Student and Teacher Research Experience

Research on the Research experience for undergraduates

We operate on the principle that undergraduate research is not only the essential component of good teaching and effective learning, but also that research with undergraduate students is in itself the purest form of teaching. (James N. Gentile in Academic Excellence, Michael P. Doyle, Editor, Research Corporation, Tucson, AZ, 2000).

One of the commonly stated goals of undergraduate research is to improve retention and increase the number of students pursuing careers in science, especially minority students. (Joanne L. Stewart 2003)

“...programs increased the likelihood of obtaining a PhD, and they had strongly positive effects on participants’ understanding of the research process, confidence in their research-related abilities, awareness of academic and career options in STEM, and changes in interest in STEM/SBES careers.” (EVALUATION OF NSF SUPPORT FOR UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES: SRI International 2006).

Objectives of the MRI survey:

Discover weaknesses and strengths of program

Find out what program alumni are doing and how the internship affected their careers

Assess how effectively the internship program allows teachers to improve classroom learning

Methods

Graduation records and alumni directory Local connections Social networking and online directories Cold calls and emails

Response:

34 out of 40 students 8 out of 9 teachers

Survey Results from the student interns

Results

Career plans

Advanced Degrees

Praise for Summer Program

“I loved it, and still think of it with excited memories of intellectual challenge.”

“An all around amazing experience that taught me a lot.”

“I did participate in the summer program there in 1998, 12 years ago! Since then I've earned a PhD and am now a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Minnesota, so I can certainly attest to the fact that my summer experience at McLaughlin influenced my career in science.”

Areas for Improvement

“It would be nice if we could have some sort of social activities so the students could get to know each other.”

“I wish I had known about it earlier in college” “An initial series of classes explaining the lab

procedures in depth would have been helpful.” “I think interns should get to cross-tour the labs. I was

using equipment in another lab last week and a fellow intern was explaining his procedure to me and the objective of his project and how things are done differently in his lab, and I thought it was interesting.”

Research Experience for Teachers programs

Formal programs that provide research experiences for teachers (RET) have been in existence for more than 20 years. Currently there are more than 70 formalized Scientific Work Experiences Programs for Teachers (SWEPTs) nationwide.

The underlying assumption of most RETs is that these intensive summer work immersion experiences….expand teachers’ professional skills and networks, and thereby improve the performance of their students.

Many SWEPTs have collected anecdotal evidence indicating their program’s positive impact on teachers.

Missing from all SWEPT evaluations is quantitative evidence that teacher participation in these programs affects student interest and performance in the subject taught by the SWEPT teacher.

Scientific Work Experiences Programs for Teachers (SWEPTs): The Research

The study found “greater post-course interest and enthusiasm for science in classes of SWEPT vs comparison teachers in the same school(s).” (Dubner & Silverstein et all 2004)

Columbia University’s study found the largest differences in interest and achievement in science between students of teachers participating in its program vs the comparison teachers.” (It’s study did not include any controls or non treatment, but is an HHMI recipient.) (Dubner & Silverstein 2003)

Research experiences have also been found to increase teachers’ content knowledge (Buck, 2003, Dresner & Worley, 2006; Raphael, Tobias, & Greenberg, 1999)

Increased teacher confidence with teaching inquiry science (Westerlund, Garcia, Koke, Taylor, & Mason, 2002).

"Our studies convince us that hands-on science experiences for science teachers are as essential to their training and professional development as educators as hospital residencies are to the training and professional development of physicians.” Dr. Silverstein.

MRI Teacher Program

Please describe the changes to your methods and style of teaching that resulted from your MRI experience.

“I attempted to relate what we were discussing in class to what is going on in the students’ own community.”

“Doing science helped me to teach science with more grounding (based on experience and real examples from local scientists) and credibility.”

“I have changed my teaching to include more student involvement in the process of developing understanding. I have become less of a lecturer and more of a guide especially during lab activities.”

Thanks to

Survey respondents Dave Crum McLaughlin Research Institute Howard Hughes Medical Institute Kaitlyn Carlson who did most of the

survey and the graphical data.