From Student to Scientist

Using a team-teaching approach to develop scientific communication skills

Elizabeth Brown, Science Reference Librarian / Bibliographer

Wayne E. Jones, Jr., Associate Professor of Chemistry

Binghamton UniversityCIT 2005May 25, 2005

Overview

Graduate Curricula in the Sciences Graduate Seminar Course Library and Research Skills Collaborative Teaching Student-Centered Learning Activities Course Management Software Teaching Strategies and Class Organization

Graduate Curricula in the Sciences Introduction to Research

Seminar Library Searching and

Research Skills class Presentations: faculty,

administrators, support staff

Graduate Seminar Course - Binghamton University

Develop scientific communication skills, ethics, and survival skills for the Chemistry graduate student

Incorporate team building, technology, collaborative instruction, and student- based peer review into a capstone course for the student

2 credit seminar course required for the MS and PhD Chemistry programs at BU

Goals of the Graduate Seminar Course Discuss the 5 P’s of scientific communication:Presentation, Publications, Proposals, Peer Review, Panel

Review Research and learning is an iterative process Incorporate peer review into course assignments Share teaching duties between the Library and the

Chemistry Department Utilize course management system (CMS) software to

create group and individual work spaces (Blackboard)

Library and Research Skills

Amount of instruction varies Complete course on skill-building Course-integrated instruction:

1-3 class sessions on specific search needs No formal skill training

Library and Research Skills:Essential Elements Subject specific electronic journal indexes

Geology GeorefSChemistry Scifinder ScholarBiology BIOSIS

Search strategies and material formatsChemistry Structure and Reaction SearchesEngineering Proceedings, Standards, PatentsBiology Gene Sequences

Library and Research Skills:Essential Elements Print and online websites

Chemistry Aldrich, Sadler spectraHouben-Weyl, Gmelin handbooks

Mathematics CRC Mathematical Tables

Narrowing and refining searches Boolean Operators (and, or, not) Advanced Search Fields Refine / Analyze features (Scifinder Scholar) Descriptors, Identifiers Thesauri

Collaborative Teaching Benefits Librarian

More contact with students and faculty Greater awareness of research trends More visibility with department

Instructor Fewer lectures, shared grading Greater awareness of library tools for students More contact with librarians

Collaboration Suggestions

Assign specific lectures to each instructorScience faculty writing, presentations,

proposalsLibrarian searching

specialized sources Assign one instructor to take the lead on

each assignmentScience faculty Proposal, Panel ReviewLibrarian Oral, Poster

Presentations

Course Assignments (25% each) Oral Presentation

10-13 minute “conference” presentation Proposal

Description of a new research idea and its’ background

Panel ReviewDiscussion and rating of student proposals

Poster PresentationConference poster of proposal background and

summary

Student-Centered Learning Benefits Becoming more common in K-12 curricula Works well with project assignments Develops communication skillsAlso: Expectation in the workforce that graduates will be

competent on collaborative group work

Student-Centered Learning Suggestions Peer evaluation of work

Oral Presentations (evaluation sheet) Proposal Panel Review (score and report)

Course Discussion The Writing Process Scientific Ethics The Art of Presentation Proposal development and structure

Course Management Software (CMS) Benefits Course materials in one web location

Course documentsClass AnnouncementsCommunications folder

Group Pages Class Roster Send Email

File sharing and collaborative toolsIndividual and group file spacesDistribute reports, evaluations, reviews to student

Individual and Group File Spaces Individual Spaces

Communications menu Group Pages option Create a folder for each student to store all documents

Create an individual group Control panel Select Manage Groups from the User Management section Select Add Group Use the Student Name as the group name, click submit and

OK Select Modify group, then Add Users to Group option Select student and instructors, click Submit and OK twice

Uses of Individual Groups

Collect all documents from the student in one place

Gauge student activity in the class Grade proposals, evaluations, reviews

Version control Track changes by different authors – different

colored changes in Word

Why incorporate these ideas into one course? Course approach is applicable to a variety of career

goals (Academe, Industry, Teaching) Student-oriented discussions generate spontaneous

questions from students Demonstrates communication and scholarship is an

iterative process Helps a researcher better understand their potential

audience Shared teaching shows that research skills are

learned inside and outside the classroom

More Collaboration Suggestions

Develop syllabus collaboratively Equally distribute responsibilities

1/3 Science Faculty, 1/3 Librarian, 1/3 Student

Both instructors present at each class

Elicit feedback from students at the end of the semester

Designate a leader for each part of the class

How to Get StartedScience Faculty

Find your subject librarian Search the library web site for

sources specific to the subject

Librarian Search course listings for seminar

classes Meet with library representative,

department chair Attend teaching and campus

events – locate teaching innovators

Scientific Communication

Manuscript, Grant Writing

Oral, Poster Presentations

Peer Review

Presentation and Self-Promotion

Goal