scholarly journals Merging dualities: How convergence points in art and science can (re)engage women with the STEM field

Author(s):  
Bettina Elisabeth Forget

Abstract: How can the interweaving of knowledge silos help to engage girls who are becoming disinterested in science? This study describes how convergence points in research practices within the fields of art and science can mitigate gender stereotypes associated with the STEM field. A case study of four women working at the intersection of art and science revealed common aspects of their practices: an appreciation of the natural world, a sense of aesthetics, a drawing practice and a reliance on meaningful research questions, suggesting that these can act as bridges between both fields of study. Keywords: Arts; Education; Art-science; STEM; STEAM; Leaky pipeline; Gender; Motivation; Stereotype threat; Self-efficacy; Transdisciplinarity; Nature; Drawing; Aesthetics. Résumé : Comment l’interrelation des réservoirs de connaissance peut-elle contribuer à motiver les jeunes femmes qui se désintéressent de la science ? Cette étude relate comment les points de convergence des diverses pratiques de recherche dans le domaine des arts et de la science peuvent atténuer les stéréotypes de genre associés à la filière STIM. L’étude du cas de quatre femmes œuvrant au point de convergence de l’art et de la science a mis en évidence les aspects communs de leurs pratiques : l’appréciation du monde naturel, un sens de l’esthétique, une pratique du dessin et l’utilisation de questions de recherche pertinentes, ce qui laisse supposer certains ponts entre ces deux domaines d’étude. Mots-clés : arts, éducation, science et art, STIM, STIAM, tuyau percé, genre, motivation, menace du stéréotype, auto-efficacité, transdisciplinarité, nature, dessin, esthétique.

2014 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 112-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Latsch ◽  
Bettina Hannover

We investigated effects of the media’s portrayal of boys as “scholastic failures” on secondary school students. The negative portrayal induced stereotype threat (boys underperformed in reading), stereotype reactance (boys displayed stronger learning goals towards mathematics but not reading), and stereotype lift (girls performed better in reading but not in mathematics). Apparently, boys were motivated to disconfirm their group’s negative depiction, however, while they could successfully apply compensatory strategies when describing their learning goals, this motivation did not enable them to perform better. Overall the media portrayal thus contributes to the maintenance of gender stereotypes, by impairing boys’ and strengthening girls’ performance in female connoted domains and by prompting boys to align their learning goals to the gender connotation of the domain.


2021 ◽  
pp. 136700692110231
Author(s):  
Francesca Romana Moro

Aims and Objectives/Purpose/Research Questions: The Alorese in eastern Indonesia are an Austronesian community who have inhabited two Papuan-speaking islands for approximately 600 years. Their language presents a paradox: contact with the neighbouring Papuan languages has led to both complexification and simplification. This article argues that these opposite outcomes of contact result from two distinct scenarios, and formulates a hypothesis about a shift in multilingual patterns in Alorese history. Design/Methodology/Approach: To formulate a hypothesis about the discontinuity of multilingual patterns, this article first sketches the past and present multilingual patterns of the Alorese by modelling language contact outcomes in terms of bilingual optimisation strategies. This is followed by a comparison of the two scenarios to pinpoint similarities and differences. Data and Analysis: Previous research shows that two types of contact phenomena are attested in Alorese: (a) complexification arising from grammatical borrowings from Papuan languages, and (b) morphological simplification. The first change is associated with prolonged child bilingualism and is the result of Papuan-oriented bilingual strategies, while the latter change is associated with adult second language (L2) learning and is the result of universal communicative strategies. Findings/Conclusions Complexification and simplification are the results of two different layers of contact. Alorese was first used in small-scale bilingual communities, with widespread symmetric multilingualism. Later, multilingualism became more asymmetric, and the language started to undergo a simplification process due to the considerable number of L2 speakers. Originality: This article is innovative in providing a clear case study showing discontinuity of multilingual patterns, supported by linguistic and non-linguistic evidence. Significance/Implications: This article provides a plausible explanation for the apparent paradox found in Alorese, by showing that different outcomes of contact in the same language are due to different patterns of acquisition and socialisation. This discontinuity should be taken into account by models of language contact.


Author(s):  
Jamie Amemiya ◽  
Elizabeth Mortenson ◽  
Sohee Ahn ◽  
Caren M. Walker ◽  
Gail D. Heyman

2021 ◽  
pp. 136700692110194
Author(s):  
Rashid Yahiaoui ◽  
Marwa J Aldous ◽  
Ashraf Fattah

Aims and objectives/purpose/research questions: The aim of this study is to investigate the sociolinguistic functions of code-switching and its relation to the meaning-making process by using the animated series Kim Possible as a case study. Design/methodology/approach: This study employs Muysken’s taxonomy to draw on code-switching patterns in lexico-grammar in relation to human behavior. The study also uses the functional approaches of Muysken and Appel and Gumperz as binary investigatory frameworks to locate interlingual and intralingual code-switching particularities and to elaborate on code-switching functions. Data and analysis: The analysis encompasses 48 episodes. Firstly, we extracted and transcribed code-switching occurrences in light of Muysken’s typology episode-by-episode and categorized them according to their code-switching type (interlingual or intralingual). Secondly, we quantified the occurrences according to their syntactic form to make more systematic claims about code-switching patterns. Next, we triangulated the patterns by examining the context of utterances and extralinguistic factors in the original series vis-à-vis the dubbed version to draw upon information beyond the structure or grammar. Findings/conclusions: The Arabic dubbed version was able to communicate the characters’ cosmopolitan diversity, which correlates with the series’ sense of linguistic modernity and humor. At the same time, the Arabic version was able to portray the extralinguistic reality of Lebanon and its multi-linguistic tapestry. Originality: This research is original because it focuses on Lebanese-Arabic, a dialect seldom discussed in the context of translation. The research also examines language variations in the context of dubbed discourse, where code-switching is integrally pertinent to visual-signs and the cultural background of characters. Significance/implications: The study recognizes the intricacy of code-switching as a reflective phenomenon of social reality and power dynamics; therefore, it contributes in the fields of translation and sociolinguistics.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Benjamin Richardson ◽  
Nina Hamaski

The rights-of-nature model is gaining traction as an innovative legal approach for nature conservation. Although adopted in several countries, it remains in its infancy, including in Australia. An important research question is whether rights of nature will offer superior environmental outcomes compared to traditional nature conservation techniques including creation of protected areas. This article investigates that question through a case study of the Tarkine wilderness, in the Australia state of Tasmania. It first identifies key lessons from existing international experience with affirmation of rights of nature, such as in New Zealand and Ecuador. The article then explores how rights of nature could apply in Australia’s Tarkine region and their value compared to existing or potential protected areas and other nature conservation measures under Australian or Tasmanian law. Affirming rights of nature represents a major conceptual shift in how people via the law relate to the natural world, but whether the model offers practical benefits for nature conservation depends on a variety of conditions, in addition to the need to address broader societal drivers of environmentaldegradation.


Author(s):  
Eric L. Mills

Thomas McCulloch, Presbyterian minister and educator, founder of Pictou Academy, first President of Dalhousie College 1838-1843, established a museum in Pictou, NS, by 1828, including a bird collection. To McCulloch, the order of the natural world instilled in students principles of a liberal education and a model of society. His first collections were sold, but when McCulloch came to Dalhousie in 1838 he started a new collection, hoping to make it the basis of a provincial museum. In this he was aided by his son Thomas, who had been trained as a taxidermist. The younger McCulloch kept and expanded the collection until his death, after which it passed to Dalhousie College. The current McCulloch Collection, mainly the work of Thomas McCulloch junior, seems to exemplify purposes and practices of 19th century natural history. But research shows that the collection has a hybrid origin and must be viewed with great caution as an historical artifact. This is a case study in the difficulty of interpreting 19th century natural history collections without careful examination of their history.


2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (7) ◽  
pp. 1018-1038 ◽  
Author(s):  
Issa Ibrahim Berchin ◽  
Vanessa dos Santos Grando ◽  
Gabriela Almeida Marcon ◽  
Louise Corseuil ◽  
José Baltazar Salgueirinho Osório de Andrade Guerra

Purpose This paper aims to analyze strategies that promote sustainability in higher education institutions (HEIs), focusing on the case study of a federal institute of higher education in Brazil. Design/methodology/approach The research was based on a scientific literature review on sustainability in HEIs, to identify the recurrent actions for sustainability in these institutions; and a case study of a federal institute of higher education in Brazil, to illustrate how these actions are being implemented by HEIs. Findings Concerns about sustainability, prompted by the Brazilian federal legislature, led federal HEI to change its internal processes, infrastructure and organizational culture toward sustainability. Practical implications The findings presented in this study, more specifically the sustainability plan of the Federal Institute for Education, Science and Technology of Santa Catarina, aligned with the recommendations proposed, can be used and replicated in other HEIs. Originality/value Scientific literature about organizational changes led by sustainability concerns, in HEIs specifically, still needs more attention in the academia. By addressing the case of a Brazilian public institution of higher education, this paper contributes to the literature on sustainability in higher education by reporting the process of implementation of a sustainability plan.


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