Transforming Undergraduate STEM Education Supporting Equitable and Effective Teaching (2025) / Chapter Skim
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4 Principles for Equitable and Effective Teaching of Undergraduate STEM Education
4 Principles for Equitable and Effective Teaching of Undergraduate STEM Education
Pages 70-97
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From page 70... ...
THE PRINCIPLES As noted in Chapter 1, a key commitment that informs the committee's vision for equitable and effective teaching is that student learning must be at the center. In other words, a course rooted in equitable and effective teaching is student centered: an approach that makes the course goals clear to the students, recognizes the students' role in their own learning, and gives students agency to engage in the course materials in ways that respect their identities.
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From page 71... ...
Also of note is that there is no requirement to immediately implement all of the Principles together at first; some instructors may find it more feasible to focus on a couple as an initial entry point and gradually incorporate additional Principles over time. The seven Principles for Equitable and Effective Teaching are 21: Principle 1: Students need opportunities to actively engage in disciplinary learning Principle 2: Students' diverse interests, goals, knowledge, and experiences can be leveraged to enhance learning Principle 3: STEM learning involves affective and social dimensions Principle 4: Identity and sense of belonging shape STEM teaching and learning Principle 5: Multiple forms of data can provide evidence to inform improvement Principle 6: Flexibility and responsiveness to situational and contextual factors support student learning Principle 7: Intentionality and transparency create more equitable opportunities Figure 4.1 places the Principles in the context of courses, academic units and institutions.
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From page 72... ...
SOURCE: Committee generated The committee also wishes to reiterate a point made throughout the previous chapters: that the responsibility for change that leads to equitable and effective learning experiences is collectively held by instructors and others at all levels of the higher education system. While the seven Principles are focused primarily on the course level, especially those where instructors can improve the student learning experience, it is important to note that they are not presented as the Prepublication copy, uncorrected proofs
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From page 73... ...
Later chapters of this report will address the systemic issues and the actors responsible for making and sustaining change. Principle 1: Students Need Opportunities to Actively Engage in Disciplinary Learning Student learning improves when students are given opportunities to actively engage with the material they are learning, to use disciplinary knowledge and skills in the context of projects and problems, and to reflect on their own knowledge (Borda et al., 2020; Stanberry & Payne, 2018)
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From page 74... ...
Active learning can be an effective tool in large, foundational STEM courses as well as in smaller classes. In large, high structure courses that combine preclass preparatory assignments with in-class active learning activities, students earn higher grades, have lower failure rates and report an increased sense of community compared to students enrolled in courses that use lecture only (Eddy & Hogan, 2014; Freeman et al., 2014)
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From page 75... ...
. Furthermore, the real-world experience gained through internships can help students apply what they have learned in the classroom to professional environments, mirroring the kind of work or approaches to problems seen in the workforce (Rodriguez et al., 2019b; Schweitzer et al., 2016; Thiry et al., 2016)
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From page 76... ...
. Recognizing the diverse assets that students bring to the learning environment, leveraging them, and helping students see the connections between their everyday lives and STEM concepts and practices promotes more equitable outcomes (Booker & Cambell-Whatley, 2018; Bayles & Morrell, 2018)
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From page 77... ...
broadens this idea to recognize the knowledge acquired from informal learning experiences in families, homes and communities (González et al., 2006; Moll & Diaz, 1987; Vélez-Ibáñez & Greenberg, 1992)
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From page 78... ...
. Instructors can attend to the affective dimension of learning by recognizing the importance of motivation to learning; providing choice or autonomy in learning; creating learning experiences that students value; and supporting students' sense of control and autonomy (Bureau et al., 2022; Howard et al., 2021)
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From page 79... ...
. The ability of instructors to recognize that their own beliefs, attitudes and expectations, as well as those of their students, influence the learning environment is crucial to creating and carrying out well-designed learning experiences (Kinnunen et al., 2018; Lytle & Shin, 2023; Meaders et al., 2019)
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From page 80... ...
Analysis showed that students recognize this process as a valuable learning experiences and demonstrated greater improvement on subsequent individual testing compared to when only tested as individuals (Nicol & Selvaretnam, 2021; Gilley & Clarkston, 2014; Wieman et al., 2014)
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From page 81... ...
Cues About Which Students Are Valued Two well-studied and related phenomena that can adversely impact student affect are stereotype threat and social identity threat, in which students are reduced to or seen through the lens of negative stereotypes associated with one or more of their social group memberships (Steele & Aronson, 1995; Steele, 1997; Steele et al., 2002)
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From page 82... ...
. As students participate in learning environments, they pick up on cues as to whether they are seen as valued and potentially successful participants in the STEM disciplines.
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From page 83... ...
. Instructors can work to avoid reinforcing cues that suggest to students that not everyone can succeed in STEM by, for example, cultivating a positive STEM learning environment in which they encourage contributions from students.
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From page 84... ...
It is also important to assess the affective and social dimensions that impact student learning experiences. The role of learning goals in course design and teaching is discussed at length in Chapter 5.
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From page 85... ...
Formative and summative assessments are two different types of assessments that give different views of student progress. Formative assessment can be done informally during course sessions to provide the instructors with information on what topics need more attention or more formally to help students determine which topics they need to explore more deeply in order to achieve understanding and meet course learning goals (Kim et al., 2019)
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From page 86... ...
Formative and summative assessment can be done in varying ways that support active learning and equitable education experiences; formative assessments with timely feedback from the instructor can help improve student learning (Irons & Elkington, 2021; Morris et al., 2021) , while summative assessments that are designed based on the previously shared learning goals for the course can also contribute to equitable and effective learning experiences (Goss, 2022; Osler & Mansaray, 2014)
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From page 87... ...
. Principle 6: Flexibility and Responsiveness to Situational and Contextual Factors Support Student Learning Instructors can build flexibility into their courses in order to preserve opportunities to adjust as a term progresses.
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From page 88... ...
In fact, a course structured around learning goals and assessments that are transparent (as described in Principle 1: Active engagement and Principle 7: Intentionality and transparency) allows for flexibility in support of those learning goals, without compromising the structures in place to support student achievement.
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From page 89... ...
Allowing for options in assignments, which allows students to iterate and improve as their understanding develops, can also make a course more accessible and enhance student learning. Some research suggests that attention to the time periods when classes are offered can increase retention rates and reduce the time to graduation by allowing students to enroll in an increased number of credit hours even as it better accommodates students' extracurricular activities, work, or family obligations (Mintz, 2024)
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From page 90... ...
This is taken up in more detail in Chapter 8. Principle 7: Intentionality and Transparency Create More Equitable Opportunities Intentionality in designing courses, both in terms of careful selection of learning goals and careful design of the course structures and policies, can improve student learning experiences.
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From page 91... ...
Explicitly informing students of policies and priorities can mitigate the negative effects of the "hidden curriculum" that frequently excludes first generation students and those who are not well connected to campus communities and help students achieve their learning goals (Koutsouris et al., 2021; Rossouw & Frick, 2023; Winter & Cotton, 2012)
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From page 92... ...
programs, are primarily and intentionally designed to help students gain proficiency in technical applied skills, and they learn about the underlying disciplinary concepts in service of that goal. Other courses and programs may not have such clear career connections, but instructors can intentionally structure learning experiences so that students use skills of the discipline as they design solutions for engineering problems or synthesize molecules in a chemistry laboratory, for example.
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From page 93... ...
TABLE 4-1 Instructional Practices Illustrating the Principles for Equitable and Effective Teaching Principles Selected Instructional Practices (see Chapter 5 for further elaboration) Principle 1: Students need Provide opportunities for students to actively practice and opportunities to actively engage in apply disciplinary skills (active learning)
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From page 94... ...
experiences enhances learning Utilize culturally responsive and culturally relevant teaching. Principle 2: Leveraging diverse Show how STEM is relevant to students' lives and interests, goals, knowledge, and communities experiences Principle 3: STEM learning involves Design activities with students' attitudes, beliefs, and affective and social dimensions expectations about learning in mind.
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From page 95... ...
contextual factors is important Principle 6: Flexibility and responsiveness Principle 7: Intentionality and Design courses around clear and explicit learning goals for transparency support more equitable students. opportunities Provide a syllabus that makes the goals of the class and how to be successful in it clear.
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From page 96... ...
Increased awareness to these issues and additional research on their use in teaching could help improve student learning experiences. Conclusion 4.1: A set of Principles for Equitable and Effective Teaching for undergraduate STEM education derived from the evidence on learning and teaching can inform the design and enactment of more equitable and effective pedagogical approaches.
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From page 97... ...
PRINCIPLES FOR EQUITABLE AND EFFECTIVE TEACHING 97 • Principle 4: Identity and sense of belonging shape STEM teaching and learning • Principle 5: Multiple forms of data can provide evidence to inform improvement • Principle 6: Flexibility and responsiveness to situational and contextual factors support student learning • Principle 7: Intentionality and transparency create more equitable opportunities Prepublication copy, uncorrected proofs
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