https://repositori.mypolycc.edu.my/jspui/handle/123456789/6670 2026-04-17T18:12:15Z 2026-04-17T18:12:15Z Costa, Luis Felipe Coimbra Gomes, Samuel Santos, Ana Moura Xexeo, Geraldo Bonorino De Lima, Yuri Oliveira Prada, Rui Martinho, Carlos Dias, Joao https://repositori.mypolycc.edu.my/jspui/handle/123456789/9455 2026-04-16T03:00:39Z 2024-01-30T00:00:00Z

Title: HEROINE’S LEARNING JOURNEY: MOTIVATING WOMEN IN STEM ONLINE COURSES THROUGH THE POWER OF A NARRATIVE Authors: Costa, Luis Felipe Coimbra; Gomes, Samuel; Santos, Ana Moura; Xexeo, Geraldo Bonorino; De Lima, Yuri Oliveira; Prada, Rui; Martinho, Carlos; Dias, Joao Abstract: Although Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) are essential for the development of society, men hugely outnumber women in the majority of STEM fields in higher education, a factor that hinders inclusion and restricts the possibility of having different points-of-view. Previous studies indicate multiple causes of low female motivation in STEM degrees and careers, which inspired several initiatives to increase female interest in STEM. A proven way to captivate an audience to change its attitude is the heroic narrative model, a style of narrative in which a character goes through a sequence of difficulty-increasing and attitude-shaping quests. This paper proposes a heroic narrative model named Heroine’s Learning Journey (HLJ) targeted at counteracting low female participation in STEM courses. In particular, the HLJ model is developed especially for enhancing STEM online courses, by using a narrative that can encourage female students to engage and prevail in them. The HLJ model is divided into three acts, each composed of several stages symbolizing steps tailored to a female student’s development. The model was applied to set up the structure of a preexisting Machine Learning online course with hundreds of enrolled students. Although a first version of the course already presented a higher-than-expected female enrollment per se ( ≈37.3% ), with HLJ, we verified an even higher female enrollment ( ≈59.2% ), slightly surpassing male enrollments. The feedback provided in learners’ responses to a final, voluntary and anonymous questionnaire, allowed to obtain the degree of satisfaction of participants at the end of the course with the HLJ. The responses indicated that, at the end of the second edition of the online course, students were able to acknowledge the existence of a STEM gender imbalance, and appreciated the motivating nature of the HLJ model. From several student’s feedback and comments submitted in the questionnaire, one can conclude that the attitude-shaping character of the HLJ was greatly appreciated, in addition to the technical content of the course. All these preliminary results are indicative of the usability of HLJ to foster gender balance in STEM online courses. Thus, the present study contributes to STEM Education by leveraging the motivation of young women to enter and prevail in these areas of study.

2024-01-30T00:00:00Z González-Pizarro, Felipe López, Claudia Vásquez, Andrea Castro, Carlos https://repositori.mypolycc.edu.my/jspui/handle/123456789/9454 2026-04-16T03:00:17Z 2024-04-01T00:00:00Z

Title: INEQUALITIES IN COMPUTATIONAL THINKING AMONG INCOMING STUDENTS IN AN STEM CHILEAN UNIVERSITY Authors: González-Pizarro, Felipe; López, Claudia; Vásquez, Andrea; Castro, Carlos Abstract: While computational thinking arises as an essential skill worldwide, formal primary and secondary education in Latin America rarely incorporates mechanisms to develop it in their curricula. The extent to which students in the region acquire computational thinking skills remains largely unknown. To start addressing this void, this article presents findings from a cross sectional study that characterizes the computational thinking abilities of incoming students at a Chilean university with a strong emphasis on STEM disciplines. Based on more than 500 responses, this study provides evidence of significant inequalities in computational thinking across gender, type of school (private or no), and prior programming knowledge. The discussion offers insights into how these disparities relate to contextual factors of the country, such as a highly socio-economically segregated educational system, public policies focused mainly on technology access, and heavy reliance on voluntary initiatives, to develop computational thinking. The findings can enlighten upcoming research endeavors and formulate strategies to create a more equitable field for students entering STEM degrees in nations facing similar circumstances.

2024-04-01T00:00:00Z Diez-Ojeda, María Queiruga-Dios, Marian Queiruga-Dios, Miguel Ángel https://repositori.mypolycc.edu.my/jspui/handle/123456789/9452 2026-04-16T03:00:08Z 2024-09-01T00:00:00Z

Title: APPRECIATION OF PRIMARY PRESERVICE TEACHERS ABOUT THE POTENTIAL EDUCATIONAL USE OF CITIZEN SCIENCE IN ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION Authors: Diez-Ojeda, María; Queiruga-Dios, Marian; Queiruga-Dios, Miguel Ángel Abstract: This study aims to determine prior knowledge regarding the term “citizen science” (CS) and evaluate preservice teachers’ appreciation of the educational potential of CS. Following the pedagogical framework of Experiential Learning Theory, a training program was designed for the subject of Environmental Education (EE) of the Primary Teacher Degree, incorporating CS activities. A quasi-experimental research was carried out with 36 primary preservice teachers who participated in this study, with a qualitative approach and without a control group. Two ad hoc surveys were defined for this study, the first one is related to prior knowledge about the term CS and a questionnaire was conducted to assess the educational potential of the CS after the implementation of the training program. The results showed a great initial lack of knowledge about CS but the appreciation of the preservice teachers after the educational intervention reveals the advantages and educational potential of CS. Preservice teachers consider that CS can and should be incorporated, as part of the course syllabus, into the teaching system and this can be done in scientific-technological subjects or in all subjects with an interdisciplinary and transversal approach, with the majority of responses indicating that the development of generic skills would be the greatest perceived benefit for students. There has been an increase in CS initiatives and projects in recent decades. However, despite the advantages for the participants and actors involved, its incorporation into higher education curricula is scarce.

2024-09-01T00:00:00Z Henry, Paula O. V. Hall, Marvette A. Plummer, Dianne A. https://repositori.mypolycc.edu.my/jspui/handle/123456789/9450 2026-04-16T03:00:44Z 2021-11-01T00:00:00Z

Title: EXPLORING FEMALE ENROLLMENT AND OUTCOMES IN CHEMICAL ENGINEERING AND THEIR EXPERIENCES IN PURSUIT OF A CAREER IN STEM Authors: Henry, Paula O. V.; Hall, Marvette A.; Plummer, Dianne A. Abstract: The need for more engineers in Jamaica has increased in recent times. Recognizing that females are underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), more efforts are being made to encourage females to pursue careers in STEM. Although engineering continues to be male dominated, there are a few engineering disciplines with relatively high female participation. Chemical engineering (ChE) is one of these engineering disciplines. In this study, gender differences in enrollment and persistence in ChE, the quality of degree obtained on completion and the job placement of female graduates were investigated. A survey was used to obtain qualitative information on factors that influence females to study ChE, and their gender-related experiences as students and STEM employees. The main findings revealed that females represented 41% of ChE intake, had higher rates of degree completion, were motivated by male role models to pursue engineering, and few females experienced some forms of gender-based discrimination in STEM employment. Based on the study, strategies were suggested to improve the number of females in STEM and to address the issues of gender bias in STEM employment.

2021-11-01T00:00:00Z