Gap Junctions: Reconnecting Our Community for Diffusion of Ideas
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Here's a Sneak Peek at ASMCUE's Unique Content!
Amy Siegesmund, Ph.D.
The Joy in the Journey: Building Relationships and Sharing Experiences
What Else Will You Experience at ASMCUE?
- A welcoming community of about 300 people that encourage your new ideas and projects for teaching and learning.
- Networking with creative educators who think deeply about teaching, teach the same classes you do and are genuinely passionate about helping students.
- A format that allows you to find the content and network suited to your professional interests.
- Opportunities to meet and offers from educational partners and companies who will support your teaching and learning endeavors.
Consider Sampling ABRCMS!
- For over 20 years, the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minoritized Scientists (ABRCMS) has been the go-to conference for underrepresented trainees and faculty and program administrators who support them.
- This new co-location of ABRCMS and ASMCUE allows attendees of both conferences to sample content and network with audiences from a different type of conference than they normally attend.
- In 2022, over 5,500 individuals representing 12 scientific disciplines attended ABRCMS.
2023 Plenary Speakers
Sara Brownell, Ph.D.
Arizona State University
Disclosure Decisions: Exploring the Concealable Stigmatized Identities of Science Instructors
Science instructors as role models and mentors can positively impact students, yet we know little about the identities of instructors. We collected data from over 2,000 faculty across the U.S. to document what percentage have concealable stigmatized identities, to what extent they reveal these identities to students in their classes, their reasons for concealing or revealing their identities and how revealing these identities may positively impact students.
Jackie Washington, Ph.D.
Alliance University
Closing the Gaps in Life Science Education: Challenges and Opportunities
It has long been recognized that STEM education in the U.S. needs a major overhaul. Student proficiency in STEM has been in a downward spiral since the 1980s, and despite many efforts, there had only been incremental changes until the 2011 AAAS Vision and Change Report catalyzed significant efforts to transform biology education. Now, over a decade later, while there has been some progress, there is still considerable work to be done to address the existing gaps to ensure that all students acquire the essential skills to become scientifically literate and meet the demands of the 21st century job market. In this session, I will highlight my journey as an educator to transform science education and, in doing so, bridge the gaps so that it is equitable and inclusive for all students.
Heather Seitz, Ph.D.
Johnson County Community College
Assessing Assessments: Utilizing Review and Data to Improve Assessments
As scientists and educators, we recognize that data can be instrumental in making new discoveries and innovations. This presentation will share how assessment data from 2 different independent projects, focused on assessing life science students, can drive innovation in the life sciences classroom. First, the Assessment Skills in Biology network (ASK BIO) is an NSF-funded project helping faculty write high cognitive level selected-response questions. Professional development workshops offered throughout the year have helped us collect questions and insight from faculty. Longitudinal data collected from participants focused on item writing, and review will be shared, as well as resources to support faculty as they create new assessment items. A new inclusivity guide to assessment item writing will also be shared and provide opportunities for reflection.Second, the Microbiology for Health Sciences Concept Inventory (MHSCI) has been used to assess expert thinking in microbiology classrooms for over 6 years. Insights from this national data set and program assessment outcomes will be discussed and an invitation to engage in these networks and in assessment work will be shared.
Concurrent Pre-Conference Workshops
Facilitators:
- Karen Wellner, Chandler-Gilbert Community College.
- Candace Carroll Wicks, Dallas College.
- Jacqueline Washington, Alliance University.
Videos can provide an engaging way of presenting content. However, to promote learning, videos need to be paired with opportunities for students to react to, reflect on and use the content. Participants of this hands-on workshop will learn how to turn HHMI BioInteractive videos into assessment-rich activities that engage students in active learning. Participants will explore best practices for writing selected response assessment items and learn to integrate these items into videos using Interactive Video Builder. The customized interactive videos created in this way are ready for sharing with students via a web link.
Attendee Learning Outcomes
At the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:- Apply best practices to write more effective and equitable selected response assessment items.
- Create assessment-rich interactive videos.
- Increase their repertoire of video-based active learning exercises.
Additional Information
Cost: Free with conference registration.Pre-requisites: None, educators at all career levels and institutions are welcome.
Facilitators:
- Nancy Boury, Iowa State University.
- Rebecca Seipelt-Thiemann, Middle Tennessee State University.
Attendee Learning Outcomes
At the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:- Connect core ASM content (Fundamental Statements & Scientific Thinking) to primary literature as presented by This Week in Microbiology (TWiM) hosts.
- Guide students through the process of creating a draft annotation, presenting that annotation, providing constructive feedback for peers and revising their annotations based on peer review.
- Create short, figure-reading and scientific literacy exercises based on primary literature presented by the TWiM hosts.
- Contribute to a nascent Open Education Resource (OER) book that provides resources for teaching microbiology concepts based on the ASM curriculum guidelines and Vision & Change.
Additional Information
Cost: Free with conference registration.
Pre-requisites: Prefer (not required) Faculty that teach general microbiology (majors or non-majors) with some knowledge of Vision & Change and ASM’s curricular guidelines.
Facilitators:
- Uma Swamy, Florida International University.
- Carlos Goller, North Carolina State University.
Attendee Learning Outcomes
At the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:- Describe connections between their teaching practices and the core concepts and competencies of Vision & Change.
- Explain how their implementation of active learning aligns with the principles of Vision & Change
- Identify gaps in their curricula.
- Revise syllabi and/or curriculum materials to better align with the call to action for improving undergraduate biology education.
Cost: Free with conference registration.
Pre-requisites: None, educators at all career levels and institutions are welcome.
Facilitator:
- Terry Lee Watson, Strategies for Justice, BWMP LLC.
Attendee Learning Outcomes
By attending this presentation, participants will be able to:- Recognize the multiple forms of cultural disruptiveness and its impact on building and maintaining an inclusive environment and sense of belonging.
- Identify at least one specific barrier that may stop your organization from achieving its inclusive and belonging goals and how to overcome them.
- Create a plan to continue an individual’s course of action to build and maintain an inclusive environment and build a sense of belonging.
Cost: Free with conference registration.
Pre-requisites: None, educators at all career levels and institutions are welcome.