Although most instructors and institutions agree on its value, undergraduate research remains an underutilized pedagogical tool because it requires ample time, funding, and equipment. Various institutions feel these pressures differently, but for many small institutions, lack of laboratory equipment and financial support can hinder undergraduate…

At our small liberal arts college, we require undergraduates majoring in Biology and Biomedical Sciences to take a seminar in the spring of their senior year. Each year, the seminar focuses on a different topic in molecular biology and/or biochemistry. The course operates as a "journal club"--every week, a student presents a…

All students pursuing STEM careers need to be adept at interpreting and evaluating primary research literature. The complexity of research articles requires significant practice and training in order to become skilled and efficient at this process. Thus, an early start in undergraduate education is essential and allows for development and practice…

Undergraduate research is lauded as a high-impact practice owing to the array of benefits that students can reap from participating. One unexplored construct that may affect student intent to persist in research is research anxiety, defined as the sense of worry or apprehension associated with conducting research. In this study, we surveyed 1272…

Advancing equity and justice in undergraduate biology education requires research to address the experiences of disabled students. Scholars working in disability studies have developed models of disability that inform Discipline-Based Education Research (DBER). To date, DBER literature has been predominantly informed by the medical and social…

This study aimed to determine preservice science teachers' (PST) attitudes towards the Reconceptualized Family Resemblance Approach to the Nature of Science and to examine PST attitudes towards this approach according to grade levels. The study group consists of 75 people studying in the 3rd and 4th year of undergraduate education. The sample of…

Undergraduate students interact with the culture of scientific research when they participate in direct mentorship experiences and laboratory courses such as course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs). Much work has been done to explore how CUREs impact the interest, motivation, and retention of undergraduate students in science.…

Little is known concerning chemistry and biochemistry majors' understanding of research and scientific inquiry. In this three-year qualitative research study, chemistry and biochemistry majors were interviewed before and after participating in a National Science Foundation-sponsored Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program at a…

Effective science communication is a common goal scientists share, but explicit science communication curriculum is lacking in undergraduate science programs. Although course-based research experiences (CUREs) can provide opportunities for students to practice their communication skills, the literature lacks consistent investigations of oral…

The ability to read, understand, and interpret primary scientific literature is an essential skill for undergraduate students in science. This study aimed to provide a detailed understanding of how second- and third-year undergraduate students in a biochemistry and molecular biology major at the University of Melbourne in Australia feel about…

Science advances through the interplay of idea construction and idea critique. Our goal was to describe varied forms of productive disciplinary engagement that emerged during primary literature discussions. Such descriptions are necessary for biology educators and researchers to design for and recognize diverse repertoires of participation in the…

Undergraduate science students who volunteer within a research laboratory group, or participate in funded research opportunities, in general are those who have the opportunity to engage in authentic research. In this article, we report the findings from two different iterations of a semester-long collaboration between a biology faculty member and…

This article reports the development of a dissemination work and analysis of the influence of a chemistry science dissemination video on the perception of university students in relation to scientific research carried out at the public university, to scientific dissemination itself and the use of scientific dissemination videos as learning tools.…

The chemical experiment is designed for undergraduates majoring in chemistry, energy, and environment. The intended purpose is that the students will comprehend the reaction mechanism of photocatalytic reduction of CO[subscript 2] through hands-on experiments and deepen their understanding of sustainable energy technologies. More importantly, the…

Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) provide an efficient mechanism to provide many students with an original research project. CUREs often culminate in a capstone poster presentation, but reports on these classes usually focus on the preparation and execution of the project rather than communication of the results. This article…