Susan Elrod, Project Kaleidoscope at AAC&[email protected]
FIPSE Project Director’s MeetingNovember 7, 2011Washington, DC
http://www.aacu.org/pkal
Faculty Development and STEM Education Reform
Challenges1. Faculty knowledge about learning and
effective pedagogy and assessment One solution - faculty learning communities and
long-term programs to help faculty learn Examples from PKAL, universities, Center’s for
Teaching and Learning
Project Kaleidoscope (PKAL) • National organization
dedicated to “advancing what works in undergraduate STEM education”
• Cross disciplinary community of nearly 7,000 people at over 1,000 colleges, universities, and organizations
• Association of American Colleges & Universities (AAC&U) affiliation
http://www.aacu.org/pkal
Challenges2. No motivation/incentive to change
teaching practicesOne solution – create standards and rubrics for
measuring effective teaching based on researchUse Chickering’s Good Practices, Recommendations
in Vision and Change report (AAAS, 2011), AAC&U’s High Impact Practices …
From AAAS Vision & Change• Focus on Student-Centered Learning– Engage students as active participants, not passive recipients.– Use multiple modes of instruction. – Ensure that undergraduate biology courses are active, outcome
oriented, inquiry driven, and relevant.– Facilitate student learning within a cooperative context.– Integrate multiple forms of assessment to track student learning.– Give students ongoing, frequent, and multiple forms of feedback
on their progress.– View the assessment of course success as similar to scientific
research and apply the assessment data to improve and enhance the learning environment.
Challenges3. Lack of leadership that promotes a focus
on undergraduate STEM learning and success
One solution – launch a coordinated initiative that links institutional goals with an action research agenda that is inquiry/data driven
Institutional Action Research • Start w/ institutional and program data to ask
strategic questions about student learning and success as connected to institutional goals, plans and priorities in STEM
• Engage faculty in discussion of data • Form teams, supported appropriately, to investigate
and create plans for solving critical issues • Continue to monitor progress, from an institutional
perspective
Institutional Retention Data
60.0%
65.0%
70.0%
75.0%
80.0%
85.0%
90.0%
95.0%
100.0%
90.5%
75.4%
72.6% 73.2%
64.7% 64.4%
0.9%
7.0%
6.7% 5.3%
11.8% 11.5%
Fall 2004 First-Time Freshman CohortAchievement Gap of Under Represented Minorities
Succ
ess
Rate
91.4%
75.9%76.5%
78.5%79.3%
82.4%
Under Represented Minori-ties
n = 317(Native American, Black, Hispanic)
Majority Studentsn = 2,582
* Persistence is a combination of students who either graduated OR are still enrolled.