Broadening the Participation and Persistence of Women in STEM Through Virtual Peer Mentoring

该项目旨在通过扩大妇女，特别是来自不同种族人口的妇女在STEM中的参与和坚持，为国家利益服务。该项目计划开发和评估一个虚拟同侪指导模式。这一模式的独特之处在于它是虚拟的，而且在STEM研究实验室之外让妇女参与同行指导。同伴指导活动将解决STEM中女性所经历的社会，情感，认知和持久性相关的挑战。关于虚拟同伴指导方法在STEM中的影响知之甚少，该模型的结果可能与各种机构类型和专业环境具有广泛的相关性和适应性。孟菲斯大学的这个项目旨在开发和评估一个虚拟同伴指导模式的有效性，该模式与妇女参与住宅和在线STEM项目。该项目设在这所城市公共机构，计划在来自不同种族和个人背景的女学生中发展和测试这种辅导干预措施。该项目将调整现有的STEM女性同伴指导计划，该计划以前只在有限的环境中进行过测试。目前的努力应该产生关于该模式在参与者更加多样化的情况下的功效的知识。此外，将分两个阶段评估这一虚拟同侪指导模式。在第一阶段，使用调查和访谈方法的混合方法研究将指导节目内容和虚拟界面的开发。在第二阶段，一个严格的，随机对照试验的方法将被用来检查与BIPOC和白色妇女的虚拟同伴指导模式的实施效果。具体而言，社会，情感，认知和持久性相关的结果将进行比较虚拟同伴指导参与者和匹配的对照组。此外，该项目将采用案例研究方法，以确定不同的参与者成果，并确定模型的组成部分如何促进这些成果。该项目的评估将由校园的教育政策研究中心进行。将通过会议介绍、同行评议出版物以及通过项目网站和视频频道分享内容，传播已编写的指导材料和研究成果。NSF IUSE：EHR计划支持研究和开发项目，以提高所有学生STEM教育的有效性。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project aims to serve the national interest by broadening participation and persistence of women in STEM, especially women from diverse racial populations. The project plans to develop and assess a virtual peer mentoring model. This model is unique both in being virtual and in engaging women in peer mentoring outside the context of STEM research laboratories. Peer mentoring activities will address social, affective, cognitive, and persistence-related challenges experienced by women in STEM. Little is known about the impact of virtual peer mentoring approaches in STEM, and results from the model could be widely relevant and adapted in a variety of institution types and professional settings. This project at the University of Memphis aims to develop and assess the efficacy of a virtual peer mentoring model with women in residential and online STEM programs. Situated in this urban, public institution, the project plans to to develop and test this mentoring intervention among women students from diverse racial and personal backgrounds. The project will adapt an existing peer mentoring program for women in STEM that has only previously been tested in limited contexts. The current effort should generate knowledge about the efficacy of the model with a more diverse participant population. Additionally, this virtual peer mentoring model will be assessed in two phases. During the first phase, a mixed-methods study using survey and interview methods will guide program content and virtual interface development. During the second phase, a rigorous, randomized controlled trial approach will be used to examine the efficacy of the implementation of the virtual peer mentoring model with BIPOC and White women. Specifically, social, affective, cognitive, and persistence-related outcomes will be compared between virtual peer mentoring participants and a matched control group. Further, the project will use a case study approach to identify differential participant outcomes and to determine how the components of the model facilitated these outcomes. Evaluation of the project will be conducted by the campus’s Center for Research in Educational Policy. Dissemination of developed mentoring materials and research results will be accomplished through conference presentations, peer-reviewed publications, and content sharing via the project’s website and video channel. The NSF IUSE: EHR Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. Through the Engaged Student Learning track, the program supports the creation, exploration, and implementation of promising practices and tools.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.