Collaborative Research: Developing STEM self-efficacy and science identities through authentic astrophysics research in online and face-to-face environments (STEM-ID)

研究表明，随着年轻人进入高中，对科学的参与和兴趣开始下降。 这也是当科学变得更加复杂，对内容知识，数学能力和计算机或计算知识的需求增加的时候。有证据表明，参加原创性科学研究的青年与没有这些经历的学生相比，更有可能进入并保持科学事业。我们知道年轻人对太空科学很感兴趣。这个项目（STEM ID）是由以前的工作，其中高中学生被介绍给科学研究，并有助于搜索的marticles。学生们能够发展所需的科学和数学知识和计算机技能，使他们能够成功地参与。STEM ID建立在以前的工作基础上，有两个主要目标：将本地程序复制成分布式程序模型，并调查真实研究经验建立强大的科学身份和研究自我效能的程度。更具体地说，该项目将支持（a）在地理上大幅度扩展到位于人口多样化社区的机构，从而使服务不足的群体大量融入其中;（B）在线学习和发现环境，支持全国各地的青年通过在线活动参与;（c）提供机会，使研究界更深入地参与研究和进步。该项目由推进非正式STEM学习（AISL）计划资助，该计划旨在推进非正式环境中STEM学习的设计和开发的新方法和理解。STEM-ID将在30名本科生和研究生以及10名学院/大学教师的支持下，为2000名高中青年和200名高中教师提供课外俱乐部。探索性教育研究将确定广泛的机制，通过这些机制，在线活动和面对面的和在线的同行-导师教师-科学家互动影响科学身份，自我效能，动机和职业意向，以及对影响参与模式的机制的集中理解。青年将在大学的前两年进行纵向监测，以了解课外科学充实计划对STEM职业决策的长期影响。这些研究将建立对最佳实践的理解，通过在年轻人上大学之前参与真正的STEM项目来提高大学的STEM坚持性。除了教育研究的好处，这个计划可能会导致参与者发现几十个新的知识分子。这些微卫星将被用于基础性的进步，如广义相对论的测试，约束中子星星质量，或探测引力波。由此产生的调查还将对偶发的彗星和河外爆发等瞬时信号敏感，这一项目为来自不同地理位置的青年参与真实的研究经验提供了一个潜在的模式。对于供应商来说，它将提供一种以较低成本交付项目的模式。调查结果将支持更好地了解参与STEM的机制。这项工作由西弗吉尼亚大学和国家射电天文台领导。参与网站包括加州理工学院，康奈尔大学，埃尔帕索社区学院，霍华德大学，蒙大拿州立大学，宾夕法尼亚州立大学，得克萨斯理工大学，佛蒙特大学，华盛顿大学和范德比尔特大学。

Research shows that participation and interest in science starts to drop as youth enter high school. This is also the point when science becomes more complex and there is increased need for content knowledge, mathematics capability, and computer or computational knowledge. Evidence suggests that youth who participate in original scientific research are more likely to enter and maintain a career in science as compared to students who do not have these experiences. We know young people get excited by space science. This project (STEM-ID) is informed by previous work in which high school students were introduced to scientific research and contributed to the search for pulsars. Students were able to develop the required science and math knowledge and computer skills that enabled them to successfully participate. STEM-ID builds on this previous work with two primary goals: the replication of the local program into a distributed program model and an investigation of the degree to which authentic research experiences build strong science identities and research self-efficacies. More specifically the project will support (a) significant geographic expansion to institutions situated in communities with diverse populations allowing substantial inclusion of under-served groups, (b) an online learning and discovery environment that will support the participation of youth throughout the country via online activities, and (c) opportunities for deeper participation in research and advancement within the research community. This project is funded by the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program which seeks to advance new approaches to, and understanding of, the design and development of STEM learning in informal environments.STEM-ID will serve 2000 high school youth and 200 high school teachers in afterschool clubs with support from 30 undergraduate and graduate students and 10 college/university faculty. Exploratory educational research will determine the broad mechanisms by which online activities and in-person and online peer-mentor teacher-scientist interactions influence science identity, self-efficacy, motivation, and career intentions, as well as a focused understanding of the mechanisms that influence patterns of participation. Youth will be monitored longitudinally through the first two years of college to provide an understanding of the long-term effects of out-of-class science enrichment programs on STEM career decisions. These studies will build an understanding of the best practices for enhancing STEM persistence in college through engagement in authentic STEM programs before youth get to college. In addition to the benefits of the education research, this program may lead participants to discover dozens of new pulsars. These pulsars will be used for fundamental advances such as for testing of general relativity, constraining neutron star masses, or detecting gravitational waves. The resulting survey will also be sensitive to transient signals such as sporadic pulsars and extragalactic bursts.This project provides a potential model for youth from geographical disparate places to participate in authentic research experiences. For providers, it will offer a model for program delivery with lower costs. Findings will support greater understanding of the mechanisms for participation in STEM. This work is being led by West Virginia University and the National Radio Astronomy Observatory. Participating sites include California Institute of Technology, Cornell University, El Paso Community College, Howard University, Montana State University, Penn State University, Texas Tech University, University of Vermont, University of Washington, and Vanderbilt University.