University of California, Santa Barbara

The purpose of this project is to investigate whether participating in applied STEM career and technical education (AS-CTE) courses in high school is related to students with learning disabilities pursuing and persisting in STEM majors and/or careers. High school AS-CTE courses emphasize the practical applications of academic math and science concepts to job experiences by incorporating "hands on" quantitative reasoning, logic, and problem-solving skills. Although a significant number of stu...

The project, a collaboration involving UC Santa Barbara, WestEd, and the California Department of Education, refined and validated the Social Emotional Health Survey-Secondary (now identified as SEHS-S-2020). This measure assesses students' essential social-emotional assets during the secondary school years (Grades 9-12), a developmental stage characterized by increasing academic demands, diverse and complex social interactions/relationships, and challenges associated with the crucial transi...

This program will provide education researchers with training on foundational skills in mixture modeling and in-depth support in the appropriate use of the modeling approach in their research.

In this project, researchers aim to expand and improve an existing digital intervention called Finding Focus that is intended to help high school students train their attention and then use it to more effectively regulate distracting thoughts and emotions. Specifically, key innovations will include (i) advanced personalization of the intervention to students' aspirations, (ii) an expanded curriculum that addresses the pervasive distraction of digital media, and (iii) new methods for ensuring...

In this project, the researchers explored whether and how course taking in applied career and technical education (CTE) STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) prepared low-income students for college and careers in STEM or with STEM applications. Given the growth of STEM jobs in the economy, it is important to identify and reduce disparities in access to STEM courses in high school. Unlike traditional academic STEM courses (e.g., math, physics) that focus on abstract, theoretical prob...

The purpose of this project is to develop and pilot test a scalable, multimedia mindfulness training program tailored to high school students and based on insights from cognitive science and educational psychology. Despite teachers' best efforts, students' ability to pay attention and absorb information is frequently compromised by distraction and mind-wandering. To help students improve their ability to focus their attention, mindfulness training programs are being introduced into schools t...