Outcomes of an Integrated STEM High School: Enabling Access and Achievement for All Students

There has been considerable movement in the United States toward an integrated approach to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) which leverages English/language arts, social studies/history, and the arts as contexts and tools for solving the grand STEM challenges of our society. Selective STEM schools have been demonstrated as having positive student outcomes, but enroll students based upon academic criteria rather than interest and effectively exclude underrepresented groups in STEM. In this study, we examine the impact of an integrated STEM high school on student academic outcomes. Findings indicate students significantly outperformed the 13 comparison schools in district on American College Testing (ACT) and school exams.