NSF Award
1623371
Bethune-Cookman University is examining the effects of socioscientific argumentation learning and development on student success in STEM. The overarching purpose of the research is to investigate how to produce STEM graduates with argumentation expertise to address ill-structured problems that require scientific, evidence-based reasoning to inform decisions. The researchers will structure an intervention around units of biology and environmental science courses focused on scientific issues and conduct a three-phase research study. The Phase I pilot will determine the current argumentation level of STEM students and analyze the pilot data to identify gaps in effective socioscientific argumentation development. In Phase II, the researchers will develop and adapt a socioscientific argumentation learning training system for students. Phase III will be an experimental study to investigate the effect of socioscientific argumentation training on student outcomes. The significance of the study is that the findings can be used to provide students with skills and competencies needed for graduate school or the STEM workforce; namely, evaluation of evidence, construction of arguments, and evaluation of competing arguments.<br/><br/>The researchers will use a quasi-experimental design to answer three research questions: 1) What socioscientific argumentation strategies do the students currently use? 2) What gaps exist in effective socioscientific argumentation? 3) Does socioscientific argumentation instruction influence student outcomes? In Phase 1, they will use socioscientific issues at the nexus of food, energy, and water for questionnaires, written reports, and debates to collect data on students' decision-making process, tendency to engage in arguments, argumentation levels, and quality of argumentative structures. The researchers will use several rubrics and socioscientific argumentation models to analyze data collected in Phase 1. They then propose to conduct a pre- and post- comparison of the quality of arguments on socioscientific issues between intervention and comparison groups. Measures of student academic success will be assessed from the dimensions of academic achievement, career success, attainment of learning outcomes, persistence, acquisition of skills and competencies, and satisfaction. The research will produce information needed to develop intervention models for improving scientific argumentation skills development of STEM students. <br/><br/>This project is supported by the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP) Broadening Participation Research in Education track. This program track supports ideas to create and study new models and innovations in STEM teaching and learning, investigate the underlying issues affecting the differential participation and success rates of students from underrepresented groups, and produce knowledge to inform STEM education practices and interventions.
