Preparing the Next Generation of Biology Education Researchers through Interdisciplinary Co-mentorship and Evidence-based Professional Development

生命科学是STEM高等教育中最大、最多样的领域。美国各地高校的生物教育项目的任务是培养一支多样化的劳动力队伍，为理解地球上的生活做好准备，并应用所学到的经验来产生社会效益和应对社会挑战。然而，可以用来指导和改进生物教与学的生物教育研究，作为一个领域仍在发展中。此外，生物教育研究因其孤立的方法、有限的研究设计和对测量原则的不充分关注而受到批评。所有这些问题都损害了生物教育研究成果的实用性。该项目旨在解决这一问题，并通过开发、实施和评估生物教育研究的博士后培训新模式，建设稳健和理论知情的研究能力。该项目采用共同指导的方法，利用佐治亚大学生命科学和社会科学教职员工之间的专业知识和持续的跨学科研究合作。参与研究的博士后研究员选择并执行一个明确的研究项目，以提高他们的研究专长。此外，研究员制定一个独立的研究项目，他们将带着他们的下一个职位。研究员还参加了一系列量身定做的专业发展活动，为他们担任与高等教育有关的各种职位做好准备。该项目的所有方面都基于对招募、选择和指导早期职业研究人员的有效方法的研究，以最大限度地提高该项目的成功和影响。该项目旨在准备一批不同的博士后研究员来开展生物教育研究，以产生强有力的实证结果，催化理论发展，并扩大对生物教育的参与。该项目旨在利用一系列以证据为基础的方法，包括情景访谈和遴选准则，招募和确定队列，以扩大参与并限制隐性偏见的潜在影响。研究员选择并执行一个明确的研究项目，以提高他们的研究专长，并制定一个他们将带到下一个职位的独立研究项目。一对教员共同导师--一位是生命科学的，一位是社会科学的--为研究员的研究提供支持。研究员通过一系列以个人和群体为基础的活动进一步促进其专业发展，包括阅读和分析文献、与主要学者举行研讨会和建立网络联系、在国家会议上发言、撰写和提交手稿和赠款提案，以及申请与其职业目标一致的工作。PIS和研究导师的工作以职业规划和有效的、具有文化意识的指导原则为基础，这样每个研究员都能根据自己的需求、兴趣和愿望制定和实施个人发展计划。研究员也有一份其他选项的“菜单”，他们可以从中制定自己的计划，包括与研究相关的课程和研讨会、专业认证以及教学和指导机会。该项目的目标包括增加生物教育研究社区的多样性，建设开展稳健的、理论上知情的能力，并完成有影响力的研究，导致对生物教育的机械性理解，以及与生物教育生态系统的所有层面(例如，学习、教学、政策等)相关的理论建设。该项目由NSF的STEM教育博士后研究奖学金计划(STEM ED PRF)支持，联合资金来自改进本科生STEM教育(IUSE)和EDU核心研究(EDU ECR)计划。STEM ED PRF计划旨在增强STEM、STEM教育、教育和相关学科的新近博士的研究知识、技能和实践，以促进他们从事基础和应用研究，促进该领域知识的发展。IUSE方案支持改善本科生STEM教与学的项目，包括研究什么对谁有效，以及如何改造机构，以便在STEM教育中采用成功的做法。EDU ECR计划在三个研究领域中的一个或多个领域支持STEM教育的研究：STEM学习和学习环境、扩大STEM的参与和STEM劳动力发展。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The life sciences comprise the largest and most diverse field within STEM higher education. Biology education programs in colleges and universities across the country are tasked with preparing a diverse workforce equipped to understand life on our planet and apply lessons learned to produce societal benefits and tackle societal challenges. Yet, biology education research, which can be used to inform and improve biology teaching and learning, is still developing as a field. Furthermore, biology education research has been critiqued for its insular approach, limited study designs, and insufficient attention to principles of measurement. All of these issues compromise the utility of biology education research findings. This project is designed to address this concern and build capacity for robust and theory-informed research by developing, implementing, and evaluating a novel model for postdoctoral training in biology education research. The project uses a co-mentorship approach that leverages expertise and ongoing cross-disciplinary research collaborations among life science and social science faculty members at the University of Georgia. Participating Postdoctoral Fellows select and carry out a defined research project to advance their research expertise. In addition, fellows formulate an independent research project they will take with them into their next position. Fellows also engage in a tailored suite of professional development activities that prepare them for a diversity of positions related to higher education. All aspects of the project are grounded in research on effective ways to recruit, select, and mentor early career researchers in order to maximize the project’s success and impact.This project is designed to prepare a diverse cohort of Postdoctoral Fellows to carry out biology education research that generates robust empirical findings, catalyzes theory development, and broadens participation in biology education. The project is designed to recruit and identify the cohort using a series evidence-based approaches, including situational interviews and selection rubrics, to broaden participation and limit potential influences of implicit biases. Fellows select and carry out a defined research project to advance their research expertise and formulate an independent research project they will take with them into their next position. A pair of faculty co-mentors—one in the life sciences and one in the social sciences support fellows in their research. Fellows further their professional development through a suite of individual and cohort-based activities, including literature reading and analysis, seminars and networking with leading scholars, presenting at national conferences, writing and submitting manuscripts and grant proposals, and applying for jobs that align with their career goals. PIs and research mentors work are grounded in principles of job crafting and effective, culturally aware mentorship such that each Fellow formulates and enacts an individual development plan tailored to their needs, interests, and aspirations. Fellows also have a “menu” of other options from which they can craft their plans, including research-related courses and workshops, professional certifications, and teaching and mentoring opportunities. The project goals include increasing diversity of the biology education research community, building capacity to carry out robust, theoretically informed, and completing impactful research that leads to mechanistic understanding of biology education and theory building related to all levels of the biology education ecosystem (e.g., learning, teaching, policy, etc.).This project is supported by NSF’s STEM Education Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (STEM Ed PRF) Program with co-funding from the Improving Undergraduate STEM Education (IUSE) and the EDU Core Research (EDU ECR) Programs. The STEM Ed PRF Program 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. The IUSE Program supports projects to improve STEM teaching and learning for undergraduate students, including studying what works and for whom and how to transform institutions to adopt successful practices in STEM education. The EDU ECR Program supports research on STEM education in one or more of three research areas: STEM learning and learning environments, broadening participation in STEM, and STEM workforce development.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.