More than 8 out of every 10 college students are not STEM majors, yet we have little understanding about learning expectations for them. We used the results of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute BioInteractive learning objectives survey of 38 instructors teaching nonscience major courses to characterize learning objectives (LOs) in these courses.…

The Human Anatomy & Physiology Society (HAPS) has published a set of learning outcomes to be used for curriculum design of a one-semester introductory physiology course. The outcomes are competency-based and are mapped to core concepts and skills students should develop as undergraduates. This paper is an introduction to how the physiology…

Large introductory classes, with their expansive curriculum, demand assessment strategies that blend efficiency with reliability, prompting the consideration of multiple-choice (MC) tests as a viable option. Crafting a high-quality MC test, however, necessitates a meticulous process involving reflection on assessment format appropriateness, test…

We provide a set of practices implemented within the last year that integrate experiential learning cycles into an established introductory wet-lab course. The use of this cycle during the course and impact on meeting course defined learning objectives and student responses are considered in defining success. Each of the three practices are…

We propose a framework for identifying, organizing, and communicating learning objectives that involve program semantics. In this framework, detailed learning objectives are written down as rules of program behavior (RPBs). RPBs are teacher-facing statements that describe what needs to be learned about the behavior of a specific sort of programs.…

Instructors who teach introductory art studio courses face the task of covering large quantities of diverse content in a short amount of time. Developing material and technical knowledge requires time-consuming practice. Yet these courses are essential for launching a relational studio practice embedded in critical thinking. The awkward leap from…

In this study, we introduce a framework designed to help educators assess the effectiveness of popular generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools in solving authentic assessments. We employed Bloom's taxonomy as a guiding principle to create authentic assessments that evaluate the capabilities of generative AI tools. We applied this framework…

The nature of science (NOS) is a phrase used to represent the rules of the game of science. Arguably, NOS is the most important content issue in science instruction because it helps students understand the way in which knowledge is generated and validated within the scientific enterprise. This article offers a proposal for the elements of NOS that…

Curriculum initiatives that provide the societal context of engineering practice can contribute to justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) within the profession, as well as within the communities served by engineers. JEDI curriculum can foster diversity and inclusion by acknowledging and addressing social justice issues, providing a safe…

This study evaluated syllabi (N = 87) from introductory advertising and public relations courses to examine to what extent and how stated course goals and assignments signal the overall learning orientation of a course and which type of learning orientation--mastery or performance--was most common. Mastery orientations emphasize intrinsic rewards,…

Even after you have decided to tackle a problem like racial equity, it may seem daunting to broach the subject in a physics classroom. After all, the idea of a (typically White) instructor in power tackling a sensitive topic such as social justice can be scary in any (mostly White) classroom. Not only that, but physics is typically viewed as a…

Learning objectives (LOs) are statements that typically precede a study session and describe the knowledge students should obtain by the end of the session. Despite their widespread use, limited research has investigated the effect of LOs on learning. In three laboratory experiments, we examined the extent to which LOs improve retention of…

Scholars have suggested that civic engagement in the United States is declining and some have argued that institutions of higher education are responsible for the fostering of civic engagement through efforts such as service learning. These opportunities may be created either through a top-down approach with student assignment to specific groups…

This article is about designing and implementing PowerPoint-based interactive simulations for use in International Relations (IR) introductory undergraduate classes based on core pedagogical literature, models of human skill acquisition, and previous research on simulations in IR teaching. We argue that simulations can be usefully employed at the…

This teaching innovation is a brand-based student-led inquiry of marketing concepts and practices for an introductory marketing course. During the first week of class, teams of students (or individual students) each select a brand of interest to research and analyze throughout the course. The objective is for students to understand the practical…