NotesFAQContact Us
Collection
Advanced
Search Tips
Peer reviewed Peer reviewed
Direct linkDirect link
ERIC Number: EJ1256507
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020
Pages: 12
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-2469-9896
EISSN: N/A
First Results from the Dark Skies, Bright Kids Astronomy Club Draw-a-Scientist Test
Hayes, Christian R.; Matthews, Allison M.; Song, Yiqing; Linden, Sean T.; Wilson, Robert F.; Finn, Molly; Huang, Xiaoshan; Johnson, Kelsey E.; McAlister, Anne M.; Prager, Brian; Seifert, Richard; Liss, Sandra E.; Burkhardt, Andrew M.; Troup, Nicholas
Physical Review Physics Education Research, v16 n1 Article 010131 Jan-Jun 2020
This paper presents the first results from draw-a-scientist tests (DASTs) over five years that were used to measure the effect of 8-10 week long astronomy clubs and week long summer camps on 3rd-5th grade elementary school students' perceptions of scientists. We facilitated these DASTs prior to these clubs or camps, which provide a baseline for a student's initial conception of scientists, and once at the end, to determine whether their conception changed, possibly as a result of their involvement. In total we analyze 89 pairs of DASTs using a numerical grading scheme designed to quantify the presence of various features in the drawn scientist and their activities. We find that there is a gender imbalance in both the pre- and postclub drawings, with only 32% and 35%, respectively, of students drawing female scientists. We also find that a third to a half of the scientists have a stereotypical appearance and/or are performing stereotypical activities. Although we find insignificant changes (<5%) in most categories, we do find an 8% increase in the number of scientists that have a stereotypical appearance, which is worth following up, but a significant 12% decrease in the number of scientists who are performing stereotypical activities. In addition, we present some possible improvements to implementing DASTs and discuss other possible assessments that could provide a more direct method of gauging the effect of these astronomy clubs or camps.
American Physical Society. One Physics Ellipse 4th Floor, College Park, MD 20740-3844. Tel: 301-209-3200; Fax: 301-209-0865; e-mail: assocpub@aps.org; Web site: http://prst-per.aps.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Education; Early Childhood Education; Grade 3; Primary Education; Grade 4; Intermediate Grades; Grade 5; Middle Schools
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: National Science Foundation (NSF)
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Virginia
Grant or Contract Numbers: AST1413231; AST1716335