Project Overview
Evaluating the Uptake of Research-Based Instructional Strategies in Undergraduate Chemistry, Mathematics, & Physics is an NSF-funded (DUE Grant Nos. 1726042 , 1726281, 1726126, 1726328, 1726379) research project aimed at better understanding the use of research-based instructional strategies (RBIS) in introductory chemistry, mathematics, and physics courses at the postsecondary level. This work is intended to support the continued dissemination of RBIS across American postsecondary institutions through a better understanding of existing awareness and usage patterns.
Project Objectives
1. Build capacity towards documenting changes in the use of RBIS within STEM disciplines.
This project will build capacity towards documenting trends in the use of RBIS through describing the current state of RBIS use in chemistry, mathematics, and physics. An important consideration of this work will be to establish key metrics so that future research can more strongly describe trajectories. Data from physics is also directly comparable to a previous snapshot from a 2008 survey (Henderson & Dancy, 2009; Henderson, Dancy, & Niewiadomska-Bugaj, 2012).
2. Estimate the importance of each ‘level of focus’ in shaping instructional practices.
We sampled participants by institution. Once an institution was selected we surveyed all instructors within each of the three disciplines (chemistry, math, physics) at that institution who have taught the target courses (general chemistry, calculus I and II, introductory quantitative physics) in the last two years. Thus, we will be able to develop a better understanding of how each level of the instructional system (individual, department, institution, discipline) shapes instructional practices, and what aspects at each level are most important for particular types of instructional outcomes.
3. Test hypotheses from prior research about how and why instructors are using RBIS.
Testing hypotheses using survey data often relies on using correlations as evidence. This relatively weak type of evidence is strengthened when multiple contexts are used. This is why an important feature of our study is that we will collect parallel data in three disciplines. Finding supporting correlations in one discipline could happen for idiosyncratic reasons; on the other hand, finding supporting correlations in all three disciplines would provide more compelling evidence about the credibility of each hypothesis.
National Survey (Quantitative Phase)
All three research objectives are being tested through a web-based survey. The survey was developed throughout 2018, and data was collected in Spring 2019 (papers detailing the methods and survey validity are forthcoming). In all, 3,769 responses were collected from recent instructors of postsecondary General Chemistry, Calculus I and II, and Introductory Quantitative Physics. Respondents came from 851 distinct institutions across the United States, including two-year colleges, four-year colleges, and research universities.
Interviews (Qualitative Phase)
As a follow-up to the national survey, we will be conducting interviews with selected survey participants. These interviews will be conducted to help interpret the emerging results from the quantitative survey. Until further analysis has been done the exact scope of these interviews is in flux, however we anticipate at least two avenues of exploration. The first will be to explore observed contradictions in our data, as have been observed in prior research (e.g., Fukawa-Connelly, Johnson, & Keller, 2016; Johnson, Keller, Peterson, & Fukawa-Connelly, 2019). Another focus will be to characterize in more detail the factors which we observe as supporting or inhibiting the use of RBIS.