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Iowa STEM Monitoring Project

Preliminary results from the Statewide Survey of Adult Attitudes Toward STEM

Presented at the Governor’s STEM Advisory Council Meeting XIV

December 16, 2015Des Moines, IA

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Iowa STEM Monitoring ProjectObjective: Systematically observe a series of defined metrics and sources to examine changes regarding STEM education and economic development in Iowa centered on the activities of the Iowa Governor’s STEM Advisory Council.

System to track publicly available data at the state, regional, and national level

18 indicators in 4 areas:1. K-12 STEM interest

and achievement2. K-12 student

preparation3. College completions4. Employment

Data sources:• Department of

Education• Iowa colleges and

universities• Census Bureau• Iowa Workforce

Development• Iowa Testing Programs• National Assessment

of Educational Progress

• ACT

Annual survey of adult Iowans regarding attitudes toward and awareness of STEM education and economic development

Additional questions target perceptions of parents of K-12 children

Data collected from 2,000+ Iowans; results adjusted to reflect opinions of statewide population

Used as an indicator of STEM attitudes and awareness among the general population

Annual assessment of interest and achievement in STEM among Iowa’s K-12 students on the Iowa Assessments

8 questions gauge interest across individual STEM topics and careers

Assessment of achievement scores and national percentile rank in math and science

Student interest and achievement compared across demographic and geographic lines

Program level perspective on STEM Scale-Up programs

Scale-Up programs implemented in schools and organizations across Iowa’s 6 STEM regions

Teacher survey about Scale-Up implementation

Student survey about interest in STEM after participating in a Scale-Up program

Comparison of Scale-Up student participants versus all students statewide on math and science scores on the Iowa Assessments

Statewide Student Interest

Inventory

Statewide Survey of Public

Attitudes Toward STEM

Scale-Up/ Regional

Iowa STEM Indicators

System (ISIS)

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SURVEY OF PUBLIC ATTITUDES TOWARD STEM

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Statewide Survey of Public Attitudes Toward STEMMethods

2012 2013 2014 2015

• June-August 2015• Dual-frame random digit dial of landline and cellular phones (n=1,802)

– Targeted oversample (landline, list-assisted) of parents of 4-11 year olds, parents of 12-18 year olds, African-American adults, and Hispanic adults

• Overall response rate - 22% (AAPOR RR3): – Landline (24%) & cellular (32%)– Combined targeted oversample (18%)

• Results weighted to obtain point estimates representative of all adult Iowans (gender, age, ethnicity, race, education, place of residence, and telephone status)

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Relative awareness of education in the past monthSummer 2015

Question: Please tell me how much you have heard about [insert topic], if anything, in the past month. (% A lot/A little/Nothing)Source: 2015 Statewide Survey of Adult Iowans Toward STEM, Iowa STEM Monitoring Project, December 2015

Water quality in Iowa

K-12 Education in Iowa

Iowa's economy

Healthcare in Iowa

Agriculture in Iowa

28%

34%

28%

38%

46%

39%

42%

49%

46%

38%

33%

25%

23%

17%

16%

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General awareness of education in the past monthSummer 2015

Question: Please tell me how much you have heard about [insert topic], if anything, in the past month. (% A lot/A little/Nothing)Source: 2015 Statewide Survey of Adult Iowans Toward STEM, Iowa STEM Monitoring Project, December 2015

K-12 Education

Improving math, technology, science, and engineering education

25%

40%

41%

44%

34%

16%

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General awareness of education in the past month2012-2015

Question: Please tell me how much you have heard about [insert topic], if anything, in the past month. (% A lot/A little)Source: 2015 Statewide Survey of Adult Iowans Toward STEM, Iowa STEM Monitoring Project, December 2015

2012 2015

79% 75%66% 59%

Since 2012

2014 2015

74% 75%61% 59%

Since last year

Since 2012, there has been a non-significant decrease in the proportion of Iowans who said they had heard something about ‘K-12 education’ or ‘Improving math, technology, science, and engineering education‘ in the past month. This may be a reflection of summer data collection, and a limitation of collecting data when school is not in session.

Since last year, there has been essentially no change.

K-12 education

Improving math, technology, science,

and engineering education

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UNCUED RECALL AND UNDERSTANDING OF STEM, 2015About one in four respondents could describe an exact or close definition of STEM

Question: You may have heard about STEM education or STEM careers lately. What, if anything, comes to mind when you hear the letters S-T-E-M, or the word STEM?Source: 2015 Statewide Survey of Adult Iowans Toward STEM, Iowa STEM Monitoring Project, December 2015

Exact/close definition of STEM

Stem cells / stem cell research

Other (plants, related to medicine, misc.)

Education, in general

I don't know / Nothing

23%

9%

13%

4%

51%

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CUED RECALL AND UNDERSTANDING OF STEM, 2015

Question: STEM stands for ‘science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.’ Have you read, seen, or heard of this before? (% Yes)Source: 2015 Statewide Survey of Adult Iowans Toward STEM, Iowa STEM Monitoring Project, December 2015

When asked an uncued, open-ended question about the acronym STEM, about one in four respondents could describe an exact or close definition of STEM; however, 51% of Iowans said they had seen, read, or heard about STEM when it was defined for them.

51%of Iowans have heard of STEM

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Awareness of STEM2012-2015

Question: STEM stands for ‘science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.’ Have you read, seen, or heard of this before? (% Yes)Source: 2012-2015 Statewide Survey of Adult Iowans Toward STEM, Iowa STEM Monitoring Project, December 2015

20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50% 55% 60%

Series1

2012 2013 / 2014 2015STEM stands for “science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.” Have you heard of this before?

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No children / no school-aged children

Parent of a child 3-11 years old

Parent of a child 12-19 years old

24%

35%

36%

41%

37%

43%

41%

42%

48%

47%

55%

57%

INCREASED AWARENESS AMONG PARENTS2012-2015

Question: STEM stands for ‘science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.’ Have you read, seen, or heard of this before? (% Yes)Source: 2012-2015 Statewide Survey of Adult Iowans Toward STEM, Iowa STEM Monitoring Project, December 2015

2012 2013 2014 2015

A larger proportion of Iowans who are a parent of a school-aged child have awareness of STEM compared to all Iowans statewide.

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• About one-quarter, or one in four, Iowans has heard about the Iowa Governor’s STEM Advisory Council

• Just under 10% of Iowans have heard about a STEM festival

• 15% have heard of STEM Day at the Capitol• About 20%, or one in five, Iowans have heard of STEM Day

at the State Fair• A significantly higher proportion of Iowans with 4 or more

years of college have heard of the Council and other STEM events compared to Iowans with a high school education or less

AWARENESS OF STEM ACTIVITIES IN THE PAST YEAR2015

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OVERALL SUPPORT FOR STEM EDUCATION2014-2015

Question: Overall, to what degree do you support or oppose state efforts to devote resources and develop initiatives to promote STEM education in Iowa? Would you say you are…Source: 2014 & 2015 Statewide Survey of Adult Iowans Toward STEM, Iowa STEM Monitoring Project, December 2015

An estimated 88% of Iowans support efforts to devote resources and develop initiatives to promote STEM education in Iowa

Somewhat supportive Very supportive

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Do you think STEM education is a priority

in your local school district?

60%

Do you think STEM education should be a priority

in your local school district?

94%

SUPPORT FOR PRIORITIZING STEM EDUCATION2015

Question: Do you think STEM education is a priority in your local school district? (%Yes/No) Do you think STEM education should be a priority in your local school district? (%Yes/No)

Source: 2015 Statewide Survey of Adult Iowans Toward STEM, Iowa STEM Monitoring Project, December 2015

No difference by gender, education, parent status, or place of residence

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• Select findings by STEM region• Multivariate analysis of STEM awareness• Full report expected January 2016

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