eScience – Enhancing the Science Learning Community

TitleeScience – Enhancing the Science Learning Community
Faculty/College/UnitScience
StatusCompleted
Duration2 Year
Initiation04/01/2003
Completion03/31/2005
Funding Details
Year 1: Project Titlee-Science – the Science Students’ Digital Communities Project
Year 1: Project YearYear 1
Year 1: Funding Year2003/2004
Year 1: Project TypeSmall TLEF
Year 1: Principal InvestigatorPaul G. Harrison
Year 1: Funded Amount48,352
Year 1: Team Members

Paul G. Harrison, Science Student Centre and Skylight, Faculty of Science
Janet Beddoes, Student Development, Faculty of Science
Ian Cavers, Associate Dean, Faculty of Science
Elisa Collett, Advising Coordinator, Faculty of Science
Joanne Nackonechny, Senior Research Associate, Skylight, Faculty of Science
Cyprien Lomas, Research Associate, Skylight, Faculty of Science
Reka Szlopa, President, Science Undergraduate Society

Year 1: Summary

Objective: Students' university experience is shaped by the information they access and their social and academic integration into the university. This project targets students from their first interest in science, through their undergraduate, graduate, and alumni years, with the goals of building community and creating successful learners and scientists while at UBC and beyond. The a-Science project will provide access to a collaborative digital space that provides resources selected for their potential to help build community: communities of learning (e.g., learning resources, web log groups), communities of purpose (e.g., projects, Science Advising, Career Development), communities of interest (e.g., MUGs, clubs, Science Undergraduate Society), and communities of practice (e.g., peer tutoring, research). These communities will help students to develop support structures that lead logically to a variety effective learning and social interactions inside and outside this virtual space. The e-Science project is not a stand­alone initiative, but one that will work collaboratively with other web resource projects at UBC and generate channels for the myUBC Portal initiative.

Rationale: Among the many challenges that UBC sets science students, a major one is the "unsupportive culture" (Seymour, 1995) of science. As student success is strongly linked to the teaching and learning environment, if students are unable to access appropriate information and develop support systems, they are at a higher degree of risk for failing, repeatedly switching majors, or dropping out. This project addresses the need to provide a more supportive environment through a digital community learning space where students can find and develop their academic and individual communities. Although many new web resources will certainly be created by this project, perhaps more importantly the e-Science project will provide a unified structure for organizing and presenting existing web resources for current, potential, and alumni Science students and through this effort also serve to keep information consistent and accurate.

Year 2: Project YearYear 2
Year 2: Funding Year2004/2005
Year 2: Project TypeSmall TLEF
Year 2: Principal InvestigatorPaul G. Harrison
Year 2: Funded Amount35,426
Year 2: Team Members

Paul G. Harrison, Science Student Centre / Skylight, Faculty of Science
Janet Beddoes, Student Development, Faculty of Science
Ian Cavers, Associate Dean, Faculty of Science
Elisa Collett, Advising Coordinator, Faculty of Science
Stefanie Doetzer, Graduate Student, Faculty of Science
Cyprien Lomas, Research Associate, Skylight, Faculty of Science
Joanne Nakonechny, Senior Research Associate, Skylight, Faculty of Science
Susan Peters, International Student Coordinator, Faculty of Science
Dan Yokom, President, Science Undergraduate Society
Ed Zwart, Student, Computer Science

Year 2: Summary

Objective: Students' university experiences are shaped by the information they access and their social and academic integration into the university. This project targets students from their first interest in science, through their undergraduate, graduate, and alumni years, with the goals of building community and creating successful learners and scientists while at UBC and beyond. The eScience project will provide access to a collaborative digital space that provides resources selected for their potential to help students build their own communities: students interacting with peers through public and private electronic communication forums that lead to team work whether on a class project or in the Student Rec Centre; students planning their academic programs with the aid of critical updates on academic rules and regulations from the Science Advising Centre; students accessing opportunities for international experiences, for research internships, or for workshops on career planning through timed and timely notifications tailored to the individuals needs and interests. These resources will help students to develop support structures that lead to a variety of effective learning and social interactions inside and outside this virtual space. The eScience project is not a stand-alone initiative, but one that will work collaboratively with other web resource projects at UBC and generate channels for the myUBC Portal initiative when the opportunity exists.

Rationale: Although generally successful in their studies, we know through surveys that many UBC Science student indicate their learning and university experience would have benefited from a greater sense of community. This project addresses the need to provide a more supportive environment through digital resources and a learning space where students can find and develop their academic and individual communities. Many new and updated web resources have already been created in the first year of this project, and given the positive responses to them, we believe additional resources will further the ability of eScience to support students' preferences and needs and to reach not only current but also potential and alumni Science students.