EAGER: Maker: BioFabLab: Making as an Entryway to the Life Sciences for Early Undergraduates

本项目探讨了制造元素的潜力，以提高本科生对生命科学学科的吸引力和保留率。BioFabLab是一门为期一个学期的课程，在这门课程中，大一的本科生在大学入学时没有明确的专业，他们通过团队合作，通过设计、迭代制作、测试和描述一种新的实验装置来解决一个生物学研究问题。该课程利用创客运动创造的丰富的协作和创新空间，并以佛蒙特州不断发展的创客文化为基础。这项研究特别强调那些可能具有创造性思维的天赋，喜欢“修修补补”和创新的学生，但可能因为其他原因而错过了主修生命科学的机会。BioFabLab利用当地的创客资源，但也旨在呼应创客的精神，鼓励创新、合作和终身学习。为了实现这一目标，该项目建立在引导、以学生为中心的小组学习和设计思维的概念之上，并探索制作作为自主学习基本生物学原理的渠道。主动学习教育策略在学生参与、保留和表现方面优于传统的讲座方法。制作融入了主动学习的许多元素，如基于问题的学习，但研究并没有表明这种学习过程是如何起作用的，特别是当它被纳入正式的STEM教育时。此外，创客运动吸引了不同兴趣和背景的追随者，但尚不清楚这种成功如何或是否转化为对本科STEM课程的兴趣和坚持。BioFabLab是一门以问题为基础的课程，挑战未申报的一年级学生在蓬勃发展的当地创客社区中解决真正的科学研究问题。使用定量和定性的教育研究方法，我们将研究a)科学学习如何在这样的环境中发生，以及b)它对学生坚持和保留的影响。该项目有可能引入和吸引广泛的学习者，包括优秀学生，从佛蒙特州的低收入农村社区到Making，以及更广泛的STEM。这种情境参与/制作入门将为学习者提供攻读STEM学位的途径。该项目是美国国家科学基金会“制造商致同事信”（DCL）项目（NSF 15-086）的一部分，该项目是教育与人力资源（EHR）、计算机与信息科学与工程（CISE）和工程（ENG）部门的合作投资。

This project explores the potential for elements of Making to improve attraction to and retention in life science disciplines among undergraduate students. BioFabLab is a one-semester class in which first time-first year undergraduate students, who start college with no declared major, work in teams to address a biological research question through the design, iterative fabrication, testing and description of a novel experimental apparatus. The class harnesses the rich collaborative and innovative space created by the Maker movement, and builds on the growing Maker culture in Vermont. This study places particular emphasis on those students who may possess an aptitude for creative thinking and an enjoyment of "tinkering" and innovation, but might for other reasons pass over opportunities to major in the life sciences. BioFabLab makes use of local Maker resources, but also aims to echo the Maker ethos of encouraging creativity, collaboration and lifelong learning. To achieve this, the project is built on the concepts of guided, student-centered group learning and design thinking, and explores Making as a conduit for self-directed learning of fundamental biological principles.Active learning educational strategies outperform traditional lecture approaches in student engagement, retention, and performance. Making incorporates many elements of active learning such as Problem-Based Learning, but studies do not show how such learning processes work, particularly when incorporated into formal STEM education. Furthermore, the Maker Movement attracts followers with diverse interests and backgrounds, but it is unknown how or whether this success translates to increased interest and persistence in undergraduate STEM coursework. BioFabLab is a problem-based course that challenges undeclared first-year students to address real scientific research questions within the setting of a thriving local Maker community. Using both quantitative and qualitative educational research approaches, we will study a) how scientific learning happens in such an environment, and b) its effects on student persistence and retention. This project has the potential to introduce and engage a wide range of learners, including meritorious students, from low income, rural communities in Vermont to Making specifically, and to STEM more broadly. This in-context engagement/introduction to Making will present a pathway for learners to pursue STEM degrees. This project is a part of NSF's Maker Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) portfolio (NSF 15-086), a collaborative investment of Directorates for Education and Human Resources (EHR), Computer & Information Science & Engineering (CISE), and Engineering (ENG).