Students' Perceptions of Mathematics and Science

• In Event: Promoting Equity Through Effective Informal STEM Learning Environments

Abstract

The systems of oppression and privilege are institutionalized in our society through forms of racism, classism, sexism, and ableism which manifests in the exclusion of minoritized individuals from STEM learning. To disrupt systems of oppression, we must provide students, particularly minoritized students, access to high quality integrated STEM learning experiences. Informal STEM learning experiences provide opportunities for students to engage in STEM learning that are not generally afforded to them in formal STEM environments. Students who struggle in formal, traditional STEM courses tend to be more interested and motivated in STEM when it is presented in a more engaging, hands-on way. Informal STEM learning experiences are naturally composed in a way to promote learning through real-world modeling and examples (Popovic and Lederman 2015). In this study, we examined how an informal STEM summer learning experience influenced middle school students’ perception of mathematics and science.

As a theoretical lens, we used situated learning theory. Applied to perceptions of STEM learning, this theoretical lens allows the experiences of students to be explored in the context of the authentic activity. The data, collected from 254 minoritized students, were reflection forms and semi-structured interviews which were designed to explore students’ “lived experiences” (Van Manen, 1990, p. 9) and how those experiences influenced their mathematics and science learning. We used an inductive approach to analyze the data, which incorporated systematic methods of managing data through reduction, organization, and connection (LeCompte, 2000).

We found that the majority of students had positive perceptions about mathematics due to the informal learning experiences. For example, Janae stated, “I learned a lot about mathematics. Like, the robotics. There’s a lot of logic in it, you know.” (Interview 2016). Luis further elaborated he had to “calculate how far it [the robot] is from the wall. And how far from the object… It [taught] me how to measure things more like without really thinking about it that much” (Interview 2016). The students recognized the importance of mathematics and applied those skills to accomplish specific tasks. Not only were the students able to apply mathematics content to solve problems, they were able to see how this learning was preparing them to be successful in the formal school setting. For example, Kya explained, “This place really helped me get ready for this year, this coming school year. I learned [many] things about science than I thought I would because almost every material is a polymer” (Interview 2017). The students’ perceptions of the activities helped them to not only understand the purpose of the content they were learning but realize the connections could help them excel in the subjects they learn in school. In other words, providing the same content in a new environment was a catalyst for a positive change in how the students perceived future STEM content. Providing students, especially minoritized students access to informal summer learning experiences can increase their opportunity to engage in activities that contextualize and give purpose to their mathematics and science learning.

Authors

• Christa Jackson, Iowa State University

• Margaret Mohr-Schroeder, University of Kentucky

• Thomas Roberts, Bowling Green State University

• Cathrine Maiorca, California State University - Long Beach