{"id":157209,"date":"2019-12-16T09:25:08","date_gmt":"2019-12-16T14:25:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?post_type=school-college-post&p=157209"},"modified":"2019-12-16T09:25:08","modified_gmt":"2019-12-16T14:25:08","slug":"500k-nsf-grant-funds-interdisciplinary-stem-education-research","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2019\/12\/500k-nsf-grant-funds-interdisciplinary-stem-education-research\/","title":{"rendered":"$500K NSF Grant Funds Interdisciplinary STEM Education Research"},"content":{"rendered":"

Rebecca Campbell-Montalvo<\/a>, postdoctoral research associate in the Neag School\u2019s Department of Curriculum and Instruction, is co-principal investigator on a new $500,000 federal research grant funded by the National Science Foundation<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Headed by principal investigator Jana Marcette, director of the Office of Graduate Studies at Montana State University Billings, the five-year interdisciplinary project brings together Campbell-Montalvo, an expert in the anthropology of education, with co-principal investigators in biological sciences and psychology from Saint Louis University and the University of California at Davis. Titled \u201cInclusive Environments and Metrics in Biology Education and Research (iEMBER): Novel Networking Fostering Interdisciplinary Communities and New Research Collaborations<\/a>,\u201d the project ultimately seeks to improve the inclusion and retention of students in the STEM fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.<\/p>\n

\u201cOver the past decade, there has been an undeniable turn toward STEM education,\u201d says Campbell-Montalvo. \u201cFor instance, the Girl Scouts introduced STEM merit badges a few years ago \u2014 something that was groundbreaking at the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cResearchers are understanding that underrepresentation in STEM needs to be addressed through factors outside of students\u2019 own efforts.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Rebecca Campbell-Montalvo, co-principal investigator<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

However, she adds, \u201cmore and more stakeholders are realizing that the underrepresentation of minoritized groups \u2014 African Americans, Latinos, American Indians, women, people who are LGBTQPIA+, and other groups \u2014 in STEM is a serious problem that impedes technological advancement, biomedical discoveries, diverse perspectives, and social justice.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018A new generation of researchers\u2019\"NSF;
\n<\/strong>Numerous factors can create barriers to boosting diversity and retention of students in STEM \u2014\u00a0among them, the researchers attest, are academic, cultural, economic, and other forces, and addressing these issues requires expertise from such diverse fields as biology, education, and the social sciences.<\/p>\n

At the same time, \u201cresearchers are understanding that underrepresentation in STEM needs to be addressed through factors outside of students\u2019 own efforts,\u201d says Campbell-Montalvo. \u201cThis means that we are paying more attention to inclusion and climate \u2026 [and] thinking about how treatment from peers and instructors as well as representation in textbooks affects individuals\u2019 feelings that they belong in STEM.\u201d<\/p>\n

The team\u2019s primary focus over the course of five-year project will be on broadening inclusion in the area of biology education research by:<\/p>\n