Dr. Yasemin Copur-Gencturk, an associate professor of teacher education at the University of Southern California, raised a critical issue during a recent online conference. She highlighted that “implicit biases” in math classrooms are diminishing the confidence of students of color and female students in their abilities in math and STEM fields.

In the United States, careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) hold some of the highest salaries, with average earnings surpassing $100,000, compared to the national average of $46,000. While the U.S. leads the world in research and development, it faces a significant shortage of domestic labor in these fields, with approximately 43% of STEM workers being foreign-born. Alarmingly, underrepresented groups such as women, students of color, and those from low-income families are severely lacking in STEM participation, making it crucial to bridge this gap.

On October 11, the Minority Media Services Center organized an online press briefing where Dr. Louis Freedberg, the interim executive director of EdSource, emphasized the pressing need for public school systems to ensure equal access to these career paths for all students. He noted that the growth rate of STEM jobs is expected to be double that of other occupations over the next decade.

Freedberg pointed out that a significant factor behind the underrepresentation of Black, Hispanic, Native American, and low-income students in STEM is their limited access to supportive environments, such as summer programs focused on science. He stressed that early engagement with math and science is a key indicator for students pursuing STEM careers. Moreover, students must understand the connection between STEM curricula and career opportunities, rather than viewing the subjects as abstract concepts.

In her discussion, Copur-Gencturk highlighted that stereotypes rooted in gender and race lead many to believe that certain groups possess inherently higher mathematical abilities. The issue is exacerbated by the often-unconscious nature of these “implicit biases,” which affect everyone—teachers included.

Through experimental research, Copur-Gencturk and her colleagues studied implicit biases in math classrooms by randomly assigning genders and names to a set of math problems given to the same group of students. They found that even when teachers acknowledged no difference in student performance, they still perceived students with names that sounded “white” to have greater potential in math than those with names associated with Black students, and male students were often viewed as more capable than female students.

Additionally, when students did not answer math problems correctly, teachers were more likely to underestimate the abilities of girls and students of color while extending more leniency to male and white students. This disparity can lead to feelings of discouragement in students of color and female students when they encounter difficulties in math, impacting their self-perception of mathematical potential.

Copur-Gencturk noted that the research also found that teachers who believed gender equality had already been achieved often inadvertently reinforced gender biases in math classrooms. Therefore, raising awareness of implicit biases is a crucial first step in combating this issue. Teachers and educators must offer struggling students opportunities to succeed and develop targeted interventions specifically designed to help educators overcome implicit biases in math, as general bias training is often insufficient for addressing the unique challenges within subjects like math.