This qualitative multiple case study explores the collaborations between three STEM middle school teachers and three STEM undergraduate mentors of color in an urban school district. Drawing on sociocultural theories and literature on culturally relevant education, we used a comparative thematic approach to explore how mentors contributed to culturally relevant opportunities in STEM curriculum and pedagogy. We found that the partners’ STEM identities, how the teacher positioned the mentor in the learners’ experience, and the teachers’ philosophy of the purpose of engineering influenced the contribution undergraduate mentors could make to rigorous and equitable engineering instruction.
AikensM. L.RobertsonM. M.SadseliaS.WatkinsK.EvansM.RunyonC. R.DolanE. L. (2017). Race and gender differences in undergraduate research mentoring structures and research outcomes. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 16(2), ar34. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.16-07-0211
2.
ArandaM LLieRGuzeyS S (2020). Productive thinking in middle school science students' design conversations in a design-based engineering challenge. International Journal of Technology and Design Education, 30(1), 67–81. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10798-019-09498-5
AronsonB.LaughterJ. (2016). The theory and practice of culturally relevant education: A synthesis of research across content areas. Review of Educational Research, 86 (1), 163-206. http://dx.doi.org/10.3102/0034654315582066
5.
BallD. L.CohenD. K. (1999). Developing practice, developing practitioners: Toward a practice-based theory of professional education. In Darling-HammondL.SykesG. (Eds.), Teaching as the learning profession (pp. 3-31). Jossey-Bass.
6.
BangM.BrownB.BartonA. C.RoseberyA.WarrenB. (2017). Toward more equitable learning in science: Expanding relationships among students, teachers, and science practices. In SchwarzC. V.PassmoreC.ReiserB. J. (Eds.), Helping students make sense of the world using next generation science and engineering practices (pp. 33-58). National Science Teachers Association.
7.
BatteyD. (2013). Access to mathematics: “A possessive investment in whiteness”. Curriculum Inquiry, 43(3), 332-359.
8.
BielefeldtA. R.RulifsonG. (2020, June 22). Undergraduate Students Benefits from Involvement in K-12 Outreach. 2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access. https://peer.asee.org/undergraduate-students-benefits-from-involvement-in-k-12-outreach.
9.
BonnerE. P.AdamsT. L. (2012). Culturally responsive teaching in the context of mathematics: A grounded theory case study. Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, 15(1), 25-38. doi:10.1007/s10857-011-9198-4
10.
BovbjergK. M. (2006). Teams and collegiality in educational culture. European Educational Research Journal, 5(3&4), 244-253. https://doi.org/10.2304/eerj.2006.5.3.244
BraundMReissM (2006). Towards a more authentic science curriculum: The contribution of out-of-school learning. International Journal of Science Education, 28(12), 1373–1388. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09500690500498419
13.
BrouwerP.BrekelmansM.NieuwenhuisL.SimonsR. J. (2012). Fostering teacher community development: A review of design principles and a case study of an innovative interdisciplinary team. Learning Environments Research, 15(1), 319-344. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10984-012-9119-1
14.
Brown, B. A. (2021). Preserving the “S” in STEM: A Review of Research of Urban Science Education. In Handbook of Urban Education, 331-354.
15.
BrownB. A.BodaP.LemmiC.MonroeX. (2019). Moving culturally relevant pedagogy from theory to practice: Exploring teachers’ application of culturally relevant education in science and mathematics. Urban Education, 54(6), 775-803. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0042085918794802
16.
CanneyN.BielefeldtA. (2015). A framework for the development of social responsibility in engineers. International Journal of Engineering Education, 31(1), 414-424.
17.
CarterL. (2008). Globalization and science education: The implications of science in the new economy. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 45(5), 617-633. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.20189.
CavagnettoA. R. (2010). Argument to foster scientific literacy: A review of argument interventions in K–12 science contexts. Review of Educational Research, 80(3), 336–371. http://dx.doi.org/10.3102/0034654310376953
20.
ColeM. (1996). Cultural psychology: A once and future discipline. Harvard University Press.
21.
DoverA. G. (2013). Teaching for social justice: From conceptual frameworks to classroom practices. Multicultural Perspectives, 15(1), 3-11. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15210960.2013.754285
22.
EbyL. T.DurleyJ. R.EvansS. C.RaginsB. R. (2008). Mentors’ perceptions of negative mentoring experiences: Scale development and nomological validation. Journal of Applied Psychology, 93(2), 358-373. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.93.2.358
23.
EngeströmY. (1987). Learning by expanding: An activity-theoretical approach to developmental research. Orienta-Konsultit.
24.
Engineering Design Process (2018). NASA's Best Educators: Beginning Engineering, Science, and Technology: Retrieved from https://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/best/edp.html.
GayG. (2010). Culturally responsive teaching: Theory, research, and practice (2nd ed.). Teachers College.
27.
GeeJ. P. (2000). Identity as an analytic lens for research in education. Review of Research in Education, 25(1), 99-125. https://doi.org/10.2307/1167322
28.
GeeJ. P. (2012). Social linguistics and literacies: Ideology in discourses (4th ed.). Routledge.
29.
GunckelK. L.TolbertS. (2018). The imperative to move toward a dimension of care in engineering education. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 55(7), 938-961. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/tea.21458
30.
HeathS. B. (1983). Ways with words: Language, life, and work in communities and classrooms. Cambridge University Press.
31.
HussarB.ZhangJ.HeinS.WangK.RobertsA.CuiJ.DiligR. (2020). The Condition of Education 2020. NCES 2020-144. US Department of Education. Washington D.C. :National Center for Education Statistics. https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2020144
32.
Johnson, L. L., Sieben, N., & Buxton, D. (2018). Collaborative design as mediated praxis: Professional development for socially just pedagogies. English Education, 50(2), 172-198.
33.
KellyG JCunninghamC M (2019). Epistemic tools in engineering design for K-12 education. Science Education, 103(4), 1080–1111. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/sce.21513
34.
KendricksK. D.NedunuriK. V.ArmentA. R. (2013). Minority student perceptions of the impact of mentoring to enhance academic performance in STEM disciplines. Journal of STEM Education: Innovations and Research, 14(2), 38-46.
35.
KrogerJ (2004). Identity in adolescence: The balance between self and other (3rd ed.). Routledge.
36.
Kier, M.W., Williams, N.G, Teamey, K.P., Bazdar, A.C., & Khalil, D. (2021). Converging science and math curricula with learnersthrough culturally responsive engineering designs. In Nasser Mansour & Heba EL-Deghaidy (Eds.) STEM in science education and S in STEM: From pedagogy to learning (pp. 47–66). Brill Sense Publishers.
37.
Kitova, E. T. (2017, October). Humanization and humanitarization of engineering education. In International Conference onLinguistic and Cultural Studies (pp. 61–67). Springer.
38.
LabibW.AbdelsattarA.IbrahimY.AbdelhadiA. (2021). What motivates students to study engineering? A comparative study between males and females in Saudi Arabia. Education Sciences, 11(4), 147-164. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11040147
39.
Ladson-BillingsG. (1989, May). A tale of two teachers: Exemplars of successful pedagogy for Black students. Paper presented at the Educational Equality project Colloquium, New York, NY.
40.
Ladson-BillingsG. (1995). But that's Just good teaching! The case for culturally relevant pedagogy. Theory Into Practice, 34(3), 159-165. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00405849509543675
LeeO.FraddS. H. (1998). Science for all, including students from non-English language backgrounds. Educational Researcher, 27(4) 1-10. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1176619
43.
LincolnY. S.GubaE. G. (1986). But is it rigorous? Trustworthiness and authenticity in naturalistic evaluation. New Directions for Program Evaluations, 1986(30), 73–84. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ev.1427
McgeeE OWhiteD T (2021). Afrofuturism: Reimaging STEM for Black urban learners. In Handbook of Urban Education. pp. 384–396.
46.
MeyerX.CrawfordB. A. (2011). Teaching science as a cultural way of knowing: Merging authentic inquiry, nature of science, and multicultural strategies. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 6(3), 525-547. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11422-011-9318-6
47.
MilesM. B.HubermanA. M.SaldanaJ. (2014). Qualitative data analysis. Sage.
Mogul, N. F., Tomblin, D., &Reedy, T. D. (2019, June), Just add context? Analyzing studentperceptions of decontextualized and contextualized engineering problems and their use of storytelling to create context. Paper presented at 2019 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Tampa, Florida. http://dx.doi.org/10.18260/1-2--33035
50.
MojeE. B.CollazoT.CarrilloR.MarxR. W. (2001). Maestro, what is ‘quality’?”: Language, literacy, and discourse in project-based science. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 38(4), 469-498. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/tea.1014
51.
MollL. C. (1992). Literacy research in community and classrooms: A sociocultural approach. In BeachR.GreenJ. L.KamilM. L.ShanahanT. (Eds.), Multidisciplinary perspectives in literacy research (pp. 211-244). National Conference on Research in English and National Council of Teachers of English.
52.
NoddingsN. (2015). The challenge to care in schools (2nd edition). Teachers College Press.
53.
O’HaraR. M. (2020). STEM (Ing) the tide: A critical race theory analysis in STEM education. Journal of Constructivist Psychology, 1-13. DOI: 10.1080/10720537.2020.1842825
OsborneJQuinnH (2017). The framework, the NGSS, and the practices of science. In Schwarz, C. V., Passmore, C. & Reiser, B. J. (Eds.), Helping students make sense of the world using Next Generation Science and Engineering Practices (pp. 23–32). National Science Teachers Association.
56.
OuhbiS.AwadM. A. M. (2021, April). The impact of combining storytelling with lecture on female students in software engineering education. In 2021 IEEE Global Engineering Education Conference (EDUCON) (pp. 443-447). IEEE.
57.
PalmerR.DavisR.MarambaD. (2010). Popularizing achievement: The role of an HBCU in supporting academic success for underprepared black males. Negro Educational Review, 61(1–4), 85-106.
RodriguezJ. L.Bustamante JonesE.PengV. O.ParkC. D. (2004). Promoting academic achievement and identity development among diverse high school students. High School Journal, 87(3), 44-53. https://doi.org/10.1353/hsj.2004.0002
60.
RothK.GarnierH. (2006). What science teaching looks like: An international perspective. Educational Leadership, 64(4), 16-23.
61.
SalterB.CooperM.DickinsA. (2006). China And the global stem cell bioeconomy: An emerging political strategy?Regenerative Medicine, 1(5), 671-683. http://dx.doi.org/10.2217/17460751.1.5.671
62.
Slaughter-DefoeD. T.GarretA. M.Harrison-HaleA. O. (2006). Affirming future generations of ethnic minority scientists. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 71(1), 188-192. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-5834.2006.00369.x
63.
SmagorinskyP. (2008). The method section as conceptual epicenter in constructing social science research reports. Written Communication, 25(3), 389-411. https://doi.org/10.1177/0741088308317815
64.
StakeR. E. (2013). Multiple case study analysis. Guilford Press.
65.
SummersM. F.HrbowskiF. A. (2006). Preparing minority scientists and engineers. Science, 311(1), 1870-1871.
66.
TenenbaumL. S.AndersonM. K.JettM.YourickD. L. (2014). An innovative near-peer mentoring model for undergraduate and secondary students: STEM focus. Innovative Higher Education, 39(5), 375-385. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10755-014-9286-3
67.
UllmanD. G. (2003). The mechanical design process. McGraw-Hill.
VoogtJ.WestbroekH.HandelzaltsA.WalravenA.McKenneyS.PietersJ.de VriesB. (2011). Teacher learning in collaborative curriculum design. Teaching and Teacher Education, 27(8), 1235-1244. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2011.07.003
70.
VygotskyL. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Harvard University Press.
71.
WatsonW.Sealey-RuizY.JacksonI. (2016). Daring to care: The role of culturally relevant care in mentoring black and latino male high school students. Race Ethnicity and Education, 19(5), 980-1002. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13613324.2014.911169
72.
WeinsteinM.BladesD.GleasonS. C. (2016). Questioning power: Deframing the STEM discourse. Canadian Journal of Science, Mathematics and Technology Education, 16(2), 201-212. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14926156.2016.1166294
73.
WengerE. (1998). Communities of practice: Learning, meaning and identity. Cambridge University Press.
74.
WertschJ. V. (1991). Voices of the mind: A sociocultural approach to mediated action. Harvard University Press.
75.
Wilson-LopezA.MejiaJ. A.HasbúnI. M.KasunG. S. (2016). Latina/o adolescents’ funds of knowledge related to engineering. Journal of Engineering Education, 105(2), 278-311. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jee.20117
76.
WubbelsT.BrekelmansM. (2012). Teacher-student relationships in the classroom. In FraserB. J.TobinK. G.McRobbieC. J. (Eds.), Second international handbook of science education (pp. 1241-1255). Springer.
77.
YossoT. (2005). Whose culture has capital? A critical race theory discussion of community cultural wealth. Race, Ethnicity, and Education, 8(1), 69-91. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1361332052000341006
78.
YowellJ. L.ZarskeM. S.KnightD.SullivanJ. F. (2013, June). Impact of TEAMS clubs: An afterschool engineering enrichment program that impacts K-12 students and college student leaders. ASEE Paper 2013-6369, Proceedings of the 2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Atlanta, GA.
79.
ZeidlerD. L. (2016). STEM Education: A deficit framework for the twenty-first century? A sociocultural socioscientific response. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 11(1), 11-26. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11422-014-9578-z
