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

该项目旨在通过开发一种模式来指导教师成为更有效、更包容的本科生导师，并最终吸引更多的本科生参与研究，从而为国家利益服务。这个二级IUSE:EDU参与式学生学习项目将促进本科研究新手和经验丰富的本科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科学之外的群体，如果他们在大学期间参与研究项目，更有可能完成科学学位，并在STEM领域从事职业。在陶森大学，已经开发了30多个基于课程的本科生研究经验（CUREs），以吸引学生在实验室或实地课程中进行研究。这对于那些没有时间在课外做研究的学生来说尤为重要。这些学生中的许多人都希望在CURE之后从事研究，但没有额外的研究生或工作人员来帮助指导他们，教师通常无法满足学生的需求。在这个项目中，将开发一个指导生态系统，在这个生态系统中，cure后的本科研究人员与彼此和教师互动，共同学习STEM研究，建立他们作为科学家的身份，并为毕业后的研究相关追求做准备。作为该项目的一部分，为教师和学生创建的专业发展系列将促进对如何在没有博士生或专门指导人员的机构中有效地指导来自不同背景的本科生的理解。结果将传播到其他院系、学院和大学，并将提供重要的资源，以改善教师指导，使学生在大学及以后入学时受益，为他们提供从事科学和科学事业的机会。该项目不仅关注指导方法和支持学生的最佳实践，还关注教师和近同龄人导师如何成为指导生态系统的一部分，以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。实践社区的方法将用于在不同的社区和更大的群体中从事专业发展活动的本科研究人员和教师。与教师不积极参与学生专业发展的项目相比，创建这样一个指导生态系统对追求科学教育和职业的学生有更长远的好处。通过调查和访谈，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事业的追求的影响。项目结果将为进一步完善专业发展和指导活动提供形成性反馈。有效的活动将在陶森大学内外传播。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 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.