Metacognition: The Key to Increasing Diversity in STEM Disciplines
Increasing Diversity in STEM through Professional Development Activities
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Transcript of Increasing Diversity in STEM through Professional Development Activities
Jonathan M. Holland, Debra A. Major, Valerie J. Morganson, & Karin A. Orvis
Old Dominion University
This research was supported by a SEED grant from Old Dominion University.
Difficult to retain women and minorities in STEM
◦Fewer of these underrepresented groups enter and persist (Varma, 2007)
Why? Differential preparation outside of classroom?
◦STEM fields have a “chilly” climate (Morganson et al., in press)
Capitalization = Proactive participation in voluntary professional development activities
◦ Builds professional identity in the workplace (Ibarra, 1999)
Influenced by environmental supports and barriers (Maurer et al., 2003)
◦ Differences in these factors between men and women (Lent et al., 2008)
Capitalization has been relatively unexplored in an academic setting
1. How do engineering and computer science students capitalize?
2. Why do they capitalize?
3. What factors support or discourage capitalization?
4. What are the similarities and differences in capitalization, its supports, and its barriers, across gender, major, and university environment?
8 focus groups consisted of:
◦Men and women
◦Computer Science and Engineering students
◦Students from a primarily white institution (PWI) and a historically black institution (HBI)
(1) How do students capitalize?
Formal Activities◦Student organizations◦Tutoring programs◦Career-building services◦ Internships and work opportunities
Informal Activities◦Networking with peers and alumni◦Forming study groups with classmates◦Seeking out mentoring from faculty◦ Independent research
Intrinsic Incentives◦Personal interest in the field◦Peers provide emotional support and a “break” from
coursework
Extrinsic Incentives◦Resume building◦ Immediate payment◦Enhancing skills to become more marketable
(2) Why do students capitalize?
(3a) What factors support capitalization?
Role models Advisor and faculty encouragement Active information about activities
(3b) What factors prevent capitalization?
Time Lack of information about events Underrepresentation in the activity
Women preferred formal activities◦Student organizations
Men preferred informal activities◦Networking◦Opportunities for applied experience
Women often expressed discomfort at participating in predominantly male activities
Engineering majors prioritized forging professional contacts for career positioning
◦Peer and alumni networks◦Participating in internships and work opportunities
Computer Science majors prioritized attaining technical skills
◦Keeping “ahead of the curve” by learning programming skills above and beyond their coursework
The HBI seemed to offer a more supportive environment than the PWI
◦Advisors were more often described as proactive
◦Students were better informed about opportunities
◦Organizations targeting underrepresented groups had more presence
◦Gender was not discussed as often as a barrier
STEM education is a pipeline for the workforce
Capitalization continues in the workplace (Maurer et al., 2003)
Programs should actively disseminate information about opportunities
Advisors should take a proactive role in encouraging capitalization
More experienced students who have capitalized should share their experiences with other students
Offer formal activities to attract/retain female talent
Empirical research investigating antecedents and outcomes of capitalization in an academic context
Differences in university type