What is the Life Sciences-Carl Wieman Science Education Initiative?
The LS-CWSEI is one component of the Carl Wieman Science Education Initiative (CWSEI) at UBC, a multi-year, Faculty of Science-wide project whose purpose is to improve undergraduate science education. The CWSEI members, called Science Teaching and Learning Fellows (STLFs), help faculty and departments take a four-step, scientific approach to teaching:
- Establish what students should learn in each of the core courses
- Measure what students are actually learning
- Adapt instructional methods to achieve desired learning outcomes
- Disseminate what works within and outside the UBC community
More information about the structure, scope and implementation of the CWSEI can be found here, including an FAQ.
What is the scope and structure of the LS-CWSEI within Life Sciences?
The scope of LS-CWSEI projects ranges from helping an instructor refine the learning goals for a single class to consulting on department-wide curriculum reform. In the current structure of the LS-CWSEI, each STLF is assigned to one of the core courses (100- and 200-level) in the UBC Biology Program, which has recently undergone a curriculum reorganization. Most, but not all, of the projects undertaken by each STLF is associated with their assigned core course.
What exactly is a Science Teaching and Learning Fellow and what do they do?
In the LS-CWSEI, an STLF is a post-doctoral fellow with a PhD in biology who also has university-level teaching experience as well as knowledge and experience in relevant science education methodology and research. The STLFs assist faculty members in a variety of ways to implement evidence-based best teaching practices in their courses; these ways include introducing faculty to new approaches to teaching and assessment of learning, assisting faculty to develop or revise courses and materials, and providing feedback to faculty on the effectiveness of newly-adopted approaches.