To further teaching and learning, there has been a push to engage faculty to pursue research on teaching. With the recognition that science research often is done by teams, we sought to create a research-cluster approach to support faculty engaging in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL). This article describes a faculty-focused process…

Science communication skills are increasingly emphasized as an important skill for undergraduate STEM students. In our science communication podcast project, students use the fundamentals of science communication to research a topic related to their inquiry-based lab project. Groups then create a podcast that presents the current science to a…

Integrating authentic research practices into introductory laboratory courses to prepare tomorrow's scientists has become increasingly prevalent over the past decade. However, an incomplete understanding of the nature of science (NOS) and authentic scientific inquiry (SI) precludes higher-level learning in undergraduate research experiences. In…

As part of a Howard Hughes Program for Innovation in Science Education grant at Iowa State University, a series of interdisciplinary graduate teaching assistant learning communities (TALC) were developed. The purpose of these communities was to create an environment to facilitate teaching assistants' pedagogical development and training to enhance…

The geology program at Clemson University has instituted a new, six-semester-long undergraduate research course sequence that requires student participation in ongoing departmental research projects from their sophomore through senior years. As a part of a university-wide initiative focusing on undergraduate research, termed Creative Inquiry at…

Inquiry-based instruction is gaining favor in college classrooms because it improves scientific skills as well as critical thinking. As we seek ways to improve science education, elementary school is increasingly becoming an embattled component because of decreased time spent on science during those years. The approach that elementary educators…