Representation in STEM Careers Matter
Minority groups are the most underrepresented groups in the STEM career field. Although minority students are likely to enter STEM fields, there is a wide gap between them and their white peers (Ghazzawi, Pattison, & Horn, 2021). Socio-economic backgrounds, the lack of representation in the field, and the lack of representation in the classroom are some of the main contributors to this problem. Students spend roughly 17, 280 hours with their teachers throughout their school careers. For some students, that time is the most valuable. To have someone who cares about them, willing to take the time to deal with the issues and make them feel like they matter is a huge deal! Across the country, some groups have been established to bridge the gap and help mentor minority students into STEM professions.
Curiosity in STEM Careers
When a teacher asks students what career they would like to pursue when they graduate, you hear popular careers like Doctor and Engineer. You hear silence when you try to dig deeper and ask what type. The silence is even louder when it comes to minority students. Many of these students have heard the words but don't even know what it means to be one, and they don't understand how to become one or envision themselves as one. According to an article released in the Journal of STEM Education, 52% of students who took the ACT in Alabama expressed an interest in STEM; of that 52%, 15% measured high interest, and 2% of those students were African American (Escobar & Qazi, 2020). So how do teachers introduce their students to these careers? In the classroom, STEM educators could introduce their students to STEM careers through hands-on, engaging activities. Outside of the school are STEM programs created for students to immerse themselves. In Alabama, they have the BUILDERS Academy to assist with filling the void and give their students access to "valuable STEM experiences" (Escobar & Qazi, 2020). Through its challenges, the BUILDERS Academy has successfully increased the outlook on minority students entering STEM careers and is one of many programs.
Motivation to Pursue STEM Careers
The impact of mentorship in the K-12 setting has proven to impact minority achievement in STEM preparedness for college. Once students see what they are capable of, the goal is to ensure they see their goals as measurable for high achievement (Reiser & Dempsey, 2018). High school teachers and counselors' role in ensuring that their students are prepared to pursue these careers is vital. To some minority students, they don't receive the support that they need. The lack of support is due to factors like lack of financial support, low-self efficacy, and lack of parental guidance. The Benjamin Banneker Scholars Program (BBSP) was designed to address the challenges of recruiting and retaining minority students beyond high school (Kendricks, Arment, & Nedunuri, 2019). The BBSP has created The STEM Family model. This model pairs students with faculty mentors who serve as "parents" who are actively present in continuing to mold and encourage its students into STEM careers. The research behind their program shows that they had an 88% retention rate for STEM students than all other students, and the mentorship from faculty advisors had high approval ratings (Kendricks et al., 2019).
Satisfying Outcomes of STEM Careers
The book Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology states that students are motivated to learn when there are satisfying outcomes (Riser & Dempsey, 2018). STEM workers have better labor market outcomes and higher salary medians than non-STEM workers (National Science Board, National Science Foundation, 2021). Mentoring more students into these careers will call for higher incomes and a better living standard for low-income minorities. That is why increasing the number of minority STEM workers is essential. The increase of minority students will also diversify and call for more innovation in STEM careers. Students who are successful from these mentoring relationships will also be more inclined to reciprocate what was poured into them. This cycle will hopefully continue, closing the gaps in STEM engagement, performance, and representation (MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership, 2018). Groups like MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership has goals to assist with the increase of satisfied STEM students. They help them to develop skills, a solidified STEM path, and a plan to ensure they are successful beyond their high school foundation.
Conclusion
Whether we've realized it or not, we have all been impacted by someone somehow. It took for someone to say something motivational that stuck with you or to show you something that sparked a fire to fuel your success. Mentorship plays a vital role in the success of developing minority STEM workers. Sometimes, all these students need is for people to pour into them, guide them, and show them that they already have the protentional they just simply need to use it. We are thankful for teachers and mentoring groups to help us with this national problem.
References
Ghazzawi D., Pattison D., & Horn C. (2021) Persistence of Underrepresented Minorities in STEM Fields: Are Summer Bridge Programs Sufficient?. Front. Educ. 6:630529. doi: 10.3389/feduc.2021.630529
Escobar, M., & Qazi, M. (2020). BUILDERS: A Project-Based Learning Experience to Foster STEM Interest in Students from Underserved High Schools. Journal of STEM Education: Innovations and Research, 21(3), 35–43.
Kendricks, K. D., Arment, A. A., Nedunuri, K. V., & Lowell, C. A. (2019). Aligning Best Practices in Student Success and Career Preparedness: An Exploratory Study to Establish Pathways to STEM Careers for Undergraduate Minority Students. Journal of Research in Technical Careers, 3(1), 27–48.
MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership. (2018). Supplement to the Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring [Ebook]. MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership. Retrieved from https://www.mentoring.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/STEM-Supplement-to-EEP.pdf
National Science Board, National Science Foundation. 2021. The STEM Labor Force of Today: Scientists, Engineers and Skilled Technical Workers. Science and Engineering Indicators 2022. NSB-2021-2. Alexandria, VA. Available at https://ncses.nsf.gov/pubs/nsb20212.
Reiser, R. A., & Dempsey, J. V. (2018). Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology. Pearson.
FULL STEM AHEAD: THE IMPACT OF MENTORING MINORITY HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS INTO STEM CAREERS
When I look around many of the Stem programs in the local schools, minorities are one of the must misrepresented race of people in the program. My youngest daughter was in the Stem program at her high school and she was among only five African American students in the class. It could be because of the lack of diversity in those that actually teach the program. According to Reiser, R. A., & Dempsey, J. V. (2017). Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology (4th ed.). Pearson Education, motivation in the broadest sense, refers to a person’s desires to pursue a goal or perform a task.
anmillermccurdy
FULL STEM AHEAD: THE IMPACT OF MENTORING MINORITY HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS INTO STEM CAREERS
blog-idt520/post/full-stem-ahead-the-impact-of-mentoring-minority-high-school-students-into-stem-careers
The incorporation of peer mentoring and immersive learning activities can be blended into the trajectory of preparing minority students for STEM careers. The blog, by jtmineo, CREATING AN ALL INCLUSIVE STEAM CLASSROOM FOR ALL AGEST WITH ROBOTICS,
blog-idt520/post/creating-an-all-inclusive-steam-classroom-for-all-ages-with-robotics
is a positive step in the direction of engaging minority high school students in STEM activities that could lead to careers in fields where they might previously have been reluctant to pursue. The beautiful thing about creating robotics is that it blends the needed socio-emotional (Reiser and Dempsey, 2018) soft skills such as: problem solving, cooperation, critical thinking with hands-on learning. It is possible for students…
Earlier this spring, I had the incredible opportunity of traveling to Fort Meyers, Florida, to speak at Dunbar High School's Academy for Technology and Excellence annual awards ceremony on behalf of the Emerging Technologies degrees here at Full Sail. Dunbar High School received Title 1 funding, meaning at least 40% of the students must be from low-income families. Their Academy for Technology and Excellence is a magnet program where students have the opportunity to receive several industry-standard informational technology computer certificates. During my time there, I met many students, as young as 14 years old, who held multiple professional certifications; these students, and their teachers, truly opened my eyes to what high school education could look like for technologies.
Educators leave imprints into their students lives by the way they teach and connect with them daily. These imprints they leave help shape students who and what they want to be moving forward in life. I have had two High School teachers that have taught STEM. They ended up teaching myself great things and have left imprints in my life to keep me going onto my road of design and education. They have become my mentors over time, and it was because the imprint they had on me when I was just staring out in the design world. Teachers with an integrative interpretation envision STEM teaching as more than a focus on content areas in isolation. They strive to draw…
Learners – Engagement - Free Inclusive Stem Classes
There are many STEM classes available in public schools and online.The gap is closing, and the brilliant minds of innovative technology developers have opened the door for scholars to participate in STEM activities, regardless of their economic or social background.Social economic background and disparities no longer hinder all students engaging in STEM learning. The learning process can take place at home or in a school environment. It’s essential that students are aware of and participate in STEM programs.
Knowledge, importance, and availability of STEMS programs can be introduced to parents and guardians.Knowledge of the purpose and importance of STEMS can become a family discussion in the home.Exposure through civic engagement and social…