YEO Programs and Young Girls Interest in STEMM

Women are still vastly underrepresented in STEMM occupations (NCSES, 2023) which may be due to factors such as gender stereotypes (AAUW, 2023), the gender pay gap (Aragāo, C. 2023), male-dominated fields (AAUW, 2023), and the lack of exposure to female role models in STEMM. Previous research shows that STEMM-based Youth Education Outreach (YEO) and Out of School Time (OST) programs help to educate and engage students in STEMM fields and may encourage them to join a STEMM career later on (Chan et al., 2020). The current study examines how YEO programs help to interest and recruit adolescent girls into STEMM careers. Specifically, the current study evaluates the effects of a STEMM-based youth outreach program on students’ interest and intent to pursue engineering (WIE). The following is hypothesized in the present research: WIE program attendance will lead to higher interest in engineering (H1), and least 75% of students will report program enjoyment and its teachings (H2). This study looks at approximately 277 girls who attended the Women in Engineering (WIE) program at Penn State Behrend in 2015 and 2016 to assess whether STEMM-based youth outreach programs increase overall interest and intent in STEMM (engineering). The current study uses a mixed methods design. Summary descriptives (such as means or frequency counts), a repeated-measures between-subjects ANOVA, and qualitative, open-response data was collected to analyze. The researcher found significant results that support the hypotheses; the WIE is successful in getting girls more interested in engineering and pursuing a career in engineering. These results indicate that STEMM-based YEO programs such as WIE are successful in getting girls more interested in these subjects and may help to recruit them into STEMM careers later on in life.

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Work Title YEO Programs and Young Girls Interest in STEMM
Access
Open Access
Creators
  1. Ashley McFaul
Keyword
  1. Youth
  2. STEM
  3. STEMM
  4. Youth Outreach
  5. Outreach
  6. Adolescent
  7. Girls
  8. Females
License In Copyright (Rights Reserved)
Work Type Masters Culminating Experience
Sub Work Type Scholarly Paper/Essay (MA/MS)
Program Humanities
Degree Master of Arts
Acknowledgments
  1. Dr. Daniell DiFrancesca
Publication Date August 10, 2024
Subject
  1. Psychology
  2. Youth Education
  3. Youth Outreach
  4. STEM
Language
  1. English
Deposited July 17, 2024

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Version 2
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  • Created
  • Deleted A.McFaul Final MRP.pdf
  • Added AMcFaul_Thesis_nosignature.docx
  • Published
  • Updated
  • Updated Degree, Program, Sub Work Type Show Changes
    Degree
    • Master of Arts
    Program
    • Humanities
    Sub Work Type
    • Scholarly Paper/Essay (MA/MS)