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STEM Education and Training

Ignite Session 4

Photovoice Evaluation of Community College Students' Experiences in a Summer Science Research Program

Thursday, October 12, 2023
5:00 PM – 6:00 PM ET
Location: Room 305
Ignite
Abstract Information: The Research Experience for Community College Students (RECCS) program offers a diverse cohort of 2-year college students in Colorado the opportunity to engage in environmental science research during a summer-long program at the University of Colorado Boulder. Since RECCS welcomed its first cohort in 2014, evaluation has consisted of a mixed methods design, using validated survey instruments along with qualitative measures such as interviews. In 2023, we flipped the script on our qualitative methods, inviting students to share, curate, and narrate their own experiences in the program using a Photovoice approach (Wang & Burris, 1997). This participatory approach to storytelling in evaluation gave students a voice in the process, from data collection to data interpretation, and the agency to draw conclusions and make program recommendations. Here we explore Photovoice as a method for evaluating STEM undergraduate research programs to better understand the experiences of students traditionally underrepresented in the field.