Abstract
Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) represent distinctive learning environments that are organized around a well-articulated design framework aimed at broadening student participation in scientific research. Among the published descriptions of CURE models that are currently available in the education research literature, the vast majority have been implemented in four-year institutions of higher learning with undergraduate students. In this programmatic article, we utilize the CURE design framework to characterize a highly structured instructional intervention that engages upper-level high school students in basic research that bridges comparative functional genomics and developmental neuroscience. Our goal is to demonstrate the feasibility of using the CURE framework as a uniform reference point for other informal science programs aimed at making life science research accessible to younger learners. We conclude by discussing preliminary data on the program's effects on students' self-efficacy for conducting scientific research, collaborative abilities, and understanding of how scientific knowledge is constructed.
Highlights
Course-based undergraduate research experiences or CUREs have emerged as a promising strategy to involve all biology learners in conducting scientific research
Published descriptions of CURE models assume a diversity of forms and target different cognitive, affective, psychosocial, and behavioral outcomes (Dolan, 2016), they are distinguished from more familiar instructional approaches by their ability to engage entire classes of students in generating research findings that accommodate the interests of the scientific community and expand the scientific knowledge base
We briefly present preliminary data on the latter three outcomes given their relevance to research on CURE assessment (Auchincloss et al, 2015; Dolan et al, 2016)
Summary
Course-based undergraduate research experiences or CUREs have emerged as a promising strategy to involve all biology learners in conducting scientific research. Published descriptions of CURE models assume a diversity of forms and target different cognitive, affective, psychosocial, and behavioral outcomes (Dolan, 2016), they are distinguished from more familiar instructional approaches by their ability to engage entire classes of students in generating research findings that accommodate the interests of the scientific community and expand the scientific knowledge base In this respect, CUREs resemble an integration of independent university internships, which are typically offered by research groups to small numbers of select students who have already developed an interest in science, and more structured university courses that engage significantly larger numbers of students in either prescriptive or inquiry-centered laboratory instruction.
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