American Chemical Society
The Role of Undergraduate Research in the ACS Certified Bachelor’s Degree Thomas Wenzel Department of Chemistry Bates College
Lewiston, ME 04240 April 4, 2017
Requirements for Certified Bachelor’s Degree http://www.acs.org/cpt • Five foundation courses • Four in-depth courses • 400 laboratory hours • Undergraduate research can be used – As one of the in-depth courses – For up to 180 lab hours American Chemical Society
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Council on Undergraduate Research Definition of Undergraduate Research An inquiry or investigation conducted by an undergraduate student that makes an original intellectual or creative contribution to the discipline. •Original work •Contribution to discipline •Peer reviewed publication American Chemical Society
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ACS (Committee on Professional Training) Documents • ACS Guidelines • Supplements – Undergraduate research – Preparing a research report – Safety – Excellence – Rigor – Development of student skills American Chemical Society
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Guidelines Supplement on Undergraduate Research • Student must write a written comprehensive report if research is used for in-depth course or lab hours – CPT Supplement on Written Research Reports
• Research – Represents original work – Develops new knowledge – Undertaken with the intent to publish the work American Chemical Society
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Excellence and Rigor in Effective Educational Practices • CPT desires excellence and rigor • Programs characterized by excellence and rigor develop in students a range of professional skills
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DESIRED PROFESSIONAL SKILLS • Safe laboratory practices • Communication in oral and written forms • Use of the primary literature – Information management • Work in teams • Ask questions, design experiments, interpret results
• Think in innovative ways • Exhibit leadership • Develop desire for lifelong learning • Behave in ethical manner
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• Note absence of chemical content • Are these incorporated into research? 7
EXCELLENCE • Educational Pedagogy – Should include integrative curricular experiences where students apply knowledge in new contexts and transfer knowledge from one context to another
• Faculty – Willingness to interact with students in the learning process
Are these incorporated into research? American Chemical Society
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RIGOR • Experiences in which students apply fundamental principles toward an understanding of chemical systems • Actively engage students • Promote progressive development in students’ responsibility for learning • Promote development of critical thought • Development of multistep problem solving
Are these incorporated into research? American Chemical Society
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Students Should be Able to … • Analyze data and scientific arguments • Synthesize and apply concepts from multiple subdisciplines of chemistry
• Recognize applicability of foundational and advanced concepts to new situations • Communicate effectively in oral and written forms
Are these incorporated into research? American Chemical Society
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Other CPT Statements • Guidelines – Undergraduate research allows students to integrate learning experiences and participate directly in the process of science
• Rigor supplement – Undergraduate research has the potential to facilitate in students a mastery of independent thought and self-direction
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Supplement on Undergraduate Research • Undergraduate research can be the most educationally valuable experience for students • Students participating in research have the potential to grow professionally and personally in a manner not possible through traditional classroom and instructional lab experiences.
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Supplement on Student Skills • Undergraduate research one of the most powerful opportunities for students to learn problem-solving skills • Undergraduate research provides a unique opportunity for students to develop oral and written communication skills
• Opportunity to reinforce and develop safety skills
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Develop Skills and Competencies Throughout the Curriculum Progression of Skill Development • Work in teams • Chances to develop leadership skills
• Written and oral communication skills whose quality and scope increasingly advance as the curriculum develops • Read and properly cite scientific literature
• Professional ethics American Chemical Society
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Instructional Laboratories in Which Students … • Develop testable hypotheses • Design experiments • Ask questions • Interpret data • Draw and argue for conclusions In other words, experiences that are “research-like” in their approach American Chemical Society
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Assessment • SALG – Student Assessment of Learning Gains • SURE – Survey of Undergraduate Research Experiences • CURE – Classroom Undergraduate Research Experience • Written research reports – important to CPT – Thorough – Well-referenced – Evidence that student has devoted considerable time and thought to the project – Evidence that the student has undertaken an original project
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Other Facets of Guidelines that Support Undergraduate Research • Importance of support staff (not mandated) – Stockroom administration – Equipment maintenance
• 15 contact hours maximum – Should be significantly smaller, especially if supervise undergraduate research
• Physical plant/facilities
• Instrument holdings • Professional development activities – attendance at conferences and sabbatical leaves American Chemical Society
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Observation by CPT • Too many students research reports are of unacceptable quality and given unreasonably high grades. – Missing expected sections – Abstract, Intro, Expt, R&D – No (or too few) references – No/little primary literature in the references – 2-5 pages long – Very few experiments done – No conclusions Most often these are reports from capstone experiences – what does it say about the department? American Chemical Society
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More Problems • Work is not original – or insufficient evidence to assess whether original
• Work is not aimed at eventual publication Perhaps not as serious as those on the preceding slide, but still important given ACS guidelines and CPT expectations
• Recommendations: • Develop department-wide expectations/rubric for the research experiences and the research report • Grade reports by a faculty committee American Chemical Society
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