Industry-Relevant Program Design Contextualizes Informal STEM Education and Supports Student Outcomes

• In Event: The Biomaker Ecosystem: Technologies, Spaces, and Curriculum for K–12 Making With Biology

Abstract

Innovative learning opportunities and authentic career exposure are key drivers to maintaining STEM interest among pre-college students, especially students from populations historically underrepresented in STEM (e.g. Black, Latinx) (Carpi et al., 2017). FirstHand is a free, informal science education (ISE) program aimed at meeting these needs. Located at the University City Science Center (UCSC), a research park that is home to Philadelphia’s emerging biotechnology economy, FirstHand leverages this hyper-local network of STEM companies to embed student learning in scientific innovation. FirstHand’s immediate goal is to provide middle and high school students with authentic STEM career exposure that is relevant to themselves and their community. Our long-term goal is to inspire students to seek out and participate in the many STEM pathways and careers present in Philadelphia and the US.

FirstHand’s student-centered model encourages underrepresented students to engage in quality, industry-relevant curricula ranging from synthetic biology to electrochemistry, supported by STEM mentors. Cohorts of 14 middle and high school students travel with a school chaperone to the FirstHand lab during school hours once per week for 10 weeks, where they perform experiments and gain confidence in a lab setting. Each cohort is paired with an industry mentor who meets with students 3-4 times in various capacities: (1) hosting students for hands-on activities in their lab/work space, (2) supporting student inquiry, and (3) attending final showcases. This creates a clear bridge between what students are learning and the STEM career possibilities available in their own neighborhoods. Additionally, we recognize the importance of educators with whom students can self identify (e.g. Albright, Hurd, & Hussain, 2017), and strive to recruit mentors with similar backgrounds to our multidiverse students. This simultaneously provides students a space where they can feel they belong in the STEM ecosystem, while also enriching the mentor relationship and increasing the likelihood that students will cultivate positive learning outcomes from the program.

We propose that the combination of hands-on activities with industry mentors leads to positive student learning outcomes. We evaluate for three representative measures of program achievement: self-efficacy, science self-concept, and science relevance. Literature shows that students with increased self-efficacy in STEM are more likely to choose a career in STEM (Blotnicky et al., 2018); a higher self-concept leads to increased persistence in STEM courses (Luttenberger et al., 2019); and an understanding of how science is relevant to your life results in higher interest and achievement in STEM courses (Sheldrake et al., 2017). Among FirstHand participants in 2018-19, 62% exhibited increased self-efficacy (p<0.001) and 48% exhibited increased science relevance (p=0.017). Although not statistically significant, 39% of students exhibited positive change in their science self-concept. We hypothesize that this lack of significance was due to the relatively high self-concept that students reported on the pre-program survey. These positive outcomes highlight the need to further consider industry-mentored ISE learning as an entry point into STEM for underrepresented student groups.

Authors

• Melissa Kurman, University City Science Center - FirstHand

• Maya Heiland, University City Science Center