Camryn Pederson
Research Mentor(s): Demetri Morgan
Mentor Department: Center for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education
Authors: Camryn Pederson, Demetri Morgan
Session: Session 2 (10:00am – 10:50am)
Presentation Type: Poster 58
Abstract
This qualitative study focuses on a group of high school students who attended ten workshops, which introduced them to ethical issues in neuroscience through discussions and activities. Following the workshops, the students participated in a six-week summer research experience centered on neuroscience and society. We were particularly interested in how students continued to develop their STEM identities and STEM literacy throughout the summer program while working in science labs and attending weekly professional development seminars. This study aims to uncover themes and ideas that may not be evident from other types of data but become clear through images and text. During the six-week summer research experience, students took photographs, which we qualitatively analyzed for this project. We examined each photograph’s foreground and background and then used NVivo software to compare similarities and differences across our analyses. Our preliminary findings, based on the slice of data I analyzed, highlight how students’ participation in hands-on lab experiences and professional development seminars enhanced their confidence in STEM settings. In the next stage of analysis, this insight will be integrated with those of my co-researchers to answer the research questions more definitively.
