Apply for this Faculty Learning Community at http://tinyurl.com/z9vuru2 !
Facilitators:
- Dr. John Rakus, Assistant Professor, COS/Chemistry Department
- Dr. Steven Leigh, Assistant Professor, COHP/School of Kinesiology
Conducting research at a primarily undergraduate institution is a challenging task. Faculty need to balance teaching, research and service; often with an expectation to achieve research excellence but without the advantages of well-funded graduate programs. This presents an opportunity for faculty to think creatively and strategically about the relationship between their research and their teaching.
This Faculty Learning Community (FLC) is dedicated to exploring the ways in which faculty can achieve their teaching and research goals by providing course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) for students. Although more commonly associated with STEM programs, CUREs are employed across many disciplines. For faculty members, CURE courses can lead to innovations in teaching and advancement of their research programs. For students, CURE courses lead to increased understanding of disciplinary research processes and specific research topics as well as greater fluency in most, if not all, of the nine Marshall University Baccalaureate Profile Outcomes.
This faculty learning community began in January of 2016. In the fall of 2018, four faculty members are teaching CURE courses. In this faculty learning community they will share their experiences, challenges, and wins. Additionally, they will assist participants in identifying aspects of research programs that can be appropriately incorporated into a teaching load while simultaneously enhancing the faculty member’s research, scholarly, and creative activities.
Resources:
Auchincloss, L. C., Laursen, S. L., Branchaw, J. L., Eagan, K., Graham, M., Hanauer, D. I., … Dolan, E. L. (2014). Assessment of course-based undergraduate research experiences: Ameeting report. CBE Life Sciences Education, 13(1), 29–40. http://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.14-01-0004
Brownell, S. E., & Kloser, M. J. (2015). Studies in Higher Education Toward a conceptual framework for measuring the effectiveness of course-based undergraduate research experiences in undergraduate biology. Studies in Higher Education, 40(3), 525–544. http://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2015.1004234
Bakshi, A., Patrick, L.E., & Wischusen, E. W. (2016). A framework for implementing course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) in freshman biology lab. The American Biology Teacher, 78(6), 448-455.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1525/abt.2016.78.6.448
Murray, J.L., Fortney, S. D., Gioni, A.E., Goldnick, Z. G., LeValley, K.L., & Sechler, S. R. (2014). Personalizing history using course-based research on a student’s own university. Council on Undergraduate Research 34(3), 4-15.