Teaching

The quality of student-instructor relationships is an important factor in students’ academic engagement, achievement, and motivation (1–4). Instructors may attempt to build these relationships through their use of language beyond course content. Instructor talk, defined as “language used by an instructor that is not directly related to the concepts under study but instead focuses on creating the learning environment,” includes efforts to build rapport, explain pedagogical choices, share personal experiences, and unmask science (5, 6). Instructor talk may shape students’ perceptions of instructor immediacy, or the sense of closeness between instructors and students (7). Instructor immediacy behaviors, such as smiling, making eye contact, using students’ names, and incorporating humor, have been associated with students’ motivational beliefs, classroom participation, learning, and academic engagement (8–14).

After Carl Wieman won the Nobel Prize for physics in 2001 for, as he puts it, “shining lasers on atoms” in a new way that gave experimental proof to a ...

by Derek Bruff, visiting associate director This spring CETL hosted a faculty learning community on the topic of active learning in large STEM courses. Over a dozen faculty from biology, chemistry, mathematics, physics, and other departments met every other week, mostly on Zoom, to share and discuss shared challenges teaching large courses, particularly introductory courses. […]

Also, what are you reading this summer?

The goal of the ISEE Assessment is to pool the multi-disciplinary expertise on educational systems and reforms from a range of stakeholders in an open and inclusive manner and undertake a scientifically robust and evidence-based assessment that can inform education policy making at all levels and scales.

Did you miss RIOS' "Critical, Socially Just, and Open Pedagogies in STEM" workshop from #MYFest22, led by two of our leadership, @karencang + @BMDewsbury? Recordings of all 3 sessions are now available to view on YouTube!https://t.co/0P3s3uFElP— Racially-Just, Inclusive and Open STEM Education (@RIOSCommunity) August 15, 2022

Despite active learning being recognized as a superior method of instruction in the classroom, a major recent survey found that most college STEM instructors still choose traditional teaching methods. This article addresses the long-standing question of why students and faculty remain resistant to active learning. Comparing passive lectures with active learning using a randomized experimental approach and identical course materials, we find that students in the active classroom learn more, but they feel like they learn less. We show that this negative correlation is caused in part by the increased cognitive effort required during active learning. Faculty who adopt active learning are encouraged to intervene and address this misperception, and we describe a successful example of such an intervention.

QUBES Hub - The Power of Biology, Math, and Community

A third edition to our series of long-form conversations featuring SASN faculty, students and staff where we open up the floor on courses, topics, and collab...

Reflections on keynote presentation during the first science session of the 2021 Nobel Prize Summit Our Planet, Our Future. The first Nobel Prize Summit brou...