EQUITY, INCLUSION, AND GENDER PERSPECTIVES IN STEAM EDUCATION: ADDRESSING BARRIERS AND FOSTERING BELONGING

Abstract

Inequities in STEAM access, engagement, and outcomes have persisted in spite of, and often because of, decades of educational policy attention to these fields. Systemic issues of gender, persistent underrepresentation of students of colour, socioeconomic status inequality, and the marginalization of other learners with non-dominant identities continue to affect who is able to access, participate in, and have influence within STEAM fields. This chapter addresses how inequities in learning contexts and educational practice in STEAM intersect across gender, inclusion, and culturally responsive practice issues. Drawing on recent literature and pertinent theoretical frames, we offer three organizing themes to help understand and address: why gaps persist, how stereotype threat and other identity issues impact learners’ experiences, and what the current evidence base says about inclusive and culturally responsive STEAM pedagogy. Selected illustrative findings from extant studies demonstrate how educators can meaningfully and with intention cultivate a sense of belonging and inclusion in learning contexts. We argue that, in STEAM, equity must be enacted through changes in learning contexts, curriculum, teacher education, and institutional culture, as opposed to through efforts at increasing recruitment and interest alone.