Students gain several benefits from participating in research experiences according to this document: 1. Students gain practical skills like critical thinking, problem solving, oral and written communication, and learning to work independently. 2. Both students and faculty report that students learn topics in depth and gain an appreciation for science from research experiences. 3. Assessments show students who participate in research have higher retention rates, are more likely to pursue further education, and self-report greater increases in cognitive and personal skills.

1. WHAT DO STUDENTS
GAIN BY DOING
RESEARCH?
????????????

2. WHAT IS RESEARCH?
• Brainstorm:
– Think of different ways to define “Research”.
– Write down at least three different definitions of Research.
– Pair up with someone to choose the best ONE of your six-plus
definitions.
– Share your definitions with the group, one at a time in sequence.

3. 1. What do we want students to
gain from their research
experience?
2. What do they actually gain?
1. Indirect assessments
2. Direct assessments

4. RESEARCH BENEFITS: FACULTY
RESPONSE
• Learning a topic in depth
• Ability to work and think independently
• Ability to read scientific literature
• Oral and written communication
• Problem solving skills
• Appreciation of science
• Practical application of course work
– From Lopatto, 2003

5. RESEARCH BENEFITS: STUDENT
RESPONSE
1. Enhancement of credentials
2. Clarification of career path
3. Understanding the research process
4. Learning a topic in depth
5. Relationship with faculty member
6. Learning to work independently
7. Learning laboratory techniques
– From Lopatto, 2003

6. DIRECT AND INDIRECT
ASSESSMENT
• Direct = direct observation of the objective
• Indirect = indirect measure of the objective (e. g. subjective
report, retention)

7. INDIRECT ASSESSMENTS OF
LEARNING

8. STUDENT RETENTION:
METHOD

9. INDIRECT ASSESSMENT
SUMMARY
• Students participating in research:
– Have lower attrition rates
– Are more likely to pursue further education
– Are more satisfied with their education
– Report greater increases in a variety of cognitive and personal
domains

10. DIRECT ASSESSMENTS OF
LEARNING
• Critical thinking and reasoning in science majors.
• Analysis of papers.
• Critical Thinking and Reasoning – Method
For nursing and chemistry/engineering, those
engaged in research showed greater increase
in critical thinking

11. QUESTIONS ??
• Which aspects of the research experience are most crucial?
• What makes the difference between successful and unsuccessful
programs?

12. I. HOW IS THE WORLD CHANGING?

13. FORCES CHANGING SKILL
DEMANDS
• Automation
• Globalization
• Workplace change
• Demographic change
• Personal risk and responsibility

14. AUTOMATION

15. GLOBALIZATION

16. WORKPLACE CHANGE

17. DEMOGRAPHIC CHANGE

18. PERSONAL RISK AND
RESPONSIBILITY

19. II. WHAT KIND OF KNOWLEDGE AND
SKILLS WILL YOUNG PEOPLE NEED?

20. MORE IMPORTANT IN THE 21ST
CENTURY
• Postsecondary education and training
• Academic knowledge and skills
• Practical literacies: The ability to use knowledge
of math, English, science, civics etc. to meet real-
world challenges.
• Broader competencies: Critical thinking and
problem solving, communications and
collaboration, creativity, self-sufficiency etc.

21. BROAD COMPETENCIES:
WHICH ARE MOST CRITICAL?
THE 3 C’S!
• Critical thinking and problem solving
– Labor economists Levy & Murnane call it “expert thinking”
• Communication/Collaboration
– Levy and Murnane call it “complex communications”
• Creativity

22. CRITICAL THINKING & PROBLEM
SOLVING: REQUIRE DEEP CONTENT
KNOWLEDGE
• Cognitive scientists used to believe that “thinking skills”
could be taught directly and then applied to any
situation.
• Now they believe that’s wrong. Critical thinking is not a
generic skill, but rather tied closely to contextual
knowledge—deep understanding of the topic in question.
• What is “deep knowledge”? Getting below the surface:
– WHATs: Factual knowledge about the field, and
– WHYs & HOWs: How those facts fit together, how and why
things are the way they are, and how things work the way they
do.

23. COMMUNICATION & COLLABORATION:
WHAT ARE THE MOST CRITICAL SUB-
SKILLS?
Source: Conference Board. (2006, October). Are they really ready to work? New York: Author. (pp. 32-34, Tables 6-8)

24. CREATIVITY

25. III. IMPLICATIONS