Workshop for Chairs of STEM Departments: Improving Undergraduate STEM Teaching and Learning in Research Universities

Association Of American Universities, Washington DC

Investigators

Abstract

Since 2011, the Association of American Universities (AAU), a coalition of 62 distinguished research universities in the United States and Canada, has engaged in a major initiative to improve the quality of undergraduate STEM education at AAU member universities. It has focused on improving STEM education by encouraging faculty members to use teaching methods that have been proven to be effective. The academic departments of these universities are central to making improvements in undergraduate teaching and learning, because the culture and norms within departments greatly influence how courses are taught. The chairs of the STEM departments benefit from guidance about how to cultivate departmental cultures that value and encourage the use of evidence-based teaching practices, and how to reward faculty members for innovative teaching efforts. To provide such guidance, this project will conduct a two-day workshop in October 2018 for STEM department chairs from AAU universities. The workshop will be designed to assist department chairs in identifying challenges and practical solutions related to implementing long-lasting teaching improvements. Participants will learn about successful strategies that have been used to facilitate department-wide reform of undergraduate STEM teaching and learning. The information and discussions will be designed to prompt the chairs to think more deeply about their roles in encouraging and implementing reform efforts in their departments and across their campuses. Subsequent actions of the chairs in their departments has the potential to improve undergraduate STEM teaching and learning on the AAU member campuses and develop visible models for other institutions. The findings and conclusions from the workshop will be widely shared with other department chairs, faculty members, and senior leaders at AAU institutions, as well as the broader higher education community. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.