ERIC Number: EJ1033299
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2014-Jul
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0047-231X
EISSN: N/A
Research and Teaching: Published Freshman Lab Exercises as Indicators of Level of Awareness and Adoption of Instructional Practices Grounded in Discipline-Based Education Research
DeChenne, Sue Ellen; Carew, Jenna; Stains, Marilyne
Journal of College Science Teaching, v43 n6 p89-99 Jul 2014
The discipline-based education research (DBER) report from the National Research Council (2012) highlighted the existence of a research-practice gap in science instruction in higher education and the need to identify strategies to close it. This study hypothesizes that one potential factor is instructors' access to research-based instructional materials. This investigation aims to (a) characterize the extent to which one type of instructional materials, laboratories published in practitioner-oriented DBER journals, has the potential to promote readers' awareness of instructional practices supported by education research, and (b) determine the relationship between authors' awareness of educational literature and their adoption of these practices. Freshman-level laboratories from biochemistry, biology, chemistry, and physics were analyzed for level of inquiry and type of authors (DBER, science, or teaching faculty). Results indicate that a majority of the articles analyzed have low levels of inquiry and that there was no relationship between type of author and the level of inquiry of the laboratory.
Descriptors: College Freshmen, College Science, Theory Practice Relationship, Higher Education, Access to Information, Instructional Materials, College Faculty, Laboratory Experiments, Educational Practices, Biochemistry, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Inquiry, Authors, Educational Research, Evidence, Journal Articles, College Instruction
National Science Teachers Association. 1840 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22201-3000. Tel: 800-722-6782; Fax: 703-243-3924; e-mail: membership@nsta.org; Web site: http://www.nsta.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A