Fun is not enough: Attitudes of Hispanic middle school students toward science and scientists

This article examines the impact of a Space Science Education Program (SSEP)for students enrolled bl New Mexico Math, Engineering, and Science achievement (MESA) classes in middle schools with a large Hispanic enrollment. an instrument was developed to measure the students' attitudes toward science and scientists before and after the program. After exposure to the SSEP program, a significant positive increase in attitudes was found. However, our study suggests that most of these studies have difficulty,with perceiving themselves as scientists, probably due to a lack of exposure to role models and negative media stereotypes. They also lack information on the reward of a career in science, including opportunities in college, and they think they must be a genius at math to pursue a technical career.