Education Research and Discipline Based Education Research

Synthesizing Geoscience Education Research: Where are we? What is the path forward?

Convener: Heather Macdonald, College of William and Mary

This workshop will communicate the current status of Geoscience Education Research with the greater geoscience community. Participants will prioritize needs and directions for future Geoscience Education Research. This working session will contribute to a synthesis to be published on the NAGT site, and build on information shared during this week's afternoon sessions.

Education Research Methods - How to

Convener: Julie Sexton, University of Northern Colorado

This session is for those who want to increase their ability to conduct education research. Participants will have a chance to learn about principles of research design, qualitative and quantitative methods, and the standards of evidence and proof, and will have time to work on research plans and problems.

Using Classroom Observations to Improve your Teaching

Rachel Teasdale, California State University, Chico

Monday, July 13 | 1:30pm-4:15pm | Location: UMC 247

Small changes can make a big difference in engaging your students! This workshop will briefly review some of the results of the RTOP research project, in which more than 200 introductory and majors geoscience classes were observed in an effort to understand how classrooms are able to engage students and improve learning. We will focus on pedagogical practices that help make courses more student-centered. As a participant, you will develop a set of simple strategies that fit the constraints of your course content, student population and classroom dynamics to increase student engagement in your next course.

Grant Writing 101

Jill Singer, Buffalo State & Jeffery Ryan, University of South Florida

Tuesday, July 14 | 1:30pm-4:15pm | Location: UMC 247

Preparing a proposal can be overwhelming – especially for those inexperienced with the process. This session will introduce participants to such things as: how to read and understand an NSF program solicitation; how to align your ideas with the goals of the NSF program; strategies for outlining and writing your proposal; places to go for valuable resources; how to think about project evaluation; and some common reasons why good ideas do not always result in a competitive proposal. By the end of the session, participants should be more confident in their abilities to write and submit proposals to the NSF in general and the Division of Undergraduate Education's IUSE program in particular.

Intro to Quantitative Education Research Methods

Tim Shipley, Temple University

Wednesday, July 15 | 1:30pm-4:15pm | Location: UMC 247

This session is for those who want to increase their ability to conduct education research and to evaluate published research. Participants will have a chance to learn about principles of statistical testing and interpretation, limitations on interpretation, current concerns about false positives in research reports, and will have time to work on application to research plans. This session is intended to complement but not require the research design workshop.

What Are Students Learning in your Course: Strategies for assessment

Karl Wirth, Macalester College

Thursday, July 16 | 1:30pm-4:15pm | Location: UMC 247

This workshop focuses on how we know what our students know and learn in our courses. Beginning with the end in mind, the workshop will consider the roles of learning outcomes and then explore a variety of authentic ways to gauge prior knowledge at the beginning of a course or unit, to provide feedback for improvement during learning, and to evaluate learning at the end of a unit or course. Participants will leave the workshop with several instruments ready to be deployed in their next course offering.

Getting your Education Work Published

Heather Petcovic, Western Michigan University & Kristen St. John, James Madison University

Friday, July 17 | 1:30pm-4:15pm | Location: UMC 247

Success with peer-reviewed journal publications are at the heart of tenure and promotion, as well as a critically important way to share your work with others. At this workshop, we will explore differences between publishing geoscience education research and practitioner papers, tips for paper writing and pitfalls to avoid, and practices common to science education journals. Hear from your peers who have been successful in publishing their work in the Journal of Geoscience Education and in other science education journals. Bring a manuscript in progress for feedback from current and former geoscience education reviewers and editors.