Stability and changes in high school students' STEM career expectations: Variability based on STEM support and parent
Christine R Starr1, Perla Ramos Carranza1, Sandra D Simpkins1
1School of Education, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California, USA.
Parental and teacher support in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) helps students maintain STEM career expectations. This is especially true for students with non-college educated parents, who are otherwise more likely to switch career paths.
Area of Science:
- Education
- Sociology of Education
- Career Development
Background:
- Student career expectations in STEM fields are influenced by various factors.
- Understanding these factors is crucial for promoting diversity and retention in STEM.
- Disparities exist based on parental education levels, impacting student trajectories.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how STEM support influences changes in students' STEM career expectations during high school.
- To examine if these influences differ for students with college-educated versus non-college-educated parents.
Main Methods:
- Utilized data from the High School Longitudinal Study (n=13,100).
- Analyzed predictors of changes in STEM career expectations from 9th to 11th grade.
- Controlled for demographic factors including parental education, gender, and race/ethnicity.
Main Results:
- Students with non-college educated parents were more likely to shift away from STEM careers.
- Parental and teacher STEM support positively predicted maintaining STEM career expectations.
- STEM support was particularly beneficial for students with non-college educated parents in maintaining their STEM aspirations.
Conclusions:
- Parental and teacher STEM support are vital for sustaining student interest and expectations in STEM careers.
- Interventions should focus on increasing STEM support for students from non-college educated backgrounds.
- Targeted support can help close achievement and retention gaps in STEM fields.
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