Improving Student Success in STEM by Improving Faculty Teaching

该项目是加州州立大学圣贝纳迪诺分校（CSUSB）的机构转型项目，这是一所综合性的西班牙裔服务机构，拥有近21,000名学生，其中大多数是第一代大学生。这个转型项目的一个主要目标是通过改善学生的学习来提高STEM学科的本科生保留率。项目团队的重点是在STEM教师的教学方法中使用持续的专业发展，包括相关的激励措施，以改善学习环境。该项目的目标是：增加新教师和有经验的兼职和全职教师对包容性、循证教学实践和课程设计的认识、理解和有效使用；提高系主任在教学领域有效支持和评估教师的能力；并建立能力和可持续性，以提供教师专业发展，以响应我们的学生群体，学生的学习和评估数据，教师的需求和兴趣，以及机构的不断发展的背景。实现这一目标的策略是实施和维持一个专业发展的实践社区模式，该模式将包括四种不同类型的教师学习社区：一个新的教师培训计划；STEM学院招收兼职和全职教师；系主任学习社区；以及辅导员的学习社区。一个特别的项目重点是了解导致女性和代表性不足的少数民族学生流失的具体因素，以及基于证据的教学实践在减轻这些因素方面可以发挥的作用。项目的第五年将侧重于传播。通过与加州州立大学校长办公室的合作，PI团队将在加州州立大学所有校区创建专业学习社区，以帮助其他人适应和采用他们的变革模式。从这个项目中学到的东西有可能帮助其他机构的STEM项目。PI团队将在项目的第三年开始分享有关如何采取一致的方法来支持、发展和评估STEM教师以最终造福学生的信息。PI团队设计的四种不同类型的教师学习社区借鉴了Kezar（2013）的变革理论和Wenger（2000）的专业学习实践社区模型。将特别强调理解导致女性和代表性不足的少数族裔学生在STEM领域流失的具体因素，如文化隔离、文化不一致、缺乏临界质量、支持系统不足（Cole &; Espinoza, 2008; Fries-Britt, Younger &; Hall, 2010; Lagesen, 2007; Maton, Pollard, McDougall Weise &; Hrabowski, 2012; Museus &; Liverman, 2010; Villareal, Cabrera &; Friedrich, 2012）；缺乏自我效能感（Baber, Pifer, Colbeck, & Furman, 2010; Byars-Winston, Estrada, & Howard, 2008; Cole & Espinoza, 2008）；“寒冷”的教室气候，以及教师的感知偏见（Atkinson, 2012； Cole等人，2008；Diekman等人，2010），以及基于证据的教学实践可以在减轻这些因素方面发挥的作用。

This project is an institutional transformation project at California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB), a comprehensive Hispanic Serving Institution with a diverse student body of nearly 21,000 students most of whom are first generation college students. A major goal of this transformation project is to improve undergraduate student retention in the STEM disciplines by improving student learning. The focus of the project team is to use sustained professional development in instructional methods for STEM faculty, including associated incentives, to improve the learning environment. The objectives of the project are to: increase the knowledge, understanding, and effective use of inclusive, evidence-based teaching practices and course-design among new and experienced, part-time and full-time faculty; increase the ability of department chairs to effectively support and evaluate faculty in the area of teaching; and build the capacity and sustainability for offering faculty professional development that is responsive to our student population, student learning and assessment data, faculty needs and interest, and the institution's evolving context. The strategy for reaching this goal is to implement and sustain a community of practice model of professional development that will encompass four different types of faculty learning communities: a new faculty orientation program; STEM institutes for part- and full-time faculty members; department chair learning communities; and a facilitators' learning community. A special project focus is understanding the specific factors that contribute to the attrition of both female and underrepresented minority students and the role evidence-based teaching practices can play in mitigating these factors. The fifth year of the project will focus on dissemination. In collaboration with the California State University Chancellor's Office, the PI team will create professional learning communities at all CSU campuses to help others adapt and adopt their change model. What is learned from this project has the potential to help STEM programs at other institutions. The PI team will share information beginning in the third year of the project about how to take a coherent approach to supporting, developing, and evaluating the STEM faculty for the ultimate benefit of the students. The PI team's design of the four different types of faculty learning communities draw on Kezar's (2013) theory of change and Wenger's (2000) community of practice model for professional learning. Particular emphasis will be placed on understanding specific factors that contribute to attrition of female and underrepresented minority students in the STEM fields, such as cultural isolation, cultural incongruence, lack of critical mass, inadequate support systems (Cole & Espinoza, 2008; Fries-Britt, Younger & Hall, 2010; Lagesen, 2007; Maton, Pollard, McDougall Weise & Hrabowski, 2012; Museus & Liverman, 2010; Villareal, Cabrera & Friedrich, 2012); lack of self-efficacy (Baber, Pifer, Colbeck, & Furman, 2010; Byars-Winston, Estrada, & Howard, 2008; Cole & Espinoza, 2008); "chilly" classroom climates, and perceived bias among faculty (Atkinson, 2012; Cole et al, 2008; Diekman et al, 2010), and the role evidence-based teaching practices can play in mitigating these factors.