RAPID: Addressing Equity when STEM Teaching and Learning Go Remote

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A systemic and persistent digital divide exists between students with limited resources and students with more resources. This project will investigate the challenges students face with the unexpected migration of their STEM courses to online environments due to COVID-19. Prior research on online learning suggests that students with limited financial means and fewer academic experiences are at a disadvantage when learning in online educational environments. To better understand student experiences and consequences of teaching and learning in digital environments, the project will address four questions: How do students’ experiences in gateway STEM courses compare pre- and post the shift to online learning? Which challenges to learning STEM online are more prevalent among low-income, underrepresented minority, and rural students compared to other students? What online instructional practices do students perceive as contributing to their engagement and learning? To what extent do different types of digital learning experiences or other variables mitigate the challenges associated with the COVID-19-induced transition to remote STEM learning? The mixed method research study will: (a) survey a nationally representative sample of 1,000 undergraduate students from two- and four-year colleges who are taking STEM courses that transitioned to remote delivery in spring 2020; and (2) conduct case studies to examine pre- and post-COVID-19 student and faculty experiences in gateway STEM courses at institutions serving underserved student populations. The research team will prepare response distributions and descriptive statistics for each item for the Student Survey and for key subgroups. Additionally, exploratory correlational analyses will be conducted to understand relationships between variables. To assess subgroups or before-and-after differences on items and item scales, ANOVAs, t-tests, and Chi-square tests will be used. Multivariate regression analyses will explore potential causal relationships among the data. Thematic analyses of student and faculty interviews and student focus groups will be conducted using a priori codes derived from the literature and topics of interest, as well as thematic codes that emerge from the data using an inductive approach. A hierarchy of themes will be created to facilitate analyses that disaggregate themes and trends for key subgroups. Results from this research will provide information to the higher education community and policy makers that can inform plans to address the current crisis, as well as how to incorporate lessons learned in STEM education post-COVID-19. This RAPID award is made by the Improving Undergraduate STEM Education program in the Division of Undergraduate Education (Education and Human Resources Directorate), using funds from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.