PGE/LCP: Using Inquiry-Based Learning, Multicultural Education, and Sociocultural Constructivism to Enhance Girls' Participation and Academic Performance in SMET

尽管女性进入高等教育机构的人数和毕业率持续上升，但她们在科学、数学、工程和技术(SMET)课程中的参与率仍然低得惊人。这一问题的根源是小学教师缺乏科学内容知识的准备。小学教师通常只需要参加多达三门科学课程的认证，而且他们往往不会接触到在课堂上有效地与女孩合作的各种教学策略。这两个因素，再加上宽泛而肤浅的基础科学课程，都不利于让SMET在很小的时候就与学生相关。与此同时，迫切需要实施创新和反应迅速的干预计划。因此，拟议的研究将以目前关于性别包容教学、探究式学习、多元文化教育以及社会文化和建构主义的研究为基础，为提高女孩的学业成绩和提高她们在中等收入学校的参与度提供一个替代框架。因此，我们试图探索以下研究问题：1.探究式教学、社会文化建构主义和多元文化取向的教学在哪些方面提高了小学教师在小学课堂上与女孩有效合作的能力？2.探究式教学、社会文化建构主义和多元文化取向的教学在哪些方面提高了女孩在高考中的态度和学习成绩？在三年的时间里，探究式教学、社会文化建构主义和多元文化取向在哪些方面帮助解决了对小学高年级女生的态度和学业表现产生负面影响的因素(即，4到6年级)？为了探索这些研究问题，将进行为期三年的纵向研究。为36名小学教师提供三个为期两周的暑期班。第一个研究所将从科学开始，其次是数学和科学，然后在第三个研究所期间整合SMET。首席调查员将与三名主要教师合作，模拟具有性别包容性的思考活动。参与的教师还将负责根据他们任教的年级水平以小组形式准备一个为期两周的课程单元。关于学生对科学和数学的态度和表现年级水平的数据将通过问卷调查、单元内容前和内容后的知识测试以及与焦点小组的民族志访谈来收集。职前教师将与参加暑期工作坊的教师配对，以增加专业发展的机会。最后，随着教室里的女孩从四年级到六年级，合作教师的成长将被跟踪。数据将使用人种学方法进行分析。因此，将使用人种学方法定期访问所有参与者。因此，研究小组将定期访问所有参与者，并在研究过程中的关键时刻进行几次深入访谈和课堂观察。这项研究的结果应该会增加我们对如何有效地使教师做好准备，以性别包容和社会相关的方式教授SMET的理解。同样，这项研究将为如何提高不同小学女生的学习成绩和对科学的态度提供新的见解。

Even though women's enrollment in postsecondary institutions and graduation levels continue to increase, their participation in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology (SMET) remains alarmingly low. At the root of this problem is the lack of science content knowledge preparation of elementary teachers. Elementary teachers often are only required to take as many as three science courses for certification, and they often are not exposed to a variety of pedagogical strategies for working effectively with girls in the classroom. These two factors, combined with a broad and superficial elementary science curriculum, work against making SMET relevant to students at an early age. At the same time, there is a desperate need to implement innovative and responsive intervention programs. Therefore, the proposed study will build on current research on gender inclusive teaching, inquiry-based learning, multicultural education, and sociocultural and constructivism to provide an alternate framework for enhancing the academic performance and participation of girls in SMET. Hence, we seek to explore the following research questions: 1. In what ways does an inquiry-based, sociocultural constructivist, and multicultural orientation to teaching enhance cooperating and preservice teachers' abilities to work effectively with girls in the elementary classroom? 2. In what ways does an inquiry-based, sociocultural constructivist, and multicultural orientation to teaching enhance girls' attitudes toward and academic performance in SMET?In what ways does an inquiry-based, sociocultural constructivist, and multicultural orientation to teaching help address the factors that negatively influence upper elementary girls' attitudes and academic performance in SMET over a period of three years (i.e., grades 4 though 6)? To explore these research questions, a three-year longitudinal study will be conducted. Three two-week summer institutes for 36 elementary teachers. The first institute will start with science, followed by mathematics and science, and then the integration of SMET during the third institute. Gender inclusive, minds-on activities will be modeled by the principal investigators in collaboration with three master teachers. Participating teachers will also be responsible for preparing a two-week curriculum unit in teams according to the grade level in which they teach. Data on pupil attitudes toward and performance grade level in science and mathematics will be gathered via questionnaires, unit pre- and post- content knowledge tests, and ethnographic interviews with a focus group. Preservice teachers will be paired with the teachers who participated in the summer workshop to increase the opportunities for professional development. Finally, the cooperating teachers' growth will be followed up as the girls in their classrooms progress from grades 4 to 6. Data will be analyzed using an ethnographic approach. Thus, all participants will be visited regularly using an ethnographic approach. Thus, all participants will be visited regularly by the research team, and several in-depth interviews and classroom observations will be conducted at key times during the course of the study. The results of this study should increase our understanding of how to effectively prepare teachers to teach SMET in gender inclusive and socially relevant ways. Similarly, this study will add insights on how to enhance the academic performance and attitude toward science of girls in diverse elementary schools.