Bringing Up Girls in Science (BUGS): The Effectiveness of an Afterschool Environmental Science Program for Increasing Female Students鈥?Interest in Science Careers
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- 作者：Tandra Tyler-Wood (1) Tandra.wood@unt.edu
Amber Ellison (1)
Okyoung Lim (1)
Sita Periathiruvadi (1) - 关键词：Gender equity – ; STEM Interest – ; Female student perceptions of science
- 刊名：Journal of Science Education and Technology
- 出版时间：February 2012
- 出版年：2012
- 期刊代码：43_10590145
- 类别：mt
- 卷：21
- 期：1
- 页码：46-55
- 数据来源：sp
摘要
Bringing Up Girls in Science (BUGS) was an afterschool program for 4th and 5th grade girls that provided authentic learning experiences in environmental science as well as valuable female mentoring opportunities in an effort to increase participants’ academic achievement in science. BUGS participants demonstrated significantly greater amounts of gain in science knowledge as measured by the Iowa Test of Basic Skills in Science (ITBS-S). The original BUGS participants and contrasts have now completed high school and entered college, allowing researchers to assess the long-term impact of the BUGS program. Fourteen former BUGS participants completed two instruments to assess their perceptions of science and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers. Their results were compared to four contrast groups composed entirely of females: 12 former BUGS contrasts, 10 college science majors, 10 non-science majors, and 9 current STEM professionals. Results indicate that BUGS participants have higher perceptions of science careers than BUGS contrasts. There were no significant differences between BUGS participants, Science Majors, and STEM professionals in their perceptions of science and STEM careers, whereas the BUGS contrast group was significantly lower than BUGS participants, Science Majors, and STEM Professionals. Additional results and implications are discussed within.