Merit-Based Immersion for Students and Teachers: The MIST Model for Increasing STEM Involvement and Graduation

该项目的重点是招募和留住生物学，化学和数学的学生，并扩大STEM学生的基础，包括大部分没有申报专业的学生。目标人群包括具有很大潜力但面临风险的学生，以及传统上代表性不足的学生和农村学生。这个基于成绩的沉浸式学生和教师（MIST）项目是建立在和扩大促进小组学习的成绩式计划。优异式教学包括使用一个训练有素的辅导员-教师，通过为学生提供具有挑战性的问题集或其他活动来刺激学生与学生的互动。 辅导员会在学生们以小组形式一起学习时提供反馈，并鼓励小组中的每个人进行互动和讨论每个学生的策略。智力优势：该项目小组正在为学生和教师开发精心设计的基于概念的活动套件，以帮助各种各样的学生在大学数学和科学课程中取得成功。此外，整个项目的努力有助于推进与以下方面有关的知识基础：（1）了解高等教育在改善学习方面的作用;（2）从不同的目标人群中招收和留住学生。MIST计划的成功通过以下方式进行外部评估：监测和评估（a）目标人群中各个STEM领域的学生毕业人数和毕业率的增加，（B）通过MIST模式培训的研究生的能力，以及（c）MIST计划在专业研讨会参与者授课的学校和学院中实施的程度。该项目的一个重要组成部分是通过一系列密集研讨会、研究生培训、配套网站、会议演示和同行评审出版物，将MIST模型扩展到更广泛的受众，包括高中、社区学院、四年制学院和大学。正在提供一个夏季研讨会计划，以培训来自全国其他机构的促进者在他们的家乡机构实施该计划，以帮助提高生物学，化学，数学和其他STEM学科的多样化学生群体的成功率。最新的MIST方案材料和评估报告可在项目网站上查阅，并以印刷品和会议形式分发，以供其他组织使用。网站资源还包括为未来的学生和他们的父母提供的信息。

This project is focusing on recruiting and retaining students in biology, chemistry, and mathematics, and is broadening the STEM student base to include the large proportion of students who have not declared their major. The target population consists of students who have high potential, but are at risk, and who are from among traditionally under-represented students as well as rural students. This Merit-Based Immersion for Students and Teachers (MIST) project is building on and expanding the Merit-style program of facilitated group learning. Merit-style teaching consists of using a highly trained facilitator-instructor to stimulate student-student interactions by providing challenging problem sets or other activities for the students. The facilitator provides feedback as the students work together in small groups, and also encourages everyone in the group to interact and discuss each student's strategies. Intellectual Merit: The project team is developing carefully structured suites of concept-based activities for students and teachers to help a wide variety of students succeed in college-level mathematics and science courses. In addition the overall project effort is contributing to advancing the knowledge base related to (1) understanding the role of higher education in improving learning and (2) recruiting and retaining students from diverse target populations. Success of the MIST program is externally evaluated by monitoring and assessing (a) the increase in the number and rate of graduation of students in the target population in the various STEM fields, (b) the competence of the graduate students who are trained via the MIST model, and (c) the extent to which the MIST program is implemented in the schools and colleges in which professional workshop participants teach.Broader Impacts: An important component of the project is to expand the MIST model to a broader audience - including high schools, community colleges, four-year colleges, and universities - via a series of intensive workshops, graduate student training, a companion Website, presentations at conferences, and peer-reviewed publications. A summer workshop program is being provided to train facilitators from other institutions across the country to implement the program at their home institutions to help improve the success rate of a diverse student population in biology, chemistry, mathematics, and other STEM disciplines. The most current MIST program materials and evaluation reports are available on the project Website, and are being disseminated in print and at conferences for the benefit of other organizations. The Website resource also includes information for prospective students and their parents.