Print PageThere is substantial evidence that writing can enhance learning and increase student engagement, yet Writing-To-Learn (WTL) practices are still not widely implemented in undergraduate science education. It has been very challenging to change science teaching practices, particularly at research universities, with faculty offering explanations such as lack of time or awareness, distrust of educational data, fear of learning new methods, and apprehension that identification with teaching will result in a lessening of their credibility as researchers. Given the increasing need to recruit, educate, and retain students in science disciplines, and the promising role that WTL practices could play in this process, it is essential that we reconsider our approach to science education. This NSF-funded, multi-component initiative is designed to engage a community of science educators in the processes of identifying and fostering the further development and implementation of WTL practices to improve undergraduate learning and teaching in science education. The aims of the initiative are to: (1) undertake a heuristic review of the research literature to identify empirically validated and promising practices;, (2) provide a searchable data-base of studies as a resource for the application of WTL practices in a range of educational contexts; (3) identify gaps in current knowledge and research questions to be addressed; and (4) establish a community of science educators as a foundation for collaborative, multi-university studies of the effectiveness of WTL practices in advancing learning and increasing engagement in science disciplines. The initiative was guided by the premise that efforts to develop and promote the adoption of effective WTL practices must be informed by current understandings of neurocognitive development, learning, and the science of teaching, and must also to be informed by and integrated with the theory and research on WTL.
Results/Conclusions
The two key products of the initial phase of this research are a heuristic review of the research literature and a searchable database of representative studies organized by discipline (biology and life sciences, chemistry, engineering, math, physics and earth sciences), class level (introductory, advanced and capstone), and learning objectives (ranging from acquisition of content knowledge to critical analysis to metacognitive skills). Our hope is that this grassroots approach to WTL encourages and supports science educators who are interested in incorporating writing in their teaching, and facilitates future research in this area.
