JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN SCIENCE TEACHING VOL. 48, NO. 4, PP. 367–395 (2011) Science Student Role: Evidence of Social Structural Norms Specific to School Science Marie-Claire Shanahan, 1 Martina Nieswandt 2 1 University of Alberta, 551 Education South, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2G5 2 Department of Mathematics and Science Education, Illinois Institute of Technology, Tower Building, Suite 4E9-23424 S. State St., Chicago, Illinois 60616 Received 2 April 2010; Accepted 19 November 2010 Abstract: Sociocultural studies of science education have consistently recognized the dialectic nature of students’ agency to create and author positions for themselves and the structural constraints that may influence them. This mixed- methods study explores one particular aspect of these potential constraints: the possibility of a social structure specific to school science, using the concept of a science student role as an indicator. The first phase of the study was qualitative and exploratory, using open-ended questionnaires and interviews to understand students’ views of the expectations placed on them as science students (n ¼ 95). The second phase was quantitative (using items developed from the qualitative analysis), with both exploratory and confirmatory elements (n ¼ 157). Results suggest clear and explicit role under- standings among these students, characterized by references to expectations of intelligence, experimental skill, scientific mindedness, and appropriate classroom behavior. The consistency of these expectations across genders, science teachers and schools provides evidence that there is an element of social structure specific to school science that needs to be considered in studies of student agency and identity. ß 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 48: 367–395, 2011 Keywords: social structure; role; symbolic interactionism; mixed methods Researchers examining the concept of identity as it relates to science learning have consistently worked from the assumption that social and cultural constraints and influences are an inextricable element of identity processes. In a seminal illustration of the value of identity as a frame for understanding engagement in science, Calabrese Barton (1998) argued that ‘‘perceptions of and choices about self and science are influenced by the various and complex power arrangements active within the science and educational communities, within families, and within society in general’’ (p. 382). Tan and Calabrese Barton (2008) probe students identities-in-practice, recognizing the repertoire of identities in play for students within science contexts and that ‘‘these identities are often hierarchically valued or positioned by others through power relationships and societal structures’’ (p. 49). Taking a discursive approach to identity, Rahm (2007) framed her analysis with the following reference to social and cultural influences, ‘‘Utterances are never neutral but were spoken by others previously, and hence, are associated with certain social groups and positions. Accordingly, meanings of science that are situationally defined also need to be understood in terms of the kinds of social groups and positions such ways of talking are associated with’’ (p. 520). Within this literature there is a consistent recognition that students are not free to be whomever they want to be in science, that in authoring identities they must also negotiate established meanings, expectations, and power relationships. The exact meaning and definition of the social groups involved and the specific nature of the constraints or resources has, however, varied in these conceptualizations. For example, Malone and Barabino (2009) examine the reproduction of racial meanings in self-definitions of science graduate students, emphasizing the impact of society-wide social structures. Similar analyses have addressed (re)production and influence of Correspondence to: M.-C. Shanahan and M. Nieswandt; E-mail: mcshanahan@ualberta.ca, mnieswan@iit.edu DOI 10.1002/tea.20406 Published online 30 December 2010 in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com). ß 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.