Advancing the Cognitive Science of Active Learning: Pinpointing Instructional Features that Maximize Equity, Self-Efficacy, and Student Learning in STEM

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This award is funded in whole or in part under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2). This postdoctoral research fellowship project will investigate how active learning can be effectively integrated into lectures to promote equity, self-efficacy, and student learning in STEM courses. By conducting the research at a Hispanic-Serving Institution with a diverse student population, the fellow is in a position to produce insights into instructional practices that enhance the academic success of groups of students who are underrepresented in their participation in STEM fields of study. A professional development plan is in place that is tailored to the career goals of the fellow and includes activities that will enable the fellow to deepen knowledge and skills related to conducting theoretically driven and applied research. This in turn lays the groundwork for a future research career of developing evidence-based teaching guidelines for college instructors. This research study will include three experiments that manipulate the dosage schedule and order of active learning and lecture to assess the impact of active learning on student success in introductory STEM coursework. The manipulation of dosage schedule will involve blocking active learning and lecture and interspersing active learning and lecture. The manipulation of dosage order will provide (a) lecture first and active learning second and (b) active learning first and lecture second. The first two experiments will occur in an highly controlled laboratory environment and the third experiment will occur in an introductory biology class co-taught by two biology professors. Students in the three experiments will learn biology concepts in four different instructional conditions, and their level of success in these conditions will be measured using self-efficacy and learning instruments. A comparison between underrepresented and non-underrepresented students on their self-efficacy ratings and learning scores will also be conducted to examine whether there are any proportionate or disproportionate gains or losses. The results of the study could be used to guide college course transformations by producing evidence about how to implement active learning effectively,The project responds to the STEM Education Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (STEM Ed PRF) program that aims to enhance the research knowledge, skills, and practices of recent doctorates in STEM, STEM education, education, and related disciplines to advance their preparation to engage in fundamental and applied research that advances knowledge within the field.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.