scholarly journals Taxonomy for Developing Undergraduate Research Experiences as High-Impact Practices

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abbey E. Fischer ◽  
Kathy R. Immel ◽  
Kristi Wilkum ◽  
Laura R. Lee
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Learning Experiences ◽  
High Impact ◽  
Research Experience ◽  
Research Experiences ◽  
Research Opportunities ◽  
High Impact Practices ◽  
Undergraduate Research Experiences ◽  
Student Learning Experiences

The call to increase student participation in high-impact practices (HIPs) to improve student learning, satisfaction, and retention is being answered in a multitude of ways. Faculty and staff involved in undergraduate research see this as validation of their efforts, which it is. However, Kuh & O’Donnell’s (2013) work challenges research mentors to reevaluate their efforts in order to intentionally provide an even richer and more engaging research experience. Making undergraduate research a high-impact practice requires thinking inclusively about how the research experience can be scaled across the curriculum, adjusted to increase student engagement, and adapted to student preparation and desired learning outcomes. This article presents the work of a statewide multi-disciplinary faculty team that developed a scalable taxonomy for incorporating high-impact practices into student learning experiences and to serve as a roadmap for designing and assessing undergraduate research experiences. The authors offer a layered taxonomy, with milestones of increasing engagement, that establishes what sets a HIP undergraduate research experience apart from other HIP experiences and what distinguishes good practices from high-impact teaching. Aligning undergraduate research experiences with best practices across disciplines, types of research opportunities, and student achievement level was a key goal in the taxonomy development. We present cases where the taxonomy was applied to research opportunities embedded in general education courses across disciplines and different modalities. In these vignettes, the utility of the taxonomy as a tool for assessing course design and teaching effectiveness is examined and common challenges in development, implementation, and assessment of student learning experiences are also explored.

scholarly journals MUREs - a new member of the URE-CURE family of research opportunities for undergrads

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Holly E. Bates ◽  
Shanna Lowes ◽  
Sarah L. West
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Research Experience ◽  
Research Experiences ◽  
Research Opportunities ◽  
Biology Students ◽  
Undergraduate Research Experiences ◽  
Stem Students ◽  
Experiential Research

Undergraduate research experiences are important for the development of scientific identity, appreciation of authentic research, and to improve persistence towards science careers. We identified a gap in experiential research opportunities for undergraduate Biology students who were seeking a formal yet small-scale research experience that was unique to their own interests and career aspirations. These opportunities may be especially worthwhile for STEM students aspiring to non-research scientific careers (i.e., medicine, dentistry, forensics, communication) and underrepresented STEM students. Here, we reflect on the use of small-scale, individualized undergraduate research experiences that are based on established methods (MURE). These experiences have helped to fill this gap and create problem-centred learning opportunities for undergraduate students that are as unique as the students themselves.

scholarly journals Assessment of Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences: A Meeting Report

2014 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa Corwin Auchincloss ◽  
Sandra L. Laursen ◽  
Janet L. Branchaw ◽  
Kevin Eagan ◽  
Mark Graham ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Biology Education ◽  
Operational Definition ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Meeting Report ◽  
Research Experience ◽  
Research Experiences ◽  
Undergraduate Research Experiences ◽  
Foundation Program ◽  
Definition Of

The Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences Network (CUREnet) was initiated in 2012 with funding from the National Science Foundation program for Research Coordination Networks in Undergraduate Biology Education. CUREnet aims to address topics, problems, and opportunities inherent to integrating research experiences into undergraduate courses. During CUREnet meetings and discussions, it became apparent that there is need for a clear definition of what constitutes a CURE and systematic exploration of what makes CUREs meaningful in terms of student learning. Thus, we assembled a small working group of people with expertise in CURE instruction and assessment to: 1) draft an operational definition of a CURE, with the aim of defining what makes a laboratory course or project a “research experience”; 2) summarize research on CUREs, as well as findings from studies of undergraduate research internships that would be useful for thinking about how students are influenced by participating in CUREs; and 3) identify areas of greatest need with respect to CURE assessment, and directions for future research on and evaluation of CUREs. This report summarizes the outcomes and recommendations of this meeting.

Mentoring High-Impact Undergraduate Research Experiences

2022 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-21
Author(s):  
Jessie L. Moore ◽  
Angela Myers ◽  
Hayden McConnell
Keyword(s):  
Research Team ◽  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
High Impact ◽  
English Studies ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Research Experiences ◽  
Undergraduate Research Experiences ◽  
One To One

Abstract This article illustrates the Ten Salient Practices of Undergraduate Research Mentors with examples for English studies. The authors include both one-to-one and research-team examples, recognizing that although much English scholarship is solitary, peers and near peers play key roles in high-quality, mentored undergraduate research experiences.

scholarly journals Student music stimuli composition in a scaffolded course-based undergraduate research experience

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-32
Author(s):  
Abbey L. Dvorak ◽  
Eugenia Hernandez-Ruiz ◽  
Halle Nick ◽  
Ruowen Qi ◽  
Celeste Alderete ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
Music Therapy ◽  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Teaching Model ◽  
Research Experience ◽  
Education Students ◽  
Research Experiences ◽  
Graduate Assistants ◽  
Undergraduate Research Experiences

Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CURE) allow students opportunities to develop research skills. In a scaffolded CURE, music therapy and music education students composed, evaluated, and selected the music stimuli used in a music and mindfulness study with non-musicians at Site 1 and musicians at Site 2. The purposes of this paper are to (a) describe the process of student music stimuli composition and evaluation for use in a course-based undergraduate research experience and (b) identify benefits, challenges, and lessons learned from the viewpoints of students, graduate assistants, and faculty who participated in the multi-site study. Eight students, two graduate assistants, and two faculty provide an overview of the CURE teaching model and assignments, and share first-person accounts of their experiences participating in this CURE.  

Designing Authentic Undergraduate Research Experiences in a Single-Semester Lab Course

2015 ◽  
Vol 77 (7) ◽  
pp. 526-531 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas A. Mennella
Keyword(s):  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Research Experience ◽  
Research Project ◽  
Research Experiences ◽  
Laboratory Course ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Undergraduate Research Experiences ◽  
Green Fluorescent ◽  
Scheduled Time

The importance of a robust undergraduate research experience has been demonstrated time and again. However, too few undergraduates engage in genuine research and leverage this opportunity. Here, I present a laboratory course in cell and molecular biology that is designed to mimic a true research project. Students work through a 10-step experimental design culminating in the construction, expression, and visualization of microtubules fused to green fluorescent protein in baker's yeast. The steps of this project include the isolation of the tubulin gene from yeast genomic DNA, the cloning of that gene into an expression vector, the amplification of this plasmid in E. coli, and the expression of fluorescent tubulin in yeast. Controls and validation steps are embedded throughout the project, as they would be in a genuine research project. This laboratory course more closely resembles a one-semester undergraduate research experience than a typical lab course. However, because this course reaches a much larger number of students compared with undergraduate research opportunities, it provides students with a valuable research experience that remains confined to the scheduled time block of a typical lab course. In this way, many of the benefits of research are experienced by a large number of undergraduates.

scholarly journals Recommendations for Effective Integration of Ethics and Responsible Conduct of Research (E/RCR) Education into Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences: A Meeting Report

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. mr2 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura A. Diaz-Martinez ◽  
Ginger R. Fisher ◽  
David Esparza ◽  
Jay M. Bhatt ◽  
Christina E. D’Arcy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Responsible Conduct Of Research ◽  
Meeting Report ◽  
Research Experience ◽  
Scientific Enterprise ◽  
Research Experiences ◽  
Undergraduate Research Experiences ◽  
Responsible Conduct ◽  
Effective Integration

Advancement of the scientific enterprise relies on individuals conducting research in an ethical and responsible manner. Educating emergent scholars in the principles of ethics/responsible conduct of research (E/RCR) is therefore critical to ensuring such advancement. The recent impetus to include authentic research opportunities as part of the undergraduate curriculum, via course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs), has been shown to increase cognitive and noncognitive student outcomes. Because of these important benefits, CUREs are becoming more common and often constitute the first research experience for many students. However, despite the importance of E/RCR in the research process, we know of few efforts to incorporate E/RCR education into CUREs. The Ethics Network for Course-based Opportunities in Undergraduate Research (ENCOUR) was created to address this concern and promote the integration of E/RCR within CUREs in the biological sciences and related disciplines. During the inaugural ENCOUR meeting, a four-pronged approach was used to develop guidelines for the effective integration of E/RCR in CUREs. This approach included: 1) defining appropriate student learning objectives; 2) identifying relevant curriculum; 3) identifying relevant assessments; and 4) defining key aspects of professional development for CURE facilitators. Meeting outcomes, including the aforementioned E/RCR guidelines, are described herein.

scholarly journals Student Perceptions of Authoring a Publication Stemming from a Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE)

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. ar46
Author(s):  
Ashley N. Turner ◽  
Anil K. Challa ◽  
Katelyn M. Cooper
Keyword(s):  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Interview Study ◽  
Perceived Benefits ◽  
Research Experience ◽  
Research Experiences ◽  
Undergraduate Research Experiences ◽  
Course Format

Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) engage students with research experiences in a course format and can sometimes result in publication of that research. This interview study identifies student-perceived benefits of authoring a publication stemming from a CURE and explores student perceptions of authorship.

scholarly journals A Departmental Focus on High Impact Undergraduate Research Experiences

2013 ◽  
pp. 5-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robin B. Kinnel ◽  
Adam W. Van Wynsberghe ◽  
Ian J. Rosenstein ◽  
Karen S. Brewer ◽  
Myriam Cotten ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
High Impact ◽  
Research Experiences ◽  
Undergraduate Research Experiences

scholarly journals Implementing a course-based undergraduate research experience to grow the quantity and quality of undergraduate research in an animal science curriculum1

2019 ◽  
Vol 97 (11) ◽  
pp. 4691-4697 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cassandra K Jones ◽  
Annie B Lerner
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Experiential Learning ◽  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Research Experience ◽  
Animal Science ◽  
Research Experiences ◽  
Unique Challenge ◽  
Undergraduate Research Experiences ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Undergraduate research involves experiential learning methods that helps animal science students gain critical thinking skills. There is high demand for these opportunities. For example, 77.9% of incoming freshmen in the Department of Animal Sciences & Industry at Kansas State University in Fall 2017 and Fall 2018 planned to conduct research sometime during their undergraduate career (422 of 542 students). Conventional, one-on-one mentoring methods in the department were only serving 1.7% of the undergraduate population (21 of 1,212 students). This creates a unique challenge of increasing the number of undergraduate research opportunities, while maintaining the impact of individualized experiential learning. One method to address this challenge is the incorporation of a course-based research program. In this model, research projects are conducted during a conventional semester during scheduled classroom hours, with project components divided into 3 sections: (1) research preparation, including compliance requirements, hypothesis testing, experimental design, and protocol development; (2) data collection; and (3) data interpretation and dissemination. Students collect data as a team, but individually develop their own research abstract and poster to maintain a high level of experiential learning. By teaching multiple sections of this course per semester and incorporating the concepts into existing laboratories, 13.5% of students in the department completed undergraduate research in the 2018–2019 academic year (162 of 1,197 students). To monitor the quality of these experiences, student critical thinking ability was assessed using the online Critical Thinking Basic Concepts & Understanding Test (Foundation for Critical Thinking, Tomales, CA). Undergraduate research experiences increased (P = 0.028) the growth in student critical thinking score, but the type of research experience did not influence assessed skills (P > 0.281). Thus, course-based undergraduate research experiences may be an option for growing the quantity and quality of undergraduate research experience in animal science.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document