Forging a New Path to Greater STEM Learning in General Education: Development and Evaluation of an Interdisciplinary, Problem-focused Core Curriculum on Earth Sustainability

跨学科(99)生活在21世纪综合研究替代核心课程(21世纪)是一种新的、完全不同的本科生通识教育模式，旨在提高学生的STEM知识和科学素养。该项目正在评估名为地球可持续性(ES)的第一个试点专题课程系列在实现其规定的学习目标方面的有效性。多方法评估正在评估：1)教育系统学生在学生学习中的收获和配套控制，其中我们跟踪科学推理、掌握和应用STEM知识、解决问题的技能和批判性思维，2)学生发展(认知、人际、个人)和参与学习的变化，3)教育系统课程、材料和教学方法在培养智力成熟度、创造和维持协作学习环境、培养元认知技能和加强科学素养所必需的概念方面的有效性，以及4)教育系统教员团队在开发实践以促进理解学习、与学生建立学习伙伴关系方面的有效性，评估结果为确定地球可持续发展试点课程系列以及最终的21世纪核心模式提供了证据：1)使学生比传统核心课程的同龄人在学生学习、发展和参与方面取得显著进展，2)鼓励学生探索STEM课程，选择STEM相关专业，最终实现STEM相关职业。然而，最重要的是，这项研究揭示了一个更大的问题，“人们是如何学习科学的？”

Interdisciplinary (99)The Living in the 21st Century Integrative Studies alternative core curriculum (21st Century) is a new and radically different model for introductory undergraduate general education designed to improve students' STEM-knowledge and increase scientific literacy. This project is assessing effectiveness of the first pilot thematic course series called Earth Sustainability (ES) in meeting its stated learning goals. The multi-method assessment is evaluating: 1) gains in student learning of ES students and matched controls in which we are tracking scientific reasoning, mastery and application of STEM knowledge, problem-solving skills, and critical thinking, 2) changes in student development (cognitive, interpersonal, intrapersonal) and engagement in learning, 3) the effectiveness of the ES curricula, materials, and pedagogy in building intellectual sophistication, creating and sustaining a collaborative learning environment, fostering meta-cognitive skills, and reinforcing concepts essential to scientific literacy, and 4) the effectiveness of the ES faculty team in developing practices to promote learning with understanding, to create learning partnerships with students, and to build a larger community of scholars, on campus and nationally.Results from the assessment are providing evidence to determine whether the Earth Sustainability pilot course series and ultimately the 21st Century core model: 1) enables students to demonstrate significant gains in student learning, development and engagement in comparison to their peers in a traditional core, and 2) encourages students to explore STEM courses, choose STEM-related majors, and ultimately STEM-related careers. Most importantly, however, this study is informing the larger question, "How do people learn science?"