M-c Shanahan

In September, I had the pleasure of presenting an online seminar for the Women in Engineering ProActive Network (WEPAN). In the session, I spoke about the concept of science identity and how it can help researchers like me bring together studies on interest, encouragement, confidence, and competence in science. Thinking about science identity, rather than all of the those other outcomes separately, is really helpful for finding focused strategies that can help bring non-traditional students into science and help them stay. After describing science identity, I presented results from two studies that I’ve been involved in. One I’ve blogged about before that looked for high school teaching strategies and classroom practices that were related to strong science identities in first year physics students. The second is a study that asked students about the expectations they experience in their science classes and how those expectations affect their identification with science and their desire to study it in the future. You can listen to the recording and follow the slides on Vimeo. Please excuse how nervous I must sound. It was a new (but fun) experience to present a seminar for an audience that I couldn’t see!

Identity and Persistence in STEM: WEPAN Professional Development Webinar 09 22 11 from Women in Engr ProActive Network on Vimeo.