Article authored by Entering Research team presents evaluation data for second edition of Entering Research

A recent article in CBE-Life Sciences Education presents two design and development research studies examining the effectiveness of the second edition of Entering Research, an undergraduate and graduate research trainee training curriculum.  In this paper, Entering Research authors Janet Branchaw, Amanda Butz, and Amber Smith describe the process of revising and expanding the curriculum to 96 ​active learning activities, which was a collaborative effort that began in 2015 and involved 24 practitioners across the country.  The manuscript provides a summary of pilot testing data collected from a national sample of 78 facilitators and 565 undergraduate and graduate research trainees from 20 sites, as well as data from four ​Entering Research facilitator training workshops. 
 
The second edition of Entering Research is available from Macmillan and individual activities are available for free on the CIMER website. For more information on the Entering Research curriculum, evaluation and assessment tools, and upcoming facilitator training opportunities, visit https://wiscience.wisc.edu/program/entering-research or contact the Entering Research authors at enteringresearch@education.wisc.edu.

Abstract

The second edition of Entering Research (ER) is a collection of customizable active-learning activities, resources, and assessment and evaluation tools for use in undergraduate and graduate research training programs and courses. Results from two design and development research studies examining the effectiveness of the second edition of the ER curriculum and a 2-day ER facilitator training workshop are reported. Pilot testing of the second edition of the curriculum at 20 sites across the country (42 unique implementations) with 78 facilitators and 565 undergraduate and graduate research trainees provides evidence that the ER activities are clear and complete and that they were effective in helping trainees gain knowledge or improve their ability to do research. Overall, research training program directors and trainees were satisfied with courses and workshops that incorporated activities from ER. Likewise, evaluation data from four ER facilitator training workshops showed that participants valued the workshop and reported significant gains in confidence in their ability to successfully develop and implement a custom ER curriculum. Together, these results provide evidence that the ER curriculum and training workshop warrant further efficacy, effectiveness, and scale-up research.

Read the full article at CBE-Life Science Education Online Journal

Meet the Authors

Janet Branchaw

Janet Branchaw

Director of WISCIENCE, Assistant Professor of Kinesiology

Amanda Butz

Director of Evaluation & Research at WISCIENCE

Amber Smith

Associate Director of WISCIENCE & Director of Research Mentor and Mentee Training