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Du Undergraduate Showcase: Research, Scholarship, And Creative Works, Caitlyn Aldersea, Justin Bravo, Sam Allen, Anna Block, Connor Block, Emma Buechler, Maria De Los Angeles Bustillos, Arianna Carlson, William Christensen, Olivia Kachulis, Noah Craver, Kate Dillon, Muskan Fatima, Angel Fernandes, Emma Finch, Colleen Cassidy, Amy Fishman, Andrea Francis, Stacia Fritz, Simran Gill, Emma Gries, Rylie Hansen, Shannon Powers, Jacqueline Martinez, Zachary Harker, Ashley Hasty, Mykaela Tanino-Springsteen, Kathleen Hopps, Adelaide Kerenick, Colin Kleckner, Ci Koehring, Elijah Kruger, Braden Krumholz, Maddie Leake, Lyneé Alves, Seraphina Loukas, Yatzari Lozano Vazquez, Haley Maki, Emily Martinez, Sierra Mckinney, Mykaela Tanino-Springsteen, Audrey Mitchell, Kipling Newman, Audrey Ng, Megan Lucyshyn, Andrew Nguyen, Stevie Ostman, Casandra Pearson, Alexandra Penney, Julia Gielczynski, Tyler Ball, Anna Rini, Christina Rorres, Simon Ruland, Helayna Schafer, Emma Sellers, Sarah Schuller, Claire Shaver, Kevin Summers, Isabella Shaw, Madison Sinar, Claudia Pena, Apshara Siwakoti, Carter Sorensen, Madi Sousa, Anna Sparling, Alexandra Revier, Brandon Thierry, Dylan Tyree, Maggie Williams, Lauren Wols

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

DU Undergraduate Showcase: Research, Scholarship, and Creative Works

Building Undergraduate Research In A Fully Online Engineering Program, Robert Deters, Brent Terwilliger, Emily Faulconer, Kelly A. George

Publications

This paper describes the creation and implementation of the support network of the Research Scholars Program at the Worldwide campus of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Funded by an NSF IUSE grant, the purpose of this new program is to increase the opportunity for online engineering and engineering technology students to participate in undergraduate research. Studies have shown that participation in research can have an important impact on students, though online students are likely underrepresented in undergraduate research. The Research Scholars Program uses existing support systems of the campus while also building new components. These new components developed for this project are …

Preservice Science And Mathematics Teachers’ Acculturation Into Communities Of Practice: A Call For Undergraduate Research In Science And Mathematics Teacher Preparation, Kara Esther Baldwin, Rebekka Darner

Journal of STEM Teacher Education

Current mathematics and science standards, namely the Common Core State Standards of Mathematics (CCSSM) and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), emphasize engaging students in mathematical and scientific practices. This review article is driven by the question: How can we expect science and mathematics teachers to appropriately engage students in the practices of the scientific and mathematical disciplines, when most teachers themselves lack experience practicing as scientists and mathematicians? To address this question, we review the literature on teachers’ understanding of their discipline’s practices, disciplinary practices as means to engage in inquiry, and how preservice teacher engagement in undergraduate research …

Aligning Best Practices In Student Success And Career Preparedness: An Exploratory Study To Establish Pathways To Stem Careers For Undergraduate Minority Students, Kimberly D. Kendricks, Anthony A. Arment, K. V. Nedunuri, Cadance A. Lowell

Journal of Research in Technical Careers

Undergraduate minority retention and graduation rates in STEM disciplines is a nationally recognized challenge for workforce growth and diversification. The Benjamin Banneker Scholars Program (BBSP) was a five-year undergraduate study developed to increase minority student retention and graduation rates at an HBCU. The program structure utilized a family model as a vehicle to orient students to the demands of college. Program activities integrated best K-12 practices and workforce skillsets to increase academic preparedness and career readiness. Findings revealed that a familial atmosphere improved academic performance, increased undergraduate research, and generated positive perceptions of faculty mentoring. Retention rates among BBSP participants …

Pivoting Toward The Future: Fifty Years Of Summer Research Fellowship Success Catalyzes Institutional Change, Patricia Marten Dibartolo, Kathryn M. Aloisio, Margaret Lamb, Minh Ly, Cate Rowen

The Office of Institutional Research

For 50 years, Smith College’s Summer Research Fellowship (SURF) has provided undergraduate women scientists the opportunity for an immersive experience to conduct independent research under the mentorship of science faculty and staff. This article highlights summative assessment data on SURF program outcomes as well as the institutional planning and responses that followed from careful consideration of SURF’s success and challenges. SURF participation was associated with a full range of student benefits, including a higher overall college gradepoint average, greater advanced research participation, and increased likelihood of completing an advanced degree. Evidence of these powerful and lasting student impacts associated with …

The Birds Of A Feather Research Challenge, Todd W. Neller

Computer Science Faculty Publications

Neller presented a set of research challenges for undergraduates that allow an excellent formative experience of research, writing, peer review, and potential presentation and publication through a top-tier conference. The focus problem is the analysis of a newly-designed solitaire card game, Birds of a Feather, so potentials for discovery abound. Open access talk slides, research code, solvability data sets, research tutorial videos, and more are also available at http://cs.gettysburg.edu/~tneller/puzzles/boaf .

Parts Of The Whole: Why I Teach This Subject This Way, Dorothy Wallace

Numeracy

The importance of mathematics to biology is illustrated by search data from Google Scholar. I argue that a pedagogical approach based on student research projects is likely to improve retention and foster critical thinking about mathematical modeling, as well as reinforce quantitative reasoning and the appreciation of calculus as a tool. The usual features of a course (e.g., the instructor, assessment, text, etc.) are shown to have very different purposes in a research-based course.

Approaching Undergraduate Research With Students Who Are Deaf And Hard-Of-Hearing, Austin U. Gehret, Jessica W. Trussell, Lea V. Michel

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

An undergraduate research experience can provide a unique opportunity for students to learn and grow as scientists; when positive, this experience is often transformative and motivates students to pursue science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) graduate degrees or careers. Conversely, negative research experiences can sour a student’s opinion of research, propagate misconceptions of graduate school, and lead to attrition from STEM fields. Negative research experiences can be equally devastating for faculty mentors and may result in reluctance to mentor future research students. Using a mentoring approach that has traditionally translated to positive research experiences for hearing students may not be …

An Assessment Of Integrating Authentic Research In Undergraduate Science Curricula, Daihong Chen

Education Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of integrating original research projects in undergraduate science curricula on student learning outcomes. Integrating original research projects in undergraduate science curricula has been promoted as an effective approach to involving large group of students in authentic scientific inquiry. The study defines course-based undergraduate authentic research experiences or authentic scientific inquiry based on situated learning, and conducted a systematic literature review of the impact of undergraduate research experiences in science related disciplines. Based on an extensive literature review, a unique survey entitled Student Science Learning Gains (SSLG) was developed and validated …

A Multiple Case Narrative Examining The Experiences Of Alumni Of A Minority Research And Training Program, Gretchen Burton

Faculty Publications

The implementation of minority research and training (MRT) programs at the post secondary level has risen to close the educational achievement gap and build undergraduate pathways to generate a highly skilled and diverse STEM pool. Although the numbers of advanced science related degrees have slowly increased over the past decade, partially due to the utilization of MRT programs, this increase has not been adequate to establish an impactful representation in either academic or industry research careers. Numerous studies identify various support interventions influencing positive outcomes among MRT participants achieving graduate degrees. However, majority of the studies utilize quantitative or a …

A Multiple Case Narrative Examining The Experiences Of Alumni Of A Minority Research And Training Program, Gretchen Schneider Burton

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The implementation of minority research and training (MRT) programs at the post secondary level has risen to close the educational achievement gap and build undergraduate pathways to generate a highly skilled and diverse STEM pool. Although the numbers of advanced science related degrees have slowly increased over the past decade, partially due to the utilization of MRT programs, this increase has not been adequate to establish an impactful representation in either academic or industry research careers. Numerous studies identify various support interventions influencing positive outcomes among MRT participants achieving graduate degrees. However, majority of the studies utilize quantitative or a …

Course-Based Science Research Promotes Learning In Diverse Students At Diverse Institutions, Nancy L. Staub, Lawrence S. Blumer, Christopher W. Beck, Veronique A. Delesalle, Gerald D. Griffin, Robert B. Merritt, Bettye Sue Hennington, Wendy H. Grillo, Gail P. Hollowell, Sandra L. White, Catherine M. Mader

Biology Faculty Publications

Course-based research experiences (CREs) are powerful strategies for spreading learning and improving persistence for all students, both science majors and nonscience majors. Here we address the crucial components of CREs (context, discovery, ownership, iteration, communication, presentation) found across a broad range of such courses at a variety of academic institutions. We also address how the design of a CRE should vary according to the background of student participants; no single CRE format is perfect. We provide a framework for implementing CREs across multiple institutional types and several disciplines throughout the typical four years of undergraduate work, designed to a variety …

Undergraduate Science Research: A Comparison Of Influences And Experiences Between Premed And Non-Premed Students, Lara Brongo Pacifici, Norman Thompson

Faculty and Research Publications

Most students participating in science undergraduate research (UR) plan to attend either medical school or graduate school. This study examines possible differences between premed and non-premed students in their influences to do research and expectations of research. Questionnaire responses from 55 premed students and 80 non-premed students were analyzed. No differences existed in the expectations of research between the two groups, but attitudes toward science and intrinsic motivation to learn more about science were significantly higher for non-premed students. Follow-up interviews with 11 of the students, including a case study with one premed student, provided explanation for the observed differences. …

Seeing The Future: Biology Research Allows Undergraduates New Insight Into Their Own Futures, Merideth Krevosky, Jeffery Bowen

Bridgewater Review

No abstract provided.

Aryl Ethers From Arenediazonium Tetrafluoroborate Salts: From Neat Reactions To Solvent-Mediated Effects, James A. Shriver, Daniel P. Flaherty, Cameron C. Herr

Journal of the Iowa Academy of Science: JIAS

A general procedure for the synthesis of various aryl ethers via the thermal decomposition of benzenediazonium tetrafluoroborate salts is described. Studies performed in neat alcohol at 60°C gave aryl ethers in yields ranging from 0-73%. Upon completion of a series of reactions, the effect of solvent was explored to expand the scope and relevance of this procedure. It was found that even solvents that are traditionally non-nucleophilic gave rise to products including bi-aryls and N-aryl acetamides. The utilization of an ionic liquid, l-butyl-4-methylpyridinium tetrafluoroborate, resulted in yields comparable to reactions performed in neat alcoholic solvents.

Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program, University Of Nevada Las Vegas

Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP)

No abstract provided.

Models Of Interdisciplinary Research And Service Learning At Hope College, Aaron A. Best, Matthew Dejongh, Amanda J. Barton, Jeff R. Brown, Christopher C. Barney

Publications

"Children love to explore the world around them. In doing so they are not aware of disciplinary boundaries or even of disciplines. They move freely from watching ants (biology) to building structures (engineering) to counting rocks (mathematics and geology) to seeing what things dissolve in water (chemistry). Only as they go to school do they learn that humans divide up the way we learn about the universe and start to think within disciplinary boundaries. In doing so, those children, who are now us, lose the ability to think broadly and use the insights of various ways of thinking to solve …

From Observers To Participants: Joining The Scientific Community, Catherine A. Reinke, Susan R. Singer, Carl Mcdaniel, Carolyn J. Ferguson, Julia Vandermeer, Adam Williamson

Faculty Publications

In this essay, we have integrated the voices of our mentors and students to explore 45 years of undergraduate research experiences and their role in shaping our scientific community. In considering our collective experiences, we see undergraduate involvement in research as a rich source of community development, one that has both touched our lives and influenced our teaching.

Undergraduate Research Communities: A Powerful Approach To Research Training, Scott Kight

Scott Kight

Reflections On Mentoring Undergraduate Research, Robin L. Cooper

Kaleidoscope

No abstract provided.

Reflections On Mentoring Undergraduate Research, D. Allan Butterfield

Kaleidoscope

No abstract provided.

An Integration Of Chemistry, Biology, And Physics: The Interdisciplinary Laboratory, Gerald R. Van Hecke, Kerry K. Karukstis, Richard C. Haskell, Catherine S. Mcfadden, F Sheldon Wettack

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

As a new venture to integrate research and education, a pilot section of a first-year laboratory sequence known as the Interdisciplinary Laboratory (ID Lab) was introduced on the Harvey Mudd campus during the 1999–2000 academic year and continues to be offered. The ID Lab attempts to bridge laboratory experiences from biology, chemistry, and physics for the first-year student. Taught by a team of faculty from these disciplines, the course seeks both to illustrate commonality of investigative methods and laboratory techniques in these sciences and to introduce discipline-specific principles. Experiments with a chemistry component include the Molecular Weight of Macromolecules, the …