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In order to increase the access of underrepresented minority (URM) students to STEM careers, we need a better understanding of the students’ science identities—the ways they perceive themselves as being (or not being) scientists. Such knowledge can inform efforts to recruit and retain URM students in STEM. The authors asked postsecondary URM STEM students to describe the characteristics that they (1) have in common and (2) do not have in common with scientists, as well as experiences that made them feel like scientists. In this article, the authors present a composite of a URM STEM student’s science identity—the first of its kind—and discuss the implications of this perceived science identity for the recruitment and retention of URM STEM students.

President Obama indicated that there are twice as many science and technology jobs available in the U.S. as there are workers for those jobs (Office of the Secretary, 2013). To fulfill the need for more scientists and engineers, there must be increased educational support for the nation’s underrepresented minority (URM) science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) students. URM STEM organizations, such as the National Society of Black Engineers and other URM student-oriented organizations that provide academic and career resources, are widely used on college and university campuses across the nation to support these students both academically and professionally. Future developments of URM STEM organizations should be informed by the voices of the populations they serve: the students of URM groups. In fact, a better understanding of URM students’ science identities can inform the organizations’ efforts to recruit and retain these students in STEM disciplines. Jones and Abes (2013) expressed that one must understand identity in order to understand college students and their experiences in higher education contexts. Individual students may possess many identities, including a student identity and a race identity, as well as a science identity. The goal of this research study was to explore how URM STEM organizations influence URM STEM students’ science identity development. Accordingly, this study employed identity theory as a theoretical framework to answer the following research questions: 1. What is the composition of a URM STEM student’s science identity? 2. How do URM STEM students perceive that their participation in a URM STEM organization at a major university shapes their science identities? In this study, identity theory was used to examine URM STEM students’ science identities, the ways they identify themselves as scientists (Malone & Barabino, 2009). We asked URM STEM students who belong to URM STEM organizations on a campus in the Southwestern U.S. to complete an open-ended survey in which they described experiences that have made them feel like scientists, their purposes for joining the organizations, and the specific ways in which they believe the organizations have contributed to their feeling like a scientist. Some of the students who completed the questionnaire were asked to give an interview that focused on their perspectives about how the URM STEM organizations affect their views of themselves as scientists. Forty-two surveys and eleven interviews were completed by undergraduate and graduate student members of five different URM STEM organizations. All surveyed students are from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in STEM: African-American, Latino, Native American, Pacific Islander, and the female gender. Survey responses were analyzed using a grounded approach in order to determine the specific features of URM STEM organizations that students perceive to affect their science identities. The results of this study indicate that URM students believe URM STEM organizations make them feel more like scientists by providing opportunities to demonstrate characteristics of scientists (such as being able to showcase their use and understanding of scientific material during research experiences) and participate in activities and events of practicing scientists, such as at outreach events and conferences. The students also perceive an enhancement of their science identities due to the recognition, professional development, networking, and confidence that they obtain as a result of their membership and participation in activities and events presented to them by the URM STEM organizations. There is a need to produce more talented scientists and engineers to support the future economy of the USA. Additional educational support for the nation’s URM STEM students helps fulfill this need; but more importantly, inclusion of more URM students with diverse backgrounds and different perspectives will impact the level of creativity, innovation, and quality of STEM products and services (Denson, Stallworth, Hailey, & Householder, 2015; National Research Council, 2003). Ultimately, a better understanding of how URM STEM organizations can encourage the development of students’ science identities can contribute to the recruitment and retention of URM students in STEM.

This volume focuses on multicultural curriculum transformation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics or STEM subject areas broadly, while also focusing on sub-content areas (e.g., earth science, digital technologies) in greater detail. The discussion of each sub-content area outlines critical considerations for multicultural curriculum transformation for the sub-content areas by grade level (early childhood and elementary school education, middle and/or junior high school education, and high school education) and then by organizing tool parameters: standards (both in a generalized fashion, and specific to Common Core State Standards, among other standards), educational context, relationships with and among students and their families, civic engagement, considerations pertaining to educational \"ability\" broadly considered (for example, for gifted and talented education, bilingual gifted and talented education, \"regular\" education, bilingual \"regular\" education, special education, bilingual special education), as well as relative to specific content and corresponding pedagogical considerations, including evaluation of student learning and teaching effectiveness. In this way, the volume provides a conceptual framework andconcrete examples for how to go about multiculturally-transforming curriculum in STEM curricula. The volume is designed to speak with PK-12 teachers as colleagues in the multicultural curriculum transformation work at focus in each subject area and at varied grade levels. Readers are exposed to \"things to think about,\" but also given curricular examples to work with or from in going about the actual, concrete work of curriculum change. It bridges the gaps between preparing PK-12 teachers to be able to 1) independently multiculturally adapt existing curriculum, and, 2) create new multicultural curriculum differentiated for their content areas and grade levels, while also, 3) providing ample examples of what such adapted and new differentiated curricula looks like. In so doing, this volume also bridges the gaps between the theory and practice of multicultural curriculum transformation in higher and PK-12 educational contexts.

This volume focuses on multicultural curriculum transformation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics or STEM subject areas broadly, while also focusing on sub-content areas (e.g., earth science, digital technologies) in greater detail. The discussion of each sub-content area outlines critical considerations for multicultural curriculum transformation for the sub-content areas by grade level (early childhood and elementary school education, middle and/or junior high school education, and high school education) and then by organizing tool parameters: standards (both in a generalized fashion, and specific to Common Core State Standards, among other standards), educational context, relationships with and among students and their families, civic engagement, considerations pertaining to educational “ability” broadly considered (for example, for gifted and talented education, bilingual gifted and talented education, “regular” education, bilingual “regular” education, special education, bilingual special education), as well as relative to specific content and corresponding pedagogical considerations, including evaluation of student learning and teaching effectiveness. In this way, the volume provides a conceptual framework andconcrete examples for how to go about multiculturally-transforming curriculum in STEM curricula. The volume is designed to speak with PK-12 teachers as colleagues in the multicultural curriculum transformation work at focus in each subject area and at varied grade levels. Readers are exposed to “things to think about,” but also given curricular examples to work with or from in going about the actual, concrete work of curriculum change. It bridges the gaps between preparing PK-12 teachers to be able to 1) independently multiculturally adapt existing curriculum, and, 2) create new multicultural curriculum differentiated for their content areas and grade levels, while also, 3) providing ample examples of what such adapted and new differentiated curricula looks like. In so doing, this volume also bridges the gaps between the theory and practice of multicultural curriculum transformation in higher and PK-12 educational contexts.

Student Interactions with Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (SISTEM) is a program designed to make high school students aware of the variety of careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Furthermore, the SISTEM program sought to increase excitement and interest in STEM fields. Four sessions of SISTEM were conducted in 2016-2018 with over 130 high school student participants (grades 9-12) from multiple schools in a metropolitan area. Over 50% were from underrepresented minorities in STEM and 78% of participants were female. Each session consisted of two STEM presentations held one evening a week for five weeks, which amounted to the same group of 30-40 students hearing about ten STEM careers. Professionals in various STEM fields presented about their career, as well as their educational and life journey. The STEM professionals who presented were specifically asked to talk about obstacles they faced in their education and career paths, and how they persisted despite these challenges. In addition, most of the professionals included a hands-on activity to engage the students in an aspect of that STEM career. The STEM career sessions were supplemented with short presentations about college resources, information on research opportunities, and a tour of research laboratories. Participants completed pre- and post-surveys on STEM interest and career awareness. The post-survey also included questions about the speakers and program logistics. Participants had high interest levels in STEM before participating in the program. The highest increases in participant knowledge after SISTEM were in gaining exposure to STEM professionals and increasing pre-employment skills related to STEM careers. In addition to the program evaluation, some students opted to participate in a research study on grit and learning mindset, which are associated with successful students. Past research has shown that grit scores are good predictors of grade point average, performance, and achievement. Similarly, a student’s learning belief – growth or fixed mindset – has been shown to correlate to academic achievement. The authors were interested to see if either grit or learning mindset could be changed in a short period of time within an informal learning situation (i.e., SISTEM). For the research study, students answered the same set of questions before and after SISTEM. The survey combined previously developed instruments for grit. After checking data for internal consistency, the data were analyzed using paired t-tests and multivariate analysis. Findings include a statistically significant increase in grit for female participants, yet no statistically significant change in the learning mindset of the participants.