Despite Similar Perceptions and Attitudes, Postbaccalaureate Students Outperform in Introductory Biology and Chemistry Courses

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–CBE Life Sciences

Embedding active learning is a common mechanism for meeting science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education reform goals. Researchers have identified student benefits from such strategies, yet these benefits may not be universal for all students. We sought to identify how students at a nontraditional university perceive introductory biology and chemistry courses, and whether perceptions relate to course type, performance, or student status.

Knowing is Half the Battle: Assessments of Both Student Perception and Performance are Necessary to Successfully Evaluate Curricular Transformation

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–PLOSONE

Telling is a time-tested and efficient way to communicate information. Just try to keep the strengths and weaknesses of lecturing in mind. The most effective teaching involves looking to communicate information in inefficient ways — that is, in ways that make students work to understand the information, and not just listen passively. A big benefit of engaging students in active learning is that it reveals — to us and to them — what they don’t yet understand. With lecturing, we can tell them all we want, but whether they’re listening is anyone’s guess.

Is it Ever OK to Lecture

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–ChronicleVitae

Telling is a time-tested and efficient way to communicate information. Just try to keep the strengths and weaknesses of lecturing in mind. The most effective teaching involves looking to communicate information in inefficient ways — that is, in ways that make students work to understand the information, and not just listen passively. A big benefit of engaging students in active learning is that it reveals — to us and to them — what they don’t yet understand. With lecturing, we can tell them all we want, but whether they’re listening is anyone’s guess.

New Resources (videos) on Education Research Methods!

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Resources on Biology Teaching Assistant Project (BioTAP) is a compilation of articles, book chapters and videos that can inform the creation and implementation of education research projects! This can help you get started with research on your GTA TPD program. Four education researchers at the University of Georgia (Jennifer Thompson, Paula Lemons, Peggy Brickman, and Tessa Andrews) are sharing information in the form of videos on the topics of Introduction to Qualitative Research, Types of Qualitative Research Interviews, Developing and Analyzing Data from Surveys, and Classroom Observation. These were green-lighted by Judy Milton (BioTAP Steering Committee Member) at UGA for the CIRTL program.

Visit website for resources.

Entering Mentoring Training Program

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Date: April 10 – June 12, 2019
Time: 3:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Location: Boyer Hall 130
Objective: To enrich the academic experiences of UCLA’s undergraduate researchers and to provide leadership guidance to UCLA’s graduate student and post-doctoral trainees who are about to embark on advance career aspirations. The goals of the mentoring seminar are to guide mentors to:
  1. Understand “scientific teaching” and apply it in mentoring
  2. Build relationship based on trust and respect with a mentee
  3. Build community with other mentors.
Facilitator: Diana Azurdia, PhD – dazirdia@mednet.ucla.edu
Course Materials: Course materials and resources will be shared via BOX weekly. Must bring a composition note book or journal to record reflections.
Sessions include:
  • 04/10/19 Introduction to Mentor Training
  • 04/17/19 Aligning Expectations
  • 04/24/19 Maintaining Effective Communication
  • 05/01/19 Assessing Understanding / Intro. to Mentorship Philosophy
  • 05/08/19 TBD
  • 05/15/19 Fostering Independence (need a space)
  • 05/22/19 Promoting Professional Development
  • 05/29/19 Addressing Equity and Inclusion
  • 06/05/19 Cultivating Ethical Behavior
  • 06/12/19 Articulating Your Mentoring Philosophy Plan
You will be notified if you’ve been accepted to participate in the course by mid-March.
Graduate students who are invited to participate may enroll in MOLBIO 300 to receive 1 unit of credit.

Register Now to be a Presenter in the 2019 STEM for All Video Showcase

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If you are engaged in a federally-funded project to improve Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) and computer science education, STEM invite you to submit a video and discuss it with researchers, practitioners, policy makers and the public during an interactive week long event.

Videos will address:

  • Strategies to broaden participation & increase access for all
  • Research informing STEM and CS teaching and learning
  • Challenges and strategies in the implementation of STEM + CS programs
  • Measuring impact of innovative programs
  • Partnerships fostering innovation

Those who wish to present need to register by February 19th.

Visit website for more information

UCLA Instructors and Students Presents Education Research at SABER West 2019

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The Society for the Advancement of Biology Education Research (SABERI, holds an annual west coast regional conference for education researcher in biology. UCLA was well represented at this year’s conference at UC Irvine, January 19th – 20th, with presentations by:

Jeffrey Maloy – Spoke on the use of interesting but educationally irrelevant anecdotes in flipped classrooms
Rachel Kennison – Presented a poster on the impact of LS 110, Career Exploration in the Life Sciences
Natalie Rotstein (Undergraduate) – Presented a poster on electrophysiology measurement and sense-making in introductory physics for life sciences laboratories.
Dhiraj Nallapothula, Selina Han, and Carlos Herrera (Undergraduates) – Presented a poster on enhancing motivational predictors of retention in the life sciences.
Photo: (Left to right) Marc Levis-Fitzgerald, Jeffrey Maloy, Selina Han, Dhiraj Nallapothula, Jen Berden-Lozano, and Carlos Herrera stand in front of a poster with results of their mindset intervention being employed in introductory life sciences classes at UCLA.

UCLA Life Sciences Core Welcomes Beth Lazazzara as New Chair

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Professor Beth Lazazzera, Associate Professor of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics (MIMG), has accepted the position of Chair for the Life Sciences Core. Beth has extensive experience in curriculum development, teaching pedagogy, and administration that will provide an excellent foundation for the position. Her position is effective July 1, 2019, and she will be vice chair of the LS Core working with the current chair, Professor Frank Laski, effective April 1, to help with the transition. The LS Core recognizes Professor Frank Laski’s ten years of dedicated and exemplary leadership as chair of the LS Core, leading to significant pedagogical and administrative advancements in the LS Core program.

Beth Lazazzera received her Ph.D. in Bacteriology from the University of Wisconsin, Madison and was a postdoctoral fellow at MIT. She arrived at UCLA in 1999 and joined MIMG.  She has participated in numerous instructional activities at UCLA and has taught the “Introduction to Microbiology”, MIMG101, course since 2001. This course has grown to ~300 enrollments per quarter, and she has been proactive in applying new pedagogical strategies to improve the education experience of her students. She has been participating in workshops offered by the Center for Education Innovation and Learning in the Sciences (CEILS) since its inception and was a Scientific Teaching Fellow at the Mobile Summer Institute at UCLA.  She also participated in the committee that led to the successful restructuring of the LS 1-4 series to the new LS 7 series within the LS Core. Beyond her teaching at UCLA, she concurrently spent 5 years as one of the lead instructors for the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Advanced Bacterial Genetics Course. Dr. Lazazzera is currently the Vice Chair of Undergraduate Education in MIMG and is a past-Chair of the Academic Senate Undergraduate Council.

Welcome, Beth!