BRAID 2.0: Bringing Relationships Alive through Interdisciplinary Discourse

Michigan State University, East Lansing MI

Investigators

Abstract

The BRAID 2.0 project is: (i) creating intensely BRAIDed clusters of freshman undergraduate science and technology courses and (ii) pursuing a longitudinal research study of both the change in attitudes and understanding of students and faculty over time. Over four years the project is generating five sets of multiple curricular BRAIDs, that explicitly tie the overlapping topic content of three disciplinary courses, e.g. Math, Chemistry and History of Science, with a small additional weekly seminar class that emphasizes interdisciplinary discussions between students and all three faculty. In research, this project employs a longitudinal study tracking the performance of students who pass through the BRAID curriculum (and controls, i.e. students who do not participate) as they continue in their upper-level courses and progress to graduation. We expect the participating students to show improved interdisciplinary thinking skills and improved performance in subsequent upper-level courses where topics become quite interdisciplinary. These gains during the BRAID experience and following in the tracking years are being examined via expert interviews, surveys and course performances. In addition we are also studying change in faculty expertise and attitudes over time. In this project we are gathering data to strategically contribute to research on undergraduate learning of science. These results have direct applications for improving educational practice in undergraduate science and technology courses. They will impact our understanding of how this experience catalyzes change in students' attitudes and understanding, as well as in that for participating faculty.