Strategies for developing an active research curriculum

1. Strategies for developing an active research curriculum Mick Healey University of Gloucestershire, UK We need to encourage universities and colleges to explore new models of curriculum. …They should all: …Incorporate research-based study for undergraduates(Ramsden, 2008, 10-11, emphasis added)

2. Our argument: a ‘research active curriculum’ All undergraduate students in all higher education institutions should experience learning through, and about, research and inquiry. We argue, as does much recent US experience, that such curricular experience should and can be mainstreamed for all or many students through a research-active curriculum. We argue that this can be achieved through structured interventions at course team, departmental, institutional and national levels.

3. Professor of Geography Director Centre for Active Learning, University of Gloucestershire Higher Education Consultant and Researcher Director HE Academy project on Undergraduate research Ex-VP for Europe International Society for Scholarship of Teaching and Learning National Teaching Fellow and Senior Fellow HE Academy Advisor to Canadian Federal Government ‘Roundtable on Research, Teaching and Learning in post-Secondary Education’ (2006) Advisor to National Academy for Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning (Ireland) (2007-11) Advisor to Australian Learning and Teaching Council Project on the teaching-research nexus(2006-08) Advisor to League of European Research Universities on research-based teaching (2009) Honorary Professor University of Queensland; Visiting Professor Edinburgh Napier and University of Wales at Newport Research interests: scholarship of teaching; linking research and teaching; active learning; developing an inclusive curriculum for disabled students Brief Biography

4. Session structure • International perspectives on undergraduate research and inquiry • Integrating research and inquiry into first year courses • Discipline-based case studies • Department-based strategies • Institutional strategies • Action planning for developing a research active curriculum

5. Linking research and teaching ‘The research universities have often failed, and continue to fail their undergraduate populations and thousands of students graduate without seeing the world-famous professors or tasting genuine research’ (Boyer Commission on Educating Undergraduates in the Research University, 1998, p.3).

6. Linking research and teaching “For the students who are the professionals of the future, developing the ability to investigate problems, make judgments on the basis of sound evidence, take decisions on a rational basis, and understand what they are doing and why is vital. Research and inquiry is not just for those who choose to pursue an academic career. It is central to professional life in the twenty-first century.” Brew (2007, 7)

7. Linking research and teaching “Developing the Student as Scholar Model requires a fundamental shift in how we structure and imagine the whole undergraduate experience. It requires, as a minimum, the adoption of the Learning Paradigm in everything from the first introductory course through the final capstone experience. It requires a culture of inquiry-based learning infused throughout the entire liberal arts curriculum that starts with the very first day of college and is reinforced in every classroom and program.” (Hodge et al. 2007, 1)

8. The developmental journey of the student Source: Hodge et al. (2007, 3) See Table 6 p6 for application of Baxter Magolda’s ideas to Miami, Ohio

9. Undergraduate research and inquiry: line-up I would like you to position yourselves on a line according to the extent to which you agree or disagree with the following statement Talk to the persons next to you about why you have positioned yourself where you have and as a consequence you may need to ‘move’

10. Undergraduate research and inquiry: line-up ‘Undergraduate research is for ALL undergraduates’ Strongly ------------------------------ Strongly Agree Disagree

11. Undergraduate research and inquiry: line-up “It would be easy to ‘mainstream’ undergraduate research and inquiry for all students in my department / at Georgetown University” Strongly ------------------------------ Strongly Agree Disagree

12. Different ways of linking teaching and research • Learning about others’ research • Learning to do research – research methods • Learning in research mode – enquiry based • Pedagogic research – enquiring and reflecting on learning

13. Mainstreaming undergraduate research and inquiry in year one case studies (1.1-1.6) In pairs, each skim read at least ONE different year one case study1.1-1.6 (pp 7-9) Discuss whether and how any of the ideas may be amended for application in your course team or departmental contexts 5 minutes

14. STUDENTS ARE PARTICIPANTS Research-based Research-tutored Undertaking research and inquiry Engaging in research discussions EMPHASIS ON RESEARCHPROCESSES AND PROBLEMS EMPHASIS ON RESEARCH CONTENT Learning about current research in the discipline Developing research and inquiry skills and techniques Research-led Research-oriented STUDENTS FREQUENTLY ARE AN AUDIENCE Curriculum design and the research-teaching nexus (based on Healey, 2005, 70)

15. Mainstreaming undergraduate research and inquiry through the disciplines In pairs, each skim read at least ONE strategy for engaging students with research in disciplines(2.1 -2.4 pp 9-14) Discuss whether and how any of the ideas may be amended for application in your course team or departmental contexts 6 minutes

16. STUDENT-LED Authoring (discovery-active) Pursuing (information-active) PARTICIPATING IN BUILDING KNOWLEDGE EXPLORING AND ACQUIRING EXISTING KNOWLEDGE Identifying (information-responsive) Producing (discovery-responsive) STAFF-LED Inquiry-based learning: a conceptual framework (Based on Levy, 2009)

17. Different views on undergraduate research and inquiry “An inquiry or investigation conducted by an undergraduate student that makes an original intellectual or creative contribution to the discipline” Centre for Undergraduate Research "Undergraduate research is original work conducted by undergraduate students working in collaboration with a faculty mentor” University of Central Florida “Discovery Learning” University of Alberta

18. Different views on undergraduate research and inquiry • Our working definition includes Boyer’s (1990) scholarships of discovery, integration and application (engagement) and is characterised by breadth: • “undergraduate research describes student engagement from induction to graduation, individually and in groups, in research and inquiry into disciplinary, professional and community-based problems and issues, including involvement in knowledge exchange activities” • Childs et al., 2007

19. Dimensions of undergraduate research and inquiry Student, process centred Outcome, product centred Student initiated Faculty initiated All students Honors students Curriculum based Co-curricular fellowships Collaborative Individual Original to the student Original to the discipline Multi-or interdisciplinary Discipline based Campus/community audience Professional audience Starting year one Capstone/final year Pervades the curriculum Focussed (Source: Adapted from Beckham and Hensel, 2007)

20. Course team and department strategies Review understanding and practice of undergraduate research and inquiry Develop a set of related curricula interventions starting in year one Offer undergraduate research and inquiry as a pervasive and early element of the curriculum Give students experience of undertaking research and inquiry with different levels of independence Link undergraduate research and inquiry to student employability Ensure assessment practices and policies support students as researchers Include all and be selective

21. Departmental perspectives In a different pair this time each skim read at least ONE of the case studies (pp14-17) Discuss whether and how any of the ideas may be amended for application in your course team or departmental contexts 5 minutes

22. Mainstreaming undergraduate research and inquiry: discipline and department strategies “Once you have learnt how to ask questions – relevant and appropriate and substantial questions – you have learnt how to learn and no one can keep you from learning whatever you want or need to know.” Postman and Weingartner (1971, 23)

23. The developmental journey of the student University curricula need to support student and citizen development from “absolute knowing [where] students view knowledge as certain; their role is to obtain it from authorities … (to) contextual knowing [where] students believe that knowledge is constructed in a context based on judgement of evidence; their role is to exchange and compare perspectives, think through problems, and integrate and apply knowledge” (Baxter Magolda, 1992, 75).

24. The developmental journey of the student Source: Hodge et al. (2008)

25. Institutional strategies This time get together with another pair and between you explore ONE group of strategies A-D (Table 6.1 pp15-26) Come up with a recommendation for ONE strategy which you think should be developed at Georgetown 8 minutes

26. Issues in designing courses to engage students in research and inquiry • How much do your u/g students know about the research which goes on in your department? • What opportunities are there for students to present / publish / celebrate their research? • Is research-based learning primarily for honours and graduate students? • Is research-based learning for all students or a highly selected group?

27. Students’ perceptions of research • A comparison of over 500 final year students’ perceptions of research in three universities CanRI; UKRI; and UKLRI(Table 5): • Students agreed that being involved in research activities is beneficial • Students do not perceive the development of their research skills • Communication is one of the issues that we need to address – language used can exclude

28. Students’ perceptions of research: • About three-quarters of the items followed our hypothesis (particularly about the awareness of research) • Those where the hypothesis did not hold up were mainly in the experiences with doing research, where there were no significant differences • Regardless of institution, there is the perception amongst students that learning in an inquiry or research-based mode is beneficial

29. Students’ awareness of research

30. Students’ experiences with research

31. Designing courses for engaging student in research and inquiry In groups of four identify ONE way in which you might design student research and inquiry into one of your courses One of you may like to suggest an idea and the others can act as critical friends 8 mins

32. Mainstreaming undergraduate research and inquiry: conclusions • Getting students to learn through doing research is a powerful way to re-link teaching and research • Key institutional challenges include introducing inquiry / research in year one; balancing opportunities for all and for selected students • Adopting a broader definition of undergraduate research than is currently common is a way forward (Boyer et al.), which should benefit the learning of students in institutions with a range of different missions • For some people though this may dilute what is research • Institutional and national researchpolicies could more effectively support undergraduate research and inquiry

33. Strategies for developing an active research curriculum THE END

34. Developing a Mission and Purpose for a Centre for Undergraduate Research • “Undergraduate research, as an activity, has been going on at colleges and universities across the country for decades. It’s most common form, probably, has been the senior honors thesis — a capstone experience for the best students. Today, educators see the value in broadening the opportunity for undergraduate research: • making it available to students earlier in their undergraduate careers • integrating research-like experiences into courses • supporting struggling students by giving them the chance to apply the more abstract concepts in their fields to hands-on activities.”(Stocks, 2008)

35. Models of undergraduate research Engineering and Sciences Humanities and Arts Centralized Departmental School year Summer Capstone Formative Stipends Academic Credit Individual Group Program elements: Grants, travel awards, symposia, peer mentoring, research seminars, undergraduate research journals, Curriculum led initiatives e.g. inquiry led courses, client-based (Source: Adapted from Stocks 2008)