Cultural Responsiveness In Stem Program Planning, Implementation, And Evaluation

Abstract

The recent increase in STEM and science-based programs targeted to minority students must be met with appropriate culturally responsive practices (Johnson, 2005). The current project was designed to investigate ways in which program evaluators and staff implement culturally responsive practices. Evaluators across the country and program staff in New York, California, and Texas were invited to participate in a multiphase concept mapping project to 1) Brainstorm culturally responsive practices, 2) Sort or organize these statements according to themes of their own choosing, and 3) Rate each statement on importance and feasibility with respect to their practice. We summarize results of the structured conceptualization effort in comparison to the theoretical literature, discuss statistical differences between perceptions of Importance and Feasibility of practices, and suggest activities that consolidate and align practices as conceptualized by each group in a way that makes principles actionable.