Science & Engineering
U Nebraska-Lincoln Overhauls STEM Teaching
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL)
plans an institutional-level overhaul of its teaching practices in approximately
50 introductory science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) courses, with
the goal of increasing student success rates in those courses.
The ARISE (Adopting Research-based
Instructional Strategies for Enhancing STEM Education) program aims to improve
STEM teaching using research-based methods and to help departments change the
way they value, evaluate and reward teaching, according to information on the
university's site. To implement these changes, the heads of 14 STEM departments
will collaborate with the ARISE team. Together they will select approximately
100 faculty members to receive professional development and support and to
participate in roundtable discussions.
Ruth Heaton, a professor of education at UNL and a member of the ARISE
project team, and a team of educational research faculty, "have created several
faculty development programs that focus on instructional strategies that promote
active learning, enhance student assessment and increase student learning
outcomes," according to a UNL news release, and these programs will be
implemented as part of the project.
The ARISE program expects approximately 5,000 undergraduate students to
benefit from the research-based instructional techniques.
Through ARISE, the university also aims to conduct empirical research about
when and why faculty change their teaching methods. The researchers will conduct
interviews, observations and surveys to answer these questions, with the goal of
helping other institutions transform their STEM teaching practices.
The ARISE program is funded by a three-year, $2 million grant from the
National Science Foundation (NSF) through the
WIDER
(Widening Implementation & Demonstration of Evidence-Based Reforms) Program.
The effectiveness of the project will be assessed by the
Technical Education Research
Centers' STEM Education Evaluation Center, an independent company based in
Cambridge, MA that focuses on improving math and science education.
Further information about the ARISE program can be found on the
University of Nebraska-Lincoln's site.
About the Author
Leila Meyer is a technology writer based in British Columbia. She can be reached at leilameyer@gmail.com.