Smaller classes promote equitable student participation in STEM

Authors

Cissy J. Ballen, Auburn University
Stepfanie M. Aguillon, Cornell University
Azza Awwad, American University in Cairo
Anne E. Bjune, Universitetet i Bergen
Daniel Challou, University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Abby Grace Drake, Cornell University
Michelle Driessen, University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Aziza Ellozy, American University in Cairo
Vivian E. Ferry, University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Emma E. Goldberg, University of Minnesota Twin Cities
William Harcombe, University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Steve Jensen, University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Christian Jørgensen, Universitetet i Bergen
Zoe Koth, University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Suzanne McGaugh, University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Caroline Mitry, American University in Cairo
Bryan Mosher, University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Hoda Mostafa, American University in Cairo
Renee H. Petipas, Washington State University Pullman
Paula A.G. Soneral, Bethel University
Shana Watters, University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Deena Wassenberg, University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Stacey L. Weiss, University of Puget Sound
Azariah Yonas, University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Kelly R. Zamudio, Cornell University
Sehoya Cotner, University of Minnesota Twin Cities

Document Type

Article

Abstract

As science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) classrooms in higher education transition from lecturing to active learning, the frequency of student interactions in class increases. Previous research documents a gender bias in participation, with women participating less than would be expected on the basis of their numeric proportions. In the present study, we asked which attributes of the learning environment contribute to decreased female participation: The abundance of in-class interactions, the diversity of interactions, the proportion of women in class, the instructor's gender, the class size, and whether the course targeted lower division (first and second year) or upper division (third or fourth year) students. We calculated likelihood ratios of female participation from over 5300 student-instructor interactions observed across multiple institutions. We falsified several alternative hypotheses and demonstrate that increasing class size has the largest negative effect. We also found that when the instructors used a diverse range of teaching strategies, the women were more likely to participate after small-group discussions.

Department(s)

Biological Sciences

Publication Title

BioScience

Volume

69

Issue

8

First Page

669

Last Page

680

Publication Date

8-1-2019

DOI

10.1093/biosci/biz069

ISSN

00063568

E-ISSN

15253244

Recommended Citation

Ballen, Cissy J.; Aguillon, Stepfanie M.; Awwad, Azza; Bjune, Anne E.; Challou, Daniel; Drake, Abby Grace; Driessen, Michelle; Ellozy, Aziza; Ferry, Vivian E.; Goldberg, Emma E.; Harcombe, William; Jensen, Steve; Jørgensen, Christian; Koth, Zoe; McGaugh, Suzanne; Mitry, Caroline; Mosher, Bryan; Mostafa, Hoda; Petipas, Renee H.; Soneral, Paula A.G.; Watters, Shana; Wassenberg, Deena; Weiss, Stacey L.; Yonas, Azariah; Zamudio, Kelly R.; and Cotner, Sehoya, "Smaller classes promote equitable student participation in STEM" (2019). Biological Sciences Faculty Publications. 1.
https://spark.bethel.edu/biology-faculty/1