by Emily Miller, Associate Vice President for Policy, Association of American Universities While there has been significant research conducted demonstrating that with evidence-based pedagogies, undergraduate STEM students – including underrepresented students – learn more, persist, and complete their undergraduate degrees, these proven teaching practices are not yet the norm in most undergraduate science courses. Through the Association of American Universities’ (AAU) Undergraduate STEM … [Read more...]

We are pleased to announce the appointment of Andrea Greenhoot to the recently created role of Associate Alliance Director of the BVA. The Associate Alliance Director will share responsibilities with the Alliance Director, in accordance with the recently developed BVA succession plan. The organization is fortunate in the confluence of its goals with Dea’s personal intention to engage still more deeply in understanding how to bring about widespread improvement of pedagogy in higher … [Read more...]

Two Lessons from the Assessment Movement by Pat Hutchings Are students learning what we think we’re teaching? Are they learning the concepts and abilities that matter most? These are the questions that assessment seeks to answer, and they are central to the BVA’s emphasis on advancing the use of “evidence-based” practices in the classroom. As even a quick tour through the literature on assessment makes clear, using evidence about student learning to make (and then re-assess) improvements … [Read more...]