written by
Tobias Espinosa, Kelly Miller, Ives Araujo, and Eric Mazur
Self-efficacy represents an individual's belief that he or she can perform a particular task in a given domain. It is a strong predictor for performance and persistence in STEM education. Research shows that there is a large and persistent gender gap in student self-efficacy in STEM academic disciplines. In some cases, active teaching strategies have been shown to positively affect physics self-efficacy but it is unclear how this impact differs between men and women. In this study, we investigate the impact of a physics class taught with active teaching strategies on students' self-reported physics self-efficacy and how this impact varies across gender lines. We measured the change in physics self-efficacy over four different dimensions; conceptual understanding, problem-solving, lab and hands-on activities, and collaborative work. We report three main findings. First, the initial physics self-efficacy gender gap disappeared by the end of the semester. Second, female students' self-efficacy improved significantly, whereas there was no significant change in the self-efficacy of the male students. Third, the gender gaps in the conceptual understanding and problem-solving dimensions in particular, were significantly reduced. This study represents an initial step towards understanding the influence of active teaching strategies can have on reducing the self-efficacy gender gap.
<a href="https://www.compadre.org/introphys/items/detail.cfm?ID=15055">Espinosa, T, K. Miller, I. Araujo, and E. Mazur. "Reducing the gender gap in students’ physics self-efficacy in a team- and project-based introductory physics class." Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 15, no. 1, (May 28, 2019): 010132.</a>
T. Espinosa, K. Miller, I. Araujo, and E. Mazur, , Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 15 (1), 010132 (2019), WWW Document, (https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.15.010132).
T. Espinosa, K. Miller, I. Araujo, and E. Mazur, Reducing the gender gap in students’ physics self-efficacy in a team- and project-based introductory physics class, Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 15 (1), 010132 (2019), <https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.15.010132>.
Espinosa, T., Miller, K., Araujo, I., & Mazur, E. (2019, May 28). Reducing the gender gap in students’ physics self-efficacy in a team- and project-based introductory physics class. Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res., 15(1), 010132. Retrieved March 23, 2025, from https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.15.010132
Espinosa, T, K. Miller, I. Araujo, and E. Mazur. "Reducing the gender gap in students’ physics self-efficacy in a team- and project-based introductory physics class." Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 15, no. 1, (May 28, 2019): 010132, https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.15.010132 (accessed 23 March 2025).
Espinosa, Tobias, Kelly Miller, Ives Araujo, and Eric Mazur. "Reducing the gender gap in students’ physics self-efficacy in a team- and project-based introductory physics class." Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 15.1 (2019): 010132. 23 Mar. 2025 <https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.15.010132>.
@article{
Author = "Tobias Espinosa and Kelly Miller and Ives Araujo and Eric Mazur",
Title = {Reducing the gender gap in students’ physics self-efficacy in a team- and project-based introductory physics class},
Journal = {Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res.},
Volume = {15},
Number = {1},
Pages = {010132},
Month = {May},
Year = {2019}
}
%A Tobias Espinosa %A Kelly Miller %A Ives Araujo %A Eric Mazur %T Reducing the gender gap in students' physics self-efficacy in a team- and project-based introductory physics class %J Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. %V 15 %N 1 %D May 28, 2019 %P 010132 %U https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.15.010132 %O application/pdf
%0 Journal Article %A Espinosa, Tobias %A Miller, Kelly %A Araujo, Ives %A Mazur, Eric %D May 28, 2019 %T Reducing the gender gap in students' physics self-efficacy in a team- and project-based introductory physics class %J Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. %V 15 %N 1 %P 010132 %8 May 28, 2019 %U https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.15.010132
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