– Females were significantly more positive than males in STEM career interest and in semantic perceptions of STEM as a career. This was true in spite of the findings that females were less positive
than males in their semantic perceptions of mathematics, engineering and technology.
– Findings regarding Year One (Grade 11) versus Year Two (Grade 12) academy of mathematics and science students imply that the students may become more realistic over time regarding their initially
high dispositions toward STEM content areas and their high aspirations for STEM careers.
– African Americans as a group had the highest dispositions toward science, while American Indians
were the most positive as a group toward mathematics, and Hispanics were the most positive toward technology.
– Students from smaller schools tend to have higher dispositions regarding STEM interest and STEM careers.
– When asked for suggestions for improving STEM education in the United States, there were many ideas that were frequently mentioned. These included more hands-on and engaging lessons, more STEM-related (including engineering) courses offered, career education at an earlier age, making classes more relevant to the real world, and more passionate and qualified teachers.
– The top three reasons reported by the students for an interest in STEM were: (1) a supportive parent/family member (reported by 147 = 26%), (2) a high quality/motivating teacher (reported by 97 = 17%), and (3) self-motivation/naturally inclined (reported by 80 = 14%).
* Factors that impact having a STEM Career interest in high school.