HSI Implementation and Evaluation Project: Design of a Personalized, Gamified Virtual Experience to Strengthen Scientific Research Skills

University Of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras, San Juan PR

Investigators

Abstract

With support from the Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI Program), this Track 2 project at the University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras aims to design the blueprint and an initial prototype for an interactive and engaging virtual experience to provide essential scientific research skills to undergraduates in STEM. Research experiences are fundamental in science education; however, providing opportunities for all students can be challenging for many universities. This project intends to increase access to guided scientific research training for underrepresented groups, specifically Hispanic students as they comprise 84% of the student body at the proposing institution. The project's gamified virtual experience will offer Spanish-speaking undergraduates equal access to scientific research training through guided interactions designed to engage them in learning research skills. As an added benefit, student will also have access to a virtual intelligent assistant to guide them through the process. This approach not only makes learning more enjoyable but also more effective, since students can interact with the system at their own pace. The project's broader goal is to level the educational playing field, providing all students with the opportunity to receive scientific research training, thereby strengthening their critical thinking and other important skills that will be valuable in their careers. Furthermore, the flexibility of the gamified virtual experience design allows the framework to be adapted to various fields and platforms, extending its reach to different student groups and communities. Project research and evaluation will provide insights into how natural language processing and other emerging technologies can enhance educational access and outcomes and generate valuable knowledge on the effective and ethical use of emerging technologies to enhance student learning. Research experiences are a key component in scientific education, however, opportunities to participate in such activities are not available to all students. The main objective of the proposed project is to design the blueprint for a gamified virtual experience to be implemented through the development of an initial prototype to provide students with individualized and guided practices that foment scientific research skills. The hypothesis is that the design of a robust blueprint for the gamified virtual experience will provide an effective template for the development of an initial prototype for a virtual intelligent system capable of fomenting science research skills in undergraduate students. The development and testing process will be guided by a design-based implementation research strategy, with active participation from undergraduate students and faculty. The expected outcome is the curricular structure and system architecture for the gamified virtual experience, serving as a template for the initial prototype of a gamified virtual intelligent assistant that will provide personalized research guidance to undergraduate students beginning in their freshman year. The gamified virtual intelligent assistant will be integrated into the university's online platform to be available to all students. The curricular structure and architecture for the gamified virtual experience will also be disseminated to the scientific community through publication and presentations in professional forums. This project is funded by the HSI Program, which aims to enhance undergraduate STEM education, broaden participation in STEM, and build capacity at HSI. 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.