A QuantCrit investigation of society’s educational debts due to racism and sexism in chemistry student learning

<div> <div> <div> <p>The American Chemical Society holds supporting diverse student populations engaging in chemistry as a core value. We analyzed chemical concept inventory scores from 4,612 students across 12 institutions to determine what inequities in content knowledge existed before and after introductory college chemistry courses. We interpreted our findings from a Quantitative Critical (QuantCrit) perspective that framed inequities as educational debts that society owed students due to racism, sexism, or both. Results showed that society owed women and Black men large educational debts before and after instruction. Society’s educational debts before instruction were large enough that women and Black men’s average scores were lower than White men’s average pretest scores even after instruction. Society would have to provide opportunities equivalent to taking the course up to two and a half times to repay the largest educational debts. These findings show the scale of the inequities in the science education systems and highlight the need for reallocating resources and opportunities throughout the K-16 education system to mitigate, prevent, and repay society’s educational debts from sexism and racism. </p> </div> </div> </div>

A QuantCrit investigation of society’s educational debts due to racism and sexism in chemistry student learning

<div> <div> <div> <p>The American Chemical Society holds supporting diverse student populations engaging in chemistry as a core value. We analyzed chemical concept inventory scores from 4,612 students across 12 institutions to determine what inequities in content knowledge existed before and after introductory college chemistry courses. We interpreted our findings from a Quantitative Critical (QuantCrit) perspective that framed inequities as educational debts that society owed students due to racism, sexism, or both. Results showed that society owed women and Black men large educational debts before and after instruction. Society’s educational debts before instruction were large enough that women and Black men’s average scores were lower than White men’s average pretest scores even after instruction. Society would have to provide opportunities equivalent to taking the course up to two and a half times to repay the largest educational debts. These findings show the scale of the inequities in the science education systems and highlight the need for reallocating resources and opportunities throughout the K-16 education system to mitigate, prevent, and repay society’s educational debts from sexism and racism. </p> </div> </div> </div>

Hybrid and Non-Hybrid Block-Based Programming Languages in an Introductory College Computer-Science Course

Block-based programming languages (BBLs) have been proposed as a way to prepare students for learning to program in more sophisticated, text-based languages, such as Java. Hybrid BBLs add the ability to view and edit the block commands in auto-generated, text-based code. We compared the use of a non-hybrid BBL (Scratch), a hybrid BBL (Pencil Code), and no BBL across three sections of an introductory CS course that taught Java programming, to determine whether either type of BBL offered cognitive or affective advantages for learning Java. Students in the BBL groups were surveyed about their perceptions of each BBL in terms of ease of use and helpfulness in learning Java, and all three groups were compared on their performance in Java programming. The results showed that, in this introductory CS course, neither type of BBL offered an advantage in preparing students for learning Java. These results held regardless of the students’ level of Java knowledge prior to the course.

Multidisciplinary Education—Bridging Physics to Life Sciences In Introductory College Labs

A simple circuit that produces a voltage pulse analogous to the pulse generated in the neuron was developed. This circuit is suitable for an introductory physics lab experiment to improve students understanding of applications to real life. By including a simple description of how neurons send electrical signals, a direct connection is made between physics and the human body. This is especially relevant to students pursuing careers in biology, medicine, and other pre-health areas, but also important to any student who is curious about the role physics plays outside of the lab.