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The Stories of Middle School Science Teachers’ Teaching Evolution: A Narrative Inquiry
No full textAvoidance of the theory of evolution occurs in science classrooms due to levels of dissonance from challenges that persist in the United States from conflicting worldviews and a lack of support regarding the topic of evolution. The purpose of this qualitative study with a narrative inquiry design was to explore the stories of science teachers teaching evolution in middle schools. This study adopted a qualitative method with a narrative inquiry design. Participants were 10 public middle school science teachers with at least 10 years of science teaching experience in urban, suburban, and rural areas of the Pacific Northwest. The central research question of this study was: What are the stories of science teachers teaching evolution in middle schools? The results disclosed eight major themes: (a) intrinsic motivation from science authors, childhood interests, and family members; (b) microevolution as a common teaching approach to teach evolution; (c) macroevolution as an uncommon teaching approach for teaching evolution; (d) hominins as an uncommon teaching approach for teaching evolution; (e) external challenges of religious conflict among students, colleagues, and parents; (f) internal challenges with colleagues and students; (g) support from administrators and colleagues; and (h) need for support by administrators and colleagues. The findings showed a need for teacher training courses and professional development opportunities. Recommendations for future research are included
A Case Study: Perceptions of an Indigenous STEM Nonprofit Contributions to Self-Efficacy and Educational Experience
Full text linkNative American people and Indigenous people are underrepresented in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines. According to the National Science Foundation (NSF, 2015), Indigenous people represented 1.7% of the United States population, but only accounted for 0.6% of bachelor’s degrees, 0.4% of master’s degrees, and 0.2% of doctoral degrees in science and engineering. The low participation of Indigenous people in STEM disciplines have been attributed to reasons such as (a) lack of exposure, (b) lack of interest, (c) lack of confidence, (d) lack of a sense of belonging, and (e) lack of goal congruency. This qualitative research study sought to discover how Indigenous STEM graduates perceive a STEM nonprofit has contributed to their self-efficacy and educational experience. Data were gathered through a questionnaire, interviews, and a focus group with self-identifying Indigenous people who have completed a college degree within a STEM field since 2015 that have also held membership within AISES. Seventeen participants participated in the study. After manual and software coding, the data were analyzed in reference to the research question. Results revealed AISES has made major contributions to the self-efficacy and educational experiences of Indigenous STEM graduates. While both internal and external factors influenced graduates, self-efficacy, and educational experience, membership in AISES contributed to greater self-efficacy and the participants perceived AISES contributed to their educational and professional success. The findings also indicated more can be done to highlight the importance of STEM nonprofits and their contributions
Challenges in Conducting a Multicomponent, Theory-Based Intervention in Community-Based Research: The Recharge@Work Study to Reduce Sedentary Behavior in an Occupational Setting
No full textThis case study involves the experiences of researchers conducting community-based research during the Recharge@Work intervention to reduce sedentary behavior in desk-dependent office workers. Recharge@Work was a community-based research study consisting of a multicomponent, theory-based intervention conducted at two large hospitals in the Northwest United States. The aims were to (a) investigate psychosocial and organizational correlates of sedentary behavior in an occupational setting and (b) evaluate an intervention to reduce sedentary behavior in the same occupational setting. Working with three organizations and finding a balance between strong research methodology and the needs of community partners created many challenges. The complexity of a theory-based intervention as well as logistics of data collection and evaluation of the program required the research team to be adaptable and flexible in designing, implementing, and evaluating the sedentary behavior intervention. This case study discusses the specific challenges faced when conducting a multisite behavior change intervention as well as recommendations for future research in this area of public health