Professional Readers for STEM Student Writers

跨学科(99)这个项目正在探索一种新的方法来发展STEM学生的写作技能。STEM课程对学生的写作要求的一个关键问题和重要障碍是该机构提供及时反馈的能力。该项目通过利用一种未被开发的教育资源：大学校友和具有科学或技术背景的员工，他们通常不会直接参与学校的教育使命，从而为学生提供关于课程写作项目的反馈。学生将与校友或员工志愿者配对，他们的背景使他们适合特定的STEM写作任务。这些学生通过一系列的互动(面对面或通过IT)进行指导，通过这些互动，学生从草稿到最终润色都能获得对他们正在进行的工作的反馈。志愿者们正在接受指导，教他们如何给出“基于读者的”反馈(描述他们作为文本使用者对草稿的反应)，而不是专注于编辑或评判文本。在一项试点工作中发现，许多校友和员工渴望并有资格帮助他们所在机构的本科生培养他们的科学写作和推理技能，学生们从这种互动中受益。八个不同的STEM课程将参与这个项目，每个课程至少两个学期。每个学期的形成性评估数据被用来为随后的学期进行修改。参加培训讲习班的参与讲师与项目人员协商，制定适合其特定课程的作业和规程，并参加评估活动。该项目的主要目标包括(1)确定这种方法最有可能成功的STEM课程类型，并开发适合这些环境的协议和志愿者读者库，(2)改善学生对科学和技术写作的态度和理解，(3)帮助学生发展成熟的写作过程，包括起草和利用反馈，以及(4)提高学生对STEM写作作业的参与度。评估包括对学生和志愿者参与者的在线调查，对教职员工的采访，以及与学生、志愿者和教师参与者的焦点小组对话。尽管这种方法是在一家机构开发的，但它是可复制的。这项调查的一部分将确定简化和自动化程序的方法，以促进有效的学生与读者互动。传播将包括在线场所，如科学教育资源中心(SERC)网络服务器，书面研究出版物，STEM学科期刊上的科学教育和教育专栏，以及在关于学生写作、科学教育和大学管理的会议上发表演讲。

Interdisciplinary (99)This project is investigating a new approach to developing the writing skills of STEM students. A key issue and important impediment to writing requirements for students in STEM courses is the ability of the institution to provide prompt feedback. This project is providing students with feedback on a course writing project by capitalizing on an otherwise untapped educational resource: university alumni and employees with scientific or technical backgrounds who normally play no direct role in the institution's educational mission. Students are being paired with alumni or employee volunteers whose backgrounds make them suitable readers for a particular STEM writing assignment. These pairs are guided through a series of interactions (in person or via IT) through which students get feedback on their work-in-progress from rough drafts through final polishing. Volunteers are being given instruction in how to give "reader-based" feedback (describing their reactions to the drafts as a user of the text) rather than focusing on editing or judging the text. In a pilot effort it was found that many alumni and employees are eager and qualified to help their institution's undergraduates develop their scientific writing and reasoning skills and that the students benefit from such interaction. Eight different STEM courses are participating in this project for at least two semesters each. Formative assessment data from each semester are being used in making revisions for subsequent semesters. Participating instructors, who have attended training workshops, consult with project personnel to develop assignments and protocols tailored to their particular course, and participate in assessment activities. The primary objectives of this project include (1) identifying the types of STEM courses for which this approach is most likely to be successful and developing protocols and volunteer reader pools appropriate for those settings, (2) improving student attitudes toward and understanding of scientific and technical writing, (3) helping students develop mature writing processes that include drafting and making use of feedback, and (4) increasing student engagement in STEM writing assignments. Evaluation includes on-line surveys of student and volunteer participants, interviews with faculty members, and focus group conversations with student, volunteer and faculty participants. Although this approach is being developed at a single institution, it is replicable. Part of this investigation will see to identify ways to simplify and automate procedures needed to facilitate effective student-reader interactions. Dissemination will include online venues such as the Science Education Resource Center (SERC) web server, publication in writing studies, science education and education columns in STEM discipline journals, and presentations at conferences on student writing, science education, and university administration.