Teaching broader impacts of science with undergraduate research

Keiler, Kenneth C.; Jackson, Kathy L.; Jaworski, Leslie; Lopatto, David; Ades, Sarah E.

doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.2001318

Cited by 9 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…Studies show that interest in STEM must be generated much earlier than college or university [62][63][64]. There is also more to STEM and science education than teaching the scientific/technical aspects of STEM and sciences to include history, philosophy, ethics, sociology of science [65][66][67][68][69][70][71][72] and see the STSE initiative (science, technology, society and environment) [73,74]. Indeed, science education is changing in order to adapt to next generation science standards, which advocate science understanding in terms of decision making and its associated social, political, and cultural issues [75].…”

Section: Stem and Science Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Undergraduate Disabled Students as Knowledge Producers including Researchers: A Missed Topic in Academic Literature

Lillywhite

Wolbring

2019

Education Sciences

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Research experience is beneficial for undergraduate students for many reasons. For example, it is argued in academic literature and in reports produced by various organizations that engage with science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education and science education that undergraduate research experience increases the graduation rate in STEM disciplines as well as the amount of students thinking about STEM careers. As such, being researchers should also be of benefit to undergraduate disabled students in all disciplines including STEM education. However, given that undergraduate disabled students encounter many problems within post-secondary education, including STEM education, undergraduate disabled students might encounter problems in becoming researchers. Policies are to be guided by knowledge and evidence. However, knowledge and evidence deficits exist in relation to the lived experience of disabled people. Undergraduate disabled students could decrease the knowledge deficit as researchers and knowledge producers. The numbers of disabled academic faculty are judged as being too low and efforts are under way to increase the number of disabled academics. Increasing the number of undergraduate disabled researchers might increase the available pool of disabled students that pursue an academic career. Given the important role research performed by undergraduate disabled students can play and given that many studies highlight problems for disabled students in post-secondary education in general, we used a scoping review approach to investigate the coverage of undergraduate disabled students as knowledge producers, including as researchers, in the academic literature. Using various search strategies, we obtained 1299 initial hits. However, only 15 had relevant content. No study investigated how undergraduate disabled students select their research topics or how they are enticed to pursue research projects outside of a course-based framework. No study looked at the linkage between being an undergraduate disabled researcher and career choices or using the obtained research skills on the undergraduate level in one's role as a community member after graduation. Our findings suggest an opportunity for many fields, ranging from disability studies to STEM education, to generate more empirical data and conceptual work on the role of undergraduate disabled students as knowledge producers including as researchers. Such studies could help to increase the numbers of undergraduate disabled students as knowledge producers, including researchers, which in turn could help to increase (a) the number of disabled academics, (b) the number of disabled students who perform research in the community after graduation, (c) the degree success of disabled students and (d) the knowledge available on the social situation of disabled people.

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Section: Stem and Science Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…STEM and science education should include not only scientific/technical aspects of STEM [24,[65][66][67][68][69][70][71]153,154] but also societal aspects. For example, the STSE initiative (science, technology, society and environment) reflects this view [65,72].…”

Section: Research On Disability Contributes To Stem and Science Educamentioning

confidence: 99%

Undergraduate Disabled Students as Knowledge Producers including Researchers: A Missed Topic in Academic Literature

Lillywhite

Wolbring

2019

Education Sciences

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“…"Understanding of how scientists work on real problems" (71%) had the highest beneficial learning gain. The mean scores for the self-reported student learning gains from the student-scientist curriculum were comparable with the self-reported learning gain scores from other research-driven courses (16).…”

Section: Evidence Of Student Learningmentioning

confidence: 53%

Student-Scientist Curriculum: Integrating Inquiry-Based Research Experiences and Professional Development Activities into an Introductory Biology Laboratory Course

Spence

Phillips

McAllister

et al. 2020

J Microbiol Biol Educ.

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We designed a 16-week scaffolded student-scientist curriculum using inquiry-based research experiences integrated with professional development activities. This curriculum was implemented to teach undergraduate students enrolled in an introduction to biology course about enzyme activity, biochemical reactions, and alcohol fermentation. While working through the curriculum, students completed the entire scientific process by planning experiments, maintaining laboratory journals, analyzing and interpreting data, peer-reviewing research proposals, and producing and presenting a poster. The overall outcome was for students to complete a multiweek, collaborative, student-scientist project using Saccharomyces cerevisiae as the model organism. Student learning outcomes were evaluated using formative assessments (post-Research on the Integrated Science Curriculum survey and peer- and self-reflection worksheets) and summative assessments (pre/post assessments and assignment grades). Results indicated that more than 50% of the students scored 70% or higher on the collaborative student-scientist project, demonstrated several self-reported learning gains in scientific concepts and skills, and reported they would recommend this laboratory course to their peers. By providing the opportunity for students to carry out the entire scientific process, this curriculum enhanced their technical, analytical, and communication skills.

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“…While this is the case, recent efforts to increase undergraduate exposure to and understanding of ethics in the context of their own independent research provides a potential avenue for examining the intersectionality of ethics/RCR in CUREs more acutely. In their analysis of outcomes associated with undergraduate enrollment in a Communities of Practice in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (COP) course, Keiler et al ( 24 ) noted, for instance, that students who completed the curriculum (see Table 1 for a brief description of the course) self-reported greater gains in scientific process and ethical decision-making skills than a comparison group who had not taken the class. Although the focus of Keiler and colleagues’ efforts pertained to undergraduates engaged in faculty-mentored research experiences, an adapted version of the COP structure that focused on the integration of ethics/RCR as it relates both to the content of student-driven investigation in CURE contexts and the process of engagement in scientific inquiry in situ could serve as a viable means to promote students’ development of ethical decision-making skills throughout course-based research experiences at all levels.…”

Section: Current State Of Ethics Education In Undergraduate Laboratormentioning

confidence: 99%

Integration of RCR and Ethics Education into Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences in the Biological Sciences: A Needed Discussion

Olimpo

Díaz-Martínez

Bhatt

et al. 2017

J Microbiol Biol Educ.

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Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) have been identified as a promising vehicle to broaden novices’ participation in authentic scientific opportunities. While recent studies in the bioeducation literature have focused on the influence of CUREs on cognitive and non-cognitive student outcomes (e.g., attitudes and motivation, science process skills development), few investigations have examined the extent to which the contextual features inherent in such experiences affect students’ academic and professional growth. Central among these factors is that of ethics and the responsible conduct of research (RCR)—essential cornerstones of the scientific enterprise. In this article, we examine the intersectionality of ethics/RCR instruction within CURE contexts through a critical review of existing literature that details mechanisms for the integration of ethics/RCR education into undergraduate laboratory experiences in the science domains. Building upon this foundation, we propose a novel, evidence-based framework that seeks to illustrate posited interactions between core ethics/RCR principles and unique dimensions of CUREs. It is our intent that this framework will inform and encourage open dialogue around an often-overlooked aspect of CURE instruction—how to best prepare ethically responsible scholars for entrance into the global scientific workforce.

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Teaching broader impacts of science with undergraduate research

Cited by 9 publications

References 11 publications

Undergraduate Disabled Students as Knowledge Producers including Researchers: A Missed Topic in Academic Literature

Undergraduate Disabled Students as Knowledge Producers including Researchers: A Missed Topic in Academic Literature

Student-Scientist Curriculum: Integrating Inquiry-Based Research Experiences and Professional Development Activities into an Introductory Biology Laboratory Course

Integration of RCR and Ethics Education into Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences in the Biological Sciences: A Needed Discussion

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