What experiences constitute failures? High school students' reflections on their struggles in STEM classes.

Area of Science:

• Educational Psychology
• Talent Development
• STEM Education

Background:

• Adapting to failure is vital for developing talent in STEM fields.
• The process of learning from failure in talent development is not well understood.
• Understanding student conceptualizations of failure is key.

Purpose of the Study:

• Investigate how students conceptualize and react to failures.
• Examine the correlation between failure conceptualization, emotional responses, and academic performance.
• Inform talent development strategies in STEM.

Main Methods:

• Surveyed 150 high-achieving high school students.
• Students shared, interpreted, and labeled memorable STEM class struggles.
• Analyzed the focus of struggles (learning process vs. performance outcomes).

Main Results:

• Student struggles primarily centered on the learning process (e.g., understanding, motivation, strategies).
• Labeling struggles as 'failures' correlated with a focus on performance outcomes.
• Higher-achieving students were less likely to label struggles as failures compared to lower-achievers.

Conclusions:

• Students' framing of struggles impacts their learning and performance.
• STEM talent development should encourage viewing struggles as learning opportunities.
• Classroom strategies can be adapted to foster resilience and a growth mindset in STEM students.