This dissertation consists of three essays focused on policies that hold the potential to reduce gender and socioeconomic gaps in the developing world. The first two chapters focus on higher education while the last chapter focuses on STEM gender gaps during primary school. Chapter 1 looks at the impacts of new transportation infrastructure on…

California State University, Northridge's Hybrid Lab course model targets high failure rate, multisection, gateway courses in which prerequisite knowledge is a key to success. The Hybrid Lab course model components incorporate interventions and practices that have proven successful at CSUN and other campuses in supporting students, particularly…

The randomized research study assessed the effect of an inquiry-based science (IBS) program on non-cognitive outcomes and academic achievement. The study was the result of a grant that was awarded by Professional Resources in Science and Mathematics (PRISM), a program affiliated with Montclair State University in conjunction with Bristol-Myers…

This dissertation study concerned the lack of underrepresented minority students matriculating through the health professions pipeline. The term pipeline is "the educational avenue by which one must travel to successfully enter a profession" (Sullivan Alliance, 2004). There are a significant number of health professional pipeline…

The present study investigated the impact of a Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Health (STEM+H) university-based pipeline program, the Careers in Health and Medical Professions Program, over the course of two summers among predominantly African-American high school students recruited from urban school districts (N = 155). Based on…

Advances in science education research have the potential to improve the way students learn to perform scientific interpretations and understand science concepts. We developed active, collaborative activities to teach skills in manipulating flow cytometry data using FlowJo software. Undergraduate students were given compensated clinical flow…

Even though school administrators and their leadership practices are rarely explored within science education research, our recent efforts to understand organizational influences on achievement disparities induced an elevated regard for elementary school principals. In this paper, we report on policy buffering by principals at schools whose…

"I can feel it making my brain bigger": from a Year 8 student at Pinjarra Senior High School (SHS) halfway through the two-year Thinking Science Program. Pinjarra was a pilot school for the program in 2009/10 and a growing number of schools in Western Australia (WA) are implementing this program in Years Seven to Nine as part of the…

Citizen science programs are joint efforts between hobbyists and professional scientists designed to collect data to support scientific research. Through these programs, biologists study species population trends while citizen scientists improve their content knowledge and science skills. The purpose of the present mixed method quasi-experimental…

This study investigated a gap that may have existed between students' expectations and perceptions of the 2007 Pre-Entry Science Program (PESP) cohort at the National University of Lesotho and factors that might have influenced these expectations and perceptions. Questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were used for data collection and…

Bringing Up Girls in Science (BUGS) was an afterschool program for 4th and 5th grade girls that provided authentic learning experiences in environmental science as well as valuable female mentoring opportunities in an effort to increase participants' academic achievement in science. BUGS participants demonstrated significantly greater amounts of…

This brief presents findings from a study on Urban Advantage (UA), a collaboration between the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), other New York City informal science institutions, and the New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) to improve the science literacy of NYC public school students. The analysis draws on a rich longitudinal…

In times of economic downturn, college enrollments often increase. Entering students may come from diverse educational backgrounds and bring variable skill sets. In this article, the authors describe a skills-focused course developed to ensure that transfer and nontraditional students returning to education are prepared to succeed in…

This paper presents the full results from a 2008/2009 research study examining the application of a "learning environment" paradigm to the school library setting. The preliminary results from the examination of the Fifth Grade science classes were presented at the IASL 2009 Research Forum. We now report the process of completing our…

The authors report relations between entrance criteria and study success in a program for a master of science in business. Based on the admission criteria broadly used in European business schools and the findings of prior research, the present authors measured eight criteria for study success in the master's degree program. The authors applied…