Biology education research (BER), currently conducted mostly at four‐year colleges and universities, is changing the culture of teaching biology and improving student success. We are community college faculty participating in the NSF‐funded CC Bio INSITES network, getting training and support in BER to ask questions to improve student success in our highly diverse classes. Our research adapts and validates existing BER surveys and interventions in Hispanic‐serving college settings, with pre‐health professions’ students, and with traditionally underserved populations in STEM. BER projects serve assessment and program review goals common across many community colleges, and when implemented with high‐impact practices, BER measures the gains in student retention and success. We call for support to continue changing the culture of discipline‐based education research at community colleges.
more » « less- Award ID(s):
- 1730130
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10368430
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- New Directions for Community Colleges
- Volume:
- 2022
- Issue:
- 199
- ISSN:
- 0194-3081
- Format(s):
- Medium: X Size: p. 201-213
- Size(s):
- p. 201-213
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
Andrews, Tessa C. (Ed.)In an effort to increase community college (CC) biology education research (BER), an NSF-funded network called CC Bio INSITES (Community College Biology Instructor Network to Support Inquiry into Teaching and Education Scholarship; INSITES for short) was developed to provide intellectual, resource, and social support for CC faculty (CCF) to conduct BER. To investigate the efficacy of this network, we asked about the barriers and supports INSITES CCF have experienced when conducting BER and how specific INSITES supports have mitigated barriers and provided support for network members to engage in BER. We conducted interviews and focus groups with 17 network participants, representing 15 different CCs. Qualitative thematic analysis revealed six main barriers that INSITES CCF experience when conducting BER: time constraints, knowledge, incentives or rewards, administrative or peer support, infrastructure, and stigma or misconceptions associated with being CCF. Participants indicated how the supports provided by INSITES helped to mitigate each barrier. Social support was especially critical for CCF to develop a sense of belonging to the CC BER community, though that did not extend to the broader BER community. We describe how these supports function to support BER and recommend four actions for future support of CCF conducting BER.more » « less
-
Since 2002, the National Center for Earth-Surface dynamics has collaborated with the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, the Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College, the University of Minnesota, and other partner institutions to develop programs aimed at supporting Native American participation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, and especially in the Earth and Environmental Sciences. These include the gidakiimanaaniwigamig math and science camps for students in kindergarten through 12th grade, the Research Experience for Undergraduates on Sustainable Land and Water Resources, which takes place on two native reservations, and support for new majors at tribal colleges. All of these programs have a common focus on collaboration with communities, place-based education, community-inspired research projects, a focus on traditional culture and language, and resource management on reservations. Strong partnerships between university, tribal college, and Native American reservation were a foundation for success, but took time and effort to develop. This paper explores steps towards effective partnerships that support student success in STEM via environmental education.more » « less
-
Tanner, Kimberly (Ed.)
This paper examines the extent to which community college biology education research (CC BER) has progressed since initial calls for broadening participation by comparing the number of CC BER publications, identifies barriers to and opportunities for community college faculty BER participation, and highlights the importance of institutional networks as a driver for incorporating CC faculty in BER.
-
Abstract Although community colleges are increasingly diverse, student outcomes across demographics are not necessarily equitable, nor does the representation of student demographics in a given class always reflect the diversity of the greater institutional student population. To achieve colleges’ stated diversity and equity goals, we must broaden participation in our classrooms through inclusive teaching practices. This chapter shares the stories of four community college faculty change agents in STEM who have implemented inclusive teaching and broadening participation strategies. Specifically, the authors discuss how to build a sense of belonging, support classroom conversations on diversity, incorporate diverse perspectives into curricula, and broaden the participation and success of all students. Finally, the authors recommend actions for individual faculty, faculty communities of practice, institutions, and surrounding communities to spur culture change and help achieve diversity and equity through inclusion.
-
Abstract Developmental education (dev-ed) aims to help students acquire knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in college-level coursework. The traditional prerequisite approach to postsecondary dev-ed—where students take remedial courses that do not count toward a credential—appears to stymie progress toward a degree. At community colleges across the country, most students require remediation in math, creating a barrier to college-level credits under the traditional approach. Corequisite coursework is a structural reform that places students directly into a college-level course in the same term they receive dev-ed support. Using administrative data from Texas community colleges and a regression discontinuity design, we examine whether corequisite math improves student success compared with traditional prerequisite dev-ed. We find that corequisite math quickly improves student completion of math requirements without any obvious drawbacks, but students in corequisite math were not substantially closer to degree completion than their peers in traditional dev-ed after 3 years.more » « less