded toboth “Someonewho tries tomake things fun/enjoyable for everyone”and “Someonewho tries to help others,”which are both related to her “Friend”identity, but indicate a more specificconceptualization of her role as friend.However,“Student”remainedatthetopof

hertimecommitmentand“Friend”rankedhigher for time commitment than both“Explorer”and“Researcher.”“Performer,” which earlier includedgymnasticsandcircus,wasreplacedwith“Athlete.”“Loverofmusic”droppedoffthelistsentirely.Andfinally,incontrasttoherprioridentityrankings,therewerenotiesof any kind in Sofia’s final rank orders,indicating a more clearly differentiatedperceptionofherpriorities.B.RoleModelsSofia’slistofmostimportantrolemodelsPre-Postwereasfollows:

Table13:Sofia'sRoleModels


1.ValerieTaylor(computerscientist)

1.Mr.K.(10thgradebiologyteacher)

2.Mr.Karlan(SciGirls-trainedchemistryteacher)

She identified her influential 10th gradebiology teacher as her rolemodel in thepost interview, Mr. K. Given hisprominence in her STEM story, andevident in her video narrative, it issurprisingthatshedidnotlisthiminthepre-interview as well. Both of the rolemodelsshedidlistearlierdroppedoffherlist--ValerieTaylorbecauseshewasmoreof a timely example given Sofia’s recentresearch project at the time of the pre-interview,andMr.V.,herScigirls-trainedchemistryteacher.C.ConceptionsofScienceorSTEM

Sofia’s conceptionofSTEMchanged littleover the course of the study. Sheshorteneditto:Theinvestigationandtestingofideasortheoriesabouttheworldaroundyou.

Post-Interview

Here she included the idea ofexperimentation or testing as the linkbetween STEM-related concepts and therealworld -- an expansion of her earlierschool-baseddefinition. In the followingexamples, she expanded further on thenotion of applying scientific abstractionstoreal-worldproblems:I’vebeendoing,like,foralotofmyIB

classes,internalassessmentswhereIhave


63

totaketheconceptswe’velearnedinclassandkindoflikeapplyittoreallifeissues

andwriteapaperaboutit.Post-Interview

I’mdesigninganexperimentinbiologyrightnow,testingitanddoingsomedataanalysis.…Testingtheeffectivenessofsolarwaterdisinfection.I’mmeasuring,like,thebacterialgrowthratesinwaterbeforeit’sexposedthesunandafterit’sexposed.It’ssupposedtobelowerwhenit’sexposedtothesun.It’susedalotin

thirdworldcountriestopurifythewaterofbacteria.

Post-InterviewTheseexamplesnotonlydemonstrateanimportant conceptualization of science(experimentationandevidence),butalsoshow Sofia’s hands-on experience doingscienceinherclasses. Herdescriptionofthe solar water disinfection study alsoindicatesadegreeofherSTEMliteracyinthatcontext.D.SelfPerceptionsRelatedtoSTEMSelf-Appraisals and Reflected Self-AppraisalsSofia’s self-appraisal as not a “STEMperson”changedtoatentative“Iguessso”bytheconclusionofthestudy. However,shewasagainquicktopointoutthatalltheother non-STEM subjects came mucheasiertoher,butthatalthoughit’sharderforher,shefindsSTEMmore interesting.Her reflected self-appraisal, or whethershe thinksother thinkofheras a “STEMperson” remained the same -- that mostotherpeoplesheknewwouldsaythatsheisa“STEMperson.”

STEMAgencyandSelf-EfficacySofia’s perceived ability to understandSTEMincreasedslightlyoverthecourseofthesemester,butherperceivedabilitytoparticipate in and contribute to STEMactivitiesactuallyfellslightly,indicatingamixedresultforhersenseofSTEMagency,self-efficacyandcontentconfidence.Sofia’s STEMcommitment andemotionalconnection both remained high butqualified:IhavereallymixedfeelingsaboutSTEM.Like,Ithinkit’sreallyfrustrating…butit’s

alsoreallyinteresting.[Themostchallengingpartis]thequantitativepart.Ihaveareallyhardtimecontemplating

numbersandstufflikethat.Post-interview

Here she once again echoedher strugglewithmath as a component of STEM, butshe ratedherability togetexcitedaboutSTEM learning as consistently high.Additionally, as presented below, Sofiasawextraordinarilylargeincreasesinherpre-post scores for every scale. Thiswould seem to indicate that despite herqualifications and apparent frustrationswithMr.V’sclass,SofiamadegreatgainsintermsofherSTEMagency,confidence,andSTEM-relatedidentitydevelopment.STEMCommitmentSofia’scommitmenttoSTEM,measuredintermsoftime,increasedfromanestimated10hoursperweekto13hoursperweekand she maintained her social cohort ofacquaintancesassociatedwithSTEMat4to6. Finally,hercareeraspirationsweresomething she said she had increasinglybeen pondering over the course of thesemester. While her initial careeraspirations included vague ideas around


64

physical therapy or biotechnology, shelatermodifiedthemtoinclude:…sometypeofbiologyresearchpositionor

somethingwithneuroscience.Post-Interview

This indicates both more thinking andtime spent on imagined future STEMcareers as well as greater specificity ofwhatthosecareersmightbe. Thesebothindicate positive STEM-related identitydevelopmentandfallunderthecategoriesof personal relevance and STEM-relatedfuturechoices.E.SurveyResultsAmore in-depthdiscussionofcasestudyparticipant survey results will becompleted when the final overallquantitativestudyiscomplete.ScienceIdentityScalePre:2.6Post:3.0GirlsInterestinNatureandScienceScalePre:2.0Post:3.1STEMCareerInterestSurveyPre:2.9Post:3.6VNOS:Pre-only:Novice,inconsistentScientistsproducescientificknowledge.Someofthisknowledgeisfoundinyour

sciencebooks.Doyouthinkthisknowledgemaychangeinthefuture?

Idon'tthinkthisknowledgewillchange

butIthinkthattherewillbemoreaddedtotextbooksasnewdiscoveriesaremade.

VNOS-Post4.DiscussionSofia began the study with hard wonpositive STEM-related identity, but afragile one. Having only acquiredvalidation and verification of her STEM-related identity in 10th grade, Sofia wasstillinatestingmodebyherjunioryeartosee if thisSTEMbusinesswouldstick forher. Toher credit, she tookabig risk insigning up for two science classes in thesemester and was rewarded when hercapacities for learning and doing STEMmetandthenexceededherexpectations.Attimes, itmayhavebeentoomuchofagoodthing,however,inthatsheappearstohave become a bit sour on her SciGirls-relatedclasswithMr.V., for itbeing“tooeasy,”whereasearlierinthesemestershewas more positive about her chemistryclass. Sofia seems to have a pattern ofbecoming bored by subjects orexperiencesshefindstooeasyforher.Forexample, she observed that she was anexcellent humanities student and wasbetter at thehumanities than shewas atSTEM,butthattheyboredher. Latershereportedevenhatingthehumanities.Sofianeedsa challenge tokeephermotivated,and perhaps even more than that sheneeds continued validation for hercapacity to learn -- either STEM or thehumanities.Interestingly,inSofia’scase,rolemodelingdidnotseemtoplayanimportantpartinherSTEMexperiences -- eitherwithinorwithout her SciGirls-related classroom.However, the impact of her former 10thgrade biology teacher is undeniable asSofia repeats it at every opportunity.Perhapsheisthesourceofheraffinityfor


65

biology,asthiswasthefirsttimeshehadapositiveSTEMexperienceinschool.DespiteherslightdissatisfactionwithherSciGirls-relatedclass,Sofiaemergedfromthe semester having made great gainstowards positive STEM-related identitydevelopment,evidencedbyherincreasedSTEM agency, STEM confidence, and herremarkable gains across all the identity-related surveys. These gainswere likelyduetoacombinationofexperiences,andperhaps mostly focused on her greaterpassion for biology (also reflected in hercareeraspirations).

Perhaps most importantly, Sofia shareswithusaviewofscienceasanimportantsymbolic representation of overcomingseemingly impossible obstacles anddiscovering new potentialities withinoneself. In this way and through thisperspective, Sofia imparts a degree ofpersonal relevance and investment inSTEM that extends into her whole life(evenbeyondSTEM)andisuniqueinthisstudy.


66

CaseStudy:Mindy

ProfileMindywasa15year-oldhighschool

sophomoreinSt.PaulMNatthetimeofthestudy.Sheisveryclosewithher

sister,whoistwoyearsolderandgoestothesameschool.Priortoattendinghighschool,shewenttoaSTEM-focusedmiddleschool.Sheisadedicatedandconscientiousstudent.SheisofAfricanAmericandescent,isverythoughtful,

sincere,andself-aware.

SciGirlsTeacher:MS.RClass:Biology

1.Pre-Analysis(InitialConditionsatthestartofthestudy)

A.SelfPerceptionsMindy initially described herself as shyuntilyougettoknowher,andthenmoreand more outgoing and funny. Sheconsidered herself to be creative andexperimental, enjoying such things asexploring new ways to cook, or puttingthings together, or playing around withnewobjectsandsubstances. Shedidnotthink of herself as very confident oroutgoing.Whenaskedtolistandrankherperceivedidentities,herewereherresponses:

Table14:Mindy'sPreIdentitySort

Importance TimeSpentasEach MosttoLeastPleasing IdealWorld

1.Sister 1.Girl,AfricanAmerican

1.Sister 1.AfricanAmerican

2.Daughter 2.Student 2.Goodfriend 2.Girl

3.Student 3.Sister 3.Teenager 3.Teenager

4.Girl 4.Daughter 4.Daughter 4.Sister

5.AfricanAmerican 5.Goodfriend 5.Girl 5.Daughter

6.Goodfriend 6.Teenager 6.Student 6.Student

7.Teenager 7.AfricanAmerican 7.Goodfriend

Mindy’sSTEM-related identity fellwithinher“Student”identity,whichrankedhighforboth ‘importance’and‘time,’butnearthebottomforboth‘mostpleasing’andfor‘ideal world.’ This suggests that sheworkedhardatbeingagoodstudentbutdid not enjoy it as much as her otheridentities.

Notably,Mindyplaced“Sister”atthetopoftherankingsforbothimportanceandmosttoleastpleasing,indicatingthelargeparther sister plays in her life. She alsodelineated both her gender identity as“Girl”andherculturalidentityas“AfricanAmerican” as important and most oftengoing together in her different rankings.When asked why she ranked “African


67

American” last for her ‘most to leastpleasing’list,sheexplained:Ithinkitreallyinfluenceshowotherpeoplethinkofme.Ifeellikealotofthese[otheridentities]don’timpactasmuchhow

peopleseemeandthinkof,like,howsmartIam.

Pre-InterviewHowever,intheverynextsortingtocreateher ideal ranking of her identities in aperfectworld---her idealSelf --“AfricanAmerican” jumped to the top of the list,whichsheexplained:

Ifeellike,kindoflikehowIsaiditmakespeoplelabelmebeforegettingtoknowme,inanidealworldthatwouldbetheopposite.

Pre-InterviewMore than the other case studyparticipants, including those of minorityethnicstatus,Mindywasattentivetoandvery conscious of the role her blacknessplayed in her life, her sense-of-self, andhowothersviewedher.B.Rolemodels:During the pre-interview, Mindydescribedherrolemodelsinthisway:Ingeneral,it’speoplewhohave,like,alotofconfidenceanddeterminationtogoforjobsorfightforthingsthattheythinkarerightevenifotherpeoplemaybedon’tagreewiththem.BecauseIthinkthat’sreallyimportantto,like,beabletohavethewanttodosomethingandthenmake

thatthingpossible.Pre-Interview

Mindywastheonlyoneofthecasestudyparticipants to describe general identitycharacteristics and traits of the kind of

person she thinks of as her rolemodels.Notably,confidencewasthefirsttraitshenames--andtheoneshethoughtofherselflacking. She struggled to actually nameany particular person who served as apersonal role model for her. She didmentionKatherineJohnson(sinceshehadjust seen themovieHidden Figures) as agood example of a personwanting to dosomething important and not caring somuchwhatothersthinkaboutit.Butshestoppedshortofsayingsheconsideredhertobearolemodel.C.ConceptionsofScienceorSTEMMindy’s initial conception of sciencewasspecifically inclusive of the other STEMdisciplines:Therearealotofaspects.WhenIthinkofscienceIthinkof,like,STEM.So,like,thetechnology,engineering,andmaththat

alsogoesintoscience.AlotofexperimentingisusuallythefirstthingthatcomestomindbutIknowit’salsolike

biologyandwhatthingsare,like,madeof,andreactions.Ifeellikescienceis,like,a

lot.Pre-Interview

Whenaskedwhatitmeanstodoscience,sheincludedinsightsintothemethodsofscientificinquiryandprocesses:[Doingscience]isalotofexperimenting,creating,like,aresearchquestion,a

hypothesis,and,like,tryingtofigureouthowsomethingworks.

Pre-InterviewMindy’sarticulationofbothSTEMaswellasthescientificprocessitselfasinvolvingresearch questions, hypotheses, andexperimentation in order to learn “howsomething works” is quite advanced. It


68

indicates as well-structured frameworkforhowscienceandSTEMarerelatedandis unique among the case studies for itsclarityinthisregard.D.Self-PerceptionsRelatedtoSTEMSelf-AppraisalsandReflectedSelf-AppraisalsMindy initially considered herself to be“STEM person” and cited that she hadattendedaSTEM-focusedmiddleschool:SoIfeellikealargepartofmylifehasbeenreallyfocusinginon,likescience.Istillfeel

sotoday.Pre-Interview

ShealsoreferencedthefactthatSTEMhadalwaysbeenpartofhomelife:Ihavealwayslikescience.Ihavemanymemoriesofmakingexperimentsor

engineeringthingswhenIwasyounger.Iusedtolovemixingtogetherrandom

thingstotryandmakesomething.Iwouldespeciallylovebaking.Iwouldmixtogetherrandomamountsofrandom

thingsinhopesofmakingabeautifulcake.Journal

STEMAgencyandSelf-EfficacyMindy initially rated her ability tounderstandSTEMashighandherabilitiesto participate and contribute to STEMactivities as moderate. She did not,however, think that other people,including friends and family, woulddescribeherasaSTEMperson(reflectedself-appraisals).STEMCommitmentEmotionally, Mindy described herrelationshipwithSTEMasonethatcouldmakeherhappy,undercertainconditions:

IlikewhenI’mabletodo,like,an

experimentorprojectanditcomesoutthewayIwantitto,oritgivesmesomesortofresult.Iknowthatalotof,like,scienceand,like,goingthroughexperimentsandlearningstuffisalotof,like,trialanderrorsanditgetsfrustratingwhenyoudon’tgettheanswersortheproductyou

want.PreInterview

Here she presented an insight into theemotional challenges of scientificinvestigation that likelyonly comes fromdirect first person experience. Sheremarked how science is different fromherexperienceofmath inwhich there isonecertainanswer,andwithsciencethereisoftennot.Inthisway,shesaid,mathiseasier.Mindy did not engage in any STEMactivitiesoutsideof school and ratedherabilitytogetexcitedaboutSTEMaslowtomoderate,withthecaveatthat:

Ittakessometimeformetogetthatunderstanding,butthenonceIhaveagoodideaofwhatwe’redoingIthinkitbecomes

moreexciting.Pre-Interview

Additionally, she spent an estimated 11hours per week on STEM. Interestingly,shealsodescribedhersocialcommitmentthrough STEM as not very strong at hercurrentschoolandwasunabletoidentifyanyclosefriendssheknewthroughSTEM,but said she had a cohort of five to tenclose friends from her STEM-focusedmiddleschoolthatshewasstillincontactwith,yieldingastrongsocialconnectiontoSTEM,butout-of-school.


69

When askedwhat career aspirations shemighthave,Mindyhadnoneasyet.2.SciGirls-RelatedExperience(Experiencesduringthecourseofthesemester)A.ReflectionsLike all the case studies, Mindy’sexperiences with her particular teacherwhowasengagedinSciGirlstrainingwasblended and contextualized into a largersphereoflifeexperiences.Mindy’sSciGirlstrainedteacherwasMs.R,whomshehadforbiology.Atthestartofthe semester, she described Ms. R’s in-classlearningexperienceasgood:‘Sheusuallywillstartbyexplainingtheprojectthatwe’redoingtotheclass.Andthenshe’ll,like,goaroundtoanswer

questionstomakesurethatyou’rereallyunderstandingit.Shealsowillstayafterschoolifyouneedextratime,whichIthinkisanicething.Ourclassiskindofloudsometimessoshehastorepeatthingsacoupetimes.Sheispatientandsheisabletotakecontroloftheclassroomasopposed

tolettingthestudentsover-talk.Pre-interview

MindyindicatedthatMs.R’steachingstyleworkedwellforherandthatshereceivedgoodgradesintheclass.Shealsoindicatedthat she enjoyed the class even when itwas difficult, such as when they werestudying photosynthesis and cellularrespiration. Her enjoyment of the class,she said, emergedwhen shewas able toconceptually piece together the differentthings they have been learning about, inagreement with her description of howandwhenshegetsexcitedaboutSTEM.

Inherearlyjournalentries,Mindyinitiallyindicated she sometimes struggled torelatehereverydaylifetoSTEM.However,within two months of the start of thesemester,sheremarked:Scienceisn’tonlyasubjectinschoolbutitisalsosomethingIexperienceinmy

everydaylife.Journal

As a backbone component to SciGirlseducatortraining,thisispreciselythekindofexpansiveviewofSTEMwewouldhopestudents to acquire. It is evidence ofstrongpersonalrelevancyofSTEMtoherbroader life. However, Mindy’s laterjournal entries also included importantfrustrationswithMs.R’sclassintermsofestablishingpersonalrelevancy:

Insciencerecentlyallwehavebeenlearningaboutisstickleback.Sticklebackarethemostboringthingever.Ihave

learnedwaymorethanIhaveeverwantedtolearnabouttheseannoyingfish.The

firstcoupledaysIwasfinewithit,butthenwejustkeptlearningaboutthem!My

knowledgeofsticklebackwillneverbeusedlaterinlife,Icanguaranteeit.

JournalAt first glance this may seem like justanotherinstanceoftheage-oldcomplaintof inexperienced students everywhere,‘whenamIevergoingtohavetoknowthisinreallife,’(orsomesimilarformulation).And it is true that young students oftencannot discern the importance of theprocess of learning and learning deeplyabout something for its cognitive andmetacognitive value. As educators arewell aware, there can be a nearsightedfocusondestinationsattheexpenseofthemorevaluablejourneysamongstudents.


70

ButthisobservationalsounderscorestheimportanceofpersonalrelevanceinSTEMeducation--somethingemphasizedintheSciGirlseducatortraining.Herewehaveaglimpse of what the absence of personalrelevance can look like. More than justfailing to reach students in personallymeaningful ways, initial annoyance canevolveintoresentment:Thetimewespentlearningaboutthemwecouldhavebeenlearningaboutsomethingimportantlikehowtopreventglobal

warming.Journal

These entries date from early March ofspringsemester.Inafollow-upentryfrommid-Mayshesays:Wearestilllearningaboutsticklebackand

I’mstillnothappyaboutit.Journal

InMindy’s case,herpre-existingpositiveSTEM-related identity directed herresentment towards wishful thinking ofwhat other STEM-related topics theymight’vecoveredinstead,whichwould’vebeen more meaningful to her (globalwarming). But for studentswithneutralornegativeSTEM-related identities, suchexperiences can simply turn them awayfromSTEMholistically.Bytheendofthesemester,despiteherdis-like of the stickleback focus (which sheagain mentioned in the post-interview),Mindy was able to see beyond it. Shereported that andMr. R’s teaching style,including a mixture of presentation,hands-on activities and labs, individualattention, worked well for her. Sheconsidered the presentations and notetaking at the beginning of new units of

study to be important introductoryexperiences, but that understanding andexcitement did not materialize for heruntiltheyworkedthroughhands-onlabs.Finally, inher journalMindy revealedanimportant perception about her SciGirls-relatedexperiencethatwasreferencedbythe other case study participants aswellandwillbediscussedinmoredetailinthecross-case analysis. This is the ‘SciGirlsconflation issue,’ whereby rather thanthinkingofthisSciGirlsprojectasfocusedon educator training (which was mostlyinvisible to these girls), the gathering ofthe case study participants for weeklymeetings to work on their journals andvideosafterschoolcametobeperceivedaswhat SciGirlswas all about. It becamea“Scigirlsclub”ofsorts,atleastformanyofthegirls.Infact,Mindyreferedtoitasjustthat:TodayisthelastdayofScigirls.Ihonestlyprettysadthatit’sgonnabeover.BeingapartofthisclubhasbeenreallyfunandI’mgonnamiss[twincitiespublictelevisionstaffer]andallofthestudentsintheclub.

JournalThis reveals two important things. First,that the experience of the SciGirls casestudyparticipantswasdifferentfromthatofotherstudentsintheclassesofSciGirls-trainededucators.Whatthosedifferencesarewillbediscussedlater.Secondly,thatMindy and others described inherentvaluetomanyoftheaspectsofbelongingto such a ‘club’ -- or more precisely,participating in the research activities --suchthatitmayhaveimpactedparticipantSTEM-relatedperceptionsandresponses:Myfavoritepartofthisclubwasgettingtomeetandtalktoeveryoneinthegroup

everyweek.AlotofthepeopleintheclubI


71

don’tseeregularlysoitwasfun.Throughoutthetimewehavebeen

together,ourgrouphasgrownandshrunk.…Iamhappywiththe[videonarrative],whichIendedupdoingwithmysister.Thatwasafunwayforustobondover

thingstheselastcouplemonths.Journal

This entry indicates a value for Mindy’spersonal commitment component to herSTEM-related identity throughsocial/emotional ties and a sense ofbelongingnesstoagrouporcommunityoflike-minded members -- in this case the‘SciGirlsclub,’apartfromherexperiencesin her SciGirls-related class. This socialidentity for Mindy is then tied to acollective identity for the group, whichwas shared by other girls to createcohesionandreinforcetheirSTEM-relatedidentities.Morediscussiononthiscomesinthecross-caseanalysis.B.SciGirlsRoleModelImpactsMindy did not identify any STEM rolemodels that she worked with in Ms. R’sclass.C.VideoNarrativeAnalysisMindy’s video narrative title was“Sisterhood and Science: SciGirls 2017.”She created itwith her older sister,whowas also in the case study cohort for atime. So the video integrated her sister’sSciGirls-relatedexperiences,suchasinMr.V’schemistryclasslab.However,mostofthe video focuses onMindy, as does thisanalysis.Mindy’s video began with an extendedmontage of childhood home videosdepictingherandhersisterengaged inavariety of STEM-related activities. Setover the wistful guitar of Ben Howard’s

“OldPine,”witheachshot’snativesoundseeping through, the sequence is bothnostalgic and informative. Theintroduction included scenes of the girlsengaged in playground experiments, acentripetal spinning bucket-of-waterexperiment, and kitchen chemistry. ThenextsegmentincludedaMentosgeyserinthebackyard(accompaniedbytheexcitedscreams of the young sisters), bakingscienceprojects,anover-inflatingballoonexperiment, and a slime-making attemptwithasciencekit.Judging by these scenes as well as theirnumber anddiversity,Mindy’s childhoodwas steeped in inquisitive STEM-relatedexploration and play. Additionally, sheoften shared these experiences with hersister.Howeverover80%ofthefiveplusminutevideonarrativefocusedonMindy.Thenextsequencewasamontageofmorerecent or even current scenes with thesisters, including themworking togetherathomeoncomputers,working togetherat school on STEM studies, a shot of hersister’sSciGirls-trainedchemistryteacherdiagraming on a smart-board, Mindymeticulouslytie-dyingat-shirtinthegrassof her backyard, Mindy working with aclassmateinacomputerlabatschool,andher sister engaged in a chemistry labexperiment. All these scenes werepresented without commentary or on-screenexplanation,butveryintentionallychosenandstillwiththesamemusicovereachscene’snativesound.To this point, each scene supported astrongpersonalrelevancesignal,showingSTEM engagement both at home and inschoolasanormalpartofMindy’slifeandthat of her family’s. The scenes alsointegrated subtle messages of STEMliteracy with hints and snippets of the


72

STEM content involved in each shot, butthe overwhelming theme was emotionalconnection and personal relevance toSTEM.In the final scene however, there was ashift,asthesistersintercuttheirpersonalvlogs(videologs,orself-interviews).Herethey shared their reflections from theirrespective points of view. Mindy’sdialogue again raised the “SciGirls clubconflation issue,” but also containedimportantinformationregardingherviewofscienceinherlife:WhenIfirstheardaboutthisclub,Ididn’tthinkthatIwasqualifiedbecauseIdidn’tconsidermyselftobethatinvolvedinscienceoutsideofscienceclass.Afterdecidingtojointheclub,Irealizedhow

scienceisabigpartofmylifewithoutevenrealizingit.Meandmysisterbothliveprettybusylifestylesbutonethingwecometogetherforisdoingscience.AfterbeingpartofthisclubIdon’tthinkIwould

bemoreinvolvedorlessinvolvedinscience,IjustthinkI’llbemoreawareofwhatI’mdoinginmyeverydaylifethatis

consideredscience.Videonarrative

This dialogue reveals a journey ofrealizationforMindy,frominitiallyfeelinga lowsenseofagencyandconfidence forSTEMtoarevelation thatshehad in factbeendoingSTEMallalongthroughoutherchildhood. It just never dawned on herthatwhatsheconsideredfunandnormalin her life was indeed STEM in disguise.This video and her closing remarksreflected that journey of realization.Beyond her increased sense of STEMagency,thisalsosignalsamodificationandtremendous expansion of her concept ofscienceintermsofwhatitlookslikeinher

life. Mindy touched on this in herdirector’scommentary:SomethingelsethatIwasreallythinkingaboutandconsideringwhenfilmingandeditingthisvideowasaquestionthat[theresearcher]askedusintheinterview

process,whichwas‘whatisscience?’Andwhenheaskedmethatquestion,evennow,Irealizethatscienceissuchahardthingtodescribebecauseit’sinsomanydifferentthingsthatit’shardtofindonedefinition.

Director’scommentaryHow did this journey of realization thatshe had been engaged in STEM all alongcomeabout?Mindydiscussedthisaswellinherdirector’scommentary:IwasinspiredtodothisvideoafteraweekinourclubwhenIwastryingtotalkto(TwinCitiespublicTelevisionstaffer]

aboutprojectsIcoulddo.…ItoldherthatI’mnotinvolvedinthatmuchscience.…IwastalkingtoheraboutthefootagethatIdidhave,whichwasstufflikemebaking,andmeingymnastics,andshebroughttomyattentionthatbothofthosethingswerescientific.AndsoIrealizedthatI’malotmoreinvolvedinsciencethanIthinkIam.SothenIwasgoingthrougholdvideosandoldpicturesthatmeandmysisterhad--andwedodoalotofscience.It’snot

somethingthatIwasasawareofbecauseitwasjustfunthingsthatwedotogether.

Director’scommentaryItseemsMindy’sbreakthroughrealizationthat her life had always been steeped inSTEM actually came about due tointeractions with a Twin Cities PublicTelevision stafferwhowasworkingwithher in the contextof case study researchfacilitation.


73

A key component of this realization forMindy was also its linkage to herrelationship with her older sister,including the creation of her videonarrative,whichshedescribedthisway:ThethingIenjoyedmostaboutmakingthisvideowasjustbeingabletolookbackatalltheoldvideosofmeandmysister.…I

thoughtthatthisprojectbroughtusclosertogetherbecauseitgaveusagoalthatwehadtoachievetogetherthatwebothhadtoworkon,whichdefinitelybondedus.…AquestionthatIconsideredfrommyinterviewwith[theresearcher]waswhenheaskedushowmanypeoplewewouldloseconnectionwithifwestoppedour

involvementinSTEM.ThoughIdon’tthinkmeandmysisterwouldloseconnectioncompletely,Idothinkthatwewouldn’tbeasclosebecausealotofthethingsthatwedotogetheris…science.…Howdifferentourliveswouldbewithoutthatpiece.

Director’scommentaryFinally, as a self-described introvert,Mindy showed a fair degree of couragewiththisvideoanditsdepictionofhighlypersonal images and thoughts. As sheremarkedinherjournal:

Filmingmakesmereallyvulnerableespeciallyknowingotherpeoplearegoing

tobeseeingwhatIfilmed.Journal









74

Figure5:Mindy’sVideoPlotMap

Note that her video expressed fourprimarythemes(showninorange,yellow,pink,andbrown):(1)STEMcommitment(mostly through personal relevance); (2)STEM literacy (an inherent part of themany activities depicted); 3) STEM-relatedchoices(includinghowsheandhersister chose to spend their free timeandtheirplay); and (4)Time spentonSTEM(duetotheirchoicestodoSTEMasplayathome,MindyspentalargeamountoftimedoingSTEM).TheshifttowardsanexplorationofSTEMagency and confidence development andSTEM concept came at the end with thegirls’vlogclips.HereMindydiscussedhersense-ofselfintermsofSTEMcapacityandalso the realization that STEM is muchbigger and broader than she previouslythought, given that her home and familylifewere imbuedwithSTEM learning formanyyears.

3.Pre-PostAnalysisAsdescribedinthemethods,theboundedtimeforthestudywasroughlyoneSpringsemester of high school. For each casestudyparticipant,thismarkedthein-classlearning experience they had with aneducator who had just completed theSciGirls Educator training (described inthe appendix). This pre-post analysisexamineschangesoverthattimeperiod.A.Self-PerceptionsWhile Mindy’s overall description ofherself and her personality traitsremained consistent, her identityperceptions had several importantchanges over the course of the study.Listedbelowarethepre-postcomparisonsforMindy’sidentitysortfortherankingofImportanceandTimeSpentasEach.


75

Table15:Mindy'sPre-PostIdentitySort


TimeSpentasEachPOST

1.Sister 1.Sister 1.Girl,AfricanAmerican

1.Woman

2.Daughter 2.Daughter 2.Student 2.AfricanAmerican

3.Student 3.Friend 3.Sister 3.Student

4.Girl 4.Student 4.Daughter 4.Sister

5.AfricanAmerican 5.Woman 5.Goodfriend 5.Daughter

6.Goodfriend 6.AfricanAmerican 6.Teenager 6.Friend

7.Gymnast 7.Scientist

8.Scientist 8.Gymnast

Mindyaddedtwonewidentitiestoherlist:“Gymnast” and, most notably for thisstudy, “Scientist,” to be explored furtherbelow.Bothoftheseoccupiedthebottomranksforbothimportanceandtimespentas each. She also modified her earlieridentityof “Girl” tobecome“Woman,”anindicator of her maturing into youngadulthoodandadoptingthenewidentity.Finally, noneofherprior identitiesweredropped from the list,making for one ofthe most consistent identity lists of thestudy.

B.RoleModelsDuring the pre-interview, Mindydescribedherrolemodelsinageneralwayas having a lot of confidence anddetermination. She only brieflymentioned one potential role model --KatherineJohnson,featuredintherecentfilmHiddenFigures.At the conclusion of the study, sheidentified Audrey Lorde as a new rolemodel and the subject of one ofMindy’sreportsforEnglishclass.Shewasapoet,afeminist, and a civil rights activist whoinspired Mindy to become moreoutspoken and confident in her ownworld.Shealsoaddedherparentsandhersistertoherlist.

Table16:Mindy'sRoleModels


1.KatherineJohnson(NASAmathematicianandspaceflightexpert)

1.AudreyLorde(feminist,civilrightspoet)

2.Herparents 3.Heroldersister


76

While somewhat surprising that herparents and her sister did notmake herpriorlistofrolemodels,givenhowclose-knither family is,shewentontoexplainthat she included them later not simplybecause they are related to her, butbecause she looks up to them for beinghard workers and exhibiting differentqualitiessheaspiresto:

Mymomislotmoreconfidentinourfamily.Ifeellikemydadisreallycreativeandhardworking.Soismysister,she’skindofablendofthosetwo.IwouldsayI’mmorelikemydadthanmymom.

Post-InterviewC.ConceptionsofScienceorSTEMMindy’s conception of science expandedtremendouslyoverthecourseofthestudy.As already discussed above, for Mindysciencemovedout of the classroomonlyand into her everyday life, where it hadactually been all along. Her journey torealize this not only changed herconceptionofscienceandSTEM,butalsoher self-perceptions as a STEM person.Where before she described science andSTEMasincluding“alotofexperimenting”and“whatthingsaremadeof,attheendofherSciGirlssemestersheattemptedagaintocommunicatehermuchlargervision:Scienceiseverything.It’ssohardtocomeupwithadefinitionbecausesciencemakesupeverythingintheworldanditexplains

thingsthatoccurintheworld.Post-Interview

While greatly expanded, Mindy’sconceptualization is also diluted in thisformulation. However, it was still beingrefinedandarticulatedinhermind.Whenaskedwhatitmeanstodoscience,shehad

earlierprovidedamoretextbookanswerof scientific methods (research questionhypothesis,experimentation).Inherpost-interview, she spoke of the purpose ofinvestigation and used an example fromherownpersonalexperience:

Ithinktodoscienceisinvestigatingscientificideasortheories.Likerightnowinsciencewe’relearningaboutcellsandDNSandRNA.Wejustfinishedlearning

aboutproteinsynthesis.So,like,investigatinghowthatworks,likehowcellsandmoleculesformtmakethe

proteins.Post-Interview

D.SelfPerceptionsRelatedtoSTEMSelf-AppraisalsandReflectedSelf-AppraisalsMindy’sself-appraisalasa“STEMperson”grew over the course of the study, asreflected in her video narrative. Whileearlier in thesemestershehad indicatedSTEMwasapartofherhomelife,thefullextenttowhichSTEMwasintegratedintoall aspectsofher life thiswas somethingshe discovered over the course of thestudy.Askedabouttheappearanceofthenew“Scientist”identitytohersenseofself,Mindyhadthissay:Beingintheclub[‘SciGirlsclub’],IrealizedIdoalotofsciencewithoutmerealizingbecauseIfeellikebeforeIthoughtthat

sciencewasjustinscienceclassandrealizenowthat,like,Ihavebeendoingalotofsciencethroughoutmylifeandcontinuedoingalotofit.…Idon’tthinkanythinghaschangedaboutmylifestyle,IthinkI’vejustbecomemoreawareofthethingsIhavebeendoingthatinvolvescience.

Post-Interview


77

Thistrackswithwhatshedescribedinherjournalandvideo.Whenaskeddirectlyifthis realization had anything to do withwhat sheexperienced inMs.R’sSciGirls-relatedclassthatsemester,Mindysaid:Ithinkit[therealization]mostlyhadtodowithworkingontheproject[SciGirlsvideoproject]becauseIfeellikestuffIdoinclassisn’treallysomethingthatIwoulddothatmuchoutsideofschool.…IcamefromaSTEMfocused[middle]school,soI

might’vebeen,like,moreintoSTEMinsideofschoolbutIfeellikenowI’malsomore

intodoingSTEMoutsideofschool.PostInterview

Once again there are strong indicationsthat personal relevance is the dominantfactor for Mindy’s newfound sense thatsheisascientist. Theinterestingnuancehereisthisnotionthatifsomethingisonlydone in school that it somehow doesn’treflecttheauthentic“you.”It’sanideathatwhatoccursinclass,staysinclass,andisnotreallypartofwhoonetrulyisbutonlywhattheyhavetodoinschool.For Mindy, the realization that she hadbeendoingSTEMathome for years, andthatrealizationleadingtohersubsequentrealization that she is indeed a STEMperson--ascientisteven--isconnectedtothe implicit notion that things that arepersonally meaningful and part of one’sidentity are best revealed by what theychoose to do with their free-choice timeand learning out-of-school (e.g. Mindy’shomelifeactivities).This is an interesting perspective thatbrings up the issue of “locus of control,”referring to howmuch control a learnerhastopursuewhattheydesirevs.controlresidingprimarilywith a teacher. When

the locus of control resides with thestudent, personal relevance tends to behigher.Whenitresidesprimarilywiththeteacher,personalrelevancetothestudentdepends on the teacher’s ability andwillingness to explorewhat interests thestudents,andtendtobelower--ascanbeseenintheearlierexampleofthetensionandresentmentsurroundingsticklebacksinMs.R’sclass.STEMAgencyandSelf-EfficacyMindy’s perceived ability to understandSTEM remained high and her perceivedability to participate and contribute toSTEMactivities increased frommoderatetohigh.Additionally,whereearliershedidnotthinkthatotherpeoplewoulddescribeher as a STEM person, in her post-Interviewshesaid:Idon’tthinkit[beingaSTEMperson]

wouldbethefirstthingthatcametotheirmindwhentheyweredescribingme,butIthinktheywouldagreeifIweretosaythat

Iwas.Post-Interview

STEMCommitmentEmotionally, Mindy described herrelationship with STEM as one that canmake her feel curious and have fun andthat she enjoyed all aspects of STEM --science, technology, engineering, andmathematics.WhereearlierMindydidnot identifyanyparticipation in out-of-school STEMactivities, at the end of the semester shedescribed her other out-of-schoolactivitiesasnowSTEM-related, includinggymnastics, baking, and engineeringprojects and crafts at home. Therefore,Mindy’s own perception of her STEMcommitmentwasamplifiedmanytimes.


78

Mindy also described a large increase inher social connections through STEM,fromnearzeroathercurrentschoolatthebeginningofthestudytoinclude10to20close friends through STEM by the end(recallshewasstill incontactwithSTEMfriendsfrommiddleschool). Aswell,shereferencedhercloserelationshipwithhersister through STEM, as discussed in thevideonarrativeanalysisabove.However, when asked what careeraspirations shemight have at the end ofthesemester,Mindystillhadnoneasyet.E.SurveyResultsAmore in-depthdiscussionofcasestudyparticipant survey results will becompleted when the final overallquantitativestudyiscomplete.ScienceIdentityScalePre:2.1Post:3.0GirlsInterestinNatureandScienceScalePre:2.1Post:2.1STEMCareerInterestSurveyPre:3.2Post:3.5VNOS:Novice,consistent,nogrowthScientistsproducescientificknowledge.Someofthisknowledgeisfoundinyour

sciencebooks.Doyouthinkthisknowledgemaychangeinthefuture?

Ithinkwewillgetabetterunderstandingofthescientificideasandconceptsthatarealreadyexisting.ButIdon'tthinkanynew

scientificideaswillbecreatedor

discovered.AnexampleofthisiscanbetheDNAstructure.OvertimewewereabletofigureoutmoreabouthowthesturucturethroughtheinventionofnewtechnologythatalllowedustoexaminetheDNA

moleculescloser.

VNOS-Post4.DiscussionMindypresentsuswithafascinatingcaseof tremendous growth in her STEM-related identity over the course of thestudy, supportedbynearlyall indicators.Most notably, her self-appraisal includedthe emergence of the new identity of“scientist”bytheendofthesemesteranditwaswellintegratedwithhermanyotheridentitiestocontributetoherlargersense-of-self. Her STEM commitment alsoincreasedmarkedly, as seen through herestablishmentofmorepersonallyrelevantconnections to STEM, the time she spentonSTEM,and thegreatexpansionofhersocialconnectionsthroughSTEM.Most of these gains results fromMindy’srealization that STEMwas, and had longbeen, embedded in most of her out-of-school experiences, hobbies, play, andfamily life. Basically Mindy unleashedSTEMfromtheclassroom.Andindoingsoshe opened her eyes to an expandedconceptofSTEManditsplaceinherlife.Ironically,thischangedidnotoccurduetoexperiences in her SciGirls-relatedclassroom, although there were valuablegains made there. However, Mindyattributed her shift in perspective tointeractions with a Twin Cities PublicTelevisionemployeewhileworkingonthecreationofhervideonarrativeforSciGirlscasestudyresearchparticipation.Andso,againweareconfrontedwiththe“SciGirls


79

conflation issue” of some participantsconsidering their participation on theresearch to be a designed part of theSciGirls program experience rather thananefforttogaininsightsintotheirSTEM-related identity linked to their in-classSciGirls experiences. This is discussedfurtherinthecrosscaseanalysis.Although Mindy was hard-pressed tonameanysignificantSTEMrolemodelsforherself, and her SciGirls teacher did notintroduce any that she could recall,Mindy’s case clearly demonstrates theimpactsofpowerful influencers. Mindy’ssisterwashercompanionthroughmostofthe case study and her co-creator of thevideo narrative. This relationship wasrevealedtoMindytohaveoccurredinthecontextofSTEMfromthetimetheywereyoung girls -- once she recognized the

ubiquitous presence of STEM in her life.STEMwasandisaverytangiblebondingagentfortheirspecialrelationship.Finally, Mindy’s case presents valuableinsight into the importance of personalrelevancewithintheclassroom.AlthoughMindy indicated many gains from herSciGirls-relatedbiologyclass,andthatMs.R’steachingstyleandtechniquesworkedwell for her, she also developed anannoyance -- and later resentment -- fortimeandenergyspentonasubjectshedidnot view as relevant to her at all. It istempting to speculate on how Mindywould’ve viewed her STEM--relatedidentity development for the semester ifher story had focused mainly onsticklebacks and did not include herepiphanythatSTEMwaspartoftheDNAofhernormallifeandhadlongbeen.


80

Cross-CaseAnalysis&DiscussionFromthereviewofthesesixcasestudies,wehaveseenthattheexperiencesofthesegirls as part of the SciGirls Strategiesprogram was the result of a vastcombination of variables and livedexperiences inandaroundthecontextofSciGirls. Among these and perhapsdominant were the personal viewpoints,preferences, issues, histories, interests,and interpretations each brought withthembyvirtueoftheirincomingidentitiesand pre-existing life circumstances. Asrevealed in each case, analyzing theimpacts and value of the experience foreach individual in termsofSciGirlsaloneorevenSTEM-relatedidentityaloneisnotpossible. Identity research, by its verynature, invites and welcomes the messyamalgamation of being human. STEM-related identitydevelopmentcannot,andarguably should not, be separated fromholistic life experiences. If we, aseducators, teacher trainers, andresearchersaretoconsiderSTEMlearningin terms of identity, we should beprepared to consider a wide range ofexperiential perspectives, inputs, andoutcomes.With this in mind for the cross caseanalysis,presentedhereisanexplorationofthenotabledifferencesandsimilaritiesofthecases,includingimportantemergentthemes,intermsofthefirsttworesearchquestionsofthestudy:

1. How does the experience ofparticipating in all of the SciGirlsStrategies project componentsimpactgirls’STEM-relatedidentityconstruction?

2. What are the impacts of the

project’s individual components:classroominstruction,rolemodels,and videos and autobiographicalstorysharing?

1.Cross-Case:STEM-RelatedIdentityDevelopmentEachofthegirlsinthestudyenteredwithan already moderate to high positiveSTEM-related identity. This is not toosurprising given the expected selectionbiasincurredwhenrecruitingparticipantsto a program called “SciGirls,” -- you’regoing to get girls at least tentativelyinterested in science, and at most thosewho are wildly enthusiastic. Howeverthere were mixed results in how theirinitial STEM-related identities fared overthe course of the semester-long SciGirls-relatedexperience.In four out of the six cases, there wasstrong evidence of positive impacts onSTEM-relatedidentitydevelopment(Jane,Laura, Sofia, andMindy). In twoof thosecases (Jane andLaura), these gainswerestronglylinkedtoin-classSciGirls-relatedexperiences. But in the other two cases(Sofia and Mindy), the positive resultswere not strongly linked to in-classSciGirls-relatedexperiences,ifatall.Inthecase of Mindy, in fact, there is someevidence that her STEM-related identitygains occurred in spite of some negativeSciGirls-relatedexperiences.Andfortwoofthesixcases,therewerenonotably positive STEM-related identityimpacts linked to in-class SciGirlsexperiences. In the case of Gina, whoseentireSTEM-relatedidentitywasbasedinmath,therewasrelativelylittlegrowthinbroader STEM-related identitydevelopment with no major changesindicated.InthecaseofKim,herSciGirls-


81

related experiences were destructive toher STEM-related identity developmentand she saw losses in nearly everyindicator. Howeverbattered, her overallSTEM-related identity still managed tosurvive as positive by the end of thesemester.These results are summarized in thefollowingtablealongwithageandwhich

SciGirls-trained educator and class theyworkedwith. It shouldbenoted that allthe case study participants attended thesame school. Therewere three teachersand two STEM areas represented in thecases, biology and chemistry -- typicalsophomoreandjuniorSTEMcourses.

Table17:Cross-CaseOverview

Name STEMIDImpact

Age(atstart)

SciGirlsTeacher

SciGirlsClass

Jane + 15 Ms.R ChemistryLaura + 14 Ms.R BiologyKim - 15 Mr.C ChemistryGina neutral 15 Ms.R BiologySofia + 16 Mr.V ChemistryMindy + 15 Ms.R Biology

Four of the girls had Ms. R either forbiology or chemistrywith three of thoseseeing positive gains in STEM-relatedidentitydevelopment,althoughaspointedout,Mindy’sattributedhergainstoout-of-class experiences. Gina had a neutralSTEM-related identity impact, with nonotablegainsorlosses.The standout negative STEM-relatedidentity development seen with Kimoccurred with Mr. C’s chemistry class.AccordingtoKim,thishadalottodowithnotlikingchemistry,oratleastnotlikinghow she was experiencing chemistry inMr.C’sclass.

Cross-Case:STEM-RelatedIdentityComponentsTo help understand these results andcompare them across cases, we nextexplore the components examined ofSTEM-related identity development. Foreach participant, these included: self-appraisals,reflectedself-appraisals,STEMcommitment,andSTEMconcept.Table20belowpresentseachparticipant’sSTEM-relatedpre-postSTEMselfconceptin terms of self-appraisals and reflectedself-appraisal (orwhat they think othersthinkofthem.


82

Table18:Cross-CasePre-PostSelf-Concept

PRESelf-Appraisal“Doyouconsideryourself

a‘STEMperson?’”

POST-Self-Appraisal PREReflectedSelf-Appraisals

“Doothersconsideryoua‘STEMperson?’”

POSTReflectedSelfAppraisals

Jane Kindof Definitive“Yes” Kindof No

Laura Yes Yes Yes Yes

Kim Kindof Yes No No

Gina Yes Yes Yes Yes

Sofia No Yes Yes Yes

Mindy Yes Yes(butmuchmore) No Notinitially

For most, if they entered with a self-appraisal as having a positive STEM-related identity(beinga“STEMperson”),theymaintainedthatidentitythroughthecourse of the study. In three cases theirself-conceptofbeingaSTEMpersonwasstrengthened:Jane,Kim,Mindy.ForKim,this occurred in spite of negativeexperiences in her SciGirls-related class,but this frustration served to furtherdelineate which STEM subjects she wasindeed passionate bout (biology, as itturned out), and thus actually bolsteredher STEM self concept in the end. ForSofia,herrealizationthatshecouldindeeddoSTEM,afterhavingbeentoldshe‘didn’thavewhatittakes’formanyyears,finallyresultedinherembracingapositiveSTEMself-concept.

Thereflectedself-appraisalsforthecaseswereinteresting.Mosttrackedwiththeirself-appraisal, however Jane ultimatelydecided that most others would notconsiderhertobe“STEMperson”becauseofthewaysheviewsSTEMastobefoundwithineverythingandnotaspecializedorcompartmentalizedtopic.ForMindy,herthoughtwasthatotherswouldnotinitiallyconsider her a “STEM person” until shecame out and stated that she was. Thiswaslikelybecauseshewasstillgettingtoknow her newly minted STEM socialcohortathernewschool.In the next table we compare eachparticipants pre-post sense of STEMagency and self-efficacy in termsof theirperceivedabilitytounderstandSTEMandto participate or contribute to STEMactivities.


83

Table19:Cross-CaseUnderstanding&Participation

PREPerceivedAbilitytoUnderstandSTEM

POSTPerceivedAbilitytoUnderstand

STEM

PREPerceivedAbilitytoParticipatein

STEM

POSTPerceivedAbilitytoParticipate

inSTEMJane Moderate High Moderate High

Laura High High High High

Kim High Moderate High High

Gina Moderate High High High

Sofia Low Moderate Moderate Moderate

Mindy High High High High

HerewecanseegainsinperceivedSTEMunderstanding for Jane Gina, and Sofia.For both Jane and Sofia this tracks withcorresponding gains in their STEM self-concepts. Janealso reportsagain inherability to participate in STEM - the onlygaininthiscategory.However we see a decline in perceivedunderstandingforKim.Thistrackstoherfeelingsofbeing lostandunmotivated inMr.C’schemistryclass.Sofia’sinitiallowperceivedunderstandingofSTEMisinterestinggivenherfeelingsofbeing a “STEMperson” at the outset and

having attended a STEM middle school.JudgingfromherperceptionsofSTEM,itispossibleherawarenessofhow largeandcomplexSTEMcanbe contributed toherfeelingthatshehasalotyettolearn--anattitudenotreflectedasmuchintheothercases.In the table belowwe compare pre-postSTEMcommitmentacrossparticipants interms of emotional connection to STEM,social connection to STEM (number ofcloseSTEMfriends),andtimespentdoingSTEM.

Table20:Cross-CaseSTEMCommitment

PRE“Howdoyoufeel

emotionallyaboutSTEM?”

POST“HowdoyoufeelemotionallyaboutSTEM?”

PRENumberofSTEMFriends

POSTNumberofSTEMFriends

PREHoursperweekon

STEM

POSTHoursperweekon

STEM

Jane Variable(confused,excited,nothing)

Important,interested,curious

1 1 15 8-10

Laura Excited Excited andproud

5-6 5-6 17 35

Kim Strong,excited

“Stillexcited” 2 1 15 8


84

Gina Excited Excited,committed

40 40 20 20

Sofia Nervous,excited

Happy,excited

4 6 10 13

Mindy Curious, fun,happy

Part of mylife

0 (in herschool)

10-20(inherschool)

15 3

Emotionally, there were positive gainsacross all cases in terms the girlsestablishingstrongerconnectionstoSTEMwith the exception of Kim, who wasfighting all semester to maintain herpositiveSTEM-relatedidentity.Forsocialconnections,weseegainsinthenumberofclose STEM friends for Sofia and Mindy,whileLauraandGinastayedthesame.ItisworthnotingthatGina’sprimarysocialoutlet was STEM -- mostly from herparticipation in math club. Her highreported numbers of STEM friendsincluded people she knew through clubcompetitions and not all were closefriends. OnlyKim sawadecrease inhersocialconnectiontoSTEM,correspondingto her feelings of isolation and un-motivation for chemistry. Finally, therearesomeperhapssurprisingdropsintimespentonSTEMevenforthoseparticipants

showinggrowthinSTEM-relatedidentitydevelopment. Note that the finalinterviews took place at different timesneartheendofthesemesterandinsomecasesworkloadhadsignificantlydeclinedas summer approached, skewing results.However,notably,Lauragreatlyincreasedher timespentonSTEMthroughreadingand researching at home in preparationforherGLAtriptotheGalapagosandotherinterests.Finally, we look at pre-post changes inSTEM concept across participants as anindicator of strengthening STEM-relatedidentity. In most cases, participantsdescribed their concept of science, butsomebroadenedittoincludeallofSTEM.

Table21:Cross-CasePre-PostSTEMConcept

PRESTEMorScienceConcept POSTSTEMorScienceConceptJane Thestudyoftheworldthroughexperiments

andmodeledanalysis.Same-greateremphasisonexperimentationaswaytolearn

Laura [Scienceis]theexplorationofwhatwedon’tknowtofindoutwhatwedo.Ibelieveitsnothingreallydefinite.That’swhatmy8thgradescienceteachertoldme--thatthere’sawholerecycleofinformation.Sometimeagoeveryonewasconvincedthetruthistheworldwasflatandnowit’sthatit’sround.Andwhatpeoplebelievenowproblywillbedisproveninthefutureandthatwillbedisprovenagainandit’sjusttryingtofigureoutwhat’sgoingon.

Iwoulddefinescienceasastudyofunexplainedthingstotryandgetagreaterunderstandingbyfindingthemostlogicalconclusionbasedonevidence.

Kim Scienceisstudyoflivingthings.It’smoreexpansivethanthat,butIalwaysthinkofbiologywhenIthinkofscience.

I’vealwaysviewedscienceasthestudyoflivingthings,especiallyhumans.Ofcourseit’salotbiggerthanthat.NowespeciallythatI’vetaken


85

chemistry,it’sexpanded.…Ikindofviewitaslikesolvingaproblemthatrelatestotherealworldinthesenseofsomethingaliveintheworld.…WheneverIthinkofsciencemyfirstthingIthinkofiscellsandverybasicbiologystuff.Nowit’salsobalancingequationsandallthechemicalreactionsthatarehappeningintheworld.

Gina Thestudyofnatureandhowthingsevolved.Reallyjustthestudyofhowthingswork.WhenI’mdoingscienceI’mlearningaboutthenaturalprocessesofthingsbyexperimentingordoinglabs.Pre-Interview

[Scienceis]theexplanationforeverything--foreverydayeverything.Todosciencemeanstojustlive.Becauseeverythingyoudoisscience.Soifyou’reliving,you’redoingscience.

Sofia …thedifferentdisciplinesofexploringandlearningnewthingsabouttheworldandourselves.…Findingoutthereasonswhythingshappen.Takingaconceptyoulearninclassandapplyingittoalab…andmakingtheconnectionofthethingsyoulearninlabtoreallife.

Theinvestigationandtestingofideasortheoriesabouttheworldaroundyou.Forme,sciencerepresentsovercominghardshipsandthebarriersyoufaceinyourlife.Withscience,IknowthatIcanachievealmostanything.

Mindy Therearealotofaspects.WhenIthinkofscienceIthinkof,like,STEM.So,like,thetechnology,engineering,andmaththatalsogoesintoscience.AlotofexperimentingisusuallythefirstthingthatcomestomindbutIknowit’salsolikebiologyandwhatthingsare,like,madeof,andreactions.Ifeellikescienceis,like,alot.

[Doingscience]isalotofexperimenting,creating,like,aresearchquestion,ahypothesis,and,like,tryingtofigureouthowsomethingworks

Scienceiseverything.It’ssohardtocomeupwithadefinitionbecausesciencemakesupeverythingintheworldanditexplainsthingsthatoccurintheworld.

It is encouraging to note that across allcases, each indicates their perception ofSTEMorscienceasapursuitofknowledge,ratherthanapileof facts.But ingeneral,there is no deeper awareness reportedabout how science, as a collectiveendeavor, actually goes aboutinvestigating and exploring the worldthroughascientificprocess.The exception is Mindy’s PRE response,which also includes the other STEMsubjects, as well as research questions,hypotheses, and experimentation. It isinteresting to note that Mindy’s POSTconceptualizationofSTEMisbasedonher

greatly expanded perception of STEM inherlife.WhileherPreresponseisalmosttextbook, her post response reflects herstruggletoredefineSTEMinthefaceofitsexpansioninhermind.Infact,acrossthreecases,thereisatrendof expansion of STEM concept. For Kim(whogainedthisfromthechemistryclassshedisliked),Gina,andMindytherewasarealizationoverthecourseofthesemesterthatSTEMwasallaroundthemeveryday.ButitwasonlyforMindythatopeninghereyes to the presence of STEM in her lifeoutsideofschoolandinherhome,resulted


86

inherdeclaring“scientist”tobeoneofhernewidentities. Also notable is that for Sofia, uniquely,STEMtookonapersonalmeaningoverthecourseofthestudytobecomeasymbolicrepresentation for overcoming obstaclesinone’slife.ThiswasduetohernewfoundSTEM success after years of beingdiscouraged and teased by peers andteachers, as she described in her videonarrative.HowimportantisSTEMorscienceconceptaccuracy to the development of positiveSTEM-related identity? A few notes ofperspective to address this questionclarifywhythisisincludedintheanalysis.In contrast to STEM or science literacy,which refers to a person’s capacity tounderstand and interpret STEM-relatedefforts, findings and conclusions, STEM-related identity (likeall identities) refersexplicitlytoaninternallyheld ideaaboutoneself. Therefore, while STEM literacymustbebasedonanexternallydescribedbody of knowledge and skills, a person’sSTEM-related identity’s reference isinwardtowardsaSTEMself-concept.ThisSTEM self-concept is generated, in part,from the growing congruency betweenone’sperceptionsofherindividuallyheldSTEM-related identity standard (what a“STEMperson” isoroughttobe),andaninternallyheldpersonalidentityrelatedtoSTEM(whatbeinga“STEMperson”meanstome). This clearly implies that as one’sperceptions of a STEM-related identitystandard grows and becomes moresophisticated, along with an improvingconceptofSTEMorscience,sotoowillthesophistication of one’s own personalSTEM-relatedidentity.Forexample,wemightnotconsidera10thgradertobeextremelySTEMliterate,but

wemightverywellperceivethesame10thgradertopossessapositiveSTEM-relatedidentityinreferencetowhatsheperceivesSTEMtobe,includingwho“STEMpeople”areandwhattheydo.Foreachofus,asourunderstandingofSTEMgrows,sotoodoesourunderstandingofourselvesinrelationto it. That is why the growth of STEMconcept is a critical componentofSTEM-related identity development. In thecontextofthiscross-caseanalysis,weviewthegirls’STEMconceptandlinkedSTEM-relatedidentityasanimportantprecursortoSTEMliteracyandpro-STEMchoices.Finally, in considering the STEM-relatedidentity impacts in relation to theparticipants’ many other identities, weneed to examine their pre-post identitycard sort responses, indicating anychanges in their composition andhierarchies.Sincethemostsalientimpactswere revealed in the “importance” and“time” rankings, these are the onesincluded in each case study pre-postanalysissection.Thecombinedresultsintableformataretoolongtobepresentedtogetherhere,butsomeobservationsarewarranted.Forall thegirls, “STEM”or “science”wasnotexplicitlypartofanyidentitiesintheirlists--atleastatfirst.However,inallcasesthe participants stated that STEM wasembedded within their identity of“student,”whicheachlistedinsomeform.This simple fact disguises an importantobservation -- that in these girls’perceptions,STEMorscienceissomethingthatresidesatschoolandisaccessibletothemonlythroughtheirroleasastudentat school.That is, theyaccessSTEMonlythrough their identityas students. Theirpersonal relevancy for STEM comesthroughtheirroleasstudentsbeforeanyother identity. And yet,wehave several


87

examples of participants expanding theirconceptualization of STEM to reachbeyondschoolbytheendofthesemester.OnlyinMindy’scase,did“scientist”appearon her post list of most importantidentities as a result of her conceptualexpansion of STEM. Why? What madeMindydifferent?TheevidenceinhandsuggeststhatMindyestablished a greater degree of personalrelevance to STEM along with herexpansion of STEM concept. Herexpansion involved the realization thatSTEMwasembedded throughouther lifeand always had been, both through herexperience at a STEMmiddle school andthroughherhomeandfamilylife.Perhapsmost important of all forMindywas hercloserelationshipwithheroldersister--arelationship,sheobserved,thatwasbasedon and reinforced by STEM learning andSTEM play. This element of personalrelevance is discussed in more detailbelowamongtheemergentthemesacrossthecases.Anothernotableobservationwasrevealedby the identity list and rank exercisehaving to do with agency transfer. AsexploredinLaura’scasestudy,bytheendofthesemestershehadacquiredamuchgreater degree of confidence in hervolleyballplayingandleadershipabilities.This was due to events in recenttournamentplay. Shewentontoexplainthat this newfound confidence hadallowed her to not get so anxious aboutperforming poorly on a STEM test, andeven to approach STEM with the samekindofconfidenceshehaddemonstratedonthevolleyballcourt.Atthetimeofthefinal interview, she was consideringdoubling up on science courses for hernext year in school. Laura dubbed it a

“confidencesnowball”(gettingbiggerasitrolled). From an identity theoryperspective it is a powerful example ofharmonious identityoverlap(asopposedto identity conflict) that featured agencytransferfromoneidentitytoanother;fromher athlete identity to her STEM-relatedidentity,inthiscase.Italsodemonstrateda greater willingness to take risks(discussedmore below) and suggested agrowth mindset approach to STEMlearningaswellastosports.AgainwecanaskwhyonlyLaura?Butinfact Laura’s example of identity overlapwas just the most salient. The otherparticipants also demonstrated identityintersections, such as Mindy’sobservations of her ethnic identity as anAfricanAmericanaffectingheridentityasastudent. AndKim’sstrugglewithinherstudent identity toboth lovebiologyandhate chemistry and still maintain herpositiveSTEM-relatedidentityinbetween.And Gina’s intense struggle for effectivetimemanagementbetweenher identitiesas student, daughter, sister, friend, andmore.A closing thought about the identity listand rank exercise that was part of theidentity interview -- and what we maylearnfromit…Therearesomelimitationstothisresearchtechnique.Atbest, itgivesasnapshotofthe participants’ sense of identities at aparticular time. Obviously there isconsiderable flux and flowdepending onwhatisontheperson’smindwhenasked.For example, when “Music lover” or“Explorer” drops off of a list, it does notnecessarily mean those identities aregone; they are simplynot inmind at thetime of the query. Therefore, one shouldnot read too much into the results.


88

However,inconcertwithotherdatasuchas indicatorsofcommitmentto identitiesand of growth in agency, we can makesomeinformedobservations.2.Cross-Case:VideoNarrativeAnalysisThe video narratives created by theparticipants represented personalintrospection and the establishment ofpersonal relevance to STEM-relatedexperiences both related to andindependent from their SciGirls-trainedteachers, although the nature of these

links differed for each person. The videonarratives represented the finalculmination of the participants’ meaningmaking and reflections for this study. Assuch, they also provided a valuable datasourceforthestudyandtheinterpretationoftheirexperiences,andinsomecasesfortheir own interpretation of theirexperiencesaswell.Table16presentseachparticipant’svideotheme, the researcher-designatednarrative type or category of their story,and thecoded themespresent forSTEM-relatedidentitydevelopment.

Table24:Cross-CaseVideoNarratives

Participant ThemeorTitle NarrativeCategory IdentityThemesJane STEMisallaround

useveryday.Title:“TheS.T.E.M.andI:AnExperimentalProcess.”

Education(learning,changing,growing):RevealingSTEMineverydaylifetoenrichboth

(1)Self-concept,includingagencyandSTEMconfidence;(2)STEMcommitment,personalrelevanceandemotionalconnection;(3)STEMconcept;(4)STEMliteracyasdemonstratedinherbreadbakingtutorialsequence.

Laura UnificationofherlovefornatureandconservationwithSTEMlearning.

Maturation(comingofage)/Education(learning,changing,growing)

(1)Self-concept,agencyandSTEMconfidence;(2)STEMcommitment,personalrelevanceandemotionalconnection;(3)STEMconcept,and;(4)STEM-relatedchoices

Kim Howshefeelsaboutscience.Title:“[name]:SciGirlsVideo”

Maturation(comingofage)/Education(learning,changing,growing)/Testing(willpower,facingchallenges)

(1)Self-concept,includingagencyandSTEMconfidence;(2)STEMcommitment,mostlypersonalrelevanceandemotionalconnection(lackthereofregardingherchemistryclass).

Gina HerpersonalSTEMimprovementjourney.

Testing(willpower,facingchallenges)/Redemption(Rebirth,vindication):Throughherdiligentattentiontoscores

(1)STEMcommitment;(2)TimespentonSTEM;(3)STEM-relatedchoices(STEM


89

andbeliefofsuccessthroughdeterminationandhardwork.

commitmentandtimespentonSTEM).

Sofia HerstoryofSEMbecomingimportantinherlife.Title:“SciGirlsVideoProjectby[name]”

Maturation(comingofage/Education(learning,changing,growing)

(1)Self-concept,agency,STEMconfidence,beginningwithherlowSTEMagencyandarcingtohigherone;(2)STEMconcept,symbolicrepresentation;(3)STEMcommitment,personalrelevance,influenceofpeersandcommunity(negativearcingtopositive;(4),STEMliteracy;(5)STEMchoices,(initialriskychoicestotake10thgradebiology,laterhertwoSTEMcourses

Mindy STEMispartofmeandmyfamilyTitle:“SisterhoodandScience:SciGirls2017.”

Maturation(comingofage)/Love(sister,family,STEM)

(1)STEMcommitment,personalrelevance;(2)STEMliteracy;(3)STEM-relatedchoices(howsheandhersisterchosetospendtheirfreetime);(4)TimespentonSTEM

The narrative categorizations arepresented to aid in comprehending themeaningofthevideonarratives–bothforthosewhomadethemandthoseaudiencesfor whom they were made. For it iscertainlytruethatstorytellingrequires(1)the narrative, (2) the teller, and (3) thehearer. They are based on acclaimedwriter Robert McKee’s landmark book,Story(1997).Narrativetypology• Adventure(quest)• Maturation(comingofage)• Education(learning,changing,

growing)

• Testing(willpower,temptation,facingtragedy,death)

• Love(romance,family,other)• Redemption(rebirth,-to+)• Punitive(+to-withpunishment)• Disillusionment(worldview

changesfrom+to-)• Loss

McKee,(1997)All of the videos were first ordernarratives.Thatis,theywerefirstpersonstories about the participant’s ownexperiences,aseachwasaskedtoproduce.The formats, content, styles, and themeswere all free choice and unlimited. The


90

STEM-related identity themes are basedonconceptualframeworkfortheresearchasconductedintheanalysisofeachcase.Belowarealsodepictedeachofthevideoplot maps assembled together, revealing

these themes in color code for easiercomparison.

Jane’sVideoPlotMap

Laura’sVideoPlotMap

Kim’sVideoPlotMap

Gina’sVideoPlotMap

Sofia’sVideoPlotMap


91

Mindy’sVideoPlotMap

Note that STEM commitment (orange) isone of only two STEM-related identitythemes appearing in all videos. Thismostly included personal relevancy ofSTEM to the girl’s lives. STEM agency,efficacy and confidence (green) is theother STEM-related identity themeappearing in each video, but it is lessprominent. These two themes typicallyoccurred together, with the exception ofMindy’s video,where her sense of STEMagencyisdealtwithonlybrieflyattheveryend.Overallthissuggeststhatwhenaskedto create these autobiographicalnarratives, personal relevance and STEMagency(whetherhighorloworboth)werethe dominant themes important to theirdevelopmentofSTEM-relatedidentity.Inline with this, we see themost commonnarrative category is maturation oftencoupled with education, suggesting thatSTEMwasperceivedasintegratedintothegirls’growingupstories,partofwhotheyare becoming along with other livedexperiences.This kind of identity integration is anencouraging sign for the development ofpositiveSTEM-related identity,especiallywhen we see the effects of it unfoldingwithin the course of the semester. ThiswasmostsalientwithMindy,whereSTEM

was initially boxed to exist only withinschool, and then we see a revelationoccurring when it is let out of that box.This expansion of STEM into the girl’sbroaderlivesisathemealsooccurringforJane, Laura, and Sofia. This is of course,amplificationofthepersonalrelevanceofSTEM.An important question amidst theseobservationsiswhetherornotweseeanyindications of SciGirls-related classes inthesevideos. Theanswerisyes,trackingwithwhatwasobserved fromotherdatasources. Jane, Laura and Sofia explicitlycall out their Scigirls-related experiencesas positive influences in shaping theirvideo narratives (whether in the videosthemselves or their Director’sCommentaries). AndinKim’svideoshepresents her struggle with her SciGirls-related class (Chemistry) as a negativeinfluence,butonethatsheattemptstoputa silver lining on, as in ‘I learned whatkinds of STEM I don’t like.’ Gina’s andMindy’s videos do not touch on theirSciGirls-related classes, but do includetheir SciGirls case study gatherings asnotableinfluences.


92

3.Cross-Case:EmergentThemesHerewe explore what seemed to be themostsignificantemergentthemesintermsofimpactingthegirlsand/orinformingusabout the their STEM-related identitydevelopment.RoleModelsAcross the cases, the girls had difficultynamingrolemodels.TheexceptiontothiswasLaura,whocamereadywithherpre-established “hero list” and had clearlydonedeepreflectiononthetopic.Butfortheothers,thequestionof“whoareyourmost important role models?” was metwithawideningoftheeyesoracringeandalmostalwaysalongpause.Notethatthisquestion was open to any and all rolemodels for any and all reasons, notrestricted to STEM or role modelsintroducedbytheirteachersinthecontextof SciGirls or classroom instruction. Formost,itappearedtheyhadneverthoughtoforbeenaskedabout their rolemodelsbefore,indicatingtheydon’toftenthinkinterms of “rolemodels” or rolemodeling.Perhaps not many people do. Perhapswhom our role models are and whatimpact they have on our lives is muchmoreunconsciousthanconscious.Thislackofrecalledrolemodelspersistedeven after prompting for in-person rolemodels,onlinerolemodels,and/orvideo-based role models. Only one of the girlslistedanySTEMrolemodelsbroughtintoclass by their SciGirls-trained teachers,and this was Kim’s experience with awoman chemical engineer from 3MwhovisitedMr. C’s class, andwhomKimalsohappenedtobabysit for. In this instancehowever,itwasclearthateventhesingleexposure to this explicit role model wasimportantforKim’sSTEM-relatedidentitydevelopment – thus apparently

corroborating the findingsregardingrolemodeling in the quantitative part of thestudy.Overall, however this lack of clarity ingeneral regarding role models isimportantandsupports twoconclusions:(1)TheSciGirls-trainedteachersof theseparticipants were not very successful inengagingrolemodels,and/or;(2)Thegirlswere not recalling or recognizing “rolemodels”assuch.Forexample,SofiadidmentionaprojectinMr. V’s class about researching unsungscientistsandlearningtheirstories,whichresulted in Sofia naming computerscientistandsocialactivistValerieTayloras an initial role model, but she laterindicated that was only because Taylorwas top-of-mind at the time of the preinterview,ratherthanadurablesourceofinspiration in the way role models arecommonlythoughtof.However, in the context of other queriesand reflections (such as the identityinterviewsforexample),thegirlsbegantorevealwhatmaybecalled“influencers”intheir lives. These were people such assiblings, coaches, current and formerteachers, and parents who were notrecognized by the girls as “role models”butdidhavesignificantpowerinthegirls’livesandontheirself-perceptionsand/oraspirations. In most cases, theseinfluencers were not celebrities or well-knownpeople,except for Jane’s listingofactorsLisaKudrowandRobertDowneyJr.and Mindy’s listing of NASA scientistKatherineJohnsonofHiddenFiguresfame.Rather, most were people who had highpersonal relevance to the girls. In somecaseswewouldconsiderthem“near-peer”role models, such as Sofia’s mysterious#11 on the opposing team, whom sheadmired for her grit and tenacity.


93

Certainly, the greater the personalrelevanceoftherolemodeltothegirls,themoreinfluencetheyhad.In one case, Mindy preferred to listcharacteristics she admired and aspiredtowardsinothers,ratherthancitingactualpeople she considered to be her rolemodels. That is, she was modeling ontraitsratherthanpeopletodefinethekindofrole--thekindofperson--shewantedtobe.Asanemergenttheme, theseresultsgiverisetotheneedtorecognizeandarticulatedifferentkindsofrolemodelsasimportanttoprogramssuchasSciGirls,whichseektoadvance role modeling as a pathway tobroadeningparticipationinSTEMfornon-majoritygroupstudents.Viewedthroughasocialidentitytheorylens,werecognizethree primary levels of identity: Roleidentities,definedbythesocietalpositionsand functionswe occupy; Social identity,defined by group affinities andassociations by which we belong to acommunity or communities in our lives,and;Personal identity,definedbyuniqueaspectsofourselvesthatsetusapartfromand/or connect us to others (Burke &Stets, 2009). Together these nestedidentities comprise our self-concepts.Basedonthisframeworkandthefindings,it is necessary to unpack the monolithicconcept of ‘role model’ to differentiaterole,social,andpersonalinfluencerswhoexhibit traits and behaviors that informtheselevelsofidentity.In this way, we may find and structureimportant distinctions between teachers,mentorsandsponsors,orimportantpeersornear-peers,forexample,suchaswesawwith Kim who struggled between herparents’ STEM encouragement, herdiscord with her chemistry teacher andclass, and the promise of an example

successstoryintheformofa3Mengineervisitingher class. There is alsoevidencefor important differences in types ofinfluencers such as aspirational vs.inspirational vs. validational vs. evenantagonisticinfluencers.Finally, this cross-case analysis alsoreveals that many of the importantinfluencers for these girls embodied awork-life balance between their STEMengagement and “having a life” as well.Thisseemedtoappealtomostofthegirls,who were also struggling to find thisbalance for themselves -- and see theirwaytoafuturewheretheycouldachievesatisfaction through harmonious identityoverlapandintersection.Itseemsthatthemore inclusive a STEM-related identitybecomes,themoreSTEMcommitmentandintegration of STEM into their lives andsense-of-self. Successful role models, orinfluencer,canpointtheway.SciGirlsConflationIssueIn many of the cases, there wereindicationsofa ‘SciGirlsconflation issue,’whereby rather than thinking of thisSciGirls project as focused on educatortraining (which was mostly invisible tothesegirls),thegatheringofthecasestudyparticipantsforweeklymeetingstoworkon their journals and videos afterschoolcametobeperceivedaswhatSciGirlswasall about. It became a “Scigirls club” ofsorts.Thisisanotanuncommonissueforsuchresearchparticipantsinthattheadditionalrequired reflection, articulation, andcommunication (interviews, journals,videos), aswell as the relationships theydevelopwithpeersorprogramfacilitatorsbecomes part of, and can deepen, thenature of the experiences under


94

investigation.Thisissometimereferredtoasthe“observereffect,”orthe“Hawthorneeffect,”inwhichparticipantsmodifytheirbehaviorsasaresultofbeingaware thattheyarebeingobserved.However,inthecaseofparticipatoryresearchdesign, theresearch participant IS one of theobservers, as they are called upon tointrospect and then communicate thatintrospection in various ways. Notably,while it seems the effectwas universallypositive in this study, it can also happenthatsuchobservereffectsand/orresearchstaff interactions can spoil experiences ifimplementedpoorly.Sowhat does thismean for SciGirls? Asbriefly discussed above, it revealed twoimportant things. First, that theexperience of the SciGirls case studyparticipants was different from that ofother students in the classes of SciGirls-trainededucators.Theactofparticipationin this research did not simply revealcognitiveandnon-cognitiveprocessesandevents of interest for the study, but inmany instances it helped to create anddefinesuchprocessesandevents.Secondly,girlsdescribedinherentvaluetobelonging to such a ‘club’ -- or moreprecisely, participating in the researchactivities -- such that it seems to havepositively impacted participant STEM-related perceptions and responses byproviding a sense of community andbelongingnessnotpresentorperhapsnotpossible in their SciGirls-related classes.Such a sense of belongingness served topromoteSTEMcommitmentandpersonalrelevancyby reinforcing a social identityasagroupmember--somethingothersinthe classes would not necessarilyexperiencetothesameextent.

As we have seen with several of theobservationsregardingthis‘SciGirlsclub,’the girls valued the experience of beingpart of it. In Mindy’s case, she evenattributed her personal revelation ofSTEM infused in her life to her videonarrativeworkandtheinteractionshehadwithaprogramteammemberincreatingit.Socertainly,thereisapositiveskewingof some of the perceptions of the casestudy girls. However, the results alsoindicate a clear delineation betweenimpactsofthisgroupandimpactsrelatedtotheirSciGirls-trainedteachers.Further, the potential observer effect isalsooneoftherationalesforconductingamixed-methods study that includescontrol and experimental group surveyresults. Theresultsofthecasestudyaremeant to enrich our understanding ofwhatmaybebehindthenumbersandtheimpact of SciGirls teacher training onstudents, but also to put the case studyresultsintothecontextofthelargerstudyresults. In thisway,we do indeed drawinsights into how positive STEM-relatedidentity development actually occurs,beyondwhetherornotitsimplydidoccur.Most emphatically here, the ScigGirlsconflation issue strongly reveals theimportance of personal relevancy as adominant, ofnotTHEdominant factor inSTEM-related identity development forthese girls. Which brings us to our nextemergenttheme.Personal Relevance, Emotions,andRiskinSTEMWe’vecombinedthesethreethemesherebecause they are inexorably tied in theconsideration of STEM-related identitydevelopment.


95

Although not technically “emergent” inthis study, since it was included in theconceptual framework as an importantcontributing factor to STEM-relatedidentity development, the importance ofpersonal relevancy exceeded ourexpectations. Asrevealedinthecase-by-case analyses, the cross-case videoanalysis,therolemodeltheme,andagainhere in the conflation issue -- personalrelevancetoSTEMstandsoutasacriticalfactoramongallothers.Coupledwithpersonalrelevancywerethegirls’emotionalandsocialconnectionstoSTEM. From the elation and joydemonstrated by Laura’s union of STEMwithherfervorforconservationtoKim’sfrustration and sadness as she struggledthrough chemistry to Gina’s high stresstime management challenge as sheconstantlysoughtbalanceinherquesttoimprove to Sofia’s newfound pride andambitionforpursuingSTEMunhindered-- emotions held the key to establishingpersonal relevancy for these girls. Morethan content presented (aswe sawwithJane’s baking chemistry and Mindy’ssticklebacks, forexample),whatemergedfrom the journals and video narrativeswasthewaySTEMexperiencesmadethemfeelaboutthemselvesthatseemstohavethegreatestimpact.How they felt about STEM and theirSciGirls-related experiences seemed todependupon:

• The validation they received forbeing capable of doing STEM:including both a sense-of-agencyandsupport(asinSofia’sstory)aswell as indicators of successthrough scores, grades (Gina), oracceptance into special programs(Laura’sGalapagostrip)

• ThesocialtiestoclosefriendswithinSTEMcontexts:Evenone importantfriend (in Mindy’s case, her sister)couldmake the difference. Friendsprovide social acceptance of anexpressedSTEM-relatedidentityinasocial context where that is achallenge for girls and put quitesimply, make STEM fun. As Sofiaremarked, “Me and my best friend[Sarah]lovesciencesomuch.I’mgladI have someone to nerd out aboutsciencewith.NoneofmyotherfriendsareveryinterestedinSTEM.”

• Risk: Emotions were an importantelement of risk in all cases. Theriskinessofaclassoranactivityforagiven participant seemed to be afunction of both low agency for thateffortandtheresultinganxietyupondeciding to try it anyway. This wasmost evident in Sofia’s decision totakeher10thgradebiologyclassthatturnedeverythingaround forher, aswell as her decision to take twosimultaneous science classes in herjunior year. It was also evident inLaura’svolleyballinspiredrisktotaketwoscienceclasseswithanewfoundsenseofconfident“cockiness.”ForGina,itwastheever-presentriskof not getting good scores and notimproving that shaped her emotionsand governed her timemanagementcrises.Inthissense,emotionsservedto signal the degree of risk and thedegreeoffeelingsofaccomplishmentor reward afterwards, includingincreased agency, pride, and self-efficacy.Without these pre and postemotions,riskwouldhavelittleornomeaning. In terms of SciGirls, itshouldberecognizedthatriskhasaninverse relationship with agency.


96

That is,when perceived risk is high,agency is low. Growth in positiveSTEM-related identity seemed tooccur where perceived agencyincreased and perceived risk thencorrespondinglydecreased.Thiswasin concert with STEM learning butalso role model or influencerexperiences that helped grantparticipantspermission(internalandexternal) to pursue STEM,deep self-reflectionandmeaningmakingabouttheirrelationshiptoSTEM,andsocialbonding with STEM-related friendsand like-minded communities orgroups.

These findings are supported by theresultsofthequantitativepartofthestudywhich revealed “personal relevancy,”“agency,” and “emotional connection” assignificant key composite operating todeveloppositiveSTEM-relatedidentityforgirls.One final observation for the cross-caseanalysis: For the girls in this study, itseemed positive STEM-related identitywasafragilething,evenforthosesteepedinSTEMfromearlychildhoodandthroughuncommonfamilyandteachersupport.ForgingapositiveSTEM-relatedidentityistoswimagainstthestreaminmanycasesand especially for girls in fields such aschemistry and math. Maintaining apositive STEM-related identity issometimes an even greater struggle,through the maze of competingresponsibilities and competing identities(gender identity included). Andgrowingsuch an identity over time is a challengerifewithmorepitfallsthansupports.

Throughthevideonarratives, interviews,and journals these girls produced andshared, we’ve gained insight to theprocesses important to theSTEM-relatedidentitydevelopment.Atthetopofthatlist,acrossallcasesinthisstudyispersonalrelevance.


97

ConclusionsIntermsofthestudy’sresearchquestions,theresultsindicatethefollowing:

1) HowdoestheexperienceofparticipatinginalloftheSciGirlsStrategiesprojectcomponentsimpactgirls’STEM-relatedidentitydevelopment?

Ingeneral,femalestudentexperiencesinclassesledbyScigGirls-trainededucatorsdoindeedshowresultstowardsthedevelopmentofmorepositiveSTEM-relatedidentitiesaccordingtotheframeworkandresearchmodel.TheresultsofbothquantitativeandqualitativecomponentsofthismixedmethodsstudysupportthegrowthofSTEM-relatedidentityinsevenofninekeycompositeindicatorsalongwithimportantinsightsofhowlivedexperiencesincludingthosedimensionsunfoldinthepersonallivesofgirls.

2) Whataretheimpactsofindividualproject components, with a focuson the use of role models inclassroominstruction?

The engagement of role models wasrevealed to be a significant and complexfactor in the development of positiveSTEM-related identity for girls in thestudy. The use of female STEM byeducatorsclearlyshowedadvantagesovernouse,andfurther, in-personinteractionshowed advantage over video basedand/or article reading exposure to rolemodels. The case studies reveal theconceptof“rolemodels” tobesomewhatalientogirls,infavorofwhatcanbestbetermed “personal influencers” in their

lives. Theseweremostoftenrelativesorfriendswhohadahighdegreeofpersonalrelevancy forgirls. Takentogethertheseresultsindicatethateducatorsmayrevealuntapped breadth and creativity inthinkingaboutwhatkindsofrolemodelstoengageandhow.Unpackingtheconceptof rolemodels through the lensofmulti-modal “influencers”mayserve toexpandboth the nature of such interactions andwaystoexaminetheirimpactoffemale(ormale)STEM-relatedidentitydevelopment.Additionally, other student experiencesbased on program components emergedas important factors for STEM-relatedidentity development, including personalrelevancy, agency, risk, and emotionalconnection. Classroom based learningdesigns or activities that promotedpathways to these experiences appearedprominentlyinthecasestudies.

3) What modifications to the STEMidentity framework are indicatedbythefindings?

The findings reinforce the importance ofpersonalrelevance,agency,andemotionalconnectionsrelatedtoSTEMasimportantcognitivefactorsinSTEM-relatedidentitydevelopment. Riskexperiencesemergedas a critical factor within agency andemotional connections, whereas contentconfidence was not shown to be adominantfactorinformationofapositiveSTEM-relatedidentity–althoughitwasanimportant indicator for assessing it.Likewise, capacity to “do STEM” and/orunderstand it, along with demonstratedscienceconcept,statedattitudesandself-efficacy and future choice aspirationswereallrevealedtobeusefulindicatorsofSTEM-related identity development butnot necessarily experiential factors in its


98

formation.These results indicate a neededadjustmenttotheframeworktodelineateindicators of STEM-related identitydevelopment from experiential andcognitivefactorsinvolvedintheprocessofSTEM-relatedidentitydevelopment.Thissignificantlychangestheframeworkfrombeing one based on differentiatingcognitive frombehavioral componentsofSTEM- related identity, towards aframeworkstructuredbymeasurable (ordescribe-able) processes vs. products oroutcomes. This adjustment will alsoperhaps better serve practicalapplications for the future formulationandimprovementofeducationalmethodsand philosophies such as SciGirls. Anupdated framework based on thesefindingsandotherswillbe thesubjectofanupcomingpublicationby the researchteam.Finally,theresultsofthismixedmethodsstudyindicatetheneedforfutureresearchintheareasofpersonalrelevancyandrisk-experiences in the different domains ofSTEMlearning.Althoughfocusedongirls,thereisnothinginherentlygenderedintheformulation or outcomes of the SciGirlsSeven strategies and teacher trainingunderinvestigationhere.Whileitisclearisthatthereareidentity-basedbenefitstothe girls in this study, there is an openquestion for how the samemethods andstrategiesmay benefit all students. It is

conceivable, for example, that there isindeed a differential advantage to thesestrategies for female students only. It isalso possible such practices benefit andimprove STEM-learning experiences forallstudentsequitably.Onlyafuturestudydesigned to look across genders will beabletoshedlightonthisquestion.Additionally, the findings of the casestudies also reveal numerous and variedstrugglesof thegirlswith theculturesofSTEMintheirclassroomsandamongtheirpeers.Thefactthatweobservepowerfulrevelation experiences when girls havebreakthroughsindiscoveringhowSTEMis(andmayevenhavealwaysbeen)highlypersonally relevant in their lives,underscorestheenormousgapinpersonalrelevancy prior to such breakthroughs –callitpersonalirrelevancy.Doesthesamegapexistforboys?Ifso,isitexperiencedin the same ways? Can it be breachedusingthesamemethods?Theanswerstosuch questions will further inform ourknowledge about what STEM learningexperiencesandmethodswork“forgirls”vs.thosethatworkforall–animportantdistinction for any projects aiming todevelop expertise in gender-equitableSTEM learning. Moreover, a focus onchangingtheSTEMculturesthatgiveriseto such experiences personal irrelevancymayjustasimportantasgender-targetedprogramsforthesuccessfuldevelopmentof positive STEM-related identities forgirls.


99

ReferencesAAUW,AmericanAssociationofUniversityWomen(1992).ShortchangingGirls/ShortchangingAmerica,WashingtonDC:AAUWEducationalFoundation.www.aauw.orgAdams,W.K.,Perkins,K.K.,Podolefsky,N.S.,Dubson,M.,Finkelstein,N.D.,&Wieman,C.E.(2006).Anewinstrumentformeasuringstudentbeliefsaboutphysicsandlearningphysics:TheColoradoLearningAttitudesaboutScienceSurvey.PhysicalReviewSpecialTopics–PhysicsEducationResearch,2,1-14.

Aschbacher,P.R.,Li,E.,&Roth,E.J.(2010).Isscienceme?Highschoolstudents’identities,participationandaspirationsinscience,engineering,andmedicine.JournalofResearchinScienceTeaching,47(5),564-582.

Brickhouse,N.W.,Lowery,P.,Schultz,K.,(2000).Whatkindofgirldoesscience?Theconstructionofschoolscienceidentities.JournalofResearchinScienceTeaching,37,5:441-458.

Buck,G.A.;PlanoClark,V.L.,Leslie-Pelecky,D.,Lu,Y.,&Cerda-Lizarrage,P.,(2007).Examiningthecognitiveprocessesusedbyadolescentgirlsandwomenscientistsinidentifyingsciencerolemodels:Afeministapproach.ScienceEducation,92,p688-707.

Burke,P.J.,&Stets,J.E.(2009).Identitytheory.Oxford:OxfordUniversityPress.

Chen,S.(2006).Developmentofaninstrumenttoassessviewsonnatureofscienceandattitudestowardteachingscience.ScienceEducation,90,803-819.DOI10.1002/sce.20147.

Clark,E.K.,Fuesting,M.A.,&Diekman,A.B.(2016)."Enhancinginterestinscience:exemplarsascuestocommunalaffordancesofscience."JournalofAppliedSocialPsychology46(11),641-654.

Flagg, B. N. (2015).Girls’ Interest in Nature and Science Scale. Bellport, NY: MultimediaResearch.Retrieved from: http://www.informalscience.org/girls-interest-nature-and-science-scale-ginss.

Fuesting,M.A.&Diekman,A.B.(2017).Notbysuccessalone:RolemodelsprovidepathwaystocommunalopportunitiesinSTEM.PersonalityandSocialPsychologyBulletin,43(2),163-176.

Greenwald,H.P.,&Davis,R.A.(2000).Minorityrecruitmentandretentionindietetics:Issuesandinterventions.JournalofAmericanDieteticAssociation,100,961-966.

Halloun,I.A.(2006).Studentviewsaboutscience:Acomparativesurvey[Monograph].Retrievedfromhttp://modeling.asu.edu/R%26E/IHalloun/VASS- 2001Monograph.pdf

Häussler,P.,andHoffmann,L.(2002)Aninterventionstudytoenhancegirls'interest,self-


100

concept,andachievementinphysicsclasses,JournalofResearchinScienceTeaching:Volume39,Issue9,Pages870-888.

Herrmann,S.D.,Adelman,R.M.,Bodford,J.E.,Graudejus,O.,Okun,M.A.,&Kwan,V.S.(2016).TheeffectsofafemalerolemodelonacademicperformanceandpersistenceofwomeninSTEMcourses.BasicandAppliedSocialPsychology,38(5),258-268.

Hunter,A-B.,Laursen,S.L.,&Seymour,E.(2006).Becomingascientist:Theroleofundergraduateresearchinstudents’cognitive,personal,andprofessionaldevelopment.ScienceEducation,91,36–74.Kier,M.W.,Blanchard,M.R.,Osborne, J.W.,&Albert, J.L. (2014).TheDevelopmentof theSTEMCareerInterestSurvey(STEM5CIS).ResearchinScienceEducation,44(3),4615481)LeCompte,M.D.&Preissle,J.(1993).Ethnographyandqualitativedesignineducationalresearch(2nded).SanDiego,CA:AcademicPress.

LeCompte,M.D.&Schensul,J.J.(1999).Analyzingandinterpretingethnographicdata.InJ. J.Schensul&M.D.LeCompte(SeriesEds.),Vol.5Ethnographer’stoolkit.WalnutCreek,CA:AltaMira.

Lederman,N.G.,Abd-El-Khalick,F.,Bell,R.L.,&Schwartz,R.S.(2001).Viewsofnaturesofsciencequestionnaire:Towardvalidandmeaningfulassessmentoflearners’conceptionsofnatureandscience.JournalofResearchinScienceTeaching,39,497-521.McLain,B.(2012).Scienceidentityconstructionthroughextraordinaryprofessionaldevelopmentexperiences.UniversityofColoradoDenver.RetrievedfromProQuestDissertationsandTheses.(AccessionOrderNo.AAT3507554).Notter,K.(2010).IsCompetitionMakingaComeback?DiscoveringMethodstoKeepFemaleAdolescentsEngagedinStem:APhenomenologicalApproach.Dissertationhttp//digitalcommons.unl/cehsdiss/79Ntiri,D.W.(2001).Accesstohighereducationfornontraditionalstudentsandminoritiesinatechnology-focusedsociety.UrbanEducation,36,129-144.Osborne,Simon,&Collins,(2003).Attitudestowardsscience:areviewoftheliteratureanditsimplications.InternationalJournalofScienceEducation,25(9),1049-1079.Shin,J.E.L.,Levy,S.R.,&London,B.(2016).EffectsofrolemodelexposureonSTEMandnon-STEMstudentengagement.JournalofAppliedSocialPsychology,46(7),410-427.Stryker,S.&Statham,A.(1985).SymbolicInteractionandRoleTheory,editedby:Aronson,InHandbookofSocialPsychology,Vol.1(1985),pp.311-378. Tajfel, H., Turner, J. C., Austin, W. G., & Worchel, S. (1979). An integrative theory of intergroup conflict. Organizational identity: A reader, 56-65.


101

Appendix A. Composites and Corresponding Survey Items PersonalRelevanceCompositeResponseoptions:Notmuchlikeme/Slightlylikeme/Mostlylikeme/Extremelylikeme1.Scienceisimportanttome.2.[Reverse-coded]Iactivelyavoidopportunitiestodoscience-relatedthings.3.ScienceisabigpartofwhoIamandIwhatIdo.Omittedsub-item:[Reverse-coded]Ispendalotofmyfreetimedoingthingsthatarenotrelatedtoscience.AgencyCompositeResponseoptions:Notmuchlikeme/Slightlylikeme/Mostlylikeme/Extremelylikeme1.Ihopetohaveascience-relatedprofessiononeday.2.[Reverse-coded]MyrolemodelsareNOTinvolvedinscience.3.Iadmirescientistsandpeoplewhoworkinscience-relatedfields.4.[Reverse-coded]IseemyselfhavingacareerthatisNOTverymuchrelatedmuchtoscience.EmotionalConnectionCompositeResponseoptions:Notmuchlikeme/Slightlylikeme/Mostlylikeme/Extremelylikeme1.Iknowmostofmyfriendsthroughmyscience-relatedactivities.2.[Reverse-coded]IdoNOTgetveryexcitedaboutdoingscience.3.Otherpeople(family,friends,teachers)knowthatIlikescience.4.Ienjoyorhavefundoingscience-relatedactivities.ContentConfidenceCompositeResponseoptions:Notmuchlikeme/Slightlylikeme/Mostlylikeme/Extremelylikeme1.[Reverse-coded]Ihaveadifficulttimeunderstandingscience-relatedthings.2.IfeelthatIcandoscience-relatedthingsquitewell.3.[Reverse-coded]Irarelytalkaboutscienceormyscience-relatedactivitieswithothers.EnjoymentofScienceResponseoptions:Notmuchlikeme/Slightlylikeme/Mostlylikeme/Extremelylikeme1.Iliketohearaboutnewdiscoveriesinscience.2.Ienjoyreadingaboutscience.3.It’sfuntodoscienceactivities.4.Ienjoywatchingscienceshows.5.Iliketalkingaboutsciencetopicswithothers.6.Iwanttounderstandhowthingsinscienceandnaturework.Responseoptions:StronglyDisagree/Disagree/NotSure/Agree/StronglyAgree*


102

7.Iliketoidentifythingsinnature.8.It’sfuntocollectthingsfromoutdoors.*Itemsusingthisscalewereconvertedtoa4point-scale,where“NotSure”responseswerecodedtomissing

ScienceCareerInterestResponseoptions:StronglyDisagree/Disagree/NotSure/Agree/StronglyAgree1.Iamabletodowellinactivitiesthatinvolve:(Science)2.Iamabletocompleteactivitiesthatinvolve:(Science)3.Inmyfuturecareer,Iplantouse:(Science)4.Iwillworkhardinmyclassesinvolving:(Science)5.Itwillhelpmeinmyfuturecareer,ifIdowellin:(Science)6.MyparentswouldlikeitifIchooseacareerrelatedto:(Science)7.I'minterestedincareersthatuse:(Science)8.Ilikeactivitiesthatinvolve:(Science)9.Ihavearolemodelinacareerrelatedto:(Science)10.Iwouldfeelcomfortabletalkingtopeoplewhoworkincareersrelatedto:(Science)11.Iknowofsomeoneinmyfamilywithacareerrelatedto:(Science)TechnologyCareerInterestResponseoptions:StronglyDisagree/Disagree/NotSure/Agree/StronglyAgree1.Iamabletodowellinactivitiesthatinvolve:(Technology)2.Iamabletocompleteactivitiesthatinvolve:(Technology)3.Inmyfuturecareer,Iplantouse:(Technology)4.Iwillworkhardinmyclassesinvolving:(Technology)5.Itwillhelpmeinmyfuturecareer,ifIdowellin:(Technology)6.MyparentswouldlikeitifIchooseacareerrelatedto:(Technology)7.I'minterestedincareersthatuse:(Technology)8.Ilikeactivitiesthatinvolve:(Technology)9.Ihavearolemodelinacareerrelatedto:(Technology)10.Iwouldfeelcomfortabletalkingtopeoplewhoworkincareersrelatedto:(Technology)11.Iknowofsomeoneinmyfamilywithacareerrelatedto:(Technology)EngineeringCareerInterestResponseoptions:StronglyDisagree/Disagree/NotSure/Agree/StronglyAgree1.Iamabletodowellinactivitiesthatinvolve:(Engineering)2.Iamabletocompleteactivitiesthatinvolve:(Engineering)3.Inmyfuturecareer,Iplantouse:(Engineering)4.Iwillworkhardinmyclassesinvolving:(Engineering)5.Itwillhelpmeinmyfuturecareer,ifIdowellin:(Engineering)6.MyparentswouldlikeitifIchooseacareerrelatedto:(Engineering)7.I'minterestedincareersthatuse:(Engineering)8.Ilikeactivitiesthatinvolve:(Engineering)9.Ihavearolemodelinacareerrelatedto:(Engineering)


103

10.Iwouldfeelcomfortabletalkingtopeoplewhoworkincareersrelatedto:(Engineering)11.Iknowofsomeoneinmyfamilywithacareerrelatedto:(Engineering)MathematicsCareerInterestResponseoptions:StronglyDisagree/Disagree/NotSure/Agree/StronglyAgree1.Iamabletodowellinactivitiesthatinvolve:(Math)2.Iamabletocompleteactivitiesthatinvolve:(Math)3.Inmyfuturecareer,Iplantouse:(Math)4.Iwillworkhardinmyclassesinvolving:(Math)5.Itwillhelpmeinmyfuturecareer,ifIdowellin:(Math)6.MyparentswouldlikeitifIchooseacareerrelatedto:(Math)7.I'minterestedincareersthatuse:(Math)8.Ilikeactivitiesthatinvolve:(Math)9.Ihavearolemodelinacareerrelatedto:(Math)10.Iwouldfeelcomfortabletalkingtopeoplewhoworkincareersrelatedto:(Math)11.Iknowofsomeoneinmyfamilywithacareerrelatedto:(Math)

Appendix B. Descriptive Statistics for Survey Items

Item

TreatmentNotmuchlikeme

Slightlylikeme

Mostlylikeme

Extremelylikeme

2.Scienceisimportanttome.3 Pre 8 17 46 30Post 5 18 46 30

3.Ihopetohaveascience-relatedprofessiononeday.1,3

Pre 10 31 38 19Post 9 30 33 27

4.IdoNOTbelongtoanyscience-relatedgroups,clubs,ororganizations.2,4

Pre 47 22 14 15Post 58 24 4 12

5.Iknowmostofmyfriendsthroughmyscience-relatedactivities.3

Pre 37 34 20 9Post 31 33 18 16

6.IdoNOTgetveryexcitedaboutdoingscience.3

Pre 50 27 14 9Post 60 24 10 5

7.Iactivelyavoidopportunitiestodoscience-relatedthings.1,4

Pre 53 33 9 4Post 60 22 10 6

8.ScienceisabigpartofwhoIamandIwhatIdo.3

Pre 13 35 37 14Post 11 40 30 17

9.Ispendalotofmyfreetimedoingthingsthatarenotrelatedtoscience.4

Pre 15 35 38 11Post 11 30 34 23Pre 17 26 36 20


104

10.Otherpeople(family,friends,teachers)knowthatIlikescience.1,4

Post 13 26 35 24

11.MyrolemodelsareNOTinvolvedinscience.1,3

Pre 28 39 24 9Post 32 33 16 17

12.Iadmirescientistsandpeoplewhoworkinscience-relatedfields.3

Pre 10 30 36 23Post 11 28 31 29

13.Ihaveadifficulttimeunderstandingscience-relatedthings.3

Pre 39 42 15 4Post 38 41 18 2

14.IfeelthatIcandoscience-relatedthingsquitewell.3

Pre 6 21 42 31Post 3 24 45 28

15.IseemyselfhavingacareerthatisNOTverymuchrelatedmuchtoscience.2,3

Pre 30 36 26 6Post 27 46 17 10

16.Irarelytalkaboutscienceormyscience-relatedactivitieswithothers.1,3

Pre 20 45 25 10Post 25 37 26 11

17.Ienjoyorhavefundoingscience-relatedactivities.4

Pre 3 12 46 39Post 1 17 32 48


CONTACT XSci @ CU Boulder

XSci’s offices are at CSL The Center for STEM Learning at CU Boulder.

393 UCB Boulder, CO 80309

[email protected]@colorado.edup. 303-330-8951

Science

Experiential

ciSXExperiential Science EducationResearch Collaborative

Documents

A Twin Cities Public Television Project - stelar.edc.orgstelar.edc.org/sites/stelar.edc.org/files/SciGirls Strategies Final Research Report... · A Twin Cities Public Television Project