Collaborative Research: Accelerating the pace of research and implementation of Writing-to-Learn pedagogies across STEM disciplines

国家报告指出了培养具有全球竞争力的科学、技术、工程和数学（STEM）知识型劳动力和STEM识字人口的重要性。 这项研究代表了理解写作学习（WTL）方法如何通过中介和调节因素（即，影响机制）。 该研究侧重于介绍性和顶点课程，有可能在课程级别，STEM学科，部门和机构之间具有相关性。 此外，该研究将推进教师如何思考和使用WTL在STEM，如何WTL课程可以最有效地开发与教师（避免完全预先包装的课程的失败），以及如何建立和刺激全国范围的教师网络的知识。 一个共同的启发式框架，协议和指标和共享的实施技术平台的使用提供了一个机会，以前所未有的规模调查WTL在STEM和相关的学生成绩的成果。本研究和实施计划的第四阶段调查和促进WLT的知识。 通过整合和扩大跨机构正在进行的研究，总体目标是扩大STEM教育中WTL实践的系统调查范围，并加快在STEM课程中广泛采用WTL的步伐。 在生物学，化学，物理学和统计学的入门和顶级课程中进行的一系列WTL准实验研究将在STEM课程的背景下检查学生的成绩以及调节和中介变量。 结合大样本量的学生认知和情感成果的横截面和纵向研究将有助于建立两个结构和预测效度的中介/调节变量和过程与学生的学习成果在广泛的学生，机构和条件。

National reports point to the importance of fostering a globally competitive science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) knowledgeable workforce and a STEM literate population. This research represents a significant advance in understanding how Writing To Learn (WTL) pedagogies promote learning in science through mediating and moderating factors (i.e., mechanisms of effect). Focused on introductory and capstone courses, the research has the potential to be relevant across course levels, STEM disciplines, department, and institutions. Additionally, the research will advance knowledge of how faculty think about and use WTL in STEM, how WTL pedagogies can most effectively be developed with faculty (avoiding the failures of entirely pre-packaged curricula), and how to build and stimulate a nation-wide faculty network. The use of a common heuristic framework, protocols, and metrics and a shared implementation technology platform provides an opportunity to investigate WTL pedagogies in STEM and associated student achievement outcomes at an unprecedented scale.Phase 4 of this research and implementation program investigates and promotes WLT pedagogies. Through integrating and expanding ongoing research across institutions, the overarching goals are to broaden the scope of systematic investigation of WTL practices in STEM education and to accelerate the pace of widespread adoption of WTL in STEM courses. A set of quasi-experimental studies of WTL in introductory and capstone courses in biology, chemistry, physics and statistics will examine student outcomes and moderating and mediating variables in the context of STEM courses. The combination of cross-sectional and longitudinal studies of student cognitive and affective outcomes with large sample sizes will contribute to establishing both construct and predictive validity of mediating/moderating variables and processes associated with student learning outcomes across a broad range of students, institutions, and conditions.