Cultivating STEM Interest in Middle School Students: Evidence from a Randomized Controlled Trial of an Out-of-School Time Experiential Learning Program

November 2026

A sustainable science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) workforce is central to U.S. national interests and policy debates. Researchers and practitioners often overlook non-academic levers such as early interest and career aspirations. One way to foster these dispositions is through out-of-school time (OST) programs that provide learning experiences not typically offered in school settings. However, few causal studies on these programs exist. We field a randomized controlled trial to understand whether an experiential, space-themed STEM OST experience provided by the Challenger Center can affect sixth-grade students' STEM attitudes and beliefs. We find that the experience initially increased students' self-efficacy in performing STEM activities by 0.12 standard deviations (SD) and attitudes towards STEM careers by 0.16 SD. Exploratory analyses provide suggestive evidence that these effects were larger for students from underrepresented communities. Initial effects fade six months later and student participation in science course taking in seventh grade and in STEM OST programs did not change. Our results suggest short OST experiences can produce effects, but sustained exposure to novel experiences might be needed to maintain effects and affect behavior.

Keywords

out-of-school-time; experiential learning; STEM; randomized controlled trial; field trips

Education level

K-12 Education

Topics

Out-of-School and Alternative Education