Course Design in an Integrated First-Year Honors Sequence: Service Learning, Scaffolded Research, & Faculty Collaboration

Presenters/Authors

Jerri J. Kropp, Georgia Southern UniversityFollow
Trent W. Maurer, Georgia Southern UniversityFollow

Document Type

Presentation

Presentation Date

10-2013

Abstract or Description

Presentation given at Pre-ISSOTL Council on Undergraduate Research Symposium.

In this presentation, participants will learn about a collaboration of two professors working with a cohort of 15 students in a year-long integrated sequence first-year Honors course. Both semesters of the course center around the theme of animals in the lives of children, families, and communities. In the first semester, the course focuses more narrowly on animal-assisted therapies. In the second semester, the course focuses more broadly on global and diversity issues. As part of this course, students must complete both 25 hours of service learning and a research project. Students complete the project in multiple scaffolded steps, first at an individual level (fall semester) by identifying a topic related to the course, finding five relevant research articles, and presenting one article to the class. At the end of the fall semester, students create poster presentations which incorporate all five articles. In the spring semester, students are placed into small groups around common topic themes and integrate their research findings and work toward a final product presenting multiple research studies in a meta-analysis style tabular format to the class. The primary objective of the session is to demonstrate a method to involve students in research through the curriculum, leading to analysis and integration of research findings. Participants will be involved by seeing examples of each step and by discussing the authors' experiences in using this approach. Participants will learn about the benefits of: a) collaboration with another faculty member, b) working with the same cohort of students over two semesters, and c) the student outcomes when first-year are involved in scaffolded steps in understanding research.

Additional Information

Presentation obtained from the Pre-ISSOTL Council on Undergraduate Research Symposium.

Sponsorship/Conference/Institution

Pre-ISSOTL Council on Undergraduate Research Symposium

Recommended Citation

Kropp, Jerri J., Trent W. Maurer. 2013. "Course Design in an Integrated First-Year Honors Sequence: Service Learning, Scaffolded Research, & Faculty Collaboration." School of Human Ecology Faculty Presentations. Presentation 1.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/ecology-facpres/1