NEWS

=//New report by National Academies of Science//= media type="custom" key="18963748"

=Discipline-Based Education Research:=

Understanding and Improving Learning in Undergraduate Science and Engineering
Date: May 21, 2012
 * __ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE __**


 * Findings From Discipline-Based Education Research Could Improve Undergraduate Science and Engineering Teaching But Are Not Yet Widely Used **

WASHINGTON — Discipline-based education research (DBER) has generated insights that could help improve undergraduate education in science and engineering, but these findings have not yet prompted widespread changes in teaching practice, says a new [|report] from the National Research Council. Science and engineering faculty, institutions, disciplinary societies, and professional societies should all support high-quality DBER and the adoption of the evidence-based teaching strategies that have emerged from it, the report says.

DBER is a collection of related research fields that investigate how students learn in particular scientific disciplines and identify ways to improve instruction. This research is emerging in many scientific disciplines, including physics, chemistry, biology, the geosciences, and astronomy, as well as in engineering. A DBER scholar in physics, for example, might investigate how students learn concepts such as force or acceleration and try to identify effective ways for instructors to teach these concepts. Scholars in all DBER fields share the goal of improving teaching and learning by using findings from empirical research. Although they have made inroads in terms of establishing their fields, the report says, these scholars still face challenges in identifying pathways for training and professional recognition. And findings from DBER have not yet led to widespread change in the teaching of undergraduate science and engineering. Notable research findings from DBER on undergraduate teaching and learning include: Institutions, disciplinary societies, and professional societies should support faculty efforts to use evidence-based teaching strategies in their classrooms. In addition, they should work together to prepare future faculty who understand research findings on learning and teaching and who value effective teaching as part of their career aspirations. And they should support venues for DBER scholars to share their research findings at meetings and in high-quality journals.
 * ** Student-centered learning strategies can enhance learning more than traditional lectures ** . Examples of effective, research-based approaches are making lectures more interactive, having students work in groups, and incorporating authentic problems and activities.
 * ** Students have incorrect understandings about fundamental concepts ** -- particularly phenomena that are not directly observable, such as those that involve very large or very small scales of time and space. For example, students often have difficulty understanding processes that involve deep time, such as Earth’s history or natural selection, and many learning challenges in chemistry result from students’ difficulties in comprehending that matter is made up of discrete particles. DBER has identified instructional techniques that may help, like using “bridging analogies” that link students’ correct understandings and the situation about which they harbor a misconception.
 * ** Students are challenged by important aspects of the domain that can seem easy or obvious to experts. ** For instance, in problem solving students tend to focus on the superficial aspects of a problem rather than its deep structure. Students in all disciplines also have trouble understanding representations like graphs, models, and simulations. These challenges pose serious impediments to learning in science and engineering, especially if instructors are not aware of them. Several strategies appear to improve problem-solving skills, such as providing support and prompts -- known as “scaffolding” -- as students work their way through problems.

Future directions for DBER investigations should include research that explores similarities and differences in learning among various student populations; longitudinal studies that can shed light on how students acquire and retain understanding (or misunderstanding) of concepts; studies that investigate student outcomes other than test scores; and studies of organizational and behavior change that could aid the translation of DBER findings into practice.

The study was sponsored by the National Science Foundation. The National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine, and National Research Council make up the National Academies. They are private, nonprofit institutions that provide science, technology, and health policy advice under a congressional charter. The Research Council is the principal operating agency of the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering. For more information, visit [|http://national-academies.org]. A committee roster follows. Lauren Rugani, Media Relations Officer Molly Galvin, Senior Media Relations Officer Luwam Yeibio, Media Relations Assistant Office of News and Public Information 202-334-2138; e-mail news@nas.edu Pre-publication copies of **//[|Discipline-Based Education Research: Understanding and Improving Learning in Undergraduate Science and Engineering]//** are available from the National Academies Press; tel. 202-334-3313 or 1-800-624-6242 or on the Internet at [|http://www.nap.edu]. Reporters may obtain a copy from the Office of News and Public Information (contacts listed above).
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=//Science// Prize for Inquiry-Based Instruction= January 3, 2011 Have you ever actively participated in a science lab that left a lasting impact on you? Have you ever taught an interactive science lab and watched as students lit up with understanding? Science would like to recognize efforts such as these with the Science Prize for Inquiry-Based Instruction, which has been established to encourage innovation and excellence in education by recognizing outstanding, inquiry-based science education modules. The prize is open to any module where students become invested in exploring questions through activities that are at least partially of their own design. Rather than a typical laboratory exercise that begins with an explanation and results in one correct answer, an inquiry-based lesson might begin with a scenario or question and then require students to propose possible solutions and design some of their own experiments.

Winners will be selected by the editors of Science with the assistance of a judging panel composed of teachers and researchers in the relevant science fields. Individuals responsible for the development of the winning resources will be invited to write a short essay that describes the resource for publication in Science in 2012. We encourage all members of the scientific community to explore their classrooms, departments, colleges, and universities for nominations in order for the Science Prize for Inquiry-Based Instruction to truly represent the best in science education.

To read the accompanying Editorial please visit http://www.sciencemag.org/content/331/6013/10.full For more information and to download applications please visit http://scim.ag/inquiryprize Please contact Dr. Melissa McCartney at mmccartn@aaas.org with any questions.

=NSF Graduate Fellowships Now Recognize STEM Education as Valid Research Field= 12 October 2010 [|article in Science-] excerpt from article Candidates for the 2011 Graduate Research Fellowship (GRF) [|program], whose applications are due in next month, will now find STEM education listed as a recognized field of research. Noah Finkelstein, a physicist who conducts physics education research in a highly lauded program at the University of Colorado, Boulder, calls the change "a big positive move." Until now, he says, NSF "required folks to get their Ph.D.s in one of the traditional disciplines." The new designation, he adds, recognizes that STEM education is "an important, legitimate pursuit for graduate research and for the portfolio of activities that NSF and scientists are responsible for."