Changing Social Contexts to Foster Equity in College Science Courses: An Ecological-Belonging Intervention.
Psychol Sci
; 31(9): 1059-1070, 2020 09.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-32845825
ABSTRACT
In diverse classrooms, stereotypes are often "in the air," which can interfere with learning and performance among stigmatized students. Two studies designed to foster equity in college science classrooms (Ns = 1,215 and 607) tested an intervention to establish social norms that make stereotypes irrelevant in the classroom. At the beginning of the term, classrooms assigned to an ecological-belonging intervention engaged in discussion with peers around the message that social and academic adversity is normative and that students generally overcome such adversity. Compared with business-as-usual controls, intervention students had higher attendance, course grades, and 1-year college persistence. The intervention was especially impactful among historically underperforming students, as it improved course grades for ethnic minorities in introductory biology and for women in introductory physics. Regardless of demographics, attendance in the intervention classroom predicted higher cumulative grade point averages 2 to 4 years later. The results illustrate the viability of an ecological approach to fostering equity and unlocking student potential.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Banco de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Medio Social
/
Estudiantes
Tipo de estudio:
Prognostic_studies
Límite:
Female
/
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Psychol Sci
Asunto de la revista:
PSICOLOGIA
Año:
2020
Tipo del documento:
Article