A Mixed-Method Examination of the Impact of Active Learning on Underrepresented Minority, First-Generation, and Low-Income Students

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Brian Sato - Interim Associate Dean, Division of Teaching Excellence and Innovation and Associate Teaching Professor, Molecular Biology and Biochemistry School of Biological Sciences

My research goals, while varied, focus on how we can improve STEM education at the undergraduate level. Currently, my group is focused on three projects:

(1) Examining the impact of teaching faculty across the UC system - While considerable effort has been spent in the recent past to identify means to increase success in the classroom for STEM undergraduates, particularly at-risk students, a major challenge has been how to disseminate these methods on a broader scale. One potential means to accomplish this is through change agents, faculty that are embedded within departments that can act as resources to implement new teaching methods. The University of California has a unique faculty line, the Lecturer with Security of Employment/Teaching Professor, and we are currently exploring whether these faculty are successful change agents. Continue reading...