Impacts of Inclusive Biology Curriculum on Student Attitudes and STEM Interest

南伊利诺伊大学爱德华兹维尔分校的这个项目将致力于更新高中课程中的教学生物科学内容，以提高准确性并减少社会文化偏见。这项拟议的项目将增加我们对生物学教学内容如何影响学生生物本质主义信念的理解，并有可能贡献关于生物本质主义偏见的认识论和这些态度形成的过程的基础知识。对STEM教育中的机制和工具的研究有限，这些机制和工具可能会影响对性、性和性别的偏见基本态度和信念的改变。作为这项研究的一部分开发的研究工具和课程材料以及研究结果将对未来的实践者有用，鼓励未来关于全纳教育的研究，并创建减少偏见信念和隐性偏见的预期工具。混合方法分析将探索接触包容性生物课程计划是否可以改变性别本质主义、跨性别恐惧症或同性恋恐惧症的流行态度，改变STEM和职业兴趣，以及这些潜在影响是否因学生身份而异，特别是对LGBTQ学生。该项目计划包括通过培训、会议和专家导师的支持对PI进行协调的职业发展计划的支持性活动。这些顾问将帮助国际和平协会获得发展为STEM教育研究人员和学者所需的技能。这项工作将由一群在有资质的学校和大学工作的有资质的教育工作者和科学家指导。传播将通过STEM专业途径进行交流，包括会议、培训和出版物。该项目得到了NSF的STEM教育研究EDU核心研究能力建设计划(ECR：BCSER)的支持，该计划旨在建设研究人员开展高质量STEM教育研究的能力。该奖项反映了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。

The project from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville will work to update instructional bioscience content in high-school curricula to increase accuracy and decrease sociocultural biases. The proposed project will increase our understanding of how biology instructional content can impact student bioessentialist beliefs and has the potential to contribute foundational knowledge about the epistemology of bioessentialist bias and the process by which these attitudes develop. There has been limited research into the mechanisms and tools within STEM education that can affect change in prejudicial fundamental attitudes and beliefs about sex, sexuality, and gender. The research instruments and curriculum materials developed as a part of this study as well as the findings will be of use to future practitioners, encourage future research on inclusive education, and create prospective tools for decreasing prejudicial beliefs and implicit biases. Mixed methods analysis will explore whether exposure to inclusive biology lesson plans can change the prevalence of gender essentialist, transphobic, or homophobic attitudes, change STEM and career interest, and whether any of these potential effects vary by student identity, especially for LGBTQ students.The project plan includes supportive activities for the PI through an aligned professional development plan engaged through trainings, conferences, and the support of expert mentors. These advisors will assist the PI in attaining the skills needed for development as a STEM education researcher and scholar. The effort will be guided by a diverse group of credentialed educators and scientists working in accredited schools and universities. Dissemination will be addressed through communication in STEM professional pathways, including conferences, training, and publications. The project is supported by NSF's EDU Core Research Building Capacity in STEM Education Research (ECR:BCSER) program, which is designed to build investigators’ capacity to carry out high-quality STEM education research.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.