• Energy Research

This case study intends to comprehend students’ perceptions of social support in cultivating their interests and aspirations for science, mathematics, engineering, and technology (STEM) degrees and careers. Survey-based quantitative research was employed, incorporating data from 1426 high school (grade 11th–12th) students in Qatar. The survey instrument encompassed four dimensions, i.e., (1) participants’ demographics, (2) STEM interests, (3) STEM supports/barriers and (4) STEM career aspirations to understand students’ perceptions. Spearman’s Rho correlation test demonstrated a positive correlation between students’ perceived social support (from family, teachers, and society) and their STEM interests (p < 0.01). Findings from the Mann-Whitney U test illustrated that females perceived enhanced social support (from teachers and society) in Qatar (p < 0.05). Even though teachers and society have been the stimulus to developing students’ STEM interests, there is still room to implement a policy for the consequential influence in constructing students’ STEM career aspirations. Thus, we believe these findings would urge policymakers to design tools that enable teachers and society to nurture, cultivate and sustain interest in STEM among the youth to meet Qatar’s National Vision 2030.

Teachers play an essential role in teaching sustainable development to students. Consequently, understanding the challenges that hamper effective instruction is crucial. This study explored the challenges preparatory and secondary school teachers face in Qatar’s public and private schools when teaching Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and Global Citizenship Education (GCED). The study utilized an adapted version of UNESCO’s global survey to investigate these challenges and shed light on the obstacles that impede effective instruction in these essential domains. Teachers’ (N = 981) challenges were assessed according to curricular, cultural, and environmental challenges associated with teaching sustainability. The study results indicated that more than half of public and private school teachers faced moderate to significant challenges when teaching ESD and/or GCED themes. Sustainable Consumption and Production was perceived as the most challenging teaching theme, with the least curriculum coverage. Results indicated that private school teachers report more significant challenges in teaching and assessing ESD/GCED themes than public school teachers across the four sustainability themes. Detailed discussion regarding these findings is provided. This article contributes to the wider academic conversation by examining the practical challenges teachers face in Qatar as they implement ESD and GCED.

Understanding teachers’ attitudes and perceptions of STEM teaching is a key pathway to enhance effective STEM teaching. Inarguably, teachers are the cornerstone of educational quality and play a central role in students’ academic performance. Specifically, the pedagogical strategies teachers employ and their effective use in the classroom are strong determinants of students’ enrollment or retention in STEM fields of study and eventual careers. This study sought to explore the experiences of high school STEM teachers in Qatar, focusing on the pedagogical approaches they utilize and the challenges they encounter, with the aim of delving into how these approaches and barriers affect the teaching of STEM in the country’s high schools. The study’s design is observational, with data collected using a survey of 299 secondary high school STEM teachers (11th and 12th grades). To attain the goal of this study, we examined the barriers perceived to impede engagement in effective STEM teaching from high school teachers’ perspective. The study’s findings pointed to the influence of student- and school-related factors in shaping STEM teaching. Significant differences were detected based on teachers’ gender, grade level of teaching, age group, and university education. Logistic regressions revealed that teachers’ demographic attributes, including age group and university education, affect their likelihood to use STEM pedagogies in class. This likelihood was significantly affected by student-related barriers and the learning resources/materials employed in classrooms. These findings postulate critical evidence in directing the development of successful STEM learning practices within Qatar’s high schools.

STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) has taken center stage as a priority policy agenda for Qatar’s leadership. At present, STEM stands as a fundamental catalyst for Qatar’s sustainable economic, environmental, human, and social development goals, as is outlined in the Qatar National Vision 2030. The aim of this exploratory study was to investigate the determinants of students’ interest in pursuing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) studies and eventual careers in Qatar. This study used a survey involving a representative sample of a total of 425 students from public (government-funded) middle schools in the country. Data for this research were gathered using a survey distributed to students in grades 7, 8, and 9. Guided by the Social Cognitive Theory, a survey was implemented with a view to investigating the intrinsic and extrinsic factors likely to contribute to student STEM educational and career interest. Two main statistical tests were carried out: independent sample t-tests and one way ANOVA. Results derived from the study reveal that gender, nationality, and parental education and occupation served as predictors of student interest in a STEM degree or profession. The results derived from this study have important implications for STEM-related fields of study and career.