Increasing Institutional Capacity to Engage and Mentor Students in Research after Participation in Course-based Research Experiences

在参加基于课程的研究体验后，提高机构参与和指导学生参与研究的能力

• 批准号: 2336125
• 负责人: Laura Gough
• 金额: $ 74.99万
• 依托单位: Towson University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2024
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2024-06-01 至 2027-05-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2336125&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Increasing; Institutional; Capacity; Engage; Mentor

This project aims to serve the national interest by developing a model to guide faculty to be more effective and inclusive mentors of undergraduate students and, ultimately, engage more undergraduates in research. This Level 2 IUSE:EDU Engaged Student Learning project will advance professional development for novice undergraduate researchers and experienced undergraduate researchers to further support students becoming scientists. Many studies have shown that undergraduate students, including those from groups historically excluded from science, are more likely to complete a degree in science and pursue a career in STEM if they engage in a research project as college students. At Towson University, more than 30 course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) have been developed to engage students in research within a lab or field course. This has been particularly important for students who do not have the luxury of dedicating time to research outside of class. Many of these students would like to engage in research following the CURE, but without additional graduate students or staff to help mentor them, faculty are often not able to meet this student demand. In this project, a mentoring ecosystem will be developed wherein post-CURE undergraduate researchers interact with each other and faculty to learn together about STEM research, build their identities as scientists, and prepare for research-related pursuits after graduation. The professional development series created for faculty and students as part of this project will advance understanding of how mentoring undergraduates from many backgrounds can be accomplished effectively at an institution without Ph.D. students or dedicated mentoring staff. Results will be disseminated to other departments, colleges, and universities and will provide an important resource to improve faculty mentoring to benefit students while they are enrolled in college and beyond by providing them with the opportunity to engage in science and scientific careers.This project is focused not just on best practices in mentoring approaches and supporting students but also on how faculty and near peer mentors can be part of a mentoring ecosystem that supports the success of all students in a research group regardless of their identity or background. A Community of Practice approach will be used to engage undergraduate researchers and faculty in separate communities and in a larger group for professional development activities. Creating such a mentoring ecosystem has demonstrated longer-term benefits to students pursuing scientific education and careers versus programs in which faculty are not actively engaged in student professional development. Using surveys and interviews, project participants will be assessed to measure the impact of Community of Practice activities and the mentoring ecosystem on student and faculty identities as scientists, faculty development as mentors, and students’ pursuit of science careers. Project findings will provide formative feedback to further refine professional development and mentoring activities. Effective activities will be disseminated both across and beyond the Towson University context. 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.

该项目旨在通过开发一种模式来服务于国家利益，以引导教师成为本科生更有效、更具包容性的导师，并最终吸引更多本科生参与研究。这项第二级国际教育与科学学院：EDU参与式学生学习项目将促进新手本科生研究人员和有经验的本科生研究人员的专业发展，进一步支持学生成为科学家。许多研究表明，本科生，包括那些历史上被排除在理科之外的群体，如果他们在大学期间从事一个研究项目，就更有可能完成理科学位，并在STEM从事职业生涯。在Towson大学，已经开发了30多个以课程为基础的本科生研究经验(CURE)，以使学生在实验室或实地课程中参与研究。对于那些没有时间在课外研究的学生来说，这一点尤为重要。这些学生中的许多人希望在治愈后从事研究，但如果没有额外的研究生或工作人员帮助指导他们，教职员工往往无法满足学生的需求。在这个项目中，将建立一个指导生态系统，在这个生态系统中，治愈后的本科生研究人员彼此之间和教职员工之间进行互动，共同学习STEM研究，建立他们作为科学家的身份，并为毕业后与研究相关的追求做准备。作为该项目的一部分，为教师和学生创建的职业发展系列将促进人们对如何在没有博士生或专职指导人员的机构中有效地完成对来自不同背景的本科生的指导的理解。结果将被传播到其他系、学院和大学，并将提供一个重要的资源来改善教师指导，通过为学生提供从事科学和科学事业的机会，使他们在进入大学和以后的过程中受益。该项目不仅关注指导方法和支持学生的最佳实践，而且还关注教师和近距离同行指导如何成为指导生态系统的一部分，该生态系统支持研究小组中所有学生的成功，无论他们的身份或背景如何。实践社区的方法将被用来在不同的社区和更大的专业发展活动小组中吸引本科生研究人员和教职员工。与教师不积极参与学生专业发展的项目相比，创建这样的指导生态系统已经证明，对追求科学教育和职业生涯的学生来说，更长期的好处。通过调查和访谈，将对项目参与者进行评估，以衡量实践社区活动和指导生态系统对学生和教师作为科学家的身份、教师作为导师的发展以及学生对科学职业追求的影响。项目结果将提供形成性反馈，以进一步完善专业发展和指导活动。有效的活动将在Towson大学范围内和之外传播。NSF IUSE：EDU计划支持研究和开发项目，以提高所有学生的STEM教育的有效性。通过参与的学生学习路径，该计划支持有前景的实践和工具的创建、探索和实施。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。