Improving the Persistence and Success of Students from Underrepresented Populations in Computer Science

在国家科学基金科学、技术、工程和数学奖学金(S-STEM)计划的资助下，该项目将支持有经济需求的高成就、低收入STEM学生的成功。在该奖项的五年时间里，“提高计算机科学(I-PASS)弱势群体学生的坚持性和成就感”项目将为攻读计算机科学(CS)学士学位的学生提供15个奖学金。该项目将通过插入与学生兴趣相关的主题来重新开发标准的CS课程。参与者将有机会进行CS研究，以及参与服务项目。对学生成功的支持包括分级指导和辅导，以及CS Gateway课程中以学生为中心的活动。该项目还将在性别歧视、种族主义和微农业问题上为教师提供专业发展，以增强学生的学习体验。I-PASS项目旨在通过以下方式解决CS中的公平和机会问题：1)增加CS专业中未得到充分服务的学生的保留率和毕业率；2)缩小CS专业与未得到充分服务的学生之间的CS成绩差距和毕业率；3)扩大和加强CS学生的性别、种族、代际和社会阶层背景；以及4)开发可扩展到其他STEM学科的干预措施。该项目的干预部分将使用准实验、混合方法研究设计进行评估，该设计涉及一组有目的地选择的学生学者。这些学者将接受该项目为期四年的干预，从他们大学一年级的第一学期开始。还将选择两个控制组，允许研究团队使用项目结果的量化指标(例如，成绩、保留率和对毕业的坚持)来评估项目的成功程度。除了量化指标外，该项目还将进行调查和深入访谈，以评估干预措施的成功，并审查干预措施的组成部分如何帮助(或未能)减轻学者在攻读计算机科学学位时面临的障碍。该项目将在循证战略的基础上，增加STEM学生，特别是CS学生的多样性和成功。研究结果将通过报告、会议论文演示和发表的研究文章进行传播。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

With funding from the NSF Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (S-STEM) program, this project will support the success of high-achieving, low-income STEM students with demonstrated financial need. Over the five years of the award, the "Improving the Persistence and Success of Students from Underrepresented Populations in Computer Science (I-PASS)" project will fund 15 scholarships to students who are pursing bachelor's degrees in computer science (CS). The project will redevelop the standard CS curricula by inserting topics that are tied to students' interests. The participants will have opportunities to do CS research, as well as to engage in service projects. Supports for student success include tiered mentoring and tutoring, and student-centered activities in the CS gateway courses. The project will also provide faculty professional development on issues of sexism, racism, and microagressions to enhance the student learning experience. The I-PASS project aims to address issues of equity and access in CS by: 1) increasing the retention and graduation of underserved students in CS; 2) narrowing the CS performance gaps and graduation rates between CS majors and underserved students; 3) broadening and enhancing the gender, ethnic, generational, and social class backgrounds of CS students; and 4) developing interventions that can be extended to other STEM disciplines. The project's intervention components will be evaluated using a quasi-experimental, mixed method research design that involves a purposively selected treatment group of the student scholars. The scholars will receive the project's intervention for four years, starting the first semester of their first year in college. Two control groups will also be selected and will allow the research team to evaluate the success of the project using quantitative indicators of the program's outcomes (e.g., grades, retention, and persistence to graduation). In addition to quantitative indicators, the project will administer surveys and in-depth interviews to assess the success of the interventions and examine how the intervention components help (or fail to) mitigate obstacles the scholars face in pursuit of their CS degree. The project will build on and add to the body of evidence-based strategies that increase diversity and success of students in STEM, and specifically, in CS. Findings will be disseminated through reports, conference paper presentations, and published research articles.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.