Recruitment blurb for our faculty learning community (FLC)

Fostering student engagement in required research courses through developing community connections:  Overcoming “the stuff they hate to love”

Need a new approach to engaging students in required research courses?  Targeted to instructors teaching in psychology, social work, education, sociology, occupational therapy, criminal justice, nursing or related fields, the proposed faculty learning community (FLC) will focus on the promotion of student engagement in required research courses through community-based partnerships.  For many of our students, professional goals often relate to ‘working with people,’ as opposed to conducting research.  However, as instructors, we know that the skills learned in statistics and research methods courses are often vital to the development of professionals who can think critically about their work in light of the existing research in their professional arena, engage in program evaluation or interpret basic statistical findings. Given widespread commentary on the research-to-practice gap in the provision of health, education and human services, the proposed FLC is designed to begin to bridge the gap between student engagement in research-related courses and the need for human services graduates with basic research-related competencies.  Participants will explore the ways in which they can enliven students’ experiences in the classrooms through the development of curricula that include short and longer-term, hands-on projects and/or partnerships with community-based agencies in this process.  Drawing on human services literature about bringing the community into the classroom – and the classroom into the community, this FLC will explore the uses of a range of tools, from short, community-based assignments for weekly discussions to the development of community-based participatory research projects aimed at program evaluation, implementation studies or treatment fidelity assessments. Each FLC participant designs and conducts a project over the course of the academic year.  

What are possible discussion topics for your biweekly meetings (Please include 5-6 potential topics):  The following are examples of proposed discussion topics for the proposed FLC:

1.      Teaching tips for translating and demystifying “research as a second language”

2.      Discussion of methods of cooperative learning in research-related courses

3.      Pedagogical approaches to group management in group-based research projects

4.      Fostering relationships with community-based partners in support of manageable student group research projects

5.      Teaching ethnographic data collection methods through short homework assignments

6.      Teaching the conduct of needs assessments through community-based projects

Proposed goals:	Proposed outcomes:
1.      To foster student engagement in research-related coursework	To reduce students’ fears about research-related coursework
	To increase student interest in the use of research findings in professional settings post-graduation
2.      To foster or strengthen partnerships between community entities and Salem State College faculty	To increase the capacity of faculty members to develop partnerships with community agencies
	To improve faculty experiences in teaching required research-related courses through the development of ongoing, dynamic and responsive community partnerships
3.      To foster the development of best practices in teaching community-engaged research-related courses	To develop a section of a white paper on the joys and challenges of using various teaching techniques for use in required research courses for human services departments
	To develop a section of a white paper on the joys and challenges of using various short and long-term assignments for use in required human services research courses