As winter break approaches and students prepare for final exams and projects, instructors are busy writing and grading those finals and discovering how well students actually understood the material. With the mix of available virtual and in-person courses, the consideration of different types of assessments becomes very complex.  Courses in STEM disciplines often cover a large amount of material that tends to encourage superficial learning instead of the more ideal deep approach to learning. Additionally, STEM courses seem to have a threatening and anxiety-provoking assessment system.  Summative assessment is the assessment of student learning; it is usually an exam, final project or report that provides a score on that student’s performance but rarely offers timely or effective feedback. But these final exams and evaluations are inherently necessary in the framework of our education system. What remains is to learn how to use summative assessment as a learning tool. Consider the ideas in the table below for your own test-taking processes. During the test Collaborative test-taking Pyramid exams Immediate feedback assessment technique Self-corrected exams Prior to return of the test Do-over After the return of the test Highlighting missed material Point-recapture Test analysis   How do you make use of summative assessments? Explore the various types of assessments and strategies for their use in Assessment in the College Classroom.   ... View more

Available for the first time with Macmillan's new online learning tool Achieve, Susan Karr’s Environmental Science for a Changing World 4e uses an engaging, journalistic approach. The resources in Achieve are designed to provide opportunities for students to deepen their Environmental Science knowledge, while instructors gain insight into class performance and comprehension. NEW Decision Point Simulations A short video sets up the activity addressing the dilemma or topic from various perspectives. Students are asked to make a decision based on the information given. Students can see the environmental, economic and social impacts of their decisions. How would you use these tools to encourage active learning in your classroom?   Learn more about Achieve for Environmental Science https://www.macmillanlearning.com/college/us/digital/achieve/environmental-science Request access to Achieve https://go.macmillanlearning.com/achieveaccessrequest.html  ... View more

Designing Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs) What is a CURE Class? A Guide to Course-based Undergraduate Research highlights several key elements that make Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences, or CUREs, distinctive. There are some design features that are inherent to all CURES but there are also those that depend on educational and personal goals. In order to implement a CURE and achieve program goals, it is important to strategically integrate the CURE into your course.  Goals & Considerations for Designing a CURE Class There are different goals to consider when implementing a CURE. Some of the implementation insight from A Guide to Course-based Undergraduate Research is organized in the following table: CURE’s Overarching Goal Ideal Implementation To allow students the opportunity to dabble in research and consider it as a potential career path Early curriculum integration is recommended. Students are able to experience and learn more about different options and opportunities in research. To improve student retention Integrate the CURE in the curriculum prior to the point at which students leave.  To engage students in experiential learning Integration can be done at any point in the curriculum.    The inherent similarity among CUREs is that they involve students in research that can produce actual discoveries relevant to the stakeholders. Students should also be involved with iterative work that includes troubleshooting, problem-solving and other aspects of research. To learn more about developing and implementing CUREs, get your copy of A Guide to Course-based Undergraduate Research today! ... View more

With a new school year underway, it is important to consider and anticipate some of the potential threats to a new research student’s success. Among those threats are stereotypes that can take hold, especially in STEM fields of study.  Stereotype threat is defined in Entering Research as “the psychological experience of anxiety about performing in a way that reinforces a negative stereotype about your group”. An important step to avoiding these stereotype threats is to understand the subtle cues that make negatively stereotyped groups feel anxious or undermined. When groups of students are triggered, they experience anxiety that leads them to underperform and subsequently reinforce those negative stereotypes, creating a harmful loop.  There are many stereotypes surrounding women, racial minorities and others in academia. One of the ways to protect these groups of people from stereotype threat is to build and develop self-efficacy beliefs. However, saying that students should simply have strong beliefs in their own abilities to perform does not make it a reality. So to mitigate the negative impact of stereotype threats, a more direct approach of educating students about these threats may be necessary. Being a good role model regardless of gender, race or sex; encouraging students to have a growth view of intelligence; explaining other reasons for test anxiety; providing activities that reaffirm the student’s abilities.  How do you support your students when stereotype threats arise?  Read more about stereotype threats and other ways to help your research mentees in Entering Research: A Curriculum to Support Undergraduate & Graduate Research Trainees. ... View more

The best assessment is one that both gauges learning and engages students in learning. The first edition of Assessment in the College Science Classroom discusses two types of assessments: formative and summative. Formative assessment facilitates learning in many ways, not the least because it is iterative and provides ongoing feedback. Engaging students is challenging enough, but many effective strategies employ questioning. There are many types of formative assessments that can help engage students by requiring them to recall information from memory and apply that knowledge. See the table below for some examples of small-scale formative assessments discussed in Assessment in the College Science Classroom.     Example Intended Learning Outcome Brainstorming Students list everything they know on a given topic or in response to a question Students retrieve prior knowledge Concept Maps Students create graphical illustration with connecting arrows indicating relationships Students synthesize their understanding of complex processes or systems Immediate Response Systems (“Clickers”) Class polling systems allow anonymous responses and immediate feedback  Students retrieve information, apply new understanding and correct misconceptions Quizzes Quizzing at the beginning of class or online prior/after class Students retrieve information and apply prior knowledge to answer questions   Do you use assessments to encourage student learning?    Learn more about the different types of assessments and their potential benefits in Dirks, Wenderoth and Withers’ Assessment in the College Science Classroom. ... View more

How would your students define their relationship with math? BFFs? Casual Acquaintances? Estranged?    Whether you teach precalculus, math for liberal arts, or quantitative literacy, understanding how your intro students feel about math can set the stage to help your students develop confidence in their problem-solving abilities and an appreciation of how math affects the world around them.  Check out this exercise that Bruce Crauder, Macmillan author of Quantitiative Literacy and Preparation for Calculus, assigns to his students at Oklahoma State University.       Turn in a full-page typed essay covering the following topics: --Paragraph 1.  Introduce yourself to me What's your major? Where are you from? What are your hobbies? --Paragraph 2.  Write your math autobiography, i.e. tell me about yourself and math Do you dream in mathematical terms? Or did you part ways with math in the third grade and never look back? --Paragraph 3.  Let me know what you want to achieve in this class What will completing this class enable you to do? What do you hope to take away from this class? What can I do to help you get there?   Finding out a little bit about your students' approach the course can go a long way in helping them succeed. And who knows, maybe your students and math can be lifelong friends after all!   ... View more