Education Research
The C-CoMP team is rounded out by education researchers who are conducting empirical research on ocean science education and research training. Their research examines the impacts of both formal curriculum interventions and research education experiences. Education research activities are framed in terms of relevant learning, motivation, and career development, as well as the logical connections between the goals of each activity, the fidelity of its implementation, and its hypothesized outcomes. Given the aim to diversify the ocean sciences, all education research studies attend to the backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences of individuals involved in educational activities and education research.
Current K-12 research
The C-CoMP education team is currently working on a K-12 ocean science landscape study (MARINEK12), a large-scale study that will survey teachers from a nationally representative sample of middle and high schools. The goal is to understand the forces, both extrinsic and intrinsic to teachers and classrooms, that influence their ability and desire to cover ocean science concepts in their classrooms. For more information about this study, please visit the MARINEK12 project page.
current post-secondary research
The main post-secondary education effort underway in C-CoMP is the development and implementation of Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs). C-CoMP scientists and educators have developed two CUREs thus far: the Ocean Genes CURE and the Ocean Protein CURE. Both CUREs are being evaluated formatively and summatively to make year-to-year improvements and examine effectiveness in terms of developing student interest, motivation, and integration into the scientific community.
In addition to CUREs, C-CoMP is providing multiple avenues for early career researchers to engage in Center research and advance in their development as researchers. The C-CoMP team is working to understand how early career researchers develop an identity as a researcher by integrating theories from science education and professional development. The first phase of this work is qualitative in nature. The next phase will be quantitative, with the aim of development a measure of researcher identity that can be used to study research training experiences within and beyond C-CoMP.