Considerations for Structuring Research Experiences

Constructing experiences that engage students over time and with increasing complexity and sophistication. Think about developing an approach that onboards students to the research process and provides opportunities to learn through both failure and success. Consider implementing the Student as Scholar model (Hodge, et al. 2007). This model can be used to engage students in research as early as their first year all the way through to graduation. As such, it is often referred to as a “convocation to capstone” approach. Scaffolding is typically a multi-term process with foundational, intermediate and advanced phases.

Foundation
Research programs, activities and courses at the foundation level should be highly structured by faculty and guided by disciplinary standards. The key to success at this level is to not only have students complete simple research activities but to have them see and understand how important rigor, academic integrity and responsible conduct of research are. Faculty modeling of behavior and work is crucial in this phase. Other key characteristics and suggestions:

• Incorporate inquiry-based learning. (Justice et al., 2007)
• Provide frequent and consistent feedback.
• Provide clear directions and guidance.
• Engage in assessment of student performance that rewards effort along with outcomes.
• Break down the activities into smaller components so students can understand how each step builds toward and fits into, a larger project.

Intermediate
At this level, students should be ready to take more responsibility for their own learning and need less guidance, structures and scaffolding. The role of faculty transitions to that of facilitator when it comes to research programs, activities and courses. Some modeling of behaviors and activities will be needed, especially when new knowledge and techniques are introduced, but your mentoring role will be to answer questions, offer appropriate challenges, remove overly-burdensome roadblocks and ask the right questions.

Advanced
Students at the advanced level are typically initiating their own research projects, with, and sometimes without, the guidance of a faculty mentor. Students that are ready for research at this level demonstrate advanced levels of specialized knowledge and research ability that they can use to frame their research questions. Their research projects may involve critiquing existing research, discovering new information, or applying their learning into other disciplines and fields of study.

Engaging as many students as reasonably possible in your research project(s). Consider how you might develop structures and strategies that engage students at scale. This is not intended to minimize the impact of one-on-one interactions, rather it is to increase access to and broaden the impact of research experiences.

Eliminating and/or minimizing factors that limit student engagement in a research experience. Many barriers exist for student participation in undergraduate research, some of which are prohibitive to their engagement. Barriers might include, but are not limited to:

• Financial challenges
• The need for a student to work to support themselves and/or their family
• Access to reliable transportation
• Cultural differences and norms

The process by which students are identified and selected for an undergraduate research experience should be defined, fair, and equitable. In cases where a student is paid for their participation, the hiring process must comply with University, State and Federal employment policies.

A number of studies have been conducted to examine the participation rates of students from underrepresented minority groups in undergraduate research. These rates are as much as six times less than that of their white counterparts (Schneider et al., 2021). At Missouri Western, 31.5% of our student population identifies with a race category other than white. Consider awareness, recruitment and retention approaches for your research efforts that will help your research team reflect our diverse student population.