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Abstract
Background: It is widely agreed that more needs to be done to improve participation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Despite considerable investment in interventions, it has been difficult to discern their effectiveness and/or impact on participation.
Purpose: This paper discusses findings from a six-week pilot STEM careers intervention that was designed and overseen by a teacher from one London girls’ school. We reflect on the challenges for those attempting such interventions and the problems associated with evaluating them.
Sample: Data were collected from Year 9 students (girls aged 13–14 years) at the school.
Design and methods: Pre- and post-intervention surveys of 68 students, classroom observations of intervention activities, three post-intervention discussion groups (five or six girls per group) and a post-intervention interview with the lead teacher were conducted.
Results: Although the intervention did not significantly change students’ aspirations or views of science, it did appear to have a positive effect on broadening students’ understanding of the range of jobs that science can lead to or be useful for.
Conclusions: Student aspirations may be extremely resistant to change and intervention, but students’ understanding of ‘where science can lead’ may be more amenable to intervention. Implications are discussed, including the need to promote the message that science is useful for careers in and beyond science, at degree and technical levels.
Notes
2. https://www.gov.uk/what-works-network: a network of independent research centres that ‘will collate published evidence on the effectiveness of interventions, assess these using a common currency, publish clear synthesis reports and share findings in an accessible way with practitioners and commissioners and policy makers’ (i).
4. The sessions were: Introduction: Assessment of knowledge, values, aptitudes around STEM careers; Humanoid Robots: Investigating ‘smart’ materials - use smart springs to design a functional limb; Glass Artist: Understanding and using chemistry to make jewellery; Science Writer: Exploring science in order to communicate problems and solutions; Timber Framer: Exploring the properties of different woods for different purposes; and Chief Scientific Officer: exploring how can we get accurate data about numbers of organisms in an ecosystem? The programme concluded with a review and evaluation session.
5. Students were asked to recall careers through a class discussion and then worked on laptops to explore the Futuremorph website, and were tasked with finding as many careers as possible that ‘use science and/or maths’. Emphasis was placed on finding unusual or unexpected careers. Students worked in pairs and discussed the task as they did it. After, the teacher convened a class plenary to share findings, and highlight particular job video clips from the website. After being shown how to research information on a particular career, students worked in pairs to discuss and answer questions about particular STEM careers. Students were then asked to create a clear, concise presentation (for a parent/sibling) explaining the role of the STEM career they had chosen. Finally, students gave 30-second presentations to one another about what they had found out before coming back to a plenary prompting students to reflect on one thing they still want to find out, two reasons why they are interested in a career involving mathematics/science and identifying three careers in mathematics/science.
6. This lesson began with students watching a film clip of a glass artist (from the FutureMorph website). Students discussed in pairs or small groups what science the artist would need to use, before discussing as a whole class, drawing out particular scientific elements and processes. The teacher supported discussion to identify other artistic careers that involve science and design and to explore scientific questions, such as ‘what is colour?’ The teacher described the task of making glass beads and demonstrated it. Girls completed activity sheets about the task and made glass beads. The class concluded with everyone looking at the beads (their own and those made by a previous class); students voted for which beads they preferred and then were asked to fill out their STEM booklets (reflecting on activities across the whole intervention).