{"title":"Impact of School-Enterprise Cooperative Informal STEM Learning on the STEM Career Intention of Female High School Students","authors":"Yun Zhou, Zhujun Jiang, Feng-Kuang Chiang, Chuntao Leng","doi":"10.1007/s11165-024-10205-1","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p>The underrepresentation of women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields limits their development, their career opportunities, and societal progress. This study used social cognitive career theory to explore the relationship between informal STEM learning activities and STEM career intention in female high-school students. Using a mixed-methods approach, we surveyed 58 students participating in school–enterprise collaborative informal STEM activities and then conducted semistructured interviews with 11 randomly selected students. The results revealed a significant positive correlation between the frequency of participation in various informal STEM learning activities and the STEM career intention of the female high-school students. Informal learning experiences significantly positively affected the female students’ interest in STEM, self-efficacy, outcome expectations, and fulfillment of social needs, thereby promoting their STEM career intention. This study enhances our understanding of the needs of female students in STEM and offers targeted recommendations for educators and policymakers.</p>","PeriodicalId":47988,"journal":{"name":"Research in Science Education","volume":"25 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2000,"publicationDate":"2024-10-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Research in Science Education","FirstCategoryId":"95","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-024-10205-1","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"EDUCATION & EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
The underrepresentation of women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields limits their development, their career opportunities, and societal progress. This study used social cognitive career theory to explore the relationship between informal STEM learning activities and STEM career intention in female high-school students. Using a mixed-methods approach, we surveyed 58 students participating in school–enterprise collaborative informal STEM activities and then conducted semistructured interviews with 11 randomly selected students. The results revealed a significant positive correlation between the frequency of participation in various informal STEM learning activities and the STEM career intention of the female high-school students. Informal learning experiences significantly positively affected the female students’ interest in STEM, self-efficacy, outcome expectations, and fulfillment of social needs, thereby promoting their STEM career intention. This study enhances our understanding of the needs of female students in STEM and offers targeted recommendations for educators and policymakers.
期刊介绍：
2020 Five-Year Impact Factor: 4.021
2020 Impact Factor: 5.439
Ranking: 107/1319 (Education) – Scopus
2020 CiteScore 34.7 – Scopus
Research in Science Education (RISE ) is highly regarded and widely recognised as a leading international journal for the promotion of scholarly science education research that is of interest to a wide readership.
RISE publishes scholarly work that promotes science education research in all contexts and at all levels of education. This intention is aligned with the goals of Australasian Science Education Research Association (ASERA), the association connected with the journal.
You should consider submitting your manscript to RISE if your research:
Examines contexts such as early childhood, primary, secondary, tertiary, workplace, and informal learning as they relate to science education; and
Advances our knowledge in science education research rather than reproducing what we already know.
RISE will consider scholarly works that explore areas such as STEM, health, environment, cognitive science, neuroscience, psychology and higher education where science education is forefronted.
The scholarly works of interest published within RISE reflect and speak to a diversity of opinions, approaches and contexts. Additionally, the journal’s editorial team welcomes a diversity of form in relation to science education-focused submissions. With this in mind, RISE seeks to publish empirical research papers.
Empircal contributions are:
Theoretically or conceptually grounded;
Relevant to science education theory and practice;
Highlight limitations of the study; and
Identify possible future research opportunities.
From time to time, we commission independent reviewers to undertake book reviews of recent monographs, edited collections and/or textbooks.
Before you submit your manuscript to RISE, please consider the following checklist. Your paper is:
No longer than 6000 words, including references.
Sufficiently proof read to ensure strong grammar, syntax, coherence and good readability;
Explicitly stating the significant and/or innovative contribution to the body of knowledge in your field in science education;
Internationalised in the sense that your work has relevance beyond your context to a broader audience; and
Making a contribution to the ongoing conversation by engaging substantively with prior research published in RISE.
While we encourage authors to submit papers to a maximum length of 6000 words, in rare cases where the authors make a persuasive case that a work makes a highly significant original contribution to knowledge in science education, the editors may choose to publish longer works.
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