Implementing and Assessing Multi-Tiered Mentoring within Introductory Undergraduate Biology Courses

Auburn University At Montgomery, Montgomery AL

Investigators

Abstract

This project aims to serve the national interest by increasing student retention in STEM through a multi-tiered mentoring approach in introductory undergraduate biology courses. The project plans to establish multi-tiered mentoring to engage student leaders and instructors in collaborating to promote effective, inclusive, and evidence-based teaching practices in biology courses. Student leaders and faculty will participate in professional development about effective mentoring and inclusive teaching practices. Goals of the effort include increased communication between students and instructors, as well as improved student success and retention in introductory biology. The project intends to implement and assess a multi-tiered mentoring model designed to significantly improve persistence and retention of STEM students from diverse backgrounds. As such, results from the project could be broadly relevant to improving undergraduate STEM education and ultimately broadening participation in STEM fields. The overarching goals of this project are to develop a structured, multi-tiered mentoring model to improve student and instructor communication and ultimately the retention of first- and second-year students in introductory biology courses. Upper division student leaders, enrolled in a credit-bearing mentorship course, will serve as mentors and work with small groups of introductory course students to help them navigate the in-class experience. Additional paid student mentors who are alumni of the course will serve as supplemental instructors and facilitate communication between students and faculty. This multi-tiered mentoring approach will engage student leaders in improving introductory courses with the additional goal of increasing their own sense of belonging in science and their science identity. Further, the project will develop instructional supports and incentives for faculty to redesign introductory biology courses to incorporate multi-tiered mentoring and inclusive pedagogy. Student leaders and faculty will work together to re-design courses to incorporate small-group learning, continuous assessment, feedback, and open communication. The project plans to use a mixed-methods approach and a pre-post, within-subject design to assess the impact of multi-tiered mentoring on the introductory course learners, student leader mentors, and faculty instructors. Evaluation will be conducted in collaboration with an external evaluator and an advisory board. This project hopes to expand knowledge about the impact of multi-tiered mentoring, involving both student leaders and faculty, that could be broadly relevant to promoting student success in undergraduate STEM education, especially in introductory courses. The NSF IUSE: EHR Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. Through the Engaged Student Learning track, the program supports the creation, exploration, and implementation of promising practices and tools. 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.