What if enrichment experiences do more than help students learn something new? What if they also help students begin to imagine who they might become?
A new study offers an interesting way to think about this question. Researcher Shuhan Ai compiled data from more than 7,000 high school students and looked at whether visits to science museums and planetariums were connected to how students saw themselves in relation to science.
Students who visited these places between ninth and eleventh grade were more likely to later see themselves as "science people," even when the researcher accounted for differences such as previous interest, achievement, and background.
The finding matters because identity can shape how students see their possibilities. A student who begins to think, "I am good at this," or "I could see myself doing this in the future," may be more willing to take a challenging course, join a club, seek out a mentor, or keep exploring an interest in ways that allow that talent to develop.
I especially like this study because the idea of opportunity and identity goes beyond science museums. A concert may help a child imagine herself as a musician. Meeting an author might help another student see himself as a writer. A robotics competition, theater production, difficult math problem, summer program, field trip, or mentor can introduce students to possibilities they may not have considered before.
For those of us in gifted education, this creates an important question: Are we creating enough opportunities for talent to emerge and develop, especially for students whose abilities may not yet be obvious?
Access is also an important part of this discussion. If opportunities can help students begin to see themselves as scientists, musicians, writers, or mathematicians, then it matters who gets those opportunities in the first place. The study found that students from the highest-income families were more than twice as likely to visit science museums or planetariums as students from the lowest-income families. When opportunities are unevenly available, the students whose interests, identities, and abilities become most visible may partly reflect who had the chance to explore and develop them.
Schools cannot provide every possible experience, but we can be intentional about the opportunities students receive. Here are a few questions we might ask in our classrooms, schools, and districts:
- Who has access to enrichment, advanced learning, mentors, clubs, field trips, and other experiences?
- Do students have to prove they are already advanced before receiving challenging opportunities?
- Are we giving students chances to explore areas in which their potential may not yet be obvious?
Gifted education understandably spends a great deal of time identifying students who already demonstrate advanced ability. But talent development also requires opportunities to explore, practice, take risks, and discover new interests.
Sometimes an opportunity does more than provide an experience. It gives talent and identity somewhere to begin growing.
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Source: Ai, S. (2026). "Engaging future scientists: the effect of science museum visits on high school students' science identity development."
International Journal of STEM Education, 13, 55.
https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-026-00644-9.
- Laura Mukerji, WATG Board Secretary
