Science Cornerstone Project: Institution-Wide Reform of Undergraduate Education in Science, Mathematics, Engineering and Technology

波特兰州立大学发起了一项全校范围的改革努力，作为其他学院和大学的潜在典范，吸引了全国的关注。改革的核心是大学学习计划，该计划涵盖了面向所有学生的通识教育课程。在整个改革过程中，不断努力提高所有学生的科学素养，开发和评估科学、数学、工程和技术方面的创新教与学方法，成为课程改革的催化剂和指南。在三年的资助期内，拟议的科学基石项目将通过建立一个灵活的跨学科课程框架来加强和扩大这些努力，旨在实现科学、数学、工程和技术以外专业学生的科学素养。该项目反映了该大学作为一所服务于不同人群的城市机构的使命，以改善所有学生的教育机会和成功。具体成果将包括11个创新的高级课程序列(每个序列包括两个连续学期提供的四个学分的课程)。每个两门课程的顺序将包括实验室、实践或现场经验。将改进或取代现有课程，以便开设让学生深入研究特定主题或项目(例如，环境中的水或大气科学)的课程。评价计划将产生客观、定性和定量的数据，以衡量该项目作为系统改革模式的成效。

Portland State University has launched an institution-wide reform effort that has attracted national attention as a potential model for other colleges and universities. The heart of the reform is the University Studies Program, which encompasses the general education curriculum for all students. Throughout this reform, ongoing efforts to bolster science literacy for all students and to develop and evaluate innovative approaches to teaching and learning in the sciences, math, engineering, and technology have served as catalysts and guides for the transformation of the curriculum. Over the three-year grant period, the proposed Science Cornerstone Project will augment and extend these efforts by establishing a flexible framework for interdisciplinary coursework aimed at achieving science literacy for students majoring in fields outside of the sciences, math, engineering, and technology. This project reflects the university's mission as an urban institution serving a diverse population to improve educational opportunities and success for all students. The specific outcomes will include eleven innovative upper-division course sequences (each sequence comprising two four-credit courses offered during consecutive terms). Each two-course sequence will include a laboratory, practical, or field experience. Existing courses will be refined or replaced in order to create courses that involve students in an in-depth examination of a particular theme or project (e.g., Water in the Environment or The Science of the Atmosphere). The evaluation plan will produce objective qualitative and quantitative data to gauge the project's effectiveness as a model of systemic reform.