Integrating Critical Approaches into Quantitative STEM Equity Work

The recent anti-racist movements in the United States have inspired a national call for more research on the experiences of racially marginalized and minoritized students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. As researchers focused on promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion, we contend that STEM education must, as a discipline, grapple with how analytic approaches may not fully support equity efforts. We discuss how researchers and educational practitioners should more critically approach STEM equity analyses and why modifying our approaches matters for STEM equity goals. Engaging with equity as a process rather than a static goal, we provide a primer of reflective questions to assist researchers with framing, analysis, and interpretation of student-level data frequently used to identify disparities and assess course-level and programmatic interventions. This guidance can inform analyses conducted by campus units such as departments and programs, but also across universities and the scientific community to enhance how we understand and address systemic inequity in STEM fields.