Elizabeth Litzler, PhD University of Washington ASEE Session 3592, June 23, 2010
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Transcript of Elizabeth Litzler, PhD University of Washington ASEE Session 3592, June 23, 2010
Gender and Race/Ethnicity in Engineering:
Preliminary Findings from the Project to Assess Climate in Engineering (PACE)
Elizabeth Litzler, PhDUniversity of Washington
ASEE Session 3592, June 23, 2010
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
PI: Suzanne G. Brainard, PhDCo-PI: Susan S. MetzRA: Stephanie Jaros
Objectives How do gender and race/ethnicity intersect to
impact students’ perceptions of experiences in engineering?
Introduce PACE Quick overview of methodology Findings
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
Importance Little on gender & race in engineering Research & theory tells us that it matters
(Hooks 1981, Spelman 1988) Disaggregation by gender and race/ethnicity is
often difficult for engineering disciplines—PACE data makes it possible.
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
PACE Goals Improve retention among engineering
undergraduates Action steps to achieve this goal:
Data, Benchmarking, Recommendations, Follow-ups
22 Schools Funded by Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
PACE Schools Arizona State University Boston University California State University-L.A. Clemson University Howard University Michigan Tech New Jersey Institute of Technology New Mexico State University North Carolina State University The Ohio State University Penn State
Purdue University Renssalear Polytechnic Institute Rose-Hulman Texas A&M Texas Tech University of Maryland University of Michigan University of Texas at Austin University of Texas at El Paso Virginia Tech Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
PACE Schools
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
PACE(n = 22)
EWC(n = 350)
Public 77% 62%Minority-Serving Institution 18% 9%Land Grant University 41% 19%2005 Basic CC RU/VH 55% 25%
Mean Enrollment 26,224 14,296
PACE Mixed-Mode MethodOnline Survey Current engineering
students Oversampled under-
represented groups > 10,000 completions
(28%)
On-site Interviews Current and former
engineering students:
179 interviews completed at 16 schools, 124 current students and 55 former students
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
Survey Respondent Demographics
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Male Female TOTALAfrican American 209 164 373Native American 86 53 139Hispanic American 851 389 1,240Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 17 18 35White 3,321 2,994 6,315Asian American 429 409 838International 636 434 1,070Unknown/Other 93 64 157TOTAL 5,642 4,525 10,167
School Representation African American survey respondents
No one school >13 percent Every school contributes
Hispanic American Survey Respondents One school = 22 percent Two schools combined contribute 28 percent All other schools contribute
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Focus of Analyses Differences and similarities in four main areas:
Professor-Student Interaction Student-Student Interaction Confidence Risk of Attrition
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
Analysis Methods 2 x 2 Contingency Tables
5 point scales reduced to binary variables Chi-Square: Are two variables associated? Adjusted Residuals: Where is the association?
Values > |2| Odds Ratios: How strong is the association?
OR=1=no effect, OR>1=increase in odds, OR<1=decrease in odds
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Professor-Student InteractionNever, Rarely, Sometimes=1 and Usually, All the Time=2 Do your professors inspire you to study
engineering? Are you comfortable asking questions in class? Do your professors care whether or not you learn
the course material?
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
Professor-Student InteractionRace within Gender Males Females
Black Latino/a Black Latino/a
Inspire 0.62* 1.25* 0.55* 1.48*
Comfortable 0.81 0.77* 0.93 0.74*
Care Learning 0.81 0.94 0.60* 0.69*
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
Gender within Race Black Latino/a White
Inspire 0.86 1.12 0.97Comfortable 0.74 0.63* 0.65*Care Learning 0.86 0.84 1.16*
Student-Student InteractionNever, Rarely, Sometimes=1 and Usually, All the Time=2 Do you feel like part of an engineering
community? Do other students take your
comments/suggestions in class seriously? Do students compete with each other in classes? Do engr. students help each other succeed in
class?Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
Student-Student InteractionRace within Gender Males Females
Black Latino/a Black Latino/aCommunity 0.81 1.06 0.63* 0.76*Take Seriously 0.64* 0.78* 0.53* 0.63*Compete 1.18 1.18 1.21 1.44*Help Succeed 0.78 1.06 0.44* 0.85
Gender within Race Black Latino/a White
Community 1.27 1.13 1.60*Take Seriously 0.95 0.91 1.13*Compete 0.96 1.18 0.96Help Succeed 0.70 0.99 1.25*
ConfidenceStrongly Disagree, Somewhat Disagree=1, and
Somewhat Agree, Strongly Agree=2 I am confident in my ability to succeed in my
college engineering courses
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
ConfidenceRace within Gender Males Females
Black Latino/a Black Latino/aConfidence in Engr 0.41* 0.78 0.80 1.06
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
Gender within Race Black Latino/a WhiteConfidence in Engr 0.84 0.58* 0.43*
Risk of AttritionStrongly Disagree, Somewhat Disagree=1, and
Somewhat Agree, Strongly Agree=2 I have no desire to declare a non-engineering
major (e.g. biology, theater, English, philosophy)
I can think of other majors that I would like better than engineering
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
Risk of AttritionRace within Gender Males Females
Black Latino/a Black Latino/a
No Desire Diff. Major 0.89 0.87 0.88 1.01Like Other Majors Better 1.97* 0.94 1.34 0.97
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
Gender within Race Black Latino/a WhiteNo Desire Different Major 0.67 0.79 0.68*Like Other Majors Better 0.92 1.39* 1.35*
Take Away Student experiences are diverse at the
intersection of race/ethnicity and gender Race and inspiration More race differences among females (Interaction) No gender differences among African Americans Females less comfortable, confident, more risk of
attrition than males (Whites and Hispanics) Disaggregate whenever possible Look for interaction effects
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
Respondent Representativeness
Funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
Male Female TOTAL
African American -0.80% +0.59% -0.21%
Native American +0.42% +0.40% +0.81%
Hispanic American +0.91% +1.89% +2.80%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander +0.16% +0.17% +0.33%
White -22.21% +18.27% -4.38%
Asian American -2.85% +2.16% -0.68%
International +1.72% +3.30% +5.02%
Unknown -2.12% -0.04% -2.17%
Other -1.30% -0.24% -1.53%
TOTAL -26.51% +26.51%
Positive percentages indicate group is overrepresented among respondents while negative percentages indicate group is underrepresented among respondents.