Conference: Active Learning Communities in Biochemistry

This project aims to serve the national interest by increasing the diversity of faculty and institutions participating in molecular life science education for undergraduate students. The award will support 24 faculty members from under-resourced institutions to attend the 2024 DiscoverBMB meeting sponsored by the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Faculty will attend the DiscoverBMB meeting in March 2024 in San Antonio, Texas where they will attend sessions on teaching practices and pedagogy in the molecular life sciences. Faculty will also participate in a professional development workshop focused on developing connections with existing NSF-supported molecular life science communities. Molecular life science education has made great strides in recent years in the development of evidence-based, student-centered initiatives that engage undergraduates and foster enthusiasm for remaining in STEM-based career trajectories. This project will enable a group of instructors from traditionally under-resourced institutions, such as community colleges and minority-serving institutions, to become familiar with a series of NSF-supported communities that represent a range of pedagogical initiatives and evidence-based practices in molecular life sciences including case studies, course-based undergraduate research experiences, and biomolecular visualization literacy. The instructors that participate in the project will be able to bring these pedagogical ideas home to their respective students and colleagues, thereby strengthening the ways in which STEM education is provided at these institutions. By doing so, this project will help to bring a new set of diverse voices into the national conversation on molecular life science educational best practices and strengthen ongoing efforts to spread these practices to as wide an audience as possible. The NSF IUSE: EDU Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. This project is also supported by NSF’s RCN:UBE Program, which seeks to develop networks to foster the use of evidence-based practices in undergraduate biology education. 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.