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Linked-course learning communities are a widely used strategy to promote connections between students and support student retention. This grant project created linked-course learning communities at Bridgewater State University, a public University in southeastern Massachusetts. The communities paired a central 3-credit seminar focused on one or more United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (UN SDG) with the student’s first science class and appropriate mathematics class. This choice was inspired by social psychology research literature showing that students traditionally underrepresented in STEM often value, and look for, the social relevance of science and benefit from structures that provide a more communal, as opposed to individualistic, orientation in their studies. 

Research has shown that making STEM socially relevant can attract more diverse students to STEM fields. Learn to utilize the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals to center socially relevant goals in first-year seminars, as we did when constructing STEM linked-course learning communities. The seminars were designed to foster a communal view of science and mathematics, both in terms of the importance of collaboration to STEM success and the application of STEM to real-world problems. Course structures and sample materials will be shared as inspiration. Conversations will focus on helping visitors increase the social relevance of their own courses or curricula. 

Many campuses have utilized linked-course communities, wherein students take two or more courses with the same peers, in an effort to enhance learning and build community among students. Previous research on the effectiveness of linked-course communities have utilized quasi-experimental designs that are subject to selection bias – the communities may be effective due to which students volunteered to join the communities. This research session reports findings from a randomized controlled trial that eliminated selection bias by randomly assigning first-time first-year College of Science and Math students to linked-course communities or a control group. Findings demonstrate that students in the communities earned higher GPAs and more STEM credits in their first semester than students in the control group. Session participants will identify a curricular intervention and consider the feasibility of conducting a randomized controlled trial to assess effectiveness. 

Previous research has established that peer relationships are important for student success, yet little research has examined connections made in the classroom, as opposed to residence life or extracurricular activities. This project utilized social network analysis in two cohorts of science and mathematics majors to investigate the degree to which students take multiple courses with the same peers. Results showed (1) wide variability in student networks, (2) course selection by students included more repeated connections than random course selection, (3) networks did not vary much by demographic variables (gender, race, first-generation status, and income), and (4) student networks significantly predicted graduation and grades. This correlational research provides a foundation for future experimental research testing the causal impact of classroom-based student networks. This research also serves as a model for how other institutions may analyze institutional data to understand patterns of peer connections and course enrollment at their institution. 

Previous research has established that peer relationships are important for student success, yet they can be hard to form at regional universities with large commuter populations. In these settings, connections in the classroom become critical. In an effort to gauge the degree to which students have the opportunity to form peer relationships in the classroom, this project utilized social network analysis to investigate to what degree students take repeated courses with the same peers. We report here on the number and nature of connections for a cohort of students who began STEM majors in Fall 2015. Two key findings include that White students have more peer connections than students of color, and the degree of connectivity correlates with graduation rates. Implications for these findings regarding curriculum design will be discussed. 

Four writing-intensive, inquiry-based, three-credit seminars were created to serve as the hub for linked learning communities for first-year students in STEM. Based on United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs), the seminars engaged students in socially-relevant modeling, lab work, and public presentations. The seminars were designed to foster a communal view of science and mathematics, both in terms of the importance of collaboration to STEM success and the application of STEM to real-world problems. Course structures and sample materials will be shared, along with preliminary analyses from a randomized controlled trial comparing students in the seminars to a control group of peers. In fall 2021,students who participated in the seminars reported increased awareness of the UN SDGs, valued team work more highly, and earned more credits and higher grades than control group students. Supported by NSF2020765, these seminars are part of a study of the effectiveness of learning communities.