This is a comprehensive, consensus study of "Discipline Based Education Research" (DBER) in the natural sciences. It is being undertaken by the Board on Science Education (BOSE) of the National Research Council. It is examining what is known from research on undergraduate learning in the sciences. There are substantial education research literatures in the major science disciplines, in cognitive psychology, and in science education. These literatures form the core of this study. The focus is on concepts and topics in science that are appropriate for the undergraduate level in all kinds of institutions, including introductory courses and courses for non-majors. Taking stock of what is known and variations across bodies of research constitutes the major part of this study. As a major study with emphasis on research in subject-matter learning and teaching, the study is building upon previous reports by the National Research Council, such as "How People Learn" (NRC, 2000). The proposed study is being carried out by a 14-member committee with expertise in instruction across the scientific fields as well as in cognition and learning.
A growing number of studies have revealed that faculty content knowledge is by itself often not sufficient for effective instruction at the undergraduate level. Discipline Based Education Research (DBER) practitioners have demonstrated new instructional approaches and materials which significantly improve students' understanding of essential concepts and the nature of scientific inquiry. In 2008, BOSE conducted two workshops to explore the research underlying these new approaches and promising practices. The workshops illuminated the efficacy of selected promising practices while also highlighting weaknesses and gaps in the research requiring further study.
This consensus study is exploring both the strengths and weaknesses of DBER. The study is also comparing DBER emerging from the different STEM disciplines in order to distinguish practices whose efficacy has been clearly demonstrated across the disciplines from those requiring further research to demonstrate efficacy beyond a particular discipline or classroom context. It will summarize the current scope and quality of DBER, suggest ways in which education researchers across scientific disciplines can learn from one another and from the broader research on learning, and identify important areas for future research.
Because this is a consensus study, all of the study's conclusions and recommendations will be subject to rigorous review by 12 to 14 independent reviewers.
