Implementing and Investigating Mathematical Modeling as a Means to Demonstrate the Interdisciplinary Nature of Science and Increase STEM Retention

在国家科学基金会改善本科STEM教育(IUSE)计划的资助下，该项目将满足国家对增加科学、技术、工程和数学(STEM)本科专业的数量和多样性以及改善他们进入劳动力市场的准备的既定和日益增长的需求。特别是，伊利诺伊州罗密奥维尔的刘易斯大学的项目团队将通过以下方式重新设计生命科学微积分：(I)在生物系统的数学建模中采用和改编基于证据的最佳实践；(Ii)发展学生对现实生活问题的计算技能；以及(Iii)促进跨学科和合作的学生互动和学习。来自生物学、计算机科学和数学的教师将合作设计这门课程，主要面向生物和计算机科学专业。该项目的目标包括：1)加强与STEM成功和保留相关的态度和实践；2)提高学习成绩、学业成绩和第一年STEM保留率；3)为社区学院大学教师提供STEM教师发展，以将数学建模(包括计算活动)整合到额外的STEM课程中。该项目还将通过在文化能力和对文化敏感的教学方面为教师提供专业发展，来拥抱该机构日益多样化的学生群体。该项目的研究和评估计划的设计是全面的，并利用匹配的比较队列和定量和定性数据的混合方法来评估活动和教学对学生学习、态度和保持的影响，并确定如何改进和改进所采取的方法。该项目将提供一个改善跨学科STEM学习的模式，这种模式将通过教师专业发展来传播，并在其他STEM课程和其他机构复制，影响更多的学生，并加强各机构留住和毕业更多和更高质量的STEM专业的能力。

With funding from the National Science Foundation's Improving Undergraduate STEM Education (IUSE) Program, this project will address the established and growing national need to increase the quantity and diversity of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) undergraduate majors as well as improve their preparation to enter the workforce. In particular, the project team at Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois, will redesign Calculus for Life Sciences by: (i) adopting and adapting evidence-based best practices in the mathematical modeling of biological systems; (ii) developing students' computational skills with respect to real-life problems; and (iii) fostering interdisciplinary and cooperative student interactions and learning. Faculty from biology, computer science, and mathematics will collaborate to design this course, primarily for biology and computer science majors.Goals of the project include: 1) enhancing the attitudes and practices that correlate with success and retention in STEM; 2) improving learning outcomes, academic performance, and first-year STEM retention; 3) and providing STEM faculty development for community college university faculty to integrate mathematical modeling, including computational activities, into additional STEM courses. The project will also embrace the growing diversity of the institution's student population by providing professional development for faculty in cultural competency and culturally sensitive pedagogies. The design of the project's research and evaluation plans are comprehensive and utilize matched comparison cohorts and a mixed methodology for quantitative and qualitative data to assess the impact of activities and pedagogies on student learning, attitudes, and retention, and to determine how to refine and improve the approaches taken. The project will provide a model for improving interdisciplinary STEM learning that will be disseminated through faculty professional development and replicated in other STEM courses and at other institutions, impacting a greater number of students and strengthening the institutions' capacities to retain and graduate more and higher quality STEM majors.