Clair J. Sullivan is an assistant professor in the Department of Nuclear, Plasma and Radiological Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). Her research interests include radiation detection and measurements; gamma-ray spectroscopy; automated isotope identification algorithms; nuclear forensics; nuclear security;…

Partial derivatives are used in a variety of different ways within physics. Thermodynamics, in particular, uses partial derivatives in ways that students often find especially confusing. We are at the beginning of a study of the teaching of partial derivatives, with a goal of better aligning the teaching of multivariable calculus with the needs of…

This article compares students' critiques within a class discussion about an invented statistic to STEM professionals' critiques from interviews to better understand how the situated meanings of a statistic are similar and different across student and professional worlds. We discuss similarities and differences in how participants constructed…

There is increasing evidence that action learning is valuable in a higher education setting. This paper goes on to report a personal development programme, based on principles of critical action learning, where the aim is to equip early-career scientists and engineers working in a university setting with the knowledge, skills and confidence to…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to reveal the lived mentoring experiences of Latinas in science and engineering. The study also sought to understand how Latina scientists and engineers achieved high-level positions within their organizations and the impediments they encountered along their professional journey. The theoretical framework…

As a result of the underrepresentation of women in science and engineering programs, the culture is male-dominated and perpetuates an unsupportive and biased climate that discourages undergraduate women from connecting to their gender. Using a social identity framework, this study addresses how gender influences undergraduate women's perception of…

The purpose of this study was to explore the personal stories of men who selected careers in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) to better understand the ways in which their self-efficacy beliefs were created and subsequently influenced their academic and career choices. Analysis of 10 narratives revealed that mastery…

Over the past decade, three rationales have emerged for emphasizing the reinforcement of the United States' science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) pipeline. The first rationale pertains to U.S. global competitiveness, the second revolves around the benefits of a diverse workforce, and the third argument points to social justice…

"Culturally appropriate pedagogy" has become an important practice since 1990 to address the increasingly diverse student population in every part of the world. For all the good intentions, however, there is an inherent danger in identifying and accommodating students' cultural differences: we may fall into the trap of reifying superficially or…

Describes a study that investigated the role of a design context for developing children's understanding of science as the construction and revision of models. Results indicate that as early as the first grade, children's model-evaluation skills may be quite amenable to development. (DDR)

The analogy of the leaky pipeline, the notion of women leaving or failing to choose science in droves, is represented frequently by researchers and scientists. "If the structural and cultural causes for the leakages are ignored, attempts at increasing the representation of women at various pipeline segments may fall short" (G. Sonnert,…

Written and oral communications and the processes of writing and reading are highly valued within the scientific community; scientists who communicate well are successful in gaining recognition and support from members of their own communities, the research funding agencies, and the wider society. Yet how do scientists achieve this proficiency?…

A series of statistical analyses was conducted of institutional and departmental trends in women's graduate enrollment and employment in science and engineering in the 50 leading doctorate-granting institutions. Site visits to a diverse group of nine selected institutions were conducted. The schools were selected to be representative of the total…

The Women's Experiences in College Engineering (WECE) project is the first cross-institutional, longitudinal examination of undergraduate women's experiences and persistence in engineering majors. The study was funded by both the National Science Foundation and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and conducted by Goodman Research Group, Inc. (GRG), a…

The Women's Experiences in College Engineering (WECE) project is the first cross-institutional, longitudinal examination of undergraduate women's experiences and persistence in engineering majors. The study was funded by both the National Science Foundation and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and conducted by Goodman Research Group, Inc. (GRG), a…