Enhancing the undergraduate student experience via fund-raising partnerships: an action research project

This project was developed from practitioner action research and considers the impact of integrating fund-raising activities into the formal curriculum with a target group of undergraduate students. The main aim of this project was to evaluate the impact of developing fund-raising activities as an integral aspect at both module and programme levels, grounded within practitioner action research. A core component of this aim was to develop value-added structures into established modules to support the student experience and student identity. Furthermore, the project sought to broaden, develop and strengthen links with the local wider community, recognising the value such interactions can bring. Finally, the project set out to develop integration opportunities between the students and organisations in order to develop the students’ awareness of workforce options as future professionals. This study is based within one post-1992 higher education institution and consisted of three inter-related but distinct phases. The project involved 60 students during Phase 1, building to some 200 students by Phase 3. The findings suggest that fund-raising activities built into the formal curriculum can be a useful medium for promoting student identity whilst providing a ‘value-added’ component to existing programmes of study.     

美国研究型大学本科生科研发展概述

美国研究型大学本科生科研活动的开展经历了不同的发展阶段,20世纪90年代以后有了很大的发展。本科生科研活动作为教育改革重要的措施之一得以不断扩展和完善,并且日益融入美国研究型大学以研究为本的本科教育体系改革之中。     

Transforming Indigenous research: Collaborative responses to historical research tensions

International Review of Education - Ongoing colonial power has long been ascribed to government bureaucracy and institutions of higher learning. By consequence, Indigenous communities today are...     

The impact of educational research: Reflections on the American experience

In the past fifteen years, expenditure on educational research and development in the United States has totalled 2.5 billion (US) dollars, but this amounts to only half a per cent of all educational expenditure. The agencies involved include a number of federal agencies (of which the National Institute of Education, established in 1972, is the main one), state agencies, colleges and universities, and specially created new institutions (R & D centers, regional educational laboratories).The initiative in research has shifted, since 1965, from the researchers themselves to the funding agencies, which operate both hard styles of funding (inviting bids for a prescribed project) and soft (declaring a general programme area).Teachers and policy makers are usually unaware of research findings, even when these form the basis of their decisions.Recent development of R & D is best understood as reflecting an over-riding concern with maximising its impact. Five strands of development illustrate this concern: development work, especially in curriculum; evaluation; the long-term effect of fundamental research; dissemination; and the growing attention given to study of the process of social inquiry.The complexity of the decentralized, loosely-coupled US system of education makes the impact of research difficult to identify and uncertain to forecast.

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Zusammenfassung In den USA beliefen sich die Staatsausgaben für Bildungsforschung und -entwicklung (R & D) in den letzten fünfzehn Jahren auf insgesamt 2,5 Milliarden Dollar. Dieser Betrag stellt jedoch nur 0,5% des Gesamtaufwands für Bildung dar. Zu den Stellen, die sich mit R & D befassen, gehören verschiedene Bundeseinrichtungen (vor allem das im Jahre 1972 errichtete National Institute of Education), staatliche Institutionen, Colleges und Universitäten sowie speziell für diesen Zweck gegründete neue Institutionen (R & D Zentren, regionale erziehungswissenschaftliche Laboratorien).Seit 1965 hat sich die Initiative für solche Forschung von den Forschern selbst auf die finanzierenden Organisationen verlagert. Diese betreiben sowohl eine harte (Vergabe von feststehenden Projekten) als auch eine weiche Finanzierungspolitik (Festsetzung eines allgemeinen Programmbereichs).Lehrer und Bildungspolitiker wissen gewöhnlich nichts von den Forschungsergebnissen, selbst wenn diese die Grundlage ihrer Entscheidungen bilden.Die neuere Entwicklung des R & D ist am besten als Reflektion eines überragenden Interesses an seiner maximalen Auswirkung zu verstehen. Fünf Stränge bezeugen dieses Interesse: Entwicklungsarbeit, besonders Curriculum-Entwicklung; Evaluation; die Langzeit-Wirkung von Grundforschung; und die wachsende Aufmerksamkeit, die dem Studium des Prozesses sozialer Untersuchung gewidmet wird.Wegen der Kompliziertheit des dezentralisierten, lose zusammenhängenden Bildungssystems der USA sind die Auswirkungen der Forschung schwer festzustellen und nicht mit Sicherheit vorauszusagen.

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Résumé Au cours de ces quinze dernières années, les dépenses relatives à la recherche et au développement en matière d'éducation aux Etats-Unis ont atteint 2,5 billions de dollars, toutefois cette somme ne représente que 0,5% de l'ensemble des dépenses afférentes à l'éducation. Les organismes officiels concernés comprennent un grand nombre d'organismes fédéraux (dont l'Institut national d'éducation, fondé en 1972, est le plus important), des organismes d'état, des collèges et des universités, ainsi que de nouvelles institutions créées spécialement à cet effet (centres R & D, laboratoires régionaux pour l'éducation).L'initiative dans le domaine de la recherche est passée, depuis 1965, des chercheurs eux-mêmes aux organismes officiels de financement dont le style va de la manière forte (sollicitant des soumissions pour un projet imposé) à la manière douce (décidant du champ du programme général).Les enseignants et les décisionnaires sont généralement tenus dans l'ignorance des résultats de la recherche, même lorsque ceux-ci constituent la base de leurs décisions.Le développement récent de la R & D, portant son impact au maximum, peut être regardé comme le reflet d'un intérêt des plus attentifs. Cinq plages de développement illustrent cet intérêt: tout d'abord travail de développement, principalement dans le curriculum; l'évaluation; l'effet à long-terme de la recherche fondamentale; la diffusion; et l'attention croissante portée à l'étude du processus de l'enquête sociale.La complexité du système américain d'éducation, décentralisé et couplé de façon relâchée fait qu'il est difficile d'identifier l'impact de la recherche et également de le prévoir.

     

Cultivating minority scientists: Undergraduate research increases self‐efficacy and career ambitions for underrepresented students in STEM

In this study, Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) is used to explore changes in the career intentions of students in an undergraduate research experience (URE) program at a large public minority‐serving college. Our URE model addresses the challenges of establishing an undergraduate research program within an urban, commuter, underfunded, Minority‐Serving Institution (MSI). However, our model reaches beyond a focus on retention and remediation toward scholarly contributions and shifted career aspirations. From a student's first days at the College to beyond their graduation, we have encouraged them to explore their own potential as scientists in a coordinated, sequential, and self‐reflective process. As a result, while the program's graduates have traditionally pursued entry‐level STEM jobs, graduates participating in mentored research are increasingly focused on professional and academic STEM career tracks involving post‐graduate study. In addition to providing an increasingly expected experience and building students’ skills, participation in undergraduate research is seen to have a transformative effect on career ambitions for many students at MSIs. While undergraduate research is often thought of in context of majority‐serving institutions, we propose that it serves as a powerful equalizer at MSIs. Building on the institutional characteristics that drive diversity, our students produce scholarly work and pursue graduate degrees, in order to address the long‐standing under‐representation of minorities in the sciences. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 54: 169–194, 2017     

Deferred creativity: Exploring the impact of an undergraduate learning experience on professional practice

This paper explores the impact of an art-based learning experience on former Education students' professional practice. Feedback from trainee teachers indicated that the true value of the creative process was only realised after they had graduated – what I have come to term ‘deferred creativity’. The findings suggest that focusing on the development of their own creative characteristics, skills and attitudes helped students to become more creative practitioners. By drawing on the reflections of our alumni, we can help future students to develop the key creative competencies and skills required for 21st century life.     

Criteria for assessing quality in academic research: the views of biomedical scientists, clinical scientists and social scientists

This study empirically addresses the claim made by Gibbons et al (The new production of knowledge: The dynamics of science and research in contemporary societies. Sage, Thousand Oaks, 1994) that a novel form of quality control (associated with Mode 2 knowledge production) is supplementing the “traditional” peer-review process (associated with Mode 1 knowledge production). A qualitative design was used to explore faculty members’ views on the criteria for assessing scientific research. Ninety-four semi-structured interviews were conducted with biomedical scientists, clinical scientists, and social scientists working in Canadian universities. Results show that the vast majority of participants are aligned with the “traditional” Mode 1 peer-reviewed procedures for assessing research and defining scientific excellence. These participants asserted that peer review is the best quality control mechanism for assessing scientific research, and peer recognition the key attribute for legitimacy in the academic arena. In contrast, participants ascribed a low value to non-academics’ judgment of their work. While the study findings do not provide support Gibbons et al.’s claim, they add to a growing body of evidence that supports the continuing importance of peer review in academic career success.     

The daisy model for collaborative action research: application to educational practice

The Daisy Model is a conceptualisation of the way in which a core group of experienced and novice action researchers may work on a range of related mini-projects that contribute to organisational improvement. This model enables the spread of action research from one or two enthusiasts to others in an organisation. It allows for changes in individual commitment and organisational context as the research progresses. Development of this model has occurred since 1995, during several projects related to educational practice in New Zealand polytechnics. In 1997 the model was applied to the collaborative improvement of policies and procedures for recognition of prior learning at two polytechnics. This article describes the model and its application and examines the roles of the facilitator(s) and the types of activities that occur within the central core group and petal mini-project groups of the Daisy     

Practice makes proficient: teaching undergraduate students to understand published research

Scientific knowledge, including the critical evaluation and comprehension of empirical articles, is a key skill valued by most undergraduate institutions for students within the sciences. Students often find it difficult to not only summarize empirical journal articles, but moreover to successfully grasp the quality and rigor of investigation behind the source. In this paper, we use instructional scaffolds (reading worksheets, RWs, with tutorials) to aid students in being able to comprehend, and ultimately transfer, the skills necessary in critically evaluating primary sources of research. We assess students’ learning of these skills on a multiple-choice assessment of Journal Article Comprehension (JAC). Students in experimental classes, who received instructional scaffolds, improved on the JAC post-test compared with students in control classes. This result shows that students are acquiring fundamental research skills such as understanding the components of research articles. We also showed that improvement on the JAC post-test for the experimental class extended to a written summary test. This result suggests that students in the experimental group are developing discipline-specific science process skills that allow them to apply JAC skills to a near-transfer task of writing a summary.     

Implicit bias in letters of recommendation for an undergraduate research internship

Letters of recommendation are commonly used to assess the potential of undergraduate students to be successful undergraduate research assistants/interns or their potential as graduate students. However, there is evidence to suggest that reference letters can include unconscious (or implicit) bias that can affect decisions and limit opportunities for under-represented minorities and students from non-research institutions. This study uses a text analysis software program to examine 457 letters of recommendation for undergraduate students applying to undertake international research experience to determine whether there is a statistically significant difference in the language used to describe the students accepted into the programme (n = 36 letters) compared to those who were not accepted (n = 421 letters). Results suggest that letters of recommendation for the accepted students describe the productivity of the students with greater certainty and include a greater number of quotes from student work. In comparison, the letters for those students who were not accepted into the programme include more positive emotion and describe the insight of the student, but include more words associated with discrepancy and tentative statements. Despite no statistically significant differences in grade point averages, a similar pattern was observed between male and female applicants, white and non-white applicants, and applicants from research and non-research institutions. Results suggest a need to standardise letters of recommendation to ensure that the biases are minimised and do not present a barrier to increasing diversity in undergraduate research.     

Becoming a physician: The influence of the undergraduate experience

This study employed a national sample of college students who initially aspired to be, or later became, physicians to determine the influence of precollege characteristics, college origins, and the academic and social experience of college on the likelihood of becoming a physician. Estimates of a 14-variable causal model indicated that the major direct effects on attainment were attributable to college characteristics and the academic experience of college. Net of other causes, the selectivity/prestige of the undergraduate institution attended, collegiate academic achievement, and majoring in the physical or life sciences each had significant direct effects on becoming a physician. The direct positive influence of college quality, however, was partially counterbalanced by its negative indirect effect. Moreover, the greatest advantage in attending an elite institution accrued to those students with relatively high levels of academic performance. As academic performance declined, so did the positive effect of college quality. The effects of precollege characteristics on becoming a physician were largely indirect, mediated by the student's college experience. Net of other factors, women were no less likely than men to become physicians, but being female had a significant negative indirect effect. Conversely, secondary school achievement did not directly influence attainment but did have a large positive indirect influence.An earlier version of this paper was presented at the annual meeting of the Association for the Study of Higher Education, San Diego, February, 1987.     

Preparing teachers as allies in Indigenous education: benefits of an American Indian content and pedagogy course

The study explores relationship building and improvements in knowledge, skills, and dispositions of pre-service teachers enrolled in an Indigenous education content and pedagogy methods course. The Teaching American Indian Students in the Elementary Classroom course stands alone from other diversity education offerings at the University of Minnesota Duluth and is a required learning experience. Pre-service teachers are provided with essential knowledge and learning opportunities that facilitate success in working with Indigenous students, and helping mainstream students learn about Native history, peoples, and communities. The evaluation study was conducted by an Indigenous faculty member interested in learning how non-Native teacher education students felt they were achieving target knowledge, skills, and dispositional goals. Three separate groups of teacher education students completed both pre and post online surveys as a part of a three-year mixed methods evaluation study. The study shows significant gains made by pre-service teachers in each of the target areas, and affirms that methods coursework in American Indian education can lead to more interculturally competent teacher candidates. Helping teacher education students develop the requisite abilities and dispositions to fulfill Native American education objectives is contributory to developing future teachers as competent professionals and allies in Indigenous and diversity education.     

Online protocol annotation: a method to enhance undergraduate laboratory research skills

A well-constructed, step-by-step protocol is a critical starting point for teaching undergraduates new techniques, an important record of a lab's standard procedures, and a useful mechanism for sharing techniques between labs. Many research labs use websites to archive and share their protocols for these purposes. Here we describe our experiences developing and using a protocol website for the additional purpose of enhancing undergraduate research training. We created our lab's protocol website in a message board format that allows undergraduates to post comments on protocols describing the lessons they learned, questions that arose, and/or insights they gained while learning to execute specific research protocols. Encouraging and expecting students to comment on the protocols they are learning to execute is beneficial for both the student and for the lab in which they are training. For the student, annotations encourage active reflection on their execution of techniques and emphasize the important message that attending to and understanding details of a protocol is a critical factor in producing reliable data. For the lab, annotations capture valuable insights for future generations of researchers by describing missing details, hints, and common hurdles for newcomers.     

Self-Concept: A comparison of Native American and Anglo preschoolers

This study compared the scores of Native American and Anglo American preschoolers on the Primary Self-Concept Inventory, a self-report measure of self-concept. Fifty-eight preschoolers between the ages of 4-0 and 5-11 participated. Analysis of the variance revealed no overall significant difference between self-concept scores; however, mean scores on the variable of Personal-Self were significantly higher for Native American preschoolers. Lack of overall difference might have been attributable to similar educational, regional, and socioeconomic factors.     

Indigenous graduate research students in Australia: a critical review of the research

Over the last decade, there has been a steady increase in the number of Indigenous graduate research students in Australia, yet research and pedagogy has not kept pace with changes underway in the sector. From an extensive search of literature published between 2000 and 2017, 15 papers (representing 10 research projects conducted by seven teams or authors) were identified that addressed Indigenous graduate research student experience. Overall, the literature tends to focus on identifying barriers to completion, noting in particular the impact of financial difficulties, social isolation and racism. A research degree is a key site for the assertion and legitimation of Indigenous knowledges, and it is here that Indigenous students are navigating tensions between legitimated disciplinary practices of the centre and the peripheral status of Indigenous knowledges. We, therefore, adopt Herbert's ‘centre–periphery’ model to interpret the research, arguing that this framework explains the focus on barriers, the neglect of pedagogy centred on academic excellence and student strengths, and research relationships between students and Indigenous communities. Our review identifies the need for a systematic research agenda specifically focused on Indigenous student success at the graduate research level, and looking internationally in order to assess the performance and strategies of Australian higher education providers in comparison to international institutions meeting the aims of First Nations research communities. This approach, we suggest, should move beyond an analysis of the nature of enablers and barriers to focus on Indigenous Higher Degree by Research success.