Student Attitudes/Beliefs

Values Reflected in Energy-Related Physics Concepts

Gray, K. E. & Scherr, R. E. (2025). Values reflected in energy-related physics concepts. The Physics Teacher, 63, 240–242. https://doi.org/10.1119/5.0137442

Author/Presenter

Kara E. Gray

Rachel E. Scherr

Year
2025
Short Description

Physics has the reputation of being purely about nature, not about people or culture. Physics concepts such as time, space, and mass are often considered to be independent of sociopolitical concepts such as democracy and capitalism. However, physics concepts are not “out there” in the universe, free of cultural values: rather, they are created and sustained by people in specific times and places, for the purpose of addressing particular social needs and empowering particular people.

Exploring Students’ Engagement with Inscription-based Science Practices from the Perspective of Epistemic (Un)certainty

Learning about natural hazards and risks through science practices entails considerations of uncertainty. We examined ways in which students expressed their epistemic (un)certainty about claims they made based on their inscription-based science practices.

Author/Presenter

Hee-Sun Lee

Amy Pallant

Gey-Hong Gweon

Trudi Lord

Christopher Lore

Lead Organization(s)
Year
2025
Short Description

Learning about natural hazards and risks through science practices entails considerations of uncertainty. We examined ways in which students expressed their epistemic (un)certainty about claims they made based on their inscription-based science practices.

Supporting Student Voice in Science Classrooms: The Limits of Psychosocial Approaches and the Importance of Sociocultural and Critical Perspectives on Student Agency

In this paper, we examine traditional psychosocial approaches to the study of student agency in science education, emphasizing the importance of incorporating sociocultural and critical perspectives. We present both contemporary studies of student agency in educational psychology and the work of scholars who study students’ student agency with attention to the cultural, economic, political, and historical forces shaping agentic behaviors in schools.

Author/Presenter

Christine Lee Bae

Ananya M. Matewos

John Fife

Year
2024
Short Description

In this paper, we examine traditional psychosocial approaches to the study of student agency in science education, emphasizing the importance of incorporating sociocultural and critical perspectives.

Inspiring STEM Education Focused on Solutions

Nancy Butler Songer, from the University of Utah, makes a call for collective action to create a new curriculum focused on the design of solutions.

Songer, N. B. (2023). Inspiring STEM education focused on solutions. Open Access Government July 2023, pp.322-323. https://doi.org/10.56367/OAG-039-10836

Author/Presenter

Nancy Butler Songer

Lead Organization(s)
Year
2023
Short Description

Nancy Butler Songer, from the University of Utah, makes a call for collective action to create a new curriculum focused on the design of solutions.

How Do We Design Curricula to Foster Innovation, Motivation and Interest in STEM Learning?

Purpose
The authors designed a science and engineering curricular program that includes design features that promote student interest and motivation and examined teachers' and students' views on meaningfulness, motivation and interest.

Design/methodology/approach
The research approach consisted of mixed methods, including content analyses and descriptive statistics.

Author/Presenter
Julia E. Calabrese

Nancy Butler Songer

Holly Cordner

Daniel Kalani Aina Jr

Lead Organization(s)
Year
2023
Short Description

The authors designed a science and engineering curricular program that includes design features that promote student interest and motivation and examined teachers' and students' views on meaningfulness, motivation and interest.

Youth as Essential Problem-Solvers of Our Futures

Nancy Butler Songer, Associate Provost of STEM Education at the University of Utah, discusses the importance of supporting and including young people as part of environmental decision-making teams and key problem-solvers of our futures.

Songer, N. B. (2023). Youth as essential problem-solvers of our futures. Open Access Government October 2023, pp. 312-313. https://doi.org/10.56367/OAG-040-10836

Author/Presenter

Nancy Butler Songer

Lead Organization(s)
Year
2023
Short Description

Nancy Butler Songer, Associate Provost of STEM Education at the University of Utah, discusses the importance of supporting and including young people as part of environmental decision-making teams and key problem-solvers of our futures.

Youths’ Solutions to Local Invasive Species

Educating students about real-world, issues such as local invasive species aims to encourage wider engagement with STEM.

Calabrese, J. E. & Songer, N. B. (2024). Youths’ solutions to local invasive species. Open Access Government January 2024.

Author/Presenter

Julia E Calabrese

Nancy Butler Songer

Lead Organization(s)
Year
2024
Short Description

Educating students about real-world, issues such as local invasive species aims to encourage wider engagement with STEM.

STEP UP: Supporting Teachers in Having Difficult Conversations

While the field of physics has become more diverse over the last few decades, it does not reflect the demographics of the population of the United States by any metric. Founded in 2017, the STEP UP program began as a partnership between the American Physical Society (APS), the American Association of Physics Teachers, Florida International University, and Texas A&M University-Commerce. The project research team developed two active learning lessons examining the diverse profiles of individuals who earned a bachelor’s degree in physics, and issues of marginalization of women in physics.

Author/Presenter

Bree Barnett Dreyfuss

Year
2023
Short Description

The project research team developed two active learning lessons examining the diverse profiles of individuals who earned a bachelor’s degree in physics, and issues of marginalization of women in physics. After participating in the lessons, research showed that both the students’ sense of physics identity and their intentions to pursue a physics major increased, especially among female-identifying students.

STEP UP: Supporting Teachers in Having Difficult Conversations

While the field of physics has become more diverse over the last few decades, it does not reflect the demographics of the population of the United States by any metric. Founded in 2017, the STEP UP program began as a partnership between the American Physical Society (APS), the American Association of Physics Teachers, Florida International University, and Texas A&M University-Commerce. The project research team developed two active learning lessons examining the diverse profiles of individuals who earned a bachelor’s degree in physics, and issues of marginalization of women in physics.

Author/Presenter

Bree Barnett Dreyfuss

Year
2023
Short Description

The project research team developed two active learning lessons examining the diverse profiles of individuals who earned a bachelor’s degree in physics, and issues of marginalization of women in physics. After participating in the lessons, research showed that both the students’ sense of physics identity and their intentions to pursue a physics major increased, especially among female-identifying students.

STEP UP: Supporting Teachers in Having Difficult Conversations

While the field of physics has become more diverse over the last few decades, it does not reflect the demographics of the population of the United States by any metric. Founded in 2017, the STEP UP program began as a partnership between the American Physical Society (APS), the American Association of Physics Teachers, Florida International University, and Texas A&M University-Commerce. The project research team developed two active learning lessons examining the diverse profiles of individuals who earned a bachelor’s degree in physics, and issues of marginalization of women in physics.

Author/Presenter

Bree Barnett Dreyfuss

Year
2023
Short Description

The project research team developed two active learning lessons examining the diverse profiles of individuals who earned a bachelor’s degree in physics, and issues of marginalization of women in physics. After participating in the lessons, research showed that both the students’ sense of physics identity and their intentions to pursue a physics major increased, especially among female-identifying students.