Write It Down to Up the Impact: Authentic and Reflective Writing to Maximize the Impact of Undergraduate Research

Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) can be invaluable for students, but implementing them across a university requires substantial faculty support. This case study explores the incorporation of CURE elements (discovery, iteration, scientific practices, broad scientific relevance, and collaboration) into the design of a faculty professional learning program intended to support CURE implementation. The findings suggest that incorporating CURE elements into a CURE Faculty Fellows Program can support the simultaneous development and successful implementation of scaffolded CUREs across multiple university departments. This program had an additional, unexpected benefit: it created opportunities for faculty from many disciplines to engage in educational research, augmenting their research and publishing agendas. This article summarizes the program, presents findings, and discusses implications for practitioners and researchers interested in pedagogical reform.

Undergraduate research experience is the process where undergraduates contribute to the development of a subject field through their inquiry-based learning (IBL). IBL is a student-centered learning strategy. Students work as professional scientists do, through inquiry. This article presents approaches to IBL and practices of an instructor from China for strengthening and facilitating IBL in geographical information science (GIS). Two paths were proposed for the development of the students on the basis of four modes of IBL. The practical experience was introduced in two parts: course design and IBL tool development for classroom teaching, and undergraduate mentoring outside of the classroom.

Many postsecondary institutions host a knowledge dissemination event for students to publicly share their scholarly, research, and creative works. These events improve student communication skills and self-efficacy. The authors propose that these events also can affect students’ sense of belonging. CREATE is Vancouver Island University’s all-discipline student knowledge dissemination event. During the 2020–2021 academic year, seven specific tactics were employed to increase a sense of belonging at CREATE. A post-event survey indicated that overall students had a strong sense of belonging, and underserved students felt more able to be themselves at CREATE then in their day-to-day lives. Further, qualitative responses showed evidence that most tactics were beneficial. Taken in concert, these tactics give event organizers an applied model for increasing students’ sense of belonging at their events.