The Science Case Network, a newly established Research Coordination Network for Undergraduate Biology Education, centers on expanding the use of and knowledge about two effective teaching approaches: case studies and problem based learning (PBL). The Science Case Network seeks to connect case study and PBL innovators, researchers, and user groups to further the understanding of the effectiveness of these methods.

Case studies and PBL have been shown to help undergraduates develop superior skills in question formulation and data analysis while they learn as much content as with traditional methods. Using these approaches, students collaboratively analyze a scenario that presents a biological issue within a realistic setting. Students then conduct investigations and report findings.

From Sunshine Brosi

From Sunshine Brosi

From Sunshine Brosi

Contains a link to the MathBench website and several papers describing the resources and their impact on student quantitative skills. There are also two handouts that list all of the modules and show which quantitative skills they target and in which courses they are typically used.

National Academies Report from 2016: "Nearly 40 percent of the students entering 2- and 4-year postsecondary institutions indicated their intention to major in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) in 2012. But the barriers to students realizing their ambitions are reflected in the fact that about half of those with the intention to earn a STEM bachelor’s degree and more than two-thirds intending to earn a STEM associate’s degree fail to earn these degrees 4 to 6 years after their initial enrollment. Many of those who do obtain a degree take longer than the advertised length of the programs, thus raising the cost of their education. Are the STEM educational pathways any less efficient than for other fields of study? How might the losses be “stemmed” and greater efficiencies realized? These questions and others are at the heart of this study."

This report highlights the importance of community colleges, especially in emerging areas of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) and preparation of the STEM workforce.  Community Colleges in the Evolving STEM Education Landscape: Summary of a Summit looks at the changing and evolving relationships between community colleges and four-year institutions, with a focus on partnerships and articulation processes that can facilitate student success in STEM; expanding participation of students from historically underrepresented populations in undergraduate STEM education; and how subjects, such as mathematics, can serve as gateways or barriers to college completion.

Free PDF version available.

These guidelines offer a set of concrete suggestions that can be applied to any discipline or domain to ensure that all learners can access and participate in meaningful, challenging learning opportunities.

DeafTEC provides resources for high schools and community colleges that educate deaf and hard-of-hearing students in STEM-related programs.

THE CENTER FOR UNIVERSAL DESIGN is a national research, information, and technical assistance center that evaluates, develops, and promotes accessible and universal design in housing, buildings, outdoor and urban environments and related products.

A collection of suggestions for Universal Design approaches in various educational settings, from Pat Marsteller.

Carol Dweck's research on the impact of mindset on student success.

Tips for reducing stereotype threat in the classroom and beyond.

Claude Steele's research on what stereotype threat is, how it impacts people, and how to alleviate it.

From the website: People don’t always say what’s on their minds. One reason is that they are unwilling. For example, someone might report smoking a pack of cigarettes per day because they are embarrassed to admit that they smoke two. Another reason is that they are unable. A smoker might truly believe that she smokes a pack a day, or might not keep track at all. The difference between being unwilling and unable is the difference between purposely hiding something from someone and unknowingly hiding something from yourself.

The Implicit Association Test (IAT) measures attitudes and beliefs that people may be unwilling or unable to report. The IAT may be especially interesting if it shows that you have an implicit attitude that you did not know about. For example, you may believe that women and men should be equally associated with science, but your automatic associations could show that you (like many others) associate men with science more than you associate women with science.

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Visit the website to take an IAT on any of a variety of topics.

This book explores the cultural biases all people have, and their impact on society.  This is an accessible and thought provoking overview of complex issues that bear on our students, our teaching and our own lives.  The research is linked to work with the Implicit Association Test.  

Banaji, M.  and Greenwald, A. 2103

xkcd is a good source for sassy humor.

Quantitative Reasoning in the Disciplines supports faculty in all disciplines to develop innovative pedagogical techniques that enable students to identify, navigate, and apply quantitative information in their personal, professional and academic lives.

I developed this in-class exercise last year at the BioQuest workshop.  I haven't had a chance to run it in class as yet, but it does incorporate quantitative biology and provide a series of activities to have students develop a hypothesis, a prediction, and determine if their prediction matches up with the actual model of metabolic rate in humans vs. flies.

All this work is mine, so it can be considered to be open-source

Another assessment tool from ACT, but the list of quantitative skills is useful for defining goals.

"At some point, many of us sat in math class and asked ourselves, “When am I going to use this?” We may not have believed it, but the answer in a variety of professions is, “Every day!” The Applied Math assessment measures critical thinking, mathematical reasoning, and problem solving techniques for situations that actually occur in today’s workplace. While individuals may use calculators and conversion tables to help with the problems on the assessment, math skills are still needed to think them through."

From the ACT, this is an assessment tool but this page provides a nice list of graphic literacy skills. 

"Workplace graphics come in a variety of formats, but all communicate a level of information. From charts to graphs, diagrams to floor plans, identifying what information is being presented and understanding how to use it are critical to success. The Graphic Literacy assessment measures skills that individuals use when they read and comprehend graphical materials to solve work-related problems."

The VALUE rubrics were developed by teams of faculty experts representing colleges and universities across the United States through a process that examined many existing campus rubrics and related documents for each learning outcome and incorporated additional feedback from faculty. The rubrics articulate fundamental criteria for each learning outcome, with performance descriptors demonstrating progressively more sophisticated levels of attainment. The rubrics are intended for institutional-level use in evaluating and discussing student learning, not for grading.  

The Mathematics Assessment Project is part of the Math Design Collaborative initiated by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The project set out to design and develop well-engineered tools for formative and summative assessment that expose students’ mathematical knowledge and reasoning, helping teachers guide them towards improvement and monitor progress. The tools are relevant to any curriculum that seeks to deepen students' understanding of mathematical concepts and develop their ability to apply that knowledge to non-routine problems.

The National Numeracy Network promotes education that integrates quantitative skills across all disciplines and at all levels.

Whether called numeracy, quantitative literacy (QL), or quantitative reasoning (QR), the infusion of quantitative materials throughout the curriculum is an imperative of higher education. This website is intended to provide a repository of resources and information for faculty from across the disciplines who are seeking to infuse numeracy into their course instruction.  (From CUNY)