Uncovering Factors Influencing Instructors' Decision Process when Considering Implementation of a Course-Based Research Experience

Dipping Your Toe in The CURE Pool: Longitudinal Tracking of Instructors Suggests Use of a Short-Duration CURE Can Catalyze Expansion to Longer CURE Experiences

Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) are an effective method of engaging large numbers of students in authentic research but are associated with barriers to adoption. Short CURE modules may serve as a low-barrier entryway, but their effectiveness in promoting expansion has not been studied. The Prevalence of Antibiotic Resistance in the Environment (PARE) project is a modular CURE designed to be a low-barrier gateway into CURE use. In a series of interviews, we track and characterize use of PARE in 19 PARE-interested instructors throughout the Innovation-Decision Process described by Rogers' Diffusion of Innovations theory. The majority (16/19) implement PARE at least once, and a majority of these implementers (11/16) expanded use by the final interview. Three of four cases of discontinuance were due to a disruption such as moving institutions or a change in course assignment and occurred for community college faculty. Expanders expressed fewer personal challenges than nonexpanders. Overall analysis shows that perception of barriers is nuanced and impacted by the innovation itself, the institutional context, and one's own experiences. These results suggest that a short duration, low barrier CURE can serve as a catalyst for implementation of a longer duration CURE.

A framework for leveraging network course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) faculty to develop, validate, and administer an assessment instrument

Over the last several years, nationally disseminated course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) have emerged as an alternative to developing a novel CURE from scratch, but objective assessment of these multi-institution (network) CUREs across institutions is challenging due to differences in student populations, instructors, and fidelity of implementation. The time, money, and skills required to develop and validate a CURE-specific assessment instrument can be prohibitive. Here, we describe a co-design process for assessing a network CURE [the Prevalence of Antibiotic Resistance in the Environment (PARE)] that did not require support through external funding, was a relatively low time commitment for participating instructors, and resulted in a validated instrument that is usable across diverse PARE network institution types and implementation styles. Data collection efforts have involved over two dozen unique institutions, 42 course offerings, and over 1,300 pre-/post-matched assessment record data points. We demonstrated significant student learning gains but with small effect size in both content and science process skills after participation in the two laboratory sessions associated with the core PARE module. These results show promise for the efficacy of short-duration CUREs, an educational research area ripe for further investigation, and may support efforts to lower barriers for instructor adoption by leveraging a CURE network for developing and validating assessment tools.

A cost-free CURE: using bioinformatics to identify DNA-binding factors at a specific genomic locus

Research experiences provide diverse benefits for undergraduates. Many academic institutions have adopted course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) to improve student access to research opportunities. However, potential instructors of a CURE might still face financial or practical hurdles that prevent implementation. Bioinformatics research offers an alternative that is free, safe, compatible with remote learning, and may be more accessible for students with disabilities. Here, we describe a bioinformatics CURE that leverages publicly available datasets to discover novel proteins that target an instructor-determined genomic locus of interest. We use the free, user-friendly bioinformatics platform Galaxy to map ChIP-seq datasets to a genome, which removes the computing burden from students. Both faculty and students directly benefit from this CURE, as faculty can perform candidate screens and publish CURE results. Students gain not only basic bioinformatics knowledge, but also transferable skills, including scientific communication, database navigation, and primary literature experience. The CURE is flexible and can be expanded to analyze different types of high-throughput data or to investigate different genomic loci in any species.

Classification of Features across Five CURE Networks Reveals Opportunities to Improve Course Design, Instruction, and Equity

Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) are tools used to introduce students to authentic participation in science. Several specific CUREs have been shown to benefit students' interest and retention in the biological sciences. Nevertheless, CUREs vary greatly in terms of their context, methodology, and degree of research authenticity, so different types of CUREs may differently influence student outcomes. This programmatic diversity poses a challenge to educators who want to better understand which course components and features are reliably present in a CURE curriculum. To address these issues, we identified, catalogued, and classified 112 potential features of CUREs across the biosciences. To develop the list, we interviewed instructors experienced with teaching individual and large networked CUREs across a diversity of the biological disciplines, including: Squirrel-Net (field-based animal behavior), SEA-PHAGES (wet lab microbiology and computational microbiology), Tiny Earth (environmental and wet lab microbiology), PARE (environmental microbiology), and the Genomics Education Partnership (eukaryotic computational biology). Twenty-five interviewees contributed expert content in terms of CURE features and classification of those items into an organized list. The resulting list's categories encompasses student experiences with the following: (i) the scientific process; (ii) technical aspects of science; (iii) the professional development associated with research; and (iv) building scientific identity. The most striking insight was that CUREs vary widely in terms of which features they contain, since different CUREs will by necessity have different approaches to science and student involvement. We also identified several features commonly thought to be crucial to CUREs yet have ambiguous definitions. This ambiguity can potentially confound efforts to make CUREs research-authentic and aligned with the central goals of science. We disambiguate these terms and represent their varied meanings throughout the classification. We also provide instructor-friendly supplementary worksheets along with considerations for instructors interested in expanding their CURE course design, instruction, and equity.

Incorporating field-based research into remote learning: An assessment of soil lead pollution in different land-use types in Los Angeles

A research-based course was developed to investigate the legacy of soil lead (Pb) pollution in Los Angeles, California. During the course, undergraduate and graduate students collected a total of 270 soil samples for analyses of metal (loid) concentrations in different land-use types (residential, park, and school). Residential soils had significantly higher Pb concentrations than other land uses (p < 0.01) exceeding the California recommended safety level for soil Pb (80 mg/kg) at the highest frequency (64% of samples), followed by schools (42%) and parks (6.0%). Soil Pb from all 87 census block groups was correlated with battery recycling plant and railroad proximity as geospatial indicators of childhood Pb exposure risk. Meanwhile, census block groups with higher Pb levels were correlated with higher percentages of the following population: those without health insurance, without college degrees, with a lower median household income and income below the poverty line, and ethnic and racial minorities (r = -0.46 to 0.59, p < 0.05). Principal component regression models significantly improved soil Pb estimation over correlation analysis by incorporating sociodemographic, economic, and geospatial risk factors for Pb exposure (R² = 0.58, p < 0.05). This work provides new insights into how topsoil Pb prevails in various land-use types and their co-occurring sociodemographic, economic, and geospatial risk factors, indicating the need for multi-scalar assessment across urban land uses.

Faculty Experiences during the Implementation of an Introductory Biology Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE)

Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) integrate an authentic research experience for students into a laboratory course. CUREs provide many of the same benefits to students as individual faculty-mentored research experiences. However, faculty experiences in teaching CUREs are not as well understood. There are no studies that compare faculty's anticipated experiences to actual experiences, and little comparison of the faculty experience by institution. Through interviews with eight biology faculty from four institutions, the faculty experience in implementing a CURE in an introductory biology laboratory was explored using qualitative analysis. Institutions included: a small, minority-serving, women's, primarily undergraduate university; a small, residential, primarily undergraduate college; a midsized doctoral university; and a large community college. Interviews were conducted at three time points: before professional development (PD), after the initial semester of teaching the CURE, and after teaching the CURE at least twice (1 year later). Faculty described resources, benefits, challenges, and feelings about teaching the CURE. However, anticipated experiences were often not the same as those actually experienced. There were also institutional differences in resources, benefits, challenges, and feelings. Implications for CURE PD include specific content such as strategies for teaching effective research group work, development of student proposals, and student time management.

Assessment of Online Environment and Digital Footprint Functions in Higher Education Analytics

The article is devoted to learning analytics problems associated with the digital culture development in the university educational space and with the student activity control in the vocational training process. The empirical basis of the study was a series of surveys conducted by the Center for Sociological Research of the Peter the Great Polytechnic University in 2018–2020. To systematize the information on the traces of students’ activity in the digital space, the method of constructing a personal mental map, reflecting the cognitive characteristics of the student’s interactive actions in the network, was used. Because of the analysis of the mental maps, the general structure of the personal digital footprint was identified, which is significant for analytics of the student’s academic history and self-assessment of his activities in professional development. In conclusion, the constructive role of digital technology in assessing and modeling the educational process is emphasized. The study of students’ digital footprints on the university platforms, supplemented by the study of their activity in social networks, allows the development of educational modeling aimed at creating a more adequate set of competencies and soft skills of the graduate.

Enhancing the odds of adopting e-learning or community-focused experiential learning as a teaching practice amongst university faculty

Identifying the optimal approach for motivating faculty to adopt teaching innovation is important, given that broad-scale initiatives can utilize an inordinate amount of time and resources. Using a quantitative approach, we evaluate policy actions that are most strongly associated with the adoption of either e-learning or community-focused experiential learning, over a five-year period in a single institution. Comparisons between adopters and non-adopters affirm the relevance of previously documented facilitators and barriers. However, a logistic regression analysis demonstrates that actions that promote a supportive institutional culture (such as, an institutional plan, committee involvement, professional development and logistical support) as well as faculty perceptions and beliefs (i.e., “using new methods is not risky for student learning”; confidence and self-efficacy with respect to implementation), is strongly associated with the adoption of either e-learning (n = 118) or community-focused experiential learning (n = 97). In contrast, funding and professional dimensions (i.e., workload, historical precedence, and the institutional promotion of the innovation with respect to academic freedom) is weakly associated with adoption. The results not only provide a fine-grained analysis of current assumptions regarding the necessary conditions for implementing organizational change in the university context, but also suggest an approach that reinforces and sustains the adoption of teaching innovation over the long term. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed in reference to models of organizational change, faculty motivation and approaches to institutionalizing teaching innovation.

Growsafe: A Chemical Method To Deactivate Cultivated Microorganisms Using Low-Cost Kitchen Supplies

One limitation to engaging K-12 students and the public with microorganisms is the inability to cultivate and dispose of bacterial and fungal samples safely without expensive equipment or services. This barrier has been amplified with remote learning modalities and laboratory closures driven by safety precautions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. At-home lab kits are being used to bring hands-on experience in microorganism cultivation to students learning remotely, but these kits often fail to take into full consideration the safety aspects or the costs associated with microorganism disposal, limiting which experiments can be performed at home. Here, we outline a method that makes cultivating and deactivating microorganisms accessible to the public through low-cost and readily available equipment. This method reduces exposure to microorganisms by forgoing the need to open petri plates for chemical deactivation with sanitizing reagents. This technique may benefit remote K-12 and postsecondary students, students wishing to get hands-on microbiology research experience, and members of the public interested in cultivating microorganisms to contribute to citizen science efforts or for creative art applications.

Combating Antimicrobial Resistance Through Student-Driven Research and Environmental Surveillance

Emerging resistance to all classes of antimicrobials is one of the defining crises of the 21st century. Many advances in modern medicine, such as routine surgeries, are predicated on sustaining patients with antimicrobials during a period when their immune systems alone cannot clear infection. The development of new antimicrobials has not kept pace with the antimicrobial resistance (AR) threat. AR bacteria have been documented in various environments, such as drinking and surface water, food, sewage, and soil, yet surveillance and sampling has largely been from infected patients. The prevalence and diversity of AR bacteria in the environment, and the risks they pose to humans are not well understood. There is consensus that environmental surveillance is an important first step in forecasting and targeting efforts to prevent spread and transmission of AR microbes. However, efforts to date have been limited. The Prevalence of Antibiotic Resistance in the Environment (PARE) is a classroom-based project that engages students around the globe in systematic environmental AR surveillance with the goal of identifying areas where prevalence is high. The format of PARE, designed as short classroom research modules, lowers common barriers for institutional participation in course-based research. PARE brings real-world microbiology into the classroom by educating students about the pressing public health issue of AR, while empowering them to be partners in the solution. In turn, the PARE project provides impactful data to inform our understanding of the spread of AR in the environment through global real-time surveillance.