PERC 2021 Abstract Detail Page
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| Abstract Title: | Equity in Precollege Physics Access, Teaching, and Learning |
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| Abstract: | Physics is taken by fewer than one-half of high school graduates in the U.S., and contextual factors related to access, participation, teaching quality, and precursor performance in science and mathematics may provide insights into why students take physics and how they perform in the subject. In this session, a group of physics education researchers will examine precollege physics equity in terms of student-, teacher-, and school-level characteristics that predict physics access and achievement. These studies explore how ethnicity and class are factors in the reproduction of structural inequalities in precollege physics in the U.S. The session will include extended time for a broader discussion where all speakers and the physics education research community may debate policy reforms that will promote more equitable student outcomes. |
| Abstract Type: | Talk Symposium |
| Session Time: | Parallel Sessions Cluster II |
Author/Organizer Information | |
| Primary Contact: |
Angela M. Kelly Stony Brook University Stony Brook, NY 11794-5233 Phone: 862-224-2219 |
| Co-Author(s) and Co-Presenter(s) |
Robert Krakehl, Stony Brook University and Manhasset High School, NY Martin Palermo, Stony Brook University and William Floyd High School, NY Keith Sheppard, Stony Brook University Dennis M. Robbins, Hunter College, City University of New York |
Symposium Specific Information | |
| Moderator: | Drew Rosen |
| Presentation 1 Title: | Science and Mathematics Predictors of Precollege Physics Equity, Access, and Performance |
| Presentation 1 Authors: | Robert Krakehl & Angela M. Kelly |
| Presentation 1 Abstract: | The question of precollege physics access and performance has been a persistent concern when considering the goal of diversifying participation in post-secondary STEM study and careers. This study examined academic and demographic predictors of physics enrollment and performance, which may provide insights for academic institutions to compensate for differential access to the social, cultural, and science capital that often influences physics participation and learning. Descriptive and inferential analyses of state-level data (N=1208 high schools enrolling 770,462 students) were conducted to define the scope of physics participation and performance, and the predictive value of ethnicity, socioeconomic class, and prior science and mathematics course enrollments and performance. Physics was taken by fewer students when compared to biology, Earth science, and chemistry, and participation and performance were significantly differentiated by ethnicity and socioeconomic class. Correlation and multiple regression models indicated that although socioeconomic status was the main predictor of student enrollment in physics, participation was mediated by schoolwide enrollment in chemistry and algebra II as well as school-level performance in chemistry and geometry. School-level performance in physics was negatively predicted by the percentage of students traditionally underrepresented in STEM, yet the predictive value was mediated by chemistry and algebra II performance. Results suggest that the science and mathematics sequence negatively predicts physics participation, particularly with regard to students traditionally marginalized in STEM. Students with limited science capital may not enact agency and receive encouragement to pursue physics as an elective. School leaders and policy makers should consider more proactive interventions to promote diverse physics participation and more equitable performance outcomes. |
| Presentation 2 Title: | Physics Teacher Retention, Attrition, and Migration |
| Presentation 2 Authors: | Martin Palermo, Angela M. Kelly, & Robert Krakehl |
| Presentation 2 Abstract: | The issue of science teacher turnover has been examined in many national studies, yet most educational policies related to teacher preparation and student performance are determined at the state level. There has been a lack of research that explores this issue in specific science domains. The present nonexperimental longitudinal study examined physics teacher retention, attrition, and migration patterns over a five-year period from 2012 to 2017 in New York State. The theoretical framework is based upon theories of teacher retention, attrition, and migration, specifically with regard to teacher preparation, organizational culture, and student performance in physics. The sample included 1472 teachers, 105 of whom retired from the profession. Of the remaining 1367 physics teachers, 73.3% (n=1002) were retained in their schools, and 19.4% (n=265) left public school teaching all together preretirement, and 7.3% (n=100) migrated to work in other school districts. Multinomial logistic regression determined physics teacher attrition was predicted by years of teaching experience (professional age), school-level socioeconomic status, and whether the teacher was certified in physics. Physics teachers certified in biology were more likely to stay in their positions. Physics teacher migration was predicted by professional age and school-level socioeconomic status. Of the novice teachers who migrated to other schools, approximately half left urban and rural schools to work in suburban schools while most of the others migrated to similar school locales. Implications for the support and preparation of novice physics teachers, particularly those who work in high need schools, will be discussed. |
| Presentation 3 Title: | Widening the Gap: Intersectional Analysis of Advanced Placement Physics Participation and Performance by Gender and Ethnicity |
| Presentation 3 Authors: | Angela M. Kelly & Robert Krakehl |
| Presentation 3 Abstract: | This quasi-experimental, observational study examined access and performance of students in four Advanced Placement (AP) Physics courses in 2018-19: AP Physics 1 (N=150,451), AP Physics 2 (N=20,466), AP Physics C Mechanics (N=49,951), and AP Physics C Electricity & Magnetism (N=20,449); this analysis utilized an intersectional lens of ethnicity and gender in identifying enrollment and performance disparities. Descriptive and inferential analyses were conducted to determine whether the distribution of student ethnicities and genders for students who took the examinations was similar to that of U.S. schools. Results indicated that AP Physics 1 was a relatively accessible course, though enrollment disparities among genders and ethnicities grew as the AP Physics courses became more advanced with physics and/or calculus prerequisites or corequisites. There were large decreases in course enrollments from first- to second-year AP Physics courses, particularly for women who were also underrepresented ethnic minorities. In terms of performance, AP Physics 1 had the lowest overall weighted average, with the majority of students failing the examination. Women who were traditionally underrepresented ethnic minorities were found to have failure rates of over 80% on the AP Physics 1 examination, and failure rates near 50% for AP Physics 2 and the AP Physics C courses compared to non-minority men who had approximately half the failure rates. In most cases, men outperformed women who shared their ethnicities. These results present opportunities for physics education policy makers and researchers to design interventions for students in intersecting marginalized social groups, many of whom have disproportionately low representation and achievement in advanced high school physics. |
| Presentation 4 Title: | How did Physics Become a Course for Boys? A History of Gender Enrollment in High School Physics |
| Presentation 4 Authors: | Keith Sheppard & Dennis M. Robbins |
| Presentation 4 Abstract: | Access to and enrollment in high school physics has until fairly recently been predominantly a privilege of boys. Recent publications have suggested that the gap in gender enrollment has narrowed, and in some instances, become equal. This has often been attributed to the publication of a Nation at Risk in 1983 and the subsequent broad increase in high school graduation requirements in science and mathematics. But has this always been the case? Was the access of girls to physics courses always restricted? This historical study provides an overview of high school physics gender enrollment, starting in the 19th century and tracking forward to the present day. It utilizes both nationwide data from the U.S. Bureau of Education and state-level data from New York State's public schools and academies. As such it provides the historical backbone and context for the rest of this symposium's content. In the past, women enrolled in physics in ways not observed since. In 1890, the number and percentage of women enrolled high school physics in the U.S. were greater than that of men. The early decades of the 20th century marked the beginning of an overall historical decline in the percentage of students taking physics, which reached its nadir in the 1980s shortly before A Nation at Risk was published. Over time, however, the loss of women was much greater and the period of 1900 to 1950 initiated a long-standing educational division between genders. The study also addresses some of the root causes of the differing levels of participation of men and women. Female participation has increased in the last forty years but a persistent chasm between the genders in physics course-taking and credit-earning has been the norm for the last 100 years. |
