Aspiration, Motivation, and Parent Conversations: Building Capacity Among High School Girls in STEM

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session 13
  In Roundtable Session: Studying Effects on Students' Mathematics Aspirations and Course-Taking

Abstract

We examined motivational and parental influences on the STEM aspirations of high school girls (n = 2,700) using data from the High School Longitudinal Study (HSLS:09) dataset. Building upon prior research advancing the predictive nature of parent conversations as a powerful form of parent involvement (Authors, 2019) and motivational theories (e.g., Bandura, 1997), we examined the likelihood of parent conversations, mathematics self-efficacy, and mathematics interest to influence girls’ aspirations to pursue a STEM major in college. Preliminary results of regression analysis indicate that girls who engage in parent conversations and with higher mathematics self-efficacy are more likely to aspire to major in STEM than not. The odds ratio for mathematics interest was not statistically significant.

Authors

• Nicol R. Howard, University of Redlands

• Andrea L. Tyler, Tennessee State University

• Karisma Morton, University of North Texas

• Naomi Jessup, Georgia State University