A Scientific Thinking Skill-Based Curricular Overlay for Introductory Psychology at 2-year and 4-year Colleges

该项目旨在通过改善大学一年级理科课程的教育服务于国家利益。认识到重复、框架式实践的重要性，该项目引入并评估了一种新的课程方法来训练科学技能，并将其应用于心理学导论课程的三个科学学习成果。特别值得一提的是，这个“参与学生学习：第一级”项目将生成一套经过研究验证的材料，这些材料可以被具有一系列教学经验的心理学导论讲师纳入和改编，这些讲师可以在包括2年制和4年制大学环境在内的各种环境中进行教学。作为科学技能培训的创新方法，项目设计的课程方法也可作为技能培训的可复制框架，适用于其他科学技能和（或）学科。该项目的总体目标是开发、评估和传播基于技能的课程覆盖（SBCO），以加强两年制和四年制大学心理学入门课程的科学思维。这将满足美国心理协会和其他STEM学科组织认可的需求，即除了内容覆盖外，在入门课程中加入更强的科学思维技能训练。采用逆向设计，SBCO系统地识别关键科学思维学习成果的先导技能和子技能，并以框架式、迭代式的方式针对它们，包括与入门心理学主要内容领域相关的课堂示例、家庭作业和考试问题。即插即用的结构和随附的讲师指南将允许讲师轻松地将SBCO嫁接到现有的课程结构中，只需最少的课程修改或需要新技术或特殊资源。为了确保材料能够适应不同的教学环境和学生的需求，SBCO的开发和评估将在两种不同的环境中进行：两年制和四年制大学。在整个开发过程中，两所大学的学生和教师顾问委员会的意见将通过多样性，公平性和包容性（DEI）的视角进行考虑，以确保所有参加本科心理学入门课程的学生都能获得公平和可获得的材料。在向教学界广泛传播之前，一项全面的评估计划将对这两个机构的SBCO的有效性进行总结性评估。NSF IUSE: EDU项目支持研究和开发项目，以提高所有学生STEM教育的有效性。通过参与学生学习轨道，该计划支持有前途的实践和工具的创建，探索和实施。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project aims to serve the national interest through improved education in first-year college science courses. Recognizing the importance of repeated, scaffolded practice, the project introduces and assesses a novel curricular approach to training scientific skills, applied here to three scientific learning outcomes specific to Introductory Psychology. In particular, this Engaged Student Learning: Level I project will generate a set of research-validated materials that can be incorporated and adapted by Introductory Psychology instructors with a range of teaching experience and teaching in a variety of contexts including both 2- and 4-year college settings. As an innovative approach to scientific skill training, the curricular approach designed by the project also serves as a replicable framework for skill-based training that can be applied to other scientific skills and/or disciplines. The overarching goals of the project are to develop, evaluate, and disseminate a Skill-Based Curricular Overlay (SBCO) to bolster scientific thinking in Introductory Psychology courses at 2-year and 4-year institutions. This will meet the need, recognized by the American Psychological Association and other STEM disciplinary organizations, to incorporate stronger training of scientific thinking skills in introductory courses, in addition to content coverage. Using backward design, the SBCO systematically identifies precursor skills and subskills of key scientific thinking learning outcomes and targets them in a scaffolded, iterative way, including aligned class examples, homework assignments, and exam questions relevant to the main content domains of Introductory Psychology. A plug-and-play structure and accompanying instructor guides will allow an instructor to easily graft the SBCO onto existing course structures with minimal course revision or need for new technology or special resources. In order to ensure materials are responsive to different instructional contexts and student needs, development and evaluation of the SBCO will occur in two distinct settings: at a 2-year and 4-year college. Throughout development, input from student and faculty advisory boards at both institutions will be considered through a diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) lens to ensure fairness and accessibility of materials for all students who enroll in undergraduate Introductory Psychology courses. A comprehensive assessment plan will provide a summative assessment of theeffectiveness of the SBCO at both institutions prior to broader dissemination to the teaching community. The NSF IUSE: EDU Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. Through the Engaged Student Learning track, the program supports the creation, exploration, and implementation of promising practices and tools.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.