CIRTL Spring MeetingTAMU June 3-4 2009

U.S. doctoral education needs to meet policymakers’ rising expectations:◦Currently grad ed provides limited preparation for

the full range of faculty work.◦STEM doctoral programs don’t attract or retain

enough diverse U.S. students.◦Surviving graduate school to land a satisfying and

manageable faculty position is daunting.

Graduate students need training beyond research preparation.

Future Faculty Professional Development (FFPD) Programs exist but we don’t know if they are effective.

Key questions are:◦What difference have these programs made? ◦And if they make a difference, what critical factors

characterize them?

The Common Items Survey answers the question:

What are characteristics of programs that effectively prepare graduate students for careers as 21st century faculty and as future academic leaders?

Comparison of key programmatic features Reviewing existing evaluation data Common and uncommon questions

generated Pre and post surveys conducted at CUB, UW

and MSU Student responses analyzed for common

themes

 Colorado (n = 25 pre,

20 post) MSU (n = 5) UW-M

  Pre (%) Post (%) Pre (%) Pre (%) Post (%)

None 8 5 (20 = undecided) 6 7

A Little 44 25 80 44 13

Some 40 60 0 31 47

A Lot 8 10 0 19 33

Colorado (n = 25

pre, 20 post) MSU (n =5) UW-M

Pre (%) Post (%) Pre (%) Pre (%) Post (%)None 0 0 0 0 0

A Little 20 10 60 25 7Some  64 80 0 56 67A Lot 16 10 40 19 27

"Through the process of getting IRB approval, I was forced to think through the objectives of my teaching project. Had I not done this, I don‘t think I would have ever thought about my teaching in this way. It's hard to describe, but by making this teaching project more like 'real‘ research, I now think about teaching in a different way.“

“I learned a lot! I learned to transfer my science research skills straight to another field like educational research. I learned which skills I needed to develop (such as qualitative data analysis). I was basically ignorant beforehand of the huge literature out there on scientific teaching. I learned which journals to go to, what to read and where I could potentially publish this type of work. I learned about IRB proposals”.

“Over the past year, I feel I have learned a great deal from embarking on this teaching-as-research project. First, I gained an understanding of how to ask a solid research question and develop a research method that would allow me to answer that question. Second, I gained great experience seeing and applying many of the pedagogical tools and techniques I had read about through my teaching assignment during this past semester. Third, I learned how to approach analyzing qualitative research data in a way that recognizes limitations and draws reasonable  conclusions. Finally, I also saw that teaching is also meant to be collaborative in nature, just as science is collaborative. The experience of  designing and carrying out research in teaching has been one of the best learning experiences for me during my time in graduate school”.

“I am more confident in my abilities to interact and consult with my peers and colleagues”. (L.C.)

“The importance of keeping the classroom dynamic and adaptable to the needs of students, as a group and as individuals. The importance of consultation and feedback about one's teaching habits”. (Diversity)

“I have learned more about the body of research available for improving teaching. My earlier philosophies were geared towards creative presentation of the material, but now I know that I need to get the students actively involved to truly absorb the material”. (T.A.R.)

“Community building. ” (Learning Community)

“Became more comfortable with communicating with people from other science disciplines, noticing the differences in language and approach.”

(Learning-Through-Diversity)

“I learned a lot about teaching-as-research being a powerful tool to help improve my teaching skills every semester. Pre/post surveys help you know what worked and what didn't work.” (Teaching As Research)

In their own words… UW-MadisonIn their own words… UW-Madison