Research and Miscellaneous Projects
T-PULSE is involved in several collaborations to enhance all aspects of science teaching and learning in the Faculty of Science and within the University. Below is a short list of projects:
Current Projects
Laboratory Pedagogy Improvement Project 2011-present
For many new students the first taste of the experiemental basis of science is in the laboratory portions of introductory science courses. Unfortunately, many of these lab components are pedagogically out of date and fail to engage the student in the process of experimentation. Phase I of this project saw funds distributed to departments in the Faculty of Science to use as they saw fit to improve their introductory labs. Phase II is more ambitious, with a competitive process and more funds available.
TA Manual 2011-present
Although some departments have small manuals for their new TAs there is no comprehensive guide for TAs across the Faculty of Science. An updated version of the current TA resource is being worked on.
Advanced Study Techniques Workshop 2010-present
A workshop to introduce undergraduate students to long-term learning in place of short-term cramming. Many students who come to McGill find that they made it through high school or CEGEP without having to properly study and find those skill desperately lacking in the more rigourous academic environment at McGill. This workshop is for them.
TA Discussion Group 2009-present
After the Graduate Teaching Workshops, it can be difficult to know what to do if techniques fall flat or if the TA has questions. The Workshop Follow-Up Project will bring together TAs, upper-level undergraduates, and professors to come together in a continuing series of meetings to discuss teaching techniques, problems, and solutions.
Science Education Research and Development Project (WOW Lab) 2006-present
The WOW Lab, an initiative in elementary and high school level science education, was launched at McGill on September 17th, 2007 with a ceremony to thank the Imperial Oil Foundation for the generous founding donation.
Previous Projects
Clicker Pedagogy Project 2009-2010
Student Response Systems ("clickers") allow faculty to get immediate feedback from students in their classes and have been shown to produce learning at more advanced levels, allowing students to think critically about what they are learning and test the knowledge and skills they are developing. This project's goal is to increase clicker use in McGill classes. It will provide professors with resources and support to make inclusion of clickers in their courses as simple as possible as well as helping them use clickers to their full potential.
OSS/T-PULSE FacSci Toolkit Project 2009-2010
Science students taking courses in departments other than their own often encounter difficulties with concepts specific to that department. The goal of this project is to create support material that will allow the student to become re-familiarized with information that may have only been encountered years previously. This is a joint project between Office for Science and Society and T-PULSE.
OSS/T-PULSE FacSci Tutoring Project 2009-2010
A co-operative project between the Office for Science and Society and T-PULSE to train undergraduate tutors for the World of Chemistry courses who will identify students experiencing trouble and tutor them in small groups.
Measuring the Impact of the Science Graduate Teaching Workshops 2008-2010
This research project aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the graduate teaching workshop and the impact the workshops have on graduate and undergraduate science students. Surveys will be launched spring and fall 2009 to science graduate students to collect data on their perspectives of teaching and learning.
T-PULSE Clicker Sustainability Research Project 2008-2009
In this study, we are examining the effectiveness of three distribution models: loan, pay, and incentive models. In the “loan” model, the course instructor is provided with enough clickers to supply the students in his/her class on a class-to-class loan basis. In student “pay” model, students are encouraged by the instructor to buy a clicker for $50 in the same way that they are encouraged to buy a course textbook. In the “incentive” model, it was identical to the “pay” model with the exception that 3-5% of students’ grades were based on their participation in clicker questions.
Enhancing Student Engagement: TLS/T-PULSE Science (Re)-Design 2007-2009
This project's intention was to increase and enhance student engagement in large introductory undergraduate science classes and establish the necessary processes and policies to efficiently and effectively support university-wide implementation of the student response systems (SRS, Clickers).