Think First, Act Later - A Course Structure for Improving Student Designed Experiments
written by
Nathan D. Powers, Dallin S. Durfee, and David D. Allred
There is a natural tendency for students to act first (e.g. - build and conduct experiments) and think later (e.g. - outline goals, identify challenges, predict outcomes, etc.). This is often apparent in labs that include student design components. We have developed a lab course structure that teaches students how to develop their ideas and make plans before beginning an experiment by providing multiple opportunities for peer and instructor feedback. As a result, we have seen significant improvements in the success rate and quality of student-designed experiments and presentations. We provide a detailed explanation of the course structure and rubrics and evidence of the impacts of this course structure.
2018 Conference on Laboratory Instruction Beyond the First Year of College
Part of the BFY Conference series
Baltimore, MD: July 25-27, 2018
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<a href="https://advlabs.aapt.org/items/detail.cfm?ID=14969">Powers, N, D. Durfee, and D. Allred. "Think First, Act Later - A Course Structure for Improving Student Designed Experiments." Paper presented at the 2018 Conference on Laboratory Instruction Beyond the First Year of College, Baltimore, MD, July 25-27, 2018.</a>
N. Powers, D. Durfee, and D. Allred, , presented at the 2018 Conference on Laboratory Instruction Beyond the First Year of College, Baltimore, MD, 2018, WWW Document, (https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=14969&DocID=5029).
N. Powers, D. Durfee, and D. Allred, Think First, Act Later - A Course Structure for Improving Student Designed Experiments, presented at the 2018 Conference on Laboratory Instruction Beyond the First Year of College, Baltimore, MD, 2018, <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=14969&DocID=5029>.
Powers, N., Durfee, D., & Allred, D. (2018, July 25-27). Think First, Act Later - A Course Structure for Improving Student Designed Experiments. Paper presented at 2018 Conference on Laboratory Instruction Beyond the First Year of College, Baltimore, MD. Retrieved December 13, 2024, from https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=14969&DocID=5029
Powers, N, D. Durfee, and D. Allred. "Think First, Act Later - A Course Structure for Improving Student Designed Experiments." Paper presented at the 2018 Conference on Laboratory Instruction Beyond the First Year of College, Baltimore, MD, July 25-27, 2018. https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=14969&DocID=5029 (accessed 13 December 2024).
Powers, Nathan D., Dallin S. Durfee, and David D. Allred. "Think First, Act Later - A Course Structure for Improving Student Designed Experiments." 2018 Conference on Laboratory Instruction Beyond the First Year of College. Baltimore, MD: 2018. of BFY Conference. 13 Dec. 2024 <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=14969&DocID=5029>.
@inproceedings{
Author = "Nathan D. Powers and Dallin S. Durfee and David D. Allred",
Title = {Think First, Act Later - A Course Structure for Improving Student Designed Experiments},
BookTitle = {2018 Conference on Laboratory Instruction Beyond the First Year of College},
Address = {Baltimore, MD},
Series = {BFY Conference},
Month = {July 25-27},
Year = {2018}
}
%A Nathan D. Powers %A Dallin S. Durfee %A David D. Allred %T Think First, Act Later - A Course Structure for Improving Student Designed Experiments %S BFY Conference %D July 25-27 2018 %C Baltimore, MD %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=14969&DocID=5029 %O 2018 Conference on Laboratory Instruction Beyond the First Year of College %O July 25-27 %O application/pdf
%0 Conference Proceedings %A Powers, Nathan D. %A Durfee, Dallin S. %A Allred, David D. %D July 25-27 2018 %T Think First, Act Later - A Course Structure for Improving Student Designed Experiments %B 2018 Conference on Laboratory Instruction Beyond the First Year of College %C Baltimore, MD %S BFY Conference %8 July 25-27 %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=14969&DocID=5029
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