Effect of the MedStart program on improving attitudes of East Harlem middle school students towards science, medicine and their overall education

BACKGROUND: MedStart is a week-long summer enrichment program designed for economically disadvantaged students that teaches science in an interactive manner. We determined if this hands-on learning experience impacted student attitudes towards science, medicine and education.

METHODS: East Harlem Middle School students (n=39) were given a 15-question survey that accessed their interest in science and confidence in their scientific ability. The survey was administered on days 1 and 5 and students answered on a scale of 1-5, strongly disagree to strongly agree.

RESULTS: Thirty-eight students completed the pre-survey (97.4%) and 37 completed the post-survey (94.9%). When interest was assessed, the survey score increased 31% in students who were “very interested in science” (p=0.006), 39% in those who strongly agreed that “it's important to better understand science” (p=0.0008), 30% in those who felt that “science was important in everyday life” (p=0.007), and 36% in those that were “excited about science” (p=0.002). When career choice was assessed there was a 23% increase in students who were “very interested in a career in the medical field” (p=0.05). When sense of self-performance in science was assessed there was a 23% increase in students who described their own performance as “above average” or “very good” (p=0.04), and a 13% increase in students who thought it was important to attend college (p=0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: The MedStart program had a positive impact on students' attitudes towards science and a medical career. Future studies should assess how these attitude changes affect student behavior after returning to traditional school settings.