Many prior studies have investigated female and male students’ self-efficacy (SE) in physics courses. However, test anxiety (TA) is rarely studied in the physics context, despite prior work suggesting it may play a detrimental role in the development of SE. In this study, we explore the relationships between SE, TA, and gender differences in introductory calculus-based physics performance. Although there has been research that uses TA and SE to predict student grades, no study to our knowledge has investigated this in the context of low- (e.g., homework and quizzes) and high-stakes (e.g., traditional exams) physics assessments. Using validated survey data and grade information, we compared the predictive power of SE and TA on student performance on a variety of assessment types. We found that there are gender differences in both SE and TA, as well as in high-stakes assessment outcomes. There were no gender differences in low-stakes assessment scores. Further, we found that models that control for SE and/or TA eliminate the predictive power of gender for high-stakes assessment outcomes. Finally, we found that SE partially mediates the effect of TA on high-stakes assessment outcomes. From these results, we make several suggestions for instructors that may alleviate the adverse effects of TA and make physics assessments more equitable and inclusive.
For physics majors, gender differences in introductory physics do not inform future physics performance
Analysis of institutional data for physics majors showing predictive relationships between required mathematics and physics courses in various years is important for contemplating how the courses build on each other and whether there is need to make changes to the curriculum for the majors to strengthen these relationships. We used 15 years of institutional data at a US-based large research university to investigate how introductory physics and mathematics courses predict male and female physics majors’ performance on required advanced physics and mathematics courses. We used structure equation modeling (SEM) to investigate these predictive relationships and find that among introductory and advanced physics and mathematics courses, there are gender differences in performance in favor of male students only in the introductory physics courses after controlling for high school GPA. We found that a measurement invariance fully holds in a multi-group SEM by gender, so it was possible to carry out analysis with gender mediated by introductory physics and high school GPA. Moreover, we find that these introductory physics courses that have gender differences do not predict performance in advanced physics courses. In other words, students could be using invalid data about their introductory physics performance to make their decision about whether physics is the right field for them to pursue, and those invalid data in introductory physics favor male students. Also, introductory mathematics courses predict performance in advanced mathematics courses which in turn predict performance in advanced physics courses. Furthermore, apart from the introductory physics courses that do not predict performance in future physics courses, there is a strong predictive relationship between the sophomore, junior and senior level physics courses.
more » « less- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10303688
- Publisher / Repository:
- IOP Publishing
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- European Journal of Physics
- Volume:
- 41
- Issue:
- 6
- ISSN:
- 0143-0807
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- Article No. 065701
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
more » « less
Abstract -
The STEM Excellence through Engagement in Collaboration, Research, and Scholarship (SEECRS) project at Whatcom Community College is a five-year program aiming to support academically talented students with demonstrated financial need in biology, chemistry, geology, computer science, engineering, and physics. This project is funded by an NSF S-STEM (Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) grant awarded in January 2017. Through an inclusive and long-range effort, the college identified a strong need for financial and comprehensive supports for STEM students. This project will offer financial, academic, and professional support to three two-year cohorts of students. The SEECRS project aims to utilize a STEM-specific guided pathways approach to strengthen recruitment, retention, and matriculation of STEM students at the community college level. Scholarship recipients will be supported through participation in the SEECRS Scholars Academy, a multi-pronged approach to student support combining elements of community building, faculty mentorship, targeted advising activities, authentic science practice, and social activities. Students are introduced to disciplines of interest through opportunities to engage in course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) in Biology, Chemistry and Engineering courses, funded summer research opportunities, and seminars presented by STEM professionals. Communities of practice will be nurtured through the introduction of cohort building and faculty mentorship. Cohort development starts with a required two-credit course for all scholars that emphasizes STEM identity development, specifically focusing on identifying and coping with the ways non-dominant individuals (racial/ethnic minorities, non-male gender, lower socioeconomic status, first-generation, 2-year community college vs. 4-year institutions) are made to feel as outsiders in STEM. Each SEECRS scholar is paired with a faculty mentor who engages in ongoing mentor training. The project evaluation will determine the efficacy of the project activities in achieving their intended outcomes. Specifically, we will collect data to answer the research question: To what extent can a guided pathways approach provide a coordinated and supported STEM experience at Whatcom Community College that: (1) increases student success, and (2) positively shifts students’ STEM self-identity? The evaluation will employ a quasi-experimental research design, specifically a pretest-posttest design with a matched comparison group. Our first cohort of 14 students was selected over two application rounds (winter and summer 2017). We awarded ten full scholarships and four half-scholarships based on financial need data. Cohort demographics of note compared to institutional percentages are: females (64% vs. 57%), Hispanic (14% vs. 17%), African American (7% vs. 2%), white (79% vs. 66%), first generation college bound (43% vs. 37%). The cohort is comprised of six students interested in engineering, six in biology, and one each in geology and environmental sciences. With increased communication between the project team, our Financial Aid office, Entry and Advising, high school outreach, and the Title III grant-funded Achieve, Inspire, Motivate (AIM) Program, as well as a longer advertising time, we anticipate significantly enhancing our applicant pool for the next cohort. The results and lessons learned from our first year of implementation will be presented.more » « less
-
The STEM Excellence through Engagement in Collaboration, Research, and Scholarship (SEECRS) project at Whatcom Community College is a five-year program aiming to support academically talented students with demonstrated financial need in biology, chemistry, geology, computer science, engineering, and physics. This project is funded by an NSF S-STEM (Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) grant awarded in January 2017. Through an inclusive and long-range effort, the college identified a strong need for financial and comprehensive supports for STEM students. This project will offer financial, academic, and professional support to three two-year cohorts of students. The SEECRS project aims to utilize a STEM-specific guided pathways approach to strengthen recruitment, retention, and matriculation of STEM students at the community college level. Scholarship recipients will be supported through participation in the SEECRS Scholars Academy, a multi-pronged approach to student support combining elements of community building, faculty mentorship, targeted advising activities, authentic science practice, and social activities. Students are introduced to disciplines of interest through opportunities to engage in course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) in Biology, Chemistry and Engineering courses, funded summer research opportunities, and seminars presented by STEM professionals. Communities of practice will be nurtured through the introduction of cohort building and faculty mentorship. Cohort development starts with a required two-credit course for all scholars that emphasizes STEM identity development, specifically focusing on identifying and coping with the ways non-dominant individuals (racial/ethnic minorities, non-male gender, lower socioeconomic status, first-generation, 2-year community college vs. 4-year institutions) are made to feel as outsiders in STEM. Each SEECRS scholar is paired with a faculty mentor who engages in ongoing mentor training. The project evaluation will determine the efficacy of the project activities in achieving their intended outcomes. Specifically, we will collect data to answer the research question: To what extent can a guided pathways approach provide a coordinated and supported STEM experience at Whatcom Community College that: (1) increases student success, and (2) positively shifts students’ STEM self-identity? The evaluation will employ a quasi-experimental research design, specifically a pretest-posttest design with a matched comparison group. Our first cohort of 14 students was selected over two application rounds (winter and summer 2017). We awarded ten full scholarships and four half-scholarships based on financial need data. Cohort demographics of note compared to institutional percentages are: females (64% vs. 57%), Hispanic (14% vs. 17%), African American (7% vs. 2%), white (79% vs. 66%), first generation college bound (43% vs. 37%). The cohort is comprised of six students interested in engineering, six in biology, and one each in geology and environmental sciences. With increased communication between the project team, our Financial Aid office, Entry and Advising, high school outreach, and the Title III grant-funded Achieve, Inspire, Motivate (AIM) Program, as well as a longer advertising time, we anticipate significantly enhancing our applicant pool for the next cohort. The results and lessons learned from our first year of implementation will be presented.more » « less
-
A recent study conducted at the University of Oklahoma, a large research university attempted to use the grades on initial Computer Science courses to predict the success of Computer Science majors. We attempted to reproduce this study in a mid-sized liberal arts institution. We analyzed 15 years of data of students (majors as well as non-Computer Science majors) who had taken introductory Computer Science courses. We found that the better the grade on Computer Science I, the introductory course in the major, the better the cumulative GPA of the student upon graduation, and this applied to Computer Science majors as well as non-majors. All the students who had successfully graduated with a Computer Science degree had earned at least a C grade in the first three required courses: Computer Science I, Computer Science II and Data Structures. When we considered grades on six of the required courses in the Computer Science sequence, we found that students generally earned the same or lower grade on each subsequent course. Therefore, the performance of Computer Science majors on the first three courses in the required course sequence can reasonably be used as predictors of their success in the major. Finally, we found that Math SAT score was a good predictor of student success in Computer Science I as well as obtaining an undergraduate degree regardless of the major. Our study generalizes the results of the previous study and strengthens the results by finding that they are statistically significant.more » « less
-
The Greater Equity, Access, and Readiness for Engineering and Technology (GEARSET) Program, an NSF funded S-STEM program was developed GEARSET to address several institutional needs at the university. The original target population for the GEARSET program was identified as a subset of the students who applied to the College of Engineering and do not meet all the admissions requirements and are admitted to an Exploratory Studies major in the university’s University College. Historical data indicates that approximately 170 students per year with a high school GPA of 3.00 or higher are admitted to Exploratory Studies because they do not meet the College of Engineering admissions criteria. Of these, roughly 78 students remain at the University after one year. Of those 78, only about 45 students per year transition to college of Engineering majors by the end of their first year. These numbers do not accurately reflect the ability of these students, but rather are due in part to curricular bottlenecks, lack of institutional support, and lack of significant relevant exposure of students to material meant to engage their engineering future selves. This data motivated the creation of the GEARSET program. Specifically, the program was designed to 1. Increase recruitment, retention, student success, and transfer rates into engineering of students who are not admitted directly to engineering but who are instead admitted to the university’s University College. 2. Increase meaningfulness and engineering relevance of pre-engineering curriculum. 3. Increase diversity within the student population of various engineering departments in the College of Engineering. 4. Remove bottlenecks in curriculum and improve access to engineering and decrease length to degree. A key aspect of the program is a curated curriculum. All students in the GEARSET program are enrolled in multiple courses historically proven to promote better understanding of the key areas of Math, Chemistry and Physics needed to be successful engineers. All students have access to advisors within the COE to help them better understand the programs, curriculum and professional outcomes of each discipline of Engineering. Another key component of the program is that low income students in the GEARSET cohort who successfully transfer to a major within the COE after one year receive scholarship support. Here we describe the Program, the results to date, and the impact of the recent global pandemic and the subsequent transition to test optional admissions criteria on the definition of the GEARSET cohort, program implementation, and student participation.more » « less
