Improving STEM Student Success through the Integration of Learning Assistants and Co-requisite Models in First-year Courses

该项目旨在通过提高学生在科学，技术，工程和数学（STEM）大学一年级课程中的成功来服务于国家利益。受过良好教育和多样化的科技劳动力对美国经济发展至关重要。当学生在第一年无法成功完成所需的STEM课程时，他们可能需要更长的时间才能完成学位，离开STEM专业，甚至完全离开大学;这些问题在那些在STEM研究领域参与中代表性不足和服务不足的学生中更为常见。该项目旨在通过实施两种方法来帮助学生在第一年的STEM课程，这两种方法已被证明可以提高弱势学生的大学成功率和持久性：共同要求和学习助理（LA）模型。在共同必修模式中，数学准备较少的学生每周获得两个小时的额外支持，使他们能够获得所需的技能，而无需额外参加一个学期的数学补习。在LA模式中，教师重新设计他们的课程，以纳入主动学习，并在课堂上得到训练有素的近同伴学生辅导员（LA）的支持。这个项目是重要的，因为它将调查相结合的LA和共同需求模型在第一年的数学课程，并添加LA到所需的STEM学科的第一年课程尚未在LA文献中很好地代表的影响。 该项目的目标是提高STEM课程的完成率;在大学和STEM专业留住更多，更多样化的学生;并缩短毕业时间。在洛杉矶和共同需求模型的教师专业发展将促进STEM教学的改进，创造更具吸引力的学习环境，并提高学生的定量技能。从事这些课堂转型的教师将在实践社区中相互接受并提供额外的支持。LA将参加一个学期的教学法课程，每周与教师见面，促进课堂上的积极学习和批判性思维，并在课堂外提供额外的学生支持。该项目将通过追求三个目标来填补我们对共同需求和LA模型的理解中的关键空白。首先是研究LAs如何影响基础STEM数学课程的共同需求支持部分的有效性。第二是探讨为什么LAs提高学生的成果，通过调查如何LAs影响学生的归属感在STEM和学科身份。第三，也是最后一个是添加关键数据的学生成功，内容知识，归属和身份在LA辅助课程的生物学，化学，地球科学和数学物理为重点的LA文献。项目的成功，挑战，最佳实践和研究成果将有助于其他有兴趣推进STEM教学和减少第一年网关和基础STEM课程的公平差距的机构。项目成果将通过会议演讲、期刊文章和专门的项目网页广泛分享。NSF：IUSE EDU计划支持研究和开发项目，以提高所有学生STEM教育的有效性。该奖项反映了NSF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 by improving student success in first-year college courses in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). A well-educated and diverse science and technology workforce is crucial for U.S. economic development. When students have trouble successfully completing required STEM courses in their first year, they may take longer to complete their degrees, leave STEM majors, or even leave college entirely; and these issues are more common among students from groups that have been underrepresented and underserved in their participation in STEM fields of study. This project aims to help students in first year STEM courses by implementing two approaches that have been shown to increase college success and persistence for disadvantaged students: the co-requisite and learning assistant (LA) models. In the co-requisite model, students with less math preparation get two additional hours of support each week, allowing them to gain needed skills without having to take an extra semester of remedial math. In the LA model, faculty redesign their courses to incorporate active learning, and are supported in the classroom by trained near-peer student facilitators (LAs). This project is significant because it will investigate the impact of combining the LA and co-requisite models in first-year math courses and of adding LAs to required first-year courses in STEM disciplines not yet well represented in the LA literature. The goals of this project are to improve completion of STEM courses; retain more, and more diverse, students at the university and in STEM majors; and reduce time-to-graduation. Faculty professional development in the LA and co-requisite models will catalyze improvements in STEM teaching, create more engaging learning environments, and improve students’ quantitative skills. Faculty engaged in these classroom transformations will both receive and provide additional support to one another in a Community of Practice. LAs will take a one-semester pedagogy course, meet weekly with faculty, facilitate active learning and critical thinking in class, and provide additional student support outside the classroom. This project will fill critical gaps in our understanding of the co-requisite and LA models by pursuing three objectives. First is to study how LAs impact the effectiveness of co-requisite support sections of foundational STEM math courses. Second is to explore why LAs improve student outcomes by investigating how LAs impact students’ sense of belonging in STEM and disciplinary identity. Third, and finally is to add key data on student success, content knowledge, and belonging and identity in LA-assisted courses in Biology, Chemistry, Geoscience, and Math to the Physics-focused LA literature. Project successes, challenges, best practices, and research results will be helpful to other institutions interested in advancing STEM teaching and reducing equity gaps in first-year gateway and foundational STEM courses. Project findings will be shared widely via conference presentations, journal articles, and a dedicated project webpage. The NSF:IUSE EDU Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. Through its 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.