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Development of course‐based undergraduate research experiences using a design‐based approach
Author(s) -
Lo Stanley M.,
Drane Denise L.,
Swarat Su L.,
Mordacq John C.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.30.1_supplement.880.9
Subject(s) - competence (human resources) , undergraduate research , mathematics education , context (archaeology) , situated , psychology , pedagogy , computer science , medical education , biology , medicine , social psychology , paleontology , artificial intelligence
Laboratory experience is central to undergraduate biology education. In recent years, commissions and reports (such as Vision and Change and Engage to Excel) have called for the revision of traditional laboratory courses to provide authentic research experiences for all students, especially in the first two years of college. Many existing examples of course‐based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) are designed for advanced undergraduates (Butler 2014, Caspers 2003, Murthy 2014, Taylor 2010), and some are limited to a small number of students (Kloser 2011, Kloser 2013). Here, we present an iterative, design‐based approach for developing CUREs for large introductory biology courses (over 300 students) that helps students develop scientific inquiry skills and expert‐like perceptions about biology. This study involves the design, implementation, evaluation, and revision of a sequence of introductory biology laboratory courses, where students work collaboratively on research projects developed from faculty laboratories on campus. We define authentic research as students performing the same tasks as scientists would in the same setting (legitimate), even though students’ level of competence may not be as sophisticated (peripheral). This idea of legitimate peripheral participation emerges from the theoretical framework of situated learning, which posits that learning takes place in the same context in which it is applied (Lave 1991). Students in these courses learn scientific inquiry in research projects that can result in novel data and conclusions. Research projects include studying protein‐folding diseases using transgenic C. elegans (Brignull 2006) and examining the role of macrophage phagocytosis of apoptotic cells in atherosclerosis (Thorp 2011). Quantitative surveys (Denofrio 2007, Semsar 2011) and qualitative focus groups are used to evaluate these courses and to provide continuing feedback for improvement over three implementation cycles. Pre‐ vs. post‐survey data indicate that students gain self‐efficacy in scientific inquiry skills (statistically significant gains in 13 out of 14 items) and develop more expert‐like perceptions of biology (statistically significant gains in 5 out of 7 categories). These gains are more significant and have larger effect sizes in the second and third implementation years, a trend also supported by qualitative data. Together, these data indicate a progression of improvement of the effectiveness of these CUREs over three design cycles. Our design‐based approach and our experience with the design process provide valuable suggestions for other practitioners who plan to develop CUREs at their own institutions. Support or Funding Information This project was supported in part by an institutional award for undergraduate education from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute to Northwestern University.