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Trends in Higher Education
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STEM in Higher Education
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STEM in Higher Education

A special issue of Trends in Higher Education (ISSN 2813-4346).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2024) | Viewed by 10427

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Carla C. Johnson

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of STEM Education, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA
Interests: STEM teaching and learning; STEM policy; STEM professional development
Dr. Janet B. Walton

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of STEM Education, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA
Interests: STEM teaching and learning; partnerships; STEM curriculum

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The aim of this Special Issue is to examine relevant current research in the area of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) teaching and learning in higher education, with a special focus on individuals from historically underserved and underrepresented backgrounds in STEM. Diversity in the STEM workforce remains a pervasive challenge, as evidenced by the considerable underrepresentation of individuals from low socio-economic groups, first-generation college students, and individuals of certain ethnic or racial heritages in postsecondary STEM education programs; consequently, as many have discussed, “we are missing critical contributors to our talent pool”.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

  • Instructional strategies used in post-secondary STEM courses;
  • Academic success and/or progress in STEM degree programs;
  • The mentoring of STEM students;
  • Supplemental supports for STEM students (e.g., tutoring, supplemental instruction);
  • Creating inclusiveness, a community of learners, and other modes of engaging students socially and emotionally;
  • Innovative curricular and pedagogical approaches;
  • Internship, co-op, and other experiential education opportunities;
  • Alignment challenges with K-12 education;
  • The development of STEM identity, STEM interest, and/or STEM self-efficacy;
  • Undergraduate, graduate, and/or technical programs.
  • Workforce development.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Carla C. Johnson
Dr. Janet B. Walton
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Trends in Higher Education is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1000 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • STEM
  • teaching
  • learning
  • pedagogy
  • instruction
  • mentoring
  • identity
  • interest
  • self-efficacy
  • community of learners

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 547 KiB  
Article
Evaluating the Impact of STEM Academic Interventions on College Readiness for Rural Students
by Janet B. Walton, Toni A. May and Carla C. Johnson
Trends High. Educ. 2024, 3(4), 1017-1030; https://doi.org/10.3390/higheredu3040059 - 27 Nov 2024
Viewed by 446
Abstract
This study used a quasi-experimental cohort approach to investigate the impact of early academic interventions on rural students’ academic college readiness as measured by indicators of science, mathematics, and English language proficiency in the United States. The program, delivered by a higher education [...] Read more.
This study used a quasi-experimental cohort approach to investigate the impact of early academic interventions on rural students’ academic college readiness as measured by indicators of science, mathematics, and English language proficiency in the United States. The program, delivered by a higher education institution, implemented a range of academic supports for students, including tutoring and in-class and after-school support by credentialed instructors, with the aim of preparing students for success in secondary and post-secondary educational experiences. The American College Testing (ACT) Aspire scores in science, mathematics, English language comprehension, and reading for a cohort of 8th-grade students in their second year of program participation (n = 100) were compared to the scores of a cohort of non-participants (n = 86) from the same school. Students who had participated in the program were significantly more likely than non-participants to meet college readiness benchmarks in all content areas and scored significantly higher than the non-program cohort in terms of their average percentile ranks. More research is needed to understand how particular interventions or combinations of interventions implemented in middle school impact students’ college readiness. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue STEM in Higher Education)
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15 pages, 1800 KiB  
Article
The Impact of Community-Focused CUREs on Biology Student Identity, Persistence, and Career Outcomes at an HBCU
by John W. Curtis, Ashley N. Haines and Nazir Barekzi
Trends High. Educ. 2024, 3(4), 978-992; https://doi.org/10.3390/higheredu3040057 - 19 Nov 2024
Viewed by 313
Abstract
Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) have been widely hailed as an innovative approach to engage students in college coursework through exposure to authentic research, leading to improved persistence and more equitable access to research opportunities. This article presents an analysis of the impact [...] Read more.
Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) have been widely hailed as an innovative approach to engage students in college coursework through exposure to authentic research, leading to improved persistence and more equitable access to research opportunities. This article presents an analysis of the impact of implementing a novel type of CURE across the biology curriculum at one public historically black university, introducing a community focus through a partnership with a local nonprofit organization working to restore a polluted local river. The analysis incorporates survey research on student science identity and sense of belonging with administrative records on persistence to graduation and limited data on graduates’ further education and careers. We find that more of the students who completed these novel CUREs graduated on time with a biology degree than those who did not complete CUREs, and that most biology graduates do go on to use their degrees in further education and/or careers in science or healthcare. We discuss the limitations of our analysis, including the relatively short timeframe covered by our data, the almost incalculable impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the retrospective nature of our assessment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue STEM in Higher Education)
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16 pages, 844 KiB  
Article
Improving Retention and Success of African American Students in Computer Science: A Mixed-Method Case Study at an HBCU
by Jung Won Hur, Cassandra Thomas, Li Huang and Xiao Chang
Trends High. Educ. 2024, 3(4), 912-927; https://doi.org/10.3390/higheredu3040053 - 3 Nov 2024
Viewed by 722
Abstract
This case study introduces the STARS (Supporting Talented African American Undergraduates for Retention and Success) project, designed to foster the retention and success of academically talented African American computer science students from low-income backgrounds at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in the [...] Read more.
This case study introduces the STARS (Supporting Talented African American Undergraduates for Retention and Success) project, designed to foster the retention and success of academically talented African American computer science students from low-income backgrounds at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in the U.S. The STARS program employs a holistic approach, integrating four primary pillars of support: academic, social, career, and financial. Specific support provided includes near-peer mentoring, technical skill development seminars, undergraduate research, and high school outreach activities. To explore the program’s effectiveness and areas of improvement, a mixed-method evaluation study was conducted, collecting data through surveys, observations, individual interviews, and focus group interviews. The findings revealed that the STARS program contributed to high levels of retention among its scholars, and the mentoring program provided valuable networking opportunities. The study suggests that the program’s comprehensive approach, tailored to scholars’ needs, and combined with a culturally affirming learning environment, facilitates the retention and success of talented African American students in computer science. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue STEM in Higher Education)
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14 pages, 1036 KiB  
Article
Changing Classroom Ecology to Support Continued Engineering Enrollment
by Matthew Bahnson, Eric T. McChesney, Linda DeAngelo and Allison Godwin
Trends High. Educ. 2024, 3(2), 423-436; https://doi.org/10.3390/higheredu3020025 - 14 Jun 2024
Viewed by 809
Abstract
Engineering requires more bachelor’s degree graduates to meet the growing demand for engineering skills globally. One way to address this demand is increasing student degree completion, which is lower than higher education in general. In particular, Black, Latino/a/x, and Indigenous (BLI) students are [...] Read more.
Engineering requires more bachelor’s degree graduates to meet the growing demand for engineering skills globally. One way to address this demand is increasing student degree completion, which is lower than higher education in general. In particular, Black, Latino/a/x, and Indigenous (BLI) students are less likely to complete an engineering degree than their peers. BLI students experience a host of unwelcoming behaviors in engineering environments that contribute to departure without their intended degree. Improving environments to support belonging may offer one solution. Through an ecological belonging intervention, we seek to improve continued enrollment and increase belonging. Quasi-experimental methods were used in a second-semester engineering programming course. Surveys collected before and after an intervention combined with institutional data were used to test the moderation effects of the intervention on continued enrollment in engineering during the semester following the intervention. BLI students who were enrolled in intervention treatment sections were more likely to be enrolled in engineering the following fall. The intervention treatment increased belonging such that control section participants were less likely to continue to be enrolled in engineering. While research to assess the efficacy and mechanisms of the intervention is ongoing, the intervention offers promising results to address attrition, particularly for BLI students. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue STEM in Higher Education)
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20 pages, 1513 KiB  
Article
Toward a Holistic Understanding of Factors That Support or Inhibit Graduate Student Success
by Karen M. Collier and Margaret R. Blanchard
Trends High. Educ. 2023, 2(3), 389-408; https://doi.org/10.3390/higheredu2030023 - 23 Jun 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 4550
Abstract
The goal of this research was to gain a holistic understanding of factors that support or inhibit graduate student success, with a particular interest in the experiences of underrepresented minorities, females in STEM, and first-generation college students. The Graduate Student Success Survey (GSSS) [...] Read more.
The goal of this research was to gain a holistic understanding of factors that support or inhibit graduate student success, with a particular interest in the experiences of underrepresented minorities, females in STEM, and first-generation college students. The Graduate Student Success Survey (GSSS) was developed and validated with 537 M.S. and Ph.D. students at a research-intensive university in the southeastern United States. Guided by Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and informed by salient factors described in the literature and published surveys, items were developed to measure students’ perceptions of imposter syndrome, microaggressions, microaffirmations, mentoring, sense of belonging, financial support, and mentor relationships. This manuscript details the development of these items and validation of the GSSS with full- and part-time thesis-based graduate students across twelve colleges, six of which were STEM-focused. Validity and reliability were tested with exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, resulting in a survey with seven subscales. Findings revealed significant differences in these graduate students’ experiences based on their gender identity, racial and ethnic group, citizenship status, and program area. The findings of this study report the experiences of graduate students at one institution. However, the validated survey and the recommendations resulting from the findings could be used to scaffold student success and provide insight for faculty and administrators on how to better support students. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue STEM in Higher Education)
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Review

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18 pages, 287 KiB  
Review
Project-Based Learning as a Potential Decolonised Assessment Method in STEM Higher Education
by Joanne Daniella Lalujan and Md Zahidul Islam Pranjol
Trends High. Educ. 2024, 3(1), 16-33; https://doi.org/10.3390/higheredu3010002 - 3 Jan 2024
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2181
Abstract
Decolonising the curriculum (DtC) is an emerging concept that continues to challenge higher education institutions globally, with educators and scholars increasingly recognising how traditional curricular structures, content, and pedagogical practices can reinforce colonial biases and marginalise certain student groups. DtC can be seen [...] Read more.
Decolonising the curriculum (DtC) is an emerging concept that continues to challenge higher education institutions globally, with educators and scholars increasingly recognising how traditional curricular structures, content, and pedagogical practices can reinforce colonial biases and marginalise certain student groups. DtC can be seen as a process rather than a phenomenon, one which is ongoing and multiplexed, consisting of elements that aim to dismantle the hierarchy between staff and students and question the ways in which knowledge is produced, valued, and disseminated. The expected outcome is to provide students with an education which is equitable, inclusive, and relevant to their personal lives and experiences. Efforts in DtC have continued to gain traction, but assessment practices remain overlooked as a crucial component, with most decolonising efforts focussed towards content and pedagogy. As such, this review aims to contribute to the conversation by exploring the roots and impacts of colonisation on higher education, particularly within the context of assessment in STEM subjects. We examine various elements of decolonised assessment methods and ultimately suggest project-based learning (PBL) as a comprehensive approach that brings together the aforementioned decolonial elements, illustrating this concept through the examination of a PBL assessment mode study conducted at the University of Sussex. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue STEM in Higher Education)
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