Building Institutional Capacity to Support STEM Scholars Through Pedagogy of Real Talk

通过真实对话教学法建设机构能力以支持 STEM 学者

• 批准号: 2325760
• 负责人: Nirajan Mani
• 金额: $ 100万
• 依托单位: Fitchburg State University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2024
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2024-02-01 至 2029-01-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2325760&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Building; Institutional; Capacity; Support; STEM

This project will contribute to the national need for well-educated scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians by supporting the retention and graduation of high-achieving, low-income students with demonstrated financial need at Fitchburg State University (FSU). Over its five-year duration, the project will fund scholarships to 17 unique students majoring in Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Computer Information System, Engineering Technology, or Mathematics. First-year students will receive four-year scholarships and transfer students will receive two-year scholarships. The project team will further support these students’ academic success, career readiness, and STEM career placement through bi-weekly STEM seminars, building on the Pedagogy of Real-Talk (PRT). PRT is an evidence-based pedagogy focused on engaging, teaching, and connecting with students through shared personal narratives (Real Talks) and guided activities that build on students’ lived experiences (Alternative Lessons). Peer, faculty, and professional mentors will utilize PRT principles. This approach helps create an inclusive and student-centered learning environment that allows all students to feel safe, known, and valued within their chosen academic and career pathway. As one of the only 4-year institutions to have adopted PRT training for both faculty and support staff, FSU is well-positioned to yield valuable insights into the effective application of PRT-guided interventions. The overall goal of this project is to increase STEM degree completion of low-income, high achieving undergraduates with demonstrated financial need. The project will increase support for STEM Scholars by offering: (a) scholarships for domestic, low-income, academically talented students with demonstrated financial need pursuing STEM programs (b) bi-weekly STEM seminars that build on a First Year Experience (FYE) course using PRT practices to create a community of scholars; (c) summer internships and undergraduate research experiences; and (d) a PRT-informed mentorship ladder model that utilizes faculty, peer, and professional mentors for each participant throughout the program. These interventions have been developed to support 3 project goals: 1) Improve student recruitment, retention, graduation and progression into STEM careers and/or advanced study 2) Support student sense of belonging, academic success, and career development within their selected STEM discipline 3) Build institutional capacity to establish this PRT-guided STEM career development program for all students. The project will also investigate research questions about the characteristics of the PRT-guided STEM seminars that contribute to the growth of STEM Scholars, the impact of PRT-informed mentorship and seminars on research and internship preparation, and the key characteristics of faculty, professional, and peer mentorship programs that most contribute to student sense of belonging, academic success and career progression. Findings will be shared with the broader academic community to enhance the collective efforts to support student success in STEM. This project is funded by NSF’s Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics program, which seeks to increase the number of low-income academically talented students with demonstrated financial need who earn degrees in STEM fields. It also aims to improve the education of future STEM workers, and to generate knowledge about academic success, retention, transfer, graduation, and academic/career pathways of low-income students.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

该项目将通过支持菲奇堡州立大学（FSU）的高分，低收入学生的保留和毕业，这将促进受过良好教育的科学家，数学家，工程师和技术的国家需求。在五年的持续时间内，该项目将为生物学，化学，计算机科学，计算机信息系统，工程技术或数学专业的17名独特学生提供奖学金。一年级学生将获得四年奖学金，转学学生将获得两年奖学金。该项目团队将通过每两周一次的STEM SEMIARS进一步支持这些学生的学术成就，职业准备和职业生涯，并以真实性教学法为基础（PRT）。 PRT是一种基于循证的教学法，旨在通过共同的个人叙事（真实的谈话）和指导性活动（基于学生的现场经验（替代课程））来吸引，教学和与学生建立联系。同伴，教师和专业导师将利用PRT原则。这种方法有助于创建一个包容性和以学生为中心的学习环境，使所有学生都可以在所选的学术和职业途径中感到安全，已知和价值。作为为教职员工和支持人员通过PRT培训的唯一4年的机构之一，FSU的位置良好，可以对有效应用PRT引导的干预措施产生宝贵的见解。该项目的总体目标是增加低收入，非常成功的本科生的茎学位，并表现出财务需求。该项目将通过提供：（a）为国内，低收入，学业才华横溢的学生提供的奖学金，这些奖学金具有经济需求，追求STEM计划（b）每两周一周的STEM SEMIAR，以使用PRT实践来建立PRT实践来创建学者社区； （c）暑期实习和本科研究经验； （d）一个有知识的心态阶梯模型，该模型利用整个计划中每个参与的教师，同伴和专业心态。已经开发了这些干预措施来支持3个项目目标：1）改善学生招聘，保留，毕业和发展为STEM职业和/或高级研究2）支持学生在选定的STEM纪律中的归属感，学术成就和职业发展的意识3）建立机构的能力，以建立所有学生为所有学生建立PRT PRT指导的STEM职业发展计划。该项目还将调查有关PRT指导的STEM SEMIAR的特征的研究问题，该问题有助于STEM学者的成长，PRT了解的心态和下水道对研究和实习准备的影响，以及教师，专业和同伴心态计划的关键特征，这些计划最能促进学生的归属感，成功和职业成绩，学术和职业成绩。调查结果将与更广泛的学术界共享，以增强为支持Stem的成功的集体努力。该项目由NSF在科学，技术，工程和数学计划方面的奖学金提供资金，该计划旨在增加具有证明经济需求的低收入学术才华的学生人数，他们在STEM领域获得了学位。它还旨在改善未来STEM工人的教育，并为低收入学生的学术成功，保留，转移，毕业以及学术/职业途径提供知识。这项奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并被认为是值得通过基金会的知识分子优点和更广泛的审查标准通过评估来通过评估来支持的。