Bridging the pathway from instruction to research

T he Pathways articles to date were intended to engage faculty in teaching, learning, and assessment, especially in large enrollment courses. The challenge for many faculty who have changed their courses is to determine if the innovations actually improve student learning. This leads some faculty towards research models that require empirical evidence based on student assessment data. Here we describe a framework for research on scientific teaching. Articles in subsequent months will provide practical advice for faculty who are interested in classroom research. We will use constructivist theories of how people learn (ie existing knowledge is used to build new knowledge; Bransford et al. 1999) to explore questions about how students actively gain meaningful understanding (Ausubel 2000). We also provide examples of research strategies and how one might gather evidence to assess changes in student learning. To scientists who have committed their lives to education , research, and the pursuit of knowledge, it may take a great deal of self-reflection and bouts of frustration to arrive at the question, " Why aren't students learning in my course? " This is the first and most important step for catalyzing change. In order to understand the extent of the problem, instructors must look closely at individual student work and talk with students who show indications of low achievement in class. " What does student work tell you about their learn-ing? What are your assumptions and the variables you need to recognize to effectively interpret student work? " Each teacher will have a different take on these questions and will approach the problem from a unique perspective. The direction taken will be a discovery process for newcomers to this type of inquiry, and questions of confidence may arise as instructors go beyond their comfort zone of disciplinary expertise. Perhaps you recognize yourself in the statement , " I was not formally trained to do this. I don't know anything about educational research ". At this point it may be helpful to think about your interest in and reasons for pursuing inquiry into learning. How much time, energy, and support do you have to commit to classroom research? What are your goals? Is the inquiry purely for yourself and your students' benefit? Or do you plan to share your investigation with others? Perhaps you are in a position where you need to convince others about the value of your instructional strategies, course, curriculum , …