Building science identity in first-year engineering students

Abstract

This project offers a timely contribution to the “leaky pipeline,” a metaphor that captures the paucity of women and racialized people in STEM fields. Current scholarship reveals a multifaceted picture of why these groups continue to be underrepresented in STEM, yet there remains scant research on what specifically instructors can do in the classroom to remedy the issue. Addressing this gap, this project focuses on building “science identity” [1] in two concurrent first-year engineering courses: a mechanical engineering course and a communication course. Science identity helps us understand how resiliency in STEM correlates with one’s sense of being a “science person” and belonging to their field, affective domains which are especially critical for underrepresented students [1] [2]. Responsible stewardship in engineering not only requires engineers at the table who are diverse, but also that those engineers feel confident and supported as they work towards solving society’s most complex and pressing problems. Our presentation will outline the current project and describe specific interventions that focus on mentorship and the social impacts of engineering, which are designed to build science identity.