Wisconsin Institute for Science Education and Community Engagement
Becoming part of the scientific community involves not only conducting research but also communicating about it effectively. Writing about research, talking about it, summarizing it, and creating posters and other visual presentations about it are valuable skills that you may need to take extra initiative beyond the classroom to learn. A great opportunity for undergraduates …
It’s important that you and your mentor have a common understanding of what the research experience will be. Meet with your mentor to discuss what each of you expects. Consider using a mentor-mentee contract to help you and your mentor talk about your goals and constraints and come to a mutually beneficial agreement. To prepare …
As this challenging academic year winds down, it can be especially valuable for grad students to take the time to consider where they're headed, writes Steve Lee and WISCIENCE faculty director Janet Branchaw.
During his remarkable 24-year career with WISCIENCE, Kevin Niemi, who retired in January 2021, was a leader in identifying and developing partnerships with community members and organizations. He brought his expertise in STEM education to K-12 students, to UW–Madison students, and to teachers in school districts throughout the state, nation and even the world, primarily in Thailand.
An update on which of our courses will be offered in fall 2021.
Dr. Kevin Niemi was recently recognized by the Wisconsin Society of Science Teachers (WSST) for his outstanding life-long work with Science Education in Wisconsin. WSST recognizes teachers of science annually for their achievements. The Ron Gibbs Award is given to honor a person who has made outstanding contributions in science education over a long and distinguished career in Wisconsin.
The Wonderful World of Microbes – a fascinating and beautifully illustrated zine about the widespread influence of tiny organisms we usually can’t see.
The Entering Research Learning Assessment (ERLA) is a set of parallel research trainee and mentor surveys that assess trainee learning gains in the seven areas of research trainee development articulated in the Entering Research conceptual framework. Items to assess trainee gains in equity and inclusion awareness and skills expand upon the scope of previously available multidimensional research trainee assessment tools and the parallel survey results can be compared to measure the degree of alignment between research trainees’ and mentors’ assessments of trainee learning gains.
WISCIENCE provides centralized common assessment and evaluation surveys that use the Entering Research Learning Assessment (ERLA) to promote and systematize the evaluation of undergraduate and graduate reserach experiences and training programs. These surveys are available to all trained facilitators of Entering Research (ER), regardless of whether they are using ER activities in their implementations. Programs using the ER curriculum can also used standardized program/course evaluation questions designed to evaluate the effectiveness of the curriculum in training program and workshop implementations.