Cultivating an Engineering Identity Among Boys of Color Through an After-School STEM Mentoring Program

• In Event: Science Teaching and Learning: Engineering Education

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate the ways in which participation in an afterschool engineering mentoring program affects the development of an engineering identity among fourth and fifth grade boys of color. We build on Carlone and Johnson’s (2007) conceptual model of how science identity develops, offering three mechanisms by which participating in an afterschool program can enhance boys’ internal recognition of themselves as engineers and offer external recognition of them as engineers. The study comprises a comparative case study that examines one afterschool STEM mentoring program across three elementary schools. Data come from observations of sessions as well as interviews with the students and mentors.

Authors

• Virginia W. Snodgrass Rangel, University of Houston

• Jerrod Henderson, University of Houston

• James Holly Jr., Wayne State University

• Ricky Greer, University of Houston

• Mariam Manuel, University of Houston