Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) advance servingness (i.e., racially-affirming support for Latin* students through campus programs and services) to promote academic success. However, the role of mathematics instruction in servingness is underexamined. Given how gateway mathematics courses filter out racial diversity in STEM majors, insights about Latin* students’ experiences of instruction in these courses can enhance servingness. This study analyzed 27 undergraduate Latin* students’ experiences of servingness through classroom participation in gateway mathematics courses at an HSI. We focused on classroom participation due to its well-documented influence on Latin* students’ mathematics identities and STEM persistence. Latin* students largely reported supportive instruction that reduced risks of participation. However, cultivating a racially-affirming community (a key aspect of servingness on the broader HSI campus) was also necessary to disrupt racialized influences and ensure Latin* students’ equitable access to participation. We conclude with implications for research and practice to advance servingness through STEM education across HSIs.
more »
« less
Faculty and student perceptions of instructional servingness in gateway mathematics courses at a Hispanic-Serving Institution
Research exploring how Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) serve Latin* STEM students has largely focused on features of organizational structures (e.g., support programs), but minimally examined instruction and classroom experiences. This is an important gap to fill, especially in gateway mathematics courses, where faculty relationships and quality of instruction impact Latin* students’ persistence and identities in STEM. To advance such research, this report presents findings from an analysis of how perspectives from HSI mathematics faculty and students about instruction in introductory statistics converged and diverged in terms of serving Latin* populations. We present two illustrative cases of dissonant and resonant perspectives on serving Latin* students through instruction that frames mathematical ability expansively (e.g., not limited to being fast or correct). We conclude with research and practice implications.
more »
« less
- Award ID(s):
- 1953472
- PAR ID:
- 10403092
- Editor(s):
- Lischka, A.; Dyer, E. B.; Jones, R. S.; Lovett, J. N.; Strayer, J.; & Drown, S.
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Proceedings of the 44th Annual Meeting of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 444-452
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
-
Cook, S; Katz, B; Moore-Russo, D (Ed.)Undergraduate mathematics classrooms are racialized spaces for Latin* students, even at Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) with educational missions of cultural affirmation. Instruction plays an important role in reinforcing and disrupting racial oppression in mathematics, which has significant implications for gateway courses (e.g., calculus) that impact STEM persistence. Groupwork is a widely-adopted practice in gateway mathematics courses with intentions to promote equitable access to content and participation; however, research has shown that groupwork can perpetuate inequitable experiences for historically marginalized groups in STEM, including Latin* students attending HSIs. The present study addresses these concerns of racial equity in undergraduate mathematics by exploring Latin* students’ groupwork experiences in gateway courses at a HSI. Our findings capture how groupwork facilitated or removed access to a sense of racially-affirming community, which was central in Latin* students’ visions of equitable support as mathematics learners at a HSI.more » « less
-
BACKGROUND. Calculus instruction is underexamined as a source of racialized and gendered inequity in higher education, despite research that documents minoritized students’ marginalizing experiences in undergraduate mathematics classes. This study fills this research gap by investigating mathematics faculty’s perceptions of the significance of race and gender to calculus instruction at a large, public, historically white research university. METHODS. Theories of colorblind racism and dysconsciousness guided a critical discourse analysis of seven undergraduate calculus faculty’s perceptions of instructional events. FINDINGS. Our analysis revealed two dominant discourses: (i) Race and gender are insignificant social markers in undergraduate calculus; and (ii) Instructional events can be objectively deemed race- and gender-neutral. We illustrate how calculus faculty varyingly engaged these colorblind discourses as well as discourses that challenged such conceptions of instruction. We also highlight how faculty dysconsciousness in reports of instructional practices reflect potential operationalization of dominant discourses that reinforce colorblind racism. CONTRIBUTION. With limited research on faculty perspectives on racial equity in mathematics, our study documents how color-evasive, gender-neutral discourses among mathematics faculty shape orientations to instruction that reinforce the gatekeeping role of calculus in STEM higher education. Implications are provided for race- and gender-conscious undergraduate mathematics instruction and faculty development.more » « less
-
null (Ed.)Undergraduate mathematics education can be experienced in discouraging and marginalizing ways among Black students, Latin students, and white women. Precalculus and calculus courses, in particular, operate as gatekeepers that contribute to racialized and gendered attrition in persistence with mathematics coursework and pursuits in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). However, student perceptions of instruction in these introductory mathematics courses have yet to be systematically examined as a contributor to such attrition. This paper presents findings from a study of 20 historically marginalized students’ perceptions of precalculus and calculus instruction to document features that they found discouraging and marginalizing. Our analysis revealed how students across different race-gender identities reported stereotyping as well as issues of representation in introductory mathematics classrooms and STEM fields as shaping their perceptions of instruction. These perceptions pointed to the operation of three racialized and gendered mechanisms in instruction: (i) creating differential opportunities for participation and support, (ii) limiting support from same-race, same-gender peers to manage negativity in instruction, and (iii) activating exclusionary ideas about who belongs in STEM fields. We draw on our findings to raise implications for research and practice in undergraduate mathematics education.more » « less
-
Increasing the achievement of students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) from early grades to college coursework continues to be at the forefront of educational transformations and research. There is a need for stakeholders at various levels of education to collaborate and confront the complexities of STEM teaching and learning, especially in areas like mathematics education. In recent decades, active learning in college mathematics coursework focusing on collaboration and inquiry-based learning has been proven to positively impact student learning outcomes and is transforming how students and faculty experience mathematics. Active learning environments also provide a unique opportunity to engage undergraduate learning assistants with faculty where they can support near-peer students and deepen their own understanding. Situated within a scholarship program interested in recruiting, retaining, and supporting future STEM teachers, researchers seek to understand what aspects of undergraduate student participation matter most their development and interest in STEM and teaching. In particular, this paper examines scholarship participants serving as learning assistants in active learning college mathematics classrooms to see where and how they find value in their experience. Implications of this research can inform faculty and university programs on how they might prioritize and transform learning opportunities for students to impact their current and future development in STEM and beyond.more » « less
An official website of the United States government

