Innovative teaching knowledge stays with users

A Kelly Lane; Jacob D McAlpin; Brittnee Earl; Stephanie Feola; Jennifer E Lewis; Karl Mertens; Susan E Shadle; John Skvoretz; John P Ziker; Brian A Couch; Luanna B Prevost; Marilyne Stains

doi:10.1073/pnas.2012372117

Innovative teaching knowledge stays with users

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2020 Sep 15;117(37):22665-22667. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2012372117. Epub 2020 Aug 31.

Authors

A Kelly Lane¹, Jacob D McAlpin², Brittnee Earl³, Stephanie Feola², Jennifer E Lewis^{2

4}, Karl Mertens⁵, Susan E Shadle^{3

6}, John Skvoretz^{4

7}, John P Ziker⁸, Brian A Couch⁹, Luanna B Prevost^{10

11}, Marilyne Stains¹²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biology Teaching and Learning, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455.
² Department of Chemistry, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33620.
³ Center for Teaching and Learning, Boise State University, Boise, ID 83725.
⁴ Center for Improvement of Teaching and Research on Undergraduate STEM Education, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33620.
⁵ Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior Program, Boise State University, Boise, ID 83725.
⁶ Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Boise State University, Boise, ID 83725.
⁷ Department of Sociology, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33620.
⁸ Department of Anthropology, Boise State University, Boise, ID 83725.
⁹ School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588; [email protected] [email protected] [email protected].
¹⁰ Center for Improvement of Teaching and Research on Undergraduate STEM Education, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33620; [email protected] [email protected] [email protected].
¹¹ Department of Integrative Biology, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33620.
¹² Department of Chemistry, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected].

Abstract

Programs seeking to transform undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics courses often strive for participating faculty to share their knowledge of innovative teaching practices with other faculty in their home departments. Here, we provide interview, survey, and social network analyses revealing that faculty who use innovative teaching practices preferentially talk to each other, suggesting that greater steps are needed for information about innovative practices to reach faculty more broadly.

Keywords: STEM education; evidence-based instructional practices; institutional change; social network analysis; undergraduate.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.