Implementing a Peer Role Model Program in College Calculus Classes to Broaden Women’s Participation in STEM

Abstract

In this paper we provide a detailed account of how to implement a peer role model (PRM) program similar to the one that we developed at San Diego State University (SDSU) to broaden participation of college women in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). In particular, we summarize our findings of the PRM program’s best practices, explaining how we recruit, select, and train PRMs, and giving a protocol for successful presentation and implementation of the program. We begin with some background information so that readers understand the rationale for developing the PRM program. We then offer a step-by-step guide to building a PRM program, so that educators and practitioners have a clear guide to follow when implementing their own PRM program. Our PRM program was facilitated by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF DRL 1535117) and the strong support from the mathematics department at SDSU. We recognize that not everyone interested in implementing their own PRM program has access to the same resources and that institutions may differ in the structure of their calculus sequence; hence, in the discussion section we provide some suggestions for how the PRM program’s methodology might be adapted and scaled to other institutions.

Keywords:

• Peer role models
• STEM
• calculus
• broadening participation

Notes

1 We only included Latino and White PRMs because one of the foci of our PRM program was in examining the impact of PRM similarity and Latino students are the largest ethnic minority group at SDSU; hence, focusing on Latino students would give us the best chance of examining PRM similarity based on shared race/ethnicity. Although we choose to focus on Latino students we believe that with the appropriate modifications our PRM program would be effective for any underrepresented population in STEM.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Sei Jin Ko

Sei Jin Ko is a research assistant professor in the psychology department at San Diego State University. She received her B.A. from the Royal College of Music, M.A. from the University of Colorado, Boulder, and her Ph.D. from the University of Groningen, The Netherlands. Her research focuses on broadening STEM participation among underrepresented populations via interventions that alleviate the sociocultural barriers that they face.

David M. Marx

David M. Marx is an associate professor of psychology and an elected member of the Center for Research in Mathematics and Science Education (CRMSE) at San Diego State University. He received a B.A. in psychology from the University of California, Berkeley and a Ph.D. in social psychology from Harvard University. His research focuses on diversity and equity issues as they relate to educational outcomes of underrepresented social and ethnic minority groups.

Susan D. Nickerson

Susan D. Nickerson is an associate professor of mathematics at San Diego State University and a coauthor of a mathematics textbook for prospective elementary school teachers. She studied applied mathematics at the University of California, San Diego and she received her Ph.D. in mathematics education jointly from UCSD/San Diego State University.

Katie Bjorkman

Katie Bjorkman is a mathematics and science education Ph.D. student at San Diego State University and the University of California, San Diego. Her primary research interest is undergraduate mathematics tutoring and how mathematics learning centers can be leveraged as forces for equity and support the success of traditionally underrepresented student groups in STEM. She is a member of the Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education Mathematics Resource Center national working group.