I love that the high school students are the leaders in this. You can see all of the SciGirls strategies as work!

Welcome to the SciGirls in Space initiative! Funded by the International Space Station National Lab (ISSNL), these short films bridge the age gap between the video diaries of the SciGirls on the PBS show (backstories filmed by girls about their home lives) with our recent Emmy Award winning-series of profiles of young professional women in STEM (see our other showcase entry. Latinas at Work)! Each girls tells her STEM journey that includes flying an experiment to the ISSNL.

We are excited to see how short-form near peer video stories like these, which showcase high school and college-age girls' STEM journeys can be used by educators and in social media to motivate and encourage girls in science and space-related studies and career pathways.

The films are used in tandem with other space-themed SciGirls episodes and activities at SciGirls outreach sites across the U.S. including The Challenger Center in Heartland Community College, IL; North Dakota Space Grant Consortium in Grand Forks, ND and Girls Inc. of San Antonio, TX.

Visit our SciGirls in Space pages for additional resources!

I'm curious about whether you looked at the impacts of the episodes on the girls who participated in the filming. I would imagine that there might be changes in their own science communication skills in presenting their work in an interview format, and whether their participation in filming deepened their own sense of STEM identity or interest in STEM outreach. 

On a totally different note, I am intrigued by how the videos might be used in social media and wondered if you can say more about how you or others have used the videos for this purpose thusfar, the kinds of outcomes you think you'll see or have seen, and whether you have any pointers for those who might be utilizing videos for a similar purpose.

Thanks for watching and for your questions, Camellia! As one of the producers on the SciGirls team, I've had the privilege of working with the women and girls who are featured in both the role model profile videos and the TV series episodes. While we haven't conducted a formal study on what impact may result from participating in SciGirls' filming, I have witnessed every participant gain confidence and communication skills through the course of production, whether it's one day of filming or a whole week. I'd be very interested to hear from anyone studying whether serving as a mentor or role model, either via media or in-person, has an impact on one's own STEM and / or role model identity. Regarding your question about social media... The short length of the role model videos works well for social media distribution and we typically design a release strategy, in collaboration our partners, often timed around the PBS broadcast premiere of our TV episodes or another cross-promotion opportunity or event that helps to drive more sharing and viewing. Our social media audience is not kids so the videos and their distribution on those platforms are geared towards educators who may use them in their programs.

What a great program and production! What topics are the near-peer mentor focusing on with their mentees? Are they guiding them through project development or are they facilitating structured lessons?

You stated that you are interested in how the videos depicting these "STEM journeys" can be used "to motivate and encourage girls in science and space-related studies and career pathways." Have you collected evidence to examine this? Specifically, have you collected evidence as to the influence of these videos on kids, especially young girls, related to their interest, aspirations, or identity as a STEM person? If so, what is it about the videos that is most influential to girls? Is it seeing someone that looks like them, is it learning about opportunities that they did not know existed, is it seeing that persistence pays off, etc.?

For this series, our educators have not yet completed their program evaluations. What we know from other projects that use role model videos is that seeing girls who look (and sound!) like them can help build girls' STEM identity (STEM identity development is dependent upon factors like interest, knowledge, self-confidence, performance, and recognition).

Evaluation by SciGirls' external evaluator, Dr. Valerie Knight Williams, looked at the use of role model videos by educators running SciGirls programs with young Latinas. The educators found the STEM profile videos moderately-to-very valuable.

“Being able to show mentor videos in class improved my own knowledge in ways to address any barriers to STEM engagement. The videos were proof to my students that they CAN find a career that they love in a STEM related field.”

“It was important] to know that STEM careers and scientists work on issues that impact the community. … I learned that engineering is about community and solutions. I like that. I think science definitely contributes to better our world. … It makes me hopeful for the future and today. I learned how important is science when supporting our community bounce back from a hurricane impact before and after. I had not made that connection.” 

“STEM professionals are needed to advance society and heal communities like Puerto Rico. … Now I understand the value of the scientific process and how important it is to know how to solve real life environmental problems.”

These are great stories of girls succeeding in STEM! It is great to hear about stories of students across time, from middle to high school, leading to a significant achievement like this. What is the framework or theoretical grounding that you bring to a production such as this?

Jake, Thanks for your question!

The foundation that underpins all SciGirls media are the research-based strategies culled from over a decade of research are in a publication titled, SciGirls Seven: How to Engage Girls in STEM. These strategies are used by thousands of educators, and focus on promoting collaboration; using real-life contexts for STEM projects; promoting open-ended investigations; placing value on diverse ways of knowing, viewing and describing the world; providing specific, positive feedback on things girls can control; offering opportunities to think critically about STEM; and forming relationships with role models and mentors. We also base our role model video work on our research-based best practices guide, SciGirls Role Model Strategies.

These videos of relatable girls who look, sound and act similar to youth viewers offer near-peer role modeling, reminding girls “if she can do it, so can I!” Our evaluations have demonstrated that engaging in vicarious experiences through the girls featured on SciGirls can significantly influence viewers’ confidence in their own abilities. This leads to greater awareness, knowledge, positive attitudes and behaviors around STEM.

Each role model video we create, we create in partnership with the young woman we are filming. We focus on the role models’ work and academic pathway; challenges and obstacles that she has overcome (her role models and other strategies), her home life: family, friends and hobbies, and advice for girls.

I got a chance to look at your website to find out a little more. Curious about what this program looks like in application. How often do students interact with their mentors? Also, it looks like they might do a variety of things like activities and experimental design? Do they meet periodically over the course of a full year? 

Looking forward to checking out more of the resources including the ones focused on how to engage girls in STEM!

Thank you for sharing this work! I'm curious how the SciGirls stories were selected for use in the video and what the impact has been. How did they access this opportunity? How have these short form videos impacted viewers? 

I wonder how you're connecting the SciGirls exhibited here as near-peer mentors practically. What is the method of engagement to enact near-peer mentoring? Is the idea that they do that through their short form videos? Is there a community connecting them with near-peers? 

Thank you so much for sharing! This is an awesome project!!! 

Really enjoyed the video and the growth opportunities you're providing girls.  How was the design challenge question arrived at/established for the girls to research?  How much support was provided during the design challenge?  

Awesome job ladies! I too work in the area of having precollege students interact in an authentic way with space through satellites etc. It is wonderful to see your enthusiasm, determination, and ownership working on your projects. Best wishes and continued success as you continue with your studies and projects!