Attracting and retaining students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics majors, particularly those who are underrepresented, is a national concern. While undergraduate research experiences have been shown to increase retention and engagement, inequities in access exacerbate disparities. Understanding what hinders or facilitates the…

Project-Based Learning (PjBL) curricula offer unique opportunities for student engagement, yet they do not guarantee an engaging classroom. Furthermore, there has been little scholarly work on PjBL pedagogy that supports student engagement. This qualitative research study explores enactment of a PjBL Advanced Placement Physics 1 curriculum and the…

The development of science writing and presentation skills is necessary for a successful science career. Too often these skills are not included in pre- or postsecondary science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, leading to a disconnect between high schoolers' expectations for college preparedness and the skills needed to…

This paper explores the integration of STEM activities in teaching and learning, emphasizing the importance of innovative pedagogical approaches in effectively introducing theoretical concepts, such as variables and functions, and merging them with practical applications. Drawing on existing literature, this study investigates the integration of…

Elementary students' interest in science and careers in STEM are typically associated with their curiosity along with engagement in science activities and whether they find these activities to be fun, exciting, and enjoyable. Thus, early exposure of elementary students to STEM lessons must be engaging and enjoyable, which in turn increases the…

Agriscience teachers help support the mission of the American Floral Endowment to inspire people to pursue careers working with plants by providing curricula related to ornamental horticulture. Nevertheless, an overall understanding of how the horticulture industry is connected to the studies of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics…

Three central Virginia school districts and engineering education researchers at the University of Virginia were awarded an Investing in Innovation development grant to design, implement, test, and nationally disseminate a project-based engineering curriculum for middle school students. Referred to as invention kits, the curriculum is developed to…

Since established by an Appropriations Act in 2006, the Teacher Incentive Fund (TIF) competitive grant program in the U.S. Department of Education has supported human capital strategies "to ensure that students attending high-poverty schools have better access to effective teachers and principals, especially in hard-to-staff subject…

The Learning by Making (LbyM) project is funded by the U.S. Department of Education's Investing in Innovation Fund (i3). As a five-year development project (2014-2018), Sonoma State University (SSU), in partnership with high-need schools and districts, has been developing an innovative, integrated high school Science, Technology, Engineering, and…

Despite advances in active learning pedagogy and other methods designed to increase student engagement in the chemistry classroom, retention and engagement issues still persist, particularly with respect to women and minorities underrepresented in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) programs. Relevancy also remains elusive in…

This instrumental case study of Manor New Tech High (MNTH) provides insight and understanding of a trend in U.S. education to create new STEM schools and increase the achievement of students underrepresented in STEM. MNTH was an inclusive, STEM-focused high school, in Manor, Texas. The creation of the school was stimulated by a statewide Texas…

Research Goes to School (RGS) is a professional development program that focuses on high school teachers of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects. This collective case study examines RGS participants and their use of project-based learning (PBL) as they implemented curricular units that they developed at the RGS summer…

Finding the time for developing or locating new class materials is one of the biggest barriers for instructors reforming their teaching approaches. Even instructors who have taken part in training workshops may feel overwhelmed by the task of transforming passive lecture content to engaging learning activities. Learning cycles have been…

"Potemkin schools" is used as the phrase to capture what a US science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) public speciality high school becomes as a result of its institutional branding. By way of an examination of the efforts of one teacher drawn into school branding through his "inquiry-based reform" of an Advanced Chemistry course,…