DESIGNING SUCCESSFUL HIPs Scaffolding Learning Experiences Developing Student

DESIGNING SUCCESSFUL HIPs: Scaffolding Learning Experiences, Developing Student Outcomes, and Designing Undergraduate Research and Capstone Experiences Gordon E. Uno Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology University of Oklahoma guno@ou. edu

WHAT DOES EQUITY TEACHING AND LEARNING LOOK LIKE? Engagement with and empathy for students as individual learners.

STUDENTS MAY NEED DIFFERENT KINDS OF INDIVIDUAL ATTENTION What is the “boost” that some students may need to level the playing field and be successful? And, how do you determine what they need? (A universal design and strategy for HIPs may not meet the needs of all your students. )

JEAN PIAGET Swiss Psychologist (1896 -1980) Theory of Cognitive Development and Model of Intellectual Developmental Stages: Concrete Operational (ages 7 -11)—Children begin to think logically about concrete events. Their thinking becomes more organized but is still very literal. They struggle with abstract and hypothetical concepts. Formal Operational (ages 12 -16 and onward)— Children begin to think abstractly and reason about hypothetical problems. Begin to use deductive logic, becoming capable of seeing multiple potential solutions to problems. Begin to think about thinking.

ISSUES WITH PIAGET But evidence indicates this is not just age related—students don’t become formal thinkers just because they get older. Formal thinking may occur later than Piaget claimed and may not be reached at all without the proper educational boost. The many components of formal thinking do not emerge in unison in individuals. The majority of adults reason in formal operational ways some of the time and not at other times.

EDUCATIONAL IMPLICATIONS Lecturing makes even concrete material abstract (formal) and the learner does not have the opportunity to develop understanding of it. Professors may believe that students can understand work with abstract concepts, but all too often, that is not the case. Concrete thinkers do not become formal thinkers by constantly being confronted with formal tasks and concepts. Students must experience situations that are at the concrete level but that also add to and challenge formal thinking ability to promote progress to higher levels.

In one study…. Only 45% of children 10 -15 were formal thinkers Only 53% of young people 16 -20 were formal thinkers Only 65% of young adults 21 -30 were formal thinkers (Kohlberg and Gilligan, 1971)

PERCENTAGE OF FORMAL THINKING STUDENTS AT DIFFERENT INSTITUTIONS 4 -YEAR PRIVATE UNIV 61% PHD GRANTING PUBLIC UNIV 52% HBCU 12% COMMUNITY COLLEGE 12% (Renner, et al, 1976) Many students at various institutions do not think formally/abstractly based on the kind of questions asked. HOWEVER, THIS IS NOT A MEASURE OF INTELLIGENCE OR A TEST OF POTENTIAL IN A DISCIPLINE.

WHAT ARE THE CONCRETE vs. THE FORMAL THINKING SKILLS AND PROCESSES IN YOUR DISCIPLINE? OR WHICH ASPECTS OF UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH ARE CONCRETE IN NATURE AND WHICH REQUIRE SOME KIND OF FORMAL THINKING?

INQUIRY/CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS • Make Careful Observations • Ask Good Questions • Hypothesize and Explain Predictions • Design an Investigation • Collect, Process, and Interpret Data— Quantitative Skills • Discuss and Draw Conclusions • Infer and Generalize • Relate Cause and Effect • Recognize Assumptions and Bias • Evaluate and Justify Claims Using Evidence • Communicate—Explain in Own Words • Apply Knowledge and Make Connections

HOW TO ENHANCE FORMAL THINKING Students must be given multiple opportunities to manipulate experiences necessary to test presumptions and claims---to adequately confirm a viewpoint based on evidence or be forced to revise that view, reconciling any contradictions In Science…. Hypothesis formation, the search for manipulative variables, and the mental manipulation of these variables In Literature…. modeling the search for and understanding of symbolism.

HOW UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH HELPS PROMOTE FORMAL THINKING If done correctly…. . Research experiences move classroom theory (formal) into practice (concrete); if students are not formal thinkers, then classroom theory is lost on them. Students work and gain experience with the relevant terminology and the research methodology of the discipline (basic information). Literature review provides concrete exposure to what was done; hypothesis formation and testing provides formal experience. Students move from guided inquiry to open-ended inquiry and begin to understand rationale for investigation. Projects move from mentor-generated ideas to studentgenerated ones. Students take ownership of work.

HOW UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH HELPS PROMOTE FORMAL THINKING With the help of a good mentor, students become independent critical thinkers and investigators with greater ability to analyze data and synthesize ideas on their own. Levels of mentorship—grads, post-docs. Students practice and improve oral and written communication skills. They become more competent and confident in the discipline; gain more interest in learning and take a more active role in learning. Understand how knowledge in the field is constructed (building on what is known and thinking about what is not known) and that claims require evidence. (Petrella and Jung, 2015)

DEVELOPING EQUITABLE LEARNING PATHWAYS Connecting HIPs to build on skills and knowledge over the course of a student’s academic career.

WHAT IS THE TRAJECTORY OF LEARNING IN YOUR PROGRAM? FRESHMAN SEMINAR LEARNING COMMUNITY UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH CAPSTONE POST- BACCALAUREATE OR POSTASSOCIATES DEGREE

WHAT ARE THE HIPS YOU ARE GOING TO IMPLEMENT? HOW ARE THEY CONNECTED TO EACH OTHER? DISCUSS AT YOUR TABLE.

WHAT ARE LEARNING OUTCOMES? Statements that describe the knowledge AND skills students should acquire by the end of a course or program and help students understand why that knowledge and those skills will be useful to them. Outcomes emphasize the application and integration of knowledge and articulate how students will employ the material---not what material is covered by the course. Outcomes should shape the learning and assessment activities of the course. (University of Toronto, 2008)

WHAT STUDENT OUTCOMES (Competencies) WOULD YOU EXPECT FROM YOUR PROGRAM? Think about what is important for your students. What should students know (and understand), value, and be able to do by the end of your learning experience? This could help you articulate for what your students are known. ØKnow = content (but focus on big ideas) ØValue = attitudes ØDo = skills (critical thinking, process skills of discipline)

CAN YOUR STUDENT OUTCOMES BE MEASURED? Outcome: (a) students can write better OR (b) students can produce a detailed, organized outline of an essay on ____. Qualitative Data: To what degree do students believe the activity helped them to improve their writing skills? Quantitative Data: How many students took a second intensive-writing course or published some of their work?

WRITING LEARNING OUTCOMES Use simple, specific action verbs. Focus on student behavior---what are students expected to demonstrate? Integrate content and skills to produce outcomes.

BLOOM’S TAXONOMY (revised Anderson and Krathwohl, 2001) Remember: recall Understand: demonstration of comprehension Apply: apply knowledge in a new Classify, summarize, discuss, explain, estimate, review Illustrate, solve, use, apply, solve, demonstrate, calculate, interpret context Analyze: Use evidence to support claim; identify causes and patterns Evaluate: judge value of information or validity of argument Create: combine or group knowledge to come to new knowledge Define, identify, list, name, recall, recognize, describe Compare, contrast, criticize, distinguish, examine, question Appraise, argue, assess, defend, predict, select, support Assemble, collect, construct, develop, formulate, organize, propose

AP Integrating the Content and Science Practice Content + Science Practice Learning Objective Essential Knowledge 1. B. 2 Phylogenetic trees and cladograms are graphical representations (models) of evolutionary history that can be tested Science Practice 5. 3 The student connects phenomena and models across spatial and temporal scales Learning Objective (1. B. 2 & 5. 3) The student is able to evaluate evidence provided by a data set in conjunction with a phylogenetic tree or a simple cladogram to determine evolutionary history and speciation

CREATE AN OUTCOME MATRIX WITH CONTENT/CONCEPTS ON ONE SIDE AND ESSENTIAL SKILLS ON THE OTHER CONTENT SKILLS Interpreting Evolutionary Trees Evolution Ecology Students will be able to distinguish the common ancestor of two different species of plants from an outlier species Students will develop a plan to investigate the key ecological factors that affect speciation. STUDENT OUTCOME

21 st Century Skills for Student Success Choose the top three you think are most important for student success: _______ Working effectively with others in teams _______ Staying current on technologies _______ Ethical judgment and decision-making _______ Locating, organizing, evaluating information (Information Literacy) _______ Oral communication _______ Working with numbers/ statistics (Quantitative Literacy) _______ Written communication _______ Critical/analytical thinking _______ Being innovative/creative _______ Analyzing/solving complex problems _______ Applying knowledge/ skills to real world _______ Awareness of/experience with diverse cultures/communities in the US _______ Staying current on developments in major discipline _______ Working with people from different backgrounds _______ Staying current on global developments/trends _______ Proficiency in other language _______ Awareness of/experience with diverse cultures outside the US

INQUIRY/CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS • Make Careful Observations • Ask Good Questions • Hypothesize and Explain Predictions • Design an Investigation • Collect, Process, and Interpret Data— Quantitative Skills • Discuss and Draw Conclusions • Infer and Generalize • Relate Cause and Effect • Recognize Assumptions and Bias • Evaluate and Justify Claims Using Evidence • Communicate—Explain in Own Words • Apply Knowledge and Make Connections

AP Seven Science Practices 1. 0 Use representations and models to communicate scientific phenomena and solve scientific problems 2. 0 Use mathematics appropriately 3. 0 Engage in scientific questioning to extend thinking or to guide investigations 4. 0 Plan and implement data collection strategies in relation to a particular scientific question 5. 0 Perform data analysis and evaluation of evidence 6. 0 Work with scientific explanations and theories 7. 0 Connect and relate knowledge across scales, concepts, representations, and domains

WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING SKILLS APPLY TO UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH? Can/should skills from different skill lists be integrated?

21 st Century Skills for Student Success Choose the top three you think are most important for student success: _______ Working effectively with others in teams _______ Staying current on technologies _______ Ethical judgment and decision-making _______ Locating, organizing, evaluating information (Information Literacy) _______ Oral communication _______ Working with numbers/ statistics (Quantitative Literacy) _______ Written communication _______ Critical/analytical thinking _______ Being innovative/creative _______ Analyzing/solving complex problems _______ Applying knowledge/ skills to real world _______ Awareness of/experience with diverse cultures/communities in the US _______ Staying current on developments in major discipline _______ Working with people from different backgrounds _______ Staying current on global developments/trends _______ Proficiency in other language _______ Awareness of/experience with diverse cultures outside the US

IMPORTANCE OF SCAFFOLDING YOUR LEARNING EXPERIENCES Learning that requires formal thinking must be preceded by mastering of underlying concrete concepts. Thus, the need for scaffolding of skills and concepts. Scaffolding skills and knowledge---building on both, beginning with fundamentals of both---at both the individual class level and the program level Graphing, for example HANDS-ON vs. MINDS-ON ACTIVITIES

CURRICULUM MAPPING SKILL 1 SKILL 2 MAJOR INTRO CONCEPT 1 COURSE MAJOR CONCEPT 2 MAJOR SOPH CONCEPT 3 COURSE INTRO COURSE SKILL 3 SKILL 4 INTRO COURSE SOPH COURSE CAPSTONE

FIRST, ARTICULATE DESIRED STUDENT OUTCOMES THEN…. BEGIN TO SELECT APPROPRIATE HIPS THEN…. DEVELOP INTENTIONAL HIGH-IMPACT ACTIVITIES THAT WILL HELP YOUR STUDENTS REACH THE DESIRED OUTCOMES

AT YOUR TABLE…. Articulate one desired student outcome that combines some content with a thinking OR process skill. What high-impact activity/practice would help your students attain that outcome?

UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH: FEATURES THAT MATTER ØMeaningful faculty mentoring ØReal-life applications ØScaffold research skills in curriculum to build over time ØReview literature ØInterpreting findings—not just data collection ØCommunity scholarship celebration ØPeer support ØSignificant public communication of research

UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH RESOURCES Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) www. cur. org “How to Mentor Undergraduate Researchers” “Broadening Participation in Undergraduate Research” CUR Focus Quarterly/CUR Focus on the Web

CHARACTERISTICS OF EXCELLENCE IN UG RESEARCH (COEUR) FROM CUR A campus culture that values and rewards UG research is essential for sustaining a robust UG research program. Faculty and student involvement across diverse disciplines so students have research options in a broad range of inquiry. Administration support in the form of funding (equipment and travel), recognition and rewards, and personnel; a coordinating UG research program office and research oversight structures (IRB, Animal Care, Ethics); promotion and tenure guidelines. Faculty should be appropriately compensated (funding, teaching load credit) for supervising UG research. Faculty need to reflect on mentoring skills (and be mentored); orientation programs and professional development workshops. Prominently feature UG research in PR and outreach of institution, scholarships, awards, peer-reviewed publications, presentations at professional meetings, exhibitions, or performances.

WHAT AN INSTITUTION SHOULD DO TO SUPPORT UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH Develop a mission statement for UG research, aligned with the institutional mission. Define what UG research is—are “original” and “contribution to the field” requirements? As part of a class and/or distinct class? Does it count toward degree? Conduct an inventory of UG research activities already taking place on campus and communicate broadly. Identify challenges to UG research across campus. Profile the work of students and faculty using publications and annual symposium. Offer workshops to students on ethics in research, presenting research, and applying for external UG research.