Leveraging Counternarratives and Counterspaces to Support the Physics Identities of Minoritized Groups

In the US, nearly half of students taking physics in high school are women, but women represent only a fifth of the students interested in physics majors in college. This issue has persisted over decades. Since patterns of participation are consequences of cultural issues driven by the historically androcentric construction of physics as a field, it is necessary to understand and challenge dominant narratives and practices that marginalize women and other minoritized groups. Two strategies that have been used to resist marginalizing narratives and practices in physics are counternarratives and counterspaces. This talk will present some of the theory and research evidence regarding how these strategies support minoritized groups' physics identity development and future physics career intentions. Furthermore, it will describe how these evidence-based strategies are being used by physics educators as part of the STEP UP project, a national campaign which has grown to include a network of more than three thousand physics teachers, faculty, students, and community members, to inspire a new generation of diverse physicists.