NSF Award
0633046
Psychology - Biological (71)<br/>This project is enhancing undergraduate science education by providing opportunities to undergraduate students at the University of Detroit Mercy (UDM) to conduct empirical research projects within their laboratory courses. UDM is developing and evaluating two undergraduate laboratory courses in Psychology, Biopsychology and Perception and Cognition. The project goal is enriching the research training and thereby the critical thinking ability of undergraduates through project-based (inquiry-based) laboratory experiences. The specific objectives of this project are to increase students' knowledge of research methods, critical thinking ability, confidence in computer use, interest in research and graduate school, and student comprehension of key issues in related science. <br/><br/>The laboratory courses are being designed to be taken after students complete traditional lecture courses in Biopsychology and Perception and Cognition. Experimental models that are commonly used in psychological research are being adapted to create the laboratory courses. In these courses students progress from observing faculty-directed demonstrations to engaging in whole-class projects designed by the instructor, finally conducting small-group independent projects. The impacts of the new courses are being evaluated with four types of assessments. Cohorts of psychology majors are being surveyed before and after the new curricula are introduced. The surveys cover interest in scientific research and graduate study, career plans, experiences at UDM, and demographic information. A standardized test of critical thinking is administered to beginning Psychology majors and then re-administered as they complete an advanced laboratory course. The objective of increased comprehension is being addressed by pre and post-course measurements of the enrolled students' understanding of selected complex key issues. Traditional end-of-term in-class evaluations provide ongoing assessment of student reactions to the new courses. <br/><br/>The intellectual merit of this project is its potential to advance knowledge in undergraduate science education. The broader impact of the proposed activity is its involvement of an ethnically and economically diverse population of students, providing them with expanded opportunities to learn science as science is done. The number of UDM undergraduate students who are able to engage in scientific research is increasing. Such experience is essential to providing a strong foundation for either further training in psychological science or immediate employment. This approach to undergraduate education in psychology has the potential to become standard practice at other institutions.
