Flexible design can help overcome barriers identified when implementing a Course‐based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE)

Abstract

Course‐based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs) are recognized for their potential to increase access to research in undergraduate STEM education. CUREs have also been identified as one mechanism for increasing participation and inclusion of underrepresented students in STEM. However, the process through which faculty decide to adopt new instructional approaches is often highly individualized and is affected by personal, institutional, and other contextual factors. Many faculty experience or perceive barriers to CURE implementation at their own institution, including available facilities and equipment, fit with departmental curriculum, and hours per week students spend in the lab. Flexibility in CURE design can help overcome some of these barriers. The Biochemistry Authentic Scientific Inquiry Lab (BASIL) CURE was intentionally designed to be flexible to facilitate adoption in a wide range of settings. We present ways in which this flexibility has been and can be leveraged to overcome real and perceived implementation barriers. We also demonstrate how the curriculum can be adapted, even for extreme situations such as the pandemic necessitating the switch to emergency remote learning.