Demand for engineering-interested and proficient high school graduates continues to grow across the nation. However, there remains a severe gap in college participation and employment in engineering fields for students with learning disabilities (SWLDs). One potential way to encourage SWLDs to consider engineering as a profession and promote the development of key science attitudes may be through engineering and technology career and technical education (E-CTE) coursework. In this study, we address the following research questions: Do SWLDs take E-CTE courses in the early years of high school at different rates compared to students without learning disabilities? What is the relationship between early E-CTE coursetaking and science attitudes (self-efficacy, utility, identity), and does this differ for students with and without learning disabilities? How do specific engineering career expectations change with respect to enrollment in early E-CTE coursework, and do these differ for students with and without learning disabilities? We utilize the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS) to respond to the research questions through moderation models and a student fixed effects methodology. Ultimately, we found no evidence of SWLD underrepresentation in E-CTE in high school. However, SWLDs were expected to benefit more than the general population from E-CTE participation with respect to higher levels of science self-efficacy and science identity. Implications from these findings include how to encourage persistence along the engineering pathway, the growth of career pathway policies at the state level, and how to incorporate E-CTE practices in academic courses.

中文翻译：

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探索高中工程课程在促进有学习障碍的学生科学态度方面的作用

全国范围内对工程感兴趣且精通的高中毕业生的需求持续增长。然而，有学习障碍的学生（SWLD）在工程领域的大学参与和就业方面仍然存在严重差距。鼓励 SWLD 将工程学视为一种职业并促进关键科学态度发展的一种潜在方法可能是通过工程和技术职业及技术教育 (E-CTE) 课程。在本研究中，我们解决了以下研究问题：与没有学习障碍的学生相比，SWLD 在高中早期参加 E-CTE 课程的比例是否不同？早期 E-CTE 课程与科学态度（自我效能、效用、认同）之间有什么关系？对于有学习障碍的学生和没有学习障碍的学生来说这有什么不同吗？就早期 E-CTE 课程的注册而言，具体的工程职业期望有何变化？对于有学习障碍的学生和没有学习障碍的学生来说，这些期望有何不同？我们利用 2009 年高中纵向研究 (HSLS) 通过调节模型和学生固定效应方法来回答研究问题。最终，我们没有发现任何证据表明高中 E-CTE 中 SWLD 的代表性不足。然而，在更高水平的科学自我效能和科学认同方面，SWLD 预计将从 E-CTE 参与中比普通人群受益更多。这些发现的意义包括如何鼓励坚持工程道路、州一级职业道路政策的发展、