It is essential that all students who are interested in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) have the motivational supports to persist in their STEM career trajectories. "STEM role models," or successful individuals in STEM, can be powerful tools to motivate college students towards STEM careers, particularly if students…

For many years, there have been discrepancies between masculine and feminine populations in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. The problem was the gender disparity in middle and high school STEM classrooms, in which teachers often lack an understanding of the underlying reasons and measures needed to lessen the gender…

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive case study was to explore perceptions of elementary school teachers concerning the importance of increasing the motivation of elementary school students to learn STEM content. The study had 32 participants including elementary school teachers from private, public, and charter elementary schools in the…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the experiences of African American male Upward Bound participants to determine their identity status and to document their perceptions of Upward Bound's influence on their academic outcomes. This study examined the experiences of eight African American male Upward Bound participants at…

Using Dornyei's (2005) L2 Motivational Self System (L2MSS) and Kubanyiova's (2007, 2009) model of 'possible language teacher selves' as main theoretical frameworks, this multiple case study explored four language teaching assistants' developmental patterns with regards to their ideal language teacher selves over a two-year period. It also examined…

Hispanics, and women in particular, continue to be underrepresented in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The purpose of this study was to analyze cognitive and motivational factors that inspired Hispanic female college students to major in STEM programs and aspire to academic success. This mixed methods study…

Houle conducted one of the first studies about adult learner participation. In 1961, Houle wrote "The Inquiring Mind", which describes three distinct learning types: goal-oriented, activity-oriented, and learning-oriented learning. For more than fifty years, The Inquiring Mind has been read, referenced, and reviewed. Several scholars…

The qualitative descriptive case study explores the underachievement phenomenon of fourth-grade African American boys in New York City public elementary schools. Numerous studies have been conducted at the middle school through college levels. However, very little is known about the underachievement phenomenon of fourth-grade African American…

Colleges and universities have used a multitude of strategies to ensure that historically marginalized men of color graduate from their institutions. However, these schools have utilized deficit-based approaches that assumed this population did not have the skills to be successful in college. There was little evidence that utilizing this…

Low-income, first-generation students face numerous barriers on the path to college. However, millions of these students persevere and ultimately enroll. How do these students remain motivated on the road to higher education despite these challenges? This collective case study explored influences on the motivation of low-income, first generation…

While there is an abundant amount of research relative to coaching and mentoring programs, there is little understanding about the interaction between coaches/mentors and students. The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate student perceptions of their academic coaching and mentoring experiences at two Southern California community…

Some gifted students at a local elementary charter school were not performing at a level commensurate with their abilities. The purpose of this narrative study was to gain insight into why some gifted students struggled academically in the classroom by examining the perceptions of teachers who worked directly with these students. The theory of…

Robotics has gained a great deal of popularity across the United States as a means to engage youth in science, technology, engineering, and math. Understanding what motivates youth and adults to participate in a robotics project is critical to understanding how to engage others. By developing a robotics program built on a proper understanding of…

This qualitative phenomenological research study investigated the lived experiences of five successful first generation Hispanic college students. Participants' interviews were analyzed using Creswell's (2007) six steps for analyzing phenomenological studies. Findings from this study affirm the factors for student success in college regarding…

This mixed-methods study investigated relationships among gender, academic motivation and achievement in a mid-sized Wisconsin high school. A questionnaire was developed that focused on perceived ability, achievement motives and achievement goals. Interviews with teachers focused on relationships among academic motivation and gender achievement.…