writing-to-learn in stem

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WRITING-TO-LEARN IN STEM Julie Reynolds Duke University July 2012

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Writing-to-learn in STEM. Julie Reynolds Duke University July 2012. Why should scientists teach writing ? What works? What do we know? How do you study the impact of WTL?. Part 1: Why should scientists teach writing?. WTL pedagogies can. Deepen conceptual understanding - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Page 1: Writing-to-learn in STEM

WRITING-TO-LEARNIN STEM

Julie ReynoldsDuke University

July 2012

Page 2: Writing-to-learn in STEM

•Why should scientists teach writing?

•What works? What do we know?

•How do you study the impact of WTL?

Page 3: Writing-to-learn in STEM

PART 1: WHY SHOULD SCIENTISTS TEACH WRITING?

Page 4: Writing-to-learn in STEM

WTL pedagogies can

• Deepen conceptual understanding • Reveal misconceptions• Acculturate students into discipline• Increase retention

But….

Page 5: Writing-to-learn in STEM

WHAT ARE THE BARRIERS TO WTL IN STEM?

Page 6: Writing-to-learn in STEM

MYTH #1: STEM FACULTY DON’T CARE ABOUT WRITING

What evidence do we have that faculty don’t care?

Page 7: Writing-to-learn in STEM

MYTH 2: Writing isn’t integral to STEM

do research

formulate problems

plan and execute experiments

analyze data

draw conclusions

write it up

Page 8: Writing-to-learn in STEM

Scientist & Engineers always write

do research

formulate problems

experiments

analyze datadraw conclusions

write it!

Letters and emails

Drafts

Lab notebooks

Incorporate reviewer’s comments

Re-write for another audience

Drafts

submit manuscript

Grant proposals

Page 9: Writing-to-learn in STEM

…but are our STEM students?First-year writing“W”

course

“W” course

Page 10: Writing-to-learn in STEM

MYTH 3: IT’S THE ENGLISH DEPARTMENT’S JOB….

Page 11: Writing-to-learn in STEM

Scientific writing ability = f(?)

• # of undergrad English courses?• years at University?• exposure to sci writing in other courses?• prior experience writing a scientific paper?

Jerde CL, Taper ML. 2004. Preparing undergraduates for professional writing: evidence supporting the benefits of science writing within the biology curriculum. Journal of College Science Teaching 33: 33-37.

Page 12: Writing-to-learn in STEM

MYTH 4: “BUT I CAN’T TEACH WRITING!”

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Writing is visible thinking

WTL LTWXvs

Page 14: Writing-to-learn in STEM

MYTH #5: A FEW WID COURSES ARE ENOUGH

Quality practice

Page 15: Writing-to-learn in STEM

Writing task(and associated learning

outcomes)

1st year

Pre- & Co-Requisites

Core Course

Cap-stone seminar

Honor thesis

Abstracts and summaries          

Lab notebooks, etc.          

Laboratory reports          

Op-eds/opinion pieces          

Research proposal          

Thesis, manuscript, book chapter

         

?

??

?

Page 16: Writing-to-learn in STEM

Writing task 1st year

Pre- & Co-Requisites

Core Course

Cap-stone seminar

Honor thesis

Abstracts and summaries          

Lab notebooks, etc.          

Laboratory reports          

Op-eds/opinion pieces          

Research proposal          

Thesis, manuscript, book chapter

         

••

• • •

••

Page 17: Writing-to-learn in STEM

MYTH 6: MORE ASSIGNMENTS WILL IMPROVE WRITING

Students will figure it out

Page 18: Writing-to-learn in STEM

Take Home Messages• Writing-to-learn pedagogies are under-utilized in STEM

courses• Stem faculty can and should use writing to teach • Student need opportunities to practice disciplinary writing

• Skill development occurs over time• Skills do not improve automatically

• Writing assignments need to be carefully constructed, using full rhetorical context, structured opportunities for feedback (including peer review)

• Modeling disciplinary ways of thinking socializes students into the discipline• Bowman MH, Stage FK. 2002. Personalizing the Goals of

Undergraduate Research: Implementing Three Types of Goals. Journal of College Science Teaching 32: 120-125.

Page 19: Writing-to-learn in STEM

PART 2: WHAT WORKS? WHAT DO WE KNOW?

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• WTL Working group • Biology = 2• Chemistry = 3• Education = 1• Engineering = 2• Physics = 1• Psychology = 1• Writing = 2

• Workshop = 80 STEM faculty

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Table 1: Key citations from the WTL in STEM bibliographic database that represent exemplary descriptive studies, empirically validated studies, and promising practices. The database, of 324 sources, can be searched by keywords. http://bit.ly/fjudgo

Julie A. Reynolds, Christopher Thaiss, Robert J. Thompson, Jr, and Wendy Katkin, 2012. Writing-To-Learn in Undergraduate Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education: A “bottom-up” approach to developing and adopting effective practices, CBE - Life Science Education Vol. 11, 17–25.

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.

  Biology/ Life Sciences

Chemistry Engineering Math/Computer Science/Statistics

Physics/Earth Sciences

Content knowledge IntroAdvancedCapstone

IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

Conceptual understanding

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

Scientific method  IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

Critical thinking  IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

Effective communication

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

Metacognition  IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

Professionalization  IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

Page 23: Writing-to-learn in STEM

  Biology/ Life Sciences

Chemistry Engineering Math/Computer Science/Statistics

Physics/Earth Sciences

Content knowledge IntroAdvancedCapstone

IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

Conceptual understanding

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

Scientific method  IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

Critical thinking  IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

Effective communication

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

Metacognition  IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

Professionalization  IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

 IntroAdvancedCapstone

Page 24: Writing-to-learn in STEM

• Reconceptualize the role of writing in improving learning

• Delineate specific learning objectives• Determine “mechanisms of effect” • Focus on critical reflection and argumentation• Adopt a “hybrid paradigm” for studies• Establish multi-university collaborative initiatives

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Future efforts must be informed by:• theory and research on WTL• science of teaching and learning

• Constructivism beliefs, prior knowledge, and frameworks for interpretation

• Metacognition focus on sense-making, self-assessment, and reflection during learning

• Metacognition regulates cognition, emotions, and motivation • Neurocognitive development

• learning changes the physical structure and functional organization of the brain

• ongoing remodeling of the brain throughout college year

Page 26: Writing-to-learn in STEM

Research template

What is the role of ___________________

in improving ________________________________

through impacting _______________________________

as a function of _______________________________ ?

[specific practice]

[disciplinary specific learning objective]

[specific cognitive, motivational, emotional process; prior knowledge; beliefs]

[course level, class size; discipline; level, background, and goals of the student; and institutional factors]

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PART 3: HOW DO YOU STUDY THE IMPACT OF WTL?

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Discourse analysis of texts

•Rubric•Rater training and calibration•Inter-rater reliability

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Writing process• Guidelines for students

• Guidelines for faculty

• Timeline for revision

• Cover letters• Response to feedback

• Structured comments• Reader-based feedback

• Timely feedback• Multiple revisions• Peer review

Page 34: Writing-to-learn in STEM

Rubric•Quality of research•Critical thinking skills •Writing skills

Page 35: Writing-to-learn in STEM

No Somewhat(Minimum Acceptable Standards)

Yes (Standards of Excellence)

Is the writing appropriate for the target audience?

Honors theses should address non-specialist readers with an understanding of basic biology—specifically, any faculty member in the biology department regardless of sub-discipline. Although faculty are experts within their field of research, they are rarely familiar with the language and conceptual nuances of other highly-specialized fields of study. Students should assume their readers understand basic biological processes, but they cannot assume that readers readily remember all the details. Therefore, students should limit their use of jargon, and should explain or define all key terms and concepts that are specific to their sub-field.

The thesis is written with excessive jargon or is greatly lacking in definitions and explanations, making the research inaccessible to non-specialist readers.

The thesis includes some useful definitions or explanations, but some key terms or concepts are still challenging for the non-specialist reader. Non-specialist readers are able to follow the main themes of the thesis, but the writer has not made this task easy.

The thesis has sufficient definitions and explanations to make the research accessible and engaging to non-specialist readers