Targeted Infusion Project:
Innovating Writing-To-Learning Pedagogy to Promote and Assess Deep Conceptual Understanding
and Mindful Learning across Authentic STEM Education Settings,
$399,982 funded by National Science Foundation.
09/01/2023 – 08/31/2026
Principal Investigators
Wei Zheng (Principal Investigator) wei.zheng@jsums.edu
Jie Ke (Co-Principal Investigator)
Yonghua Yan (Co-Principal Investigator)
Joon Young Lee (Co-Principal Investigator)
Doreen N. Myrie (Co-Principal Investigator)
The core of this initiative is the integration of Writing-to-Learn (WTL) pedagogy with the development of cognitive and metacognitive skills for STEM students. This approach focuses on enhancing understanding and engagement with STEM coursework.
A key aspect of the project is the use of AI tools for automatic assessment of student writing. This technology is designed to provide feedback on students’ academic progress and to assist in the improvement of their learning in STEM subjects. The goal is to offer a more nuanced understanding of student learning and to help identify areas for further development.
Additionally, the project includes the creation of a virtual network for educators and researchers. This network is intended to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and best practices in teaching, with a focus on innovative methods in STEM education.
The anticipated outcomes of the project include the adoption of effective teaching methods that can be sustained within the HBCU community. It also aims to encourage collaboration among STEM educators and learning scientists, with a special focus on supporting new HBCU faculty members in their professional development.
This initiative represents a step towards improving STEM education at HBCUs, aiming to enhance the academic experiences and outcomes for students in these fields.
Join Our Research Consortium:
Innovating AI-Powered Education
We are excited to extend an invitation to educators, researchers, and academics interested in pioneering the future of AI-powered education. Our goal is to establish a research consortium that fosters innovative collaborations and strengthens partnerships across institutions. This initiative is focused on advancing research and innovation in AI-driven teaching and learning technologies. We especially encourage faculty from HBCUs and major research universities to consider this opportunity for professional growth and collaboration.
Why Join Our Community?
- Network with faculty across HBCUs and engage with external advisors/guest speakers from top-tier research universities.
- Dive into interdisciplinary collabration and exchange on cutting-edge knowledge related to AI-powered teaching and research.
- Help your students’ learning and advance your career through collective efforts.
If you are interested in joining the Microsoft Teams group, which is established to facilitate communication among community members, please click the link below to express your interest. We will then send a formal email invitation for you to join the team. This step is crucial for those outside our organization, as we need to manually add them to the team before we can send an email inviting them to become formal group members. Otherwise, they will only have guest access.
Project Activities
Brief of Our Last Meeting: On Nov 10, we held our 1st virtual community meeting where our PIs shared insights on project implementation from two perspectives: implementing writing-to-learn pedagogy and fostering collaboration within the community in the era of AI. The session was well-attended, with 40 participants from multiple HBCUs, although many of you were confused about the meeting time or had a conflicted schedule and missed it. Feedback highlighted the breakout room sessions as particularly enjoyable, allowing for casual conversations and better acquaintance with colleagues and their institutions, as well as the discussions that were thought-provoking for some future research direction. We aim to continue this level of engagement in our future gatherings. The links to two versions of the PIs’ presentation part of the last meeting are provided at the bottom of this invitation, including our vision for the community activities and products.
Next meeting: December 14, 3:30 PM CST
Upcoming 2nd Meeting Highlights:
-
- Relish in breakout room sessions for informal discussions and networking opportunities.
- Present prompts and assessment rubrics tailored for writing-to-learn initiatives in the context of the content analysis of qualitative research, as well as AI-powered teaching and learning support.
- Deliberate on strategies to augment the value of our community for each participant in the era of AI.
Your perspective and active participation are crucial to the success of our community. Let’s unite to exchange ideas, learn together, and forge new paths in academic excellence.
Have Suggestions?
We value your input! If you have any suggestions for this community, please reply to this email with your ideas. We eagerly anticipate your participation in what promises to be an invigorating and fruitful session.
Project Team
A: Implementation team implementing the WTL, including 16 instructors from 4 HBCUs, are listed below:
|
Title and Name |
Department / University |
Course |
Student number |
|
Prof. Wei Zheng |
Civil Engineering, JSU |
Structural Analysis |
20 |
|
Asso Prof. Jermiah Billa |
Technology, ASU |
Health Physics I and II |
15 and 15 |
|
Assist Prof. Latonya Garner-Jackson |
Mathematics, MSVU |
Probability and Statistics |
10-15 |
|
Assist Prof. Ramesh Maddali |
Mathematics, ASU |
Calculus II |
40 |
|
Assist Prof. Yonghua Yan |
Mathematics, JSU |
Calculus IV |
20 |
|
Assist Prof. Kejun Wen |
Civil Engineering, JSU |
Statistics |
45 |
|
Prof. Huiru Shih |
Technology, JSU |
Emergency Response and Manage. |
12-15 12-15 |
|
Asso Prof. Felicite Noubissi Kamden |
Biology, JSU |
BIO 318 |
40 |
|
Asso Prof. Naomi F. Campbell |
Chemistry, JSU |
General Chemistry |
40 |
|
Asso Prof. Yongfeng Zhao |
Chemistry, JSU |
General Chemistry |
20 |
|
Assist Prof. Lin Gong |
Electrical Engineering, JSU |
Control Systems |
12 |
|
Assist Prof. Tammi M. Taylor |
Biology, JSU |
General Genetic Biology |
25-32 |
|
Assist Prof. Daniel Splaingard |
Architecture, MSVU |
Introduction to Architecture |
15 |
|
Assist Prof. Doreen N. Myrie |
Special Education, JSU |
Assistive Technology |
5 |
|
Assist Prof. John T. Barringer |
Biology, TC |
General Biology II |
15-18 |
|
Assist Prof. Karina Kapusta |
Chemistry, TC |
General Chemistry I |
32-34 |
Note: JSU: Jackson State University; ASU: Alcorn State University; MVSU: Mississippi Valley State University; TC: Tougaloo College
B: Project Advisor and/or Speakers: The project will be advised by researchers specialized in relevant fields. If the project is funded, PIs will create a virtual community/forum where the project team will report processes and technical bottlenecks of ongoing research quarterly, and advisors may provide feedback related to their expertise. PIs will also particularly seek advice from them in their expertise area individually. PIs also intend to take this chance to establish a network connecting researchers from major universities with HBCUs’ faculty members to seek further collaboration to promote STEM teaching innovations and research. These advisers’ expertise and relevant publications are provided below:
- Dr. Meena Balgopal is a Professor in the Department of Biology at Colorado State University. She has expertise in implementing writing-to-learn pedagogy in school settings: Balgopal, M. M., & Wallace, A. M. (2009). Decisions and dilemmas: Using writing to learn activities to increase ecological literacy. The Journal of Environmental Education, 40(3), 13-26. (External adviser and Speaker)
- Dr. Laura L. Bierema is a Professor in the Department of Lifelong Education, Administration, & Policy at the University of Georgia: Bierema, L. L. (2010). Diversity education: Competencies and strategies for educators. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 12(3), 312-331. (External adviser only)
- Dr. Nigel Bosch is an Assistant Professor in the School of Information Sciences and Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign: Shute, V. J., D’Mello, S., Baker, R., Cho, K., Bosch, N., Ocumpaugh, J., … & Almeda, V. (2015). Modeling how incoming knowledge, persistence, affective states, and in-game progress influence student learning from an educational game. Computers & Education, 86, 224-235. (External adviser and Speaker)
- Dr. Eunjung Grace Oh is an Associate Professor in the Department of Education Policy, Organization and Leadership at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: Han, S., Oh, E., & Kang, S. P. (2022). Social capital leveraging knowledge-sharing ties and learning performance in higher education: Evidence from social network analysis in an engineering classroom. AERA Open. (External adviser only)
- Dr. Julie A. Reynolds is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biology at Duke University: (a) Reynolds, J. A., Thaiss, C., Katkin, W., & Thompson Jr, R. J. (2012). Writing-to-learn in undergraduate science education: A community-based, conceptually driven approach. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 11(1), 17-25. (External adviser and Speaker)
- Dr. Yu-Chun Kuo is an Associate Professor in the Department of Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics Education at Rowan University: Tseng, H., Kuo, Y. C., Yeh, H. T., & Tang, Y. (2022). Relationships between connectedness, performance proficiency, satisfaction, and online learning continuance. Online Learning, 26(1). 285-301. (External adviser only)
- Dr. Muhsin Menekse is an Associate Professor in the Department of Curriculum & Instruction at Purdue University: Menekse, M., Anwar, S., & Akdemir, Z. (2020). How do different reflection prompts affect engineering students’ academic performance and engagement? The Journal of Experimental Education. 90(2), 261-279. (Speaker only)
- Dr. James P. Becker is a Professor in the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering at the Montana State University: Becker, J., Plumb, C., Revia, R. A. (2014) Project circuits in a basic electric circuits course. IEEE Transactions on Education, 57(2), 75-82. (External adviser and Speaker)
- Dr. Ying Tang is a Professor in the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering at the Rowan University: Xiao, Q, Li, C, Tang, Y, & Li L. (2019). Meta-reinforcement learning of machining parameters for energy-efficient process control of flexible turning operations,” IEEE Transactions on Automation Science and Engineering, 1-14. (External adviser and Speaker)
- Dr. Min Chi is a Professor in the Department of Computer Science at North Carolina State University: Gao, G., Gao, Q., Yang, X., Pajic, M., & Chi, M. A Reinforcement learning-informed pattern mining framework for multivariate time series classification. In the Proceeding of 31th International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence. (Speaker only)
- Dr. Rachel S. Goldman is a Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Michigan: Finkenstaedt-Quinn, S. A., Halim, A. S., Chambers, T. G., Moon, A., Goldman, R. S., Gere, A. R., & Shultz, G. V. (2017). Investigation of the influence of a writing-to-learn assignment on student understanding of polymer properties. Journal of Chemical Education, 94(11), 1610-1617. (Both)
- Dr. Jean Mohammadi-Aragh is an Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering at the Mississippi State University: Beck, P. J., Mohammadi-Aragh, M. J., Archibald, C., Jones, B. A., & Barton, A. (2018). Real-time metacognition feedback for introductory programming using machine learning. In 2018 IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference, 1-5. (External adviser and Speaker)
- Dr. Heidi Diefes-Dux is a Professor in the Department of Biological Systems Engineering at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln: Ney, K., & Diefes-Dux, H. A. (2021). First-year engineering students’ reflections: Plans in response to perceived performance on course learning objectives. In 2021 First-Year Engineering Experience. (External adviser and Speaker)
C: Unpaid STEM and Education faculty among HBCUs signing the LOI to participate in the community:
1. Jinwei Liu, Assist. Prof., Computer and Information Sciences, Florida A&M University. 2. Archana Sharma, Assist. Prof., Biology, Tuskegee University. 3. Yinshu Wu, Asso. Prof., Department of Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics, Alabama A&M University. 4. Lin Li, Asso. Prof., Department of Computer Science, Prairie View A&M University.5. Seyedehkhadijeh Azimi, Assist. Prof., Department of Mathematics & Econ, Virginia State University. 6. Chiqian Zhang, Assist. Prof., Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Southern University and A&M College. 7. Stephen Via, Assist. Prof., Biology, Norfolk State University. 8. Nar Rawal, Assist. Prof., Mathematics, Hampton University. 9. Caixia Chen, Assist. Prof., Department of Mathematics & Computer Science, Tougaloo College. 10. Renzun Zhao, Assist. Prof., Civil Architect & Environ Engineer, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. 11. Tony Se, Assist. Professor, Department of Mathematics, Florida A&M University. 12. Hyung D. Bae, Assistant Prof., Department of Mechanical Engineering, Howard University. 13. Jiangnan Peng, Asso. Prof., Departments of Chemistry and Biology, Morgan State University. 14. Ranganathan Parthasarathy, Assist. Prof., Department of Civil and Architectural Engineering, Tennessee State University. 15. Wanjun Hu, Professor, Department of Math, CS & Physics, Albany State University. 16. James R. Valles, Asso. Prof. Department of Mathematics, Prairie View A&M University. 17. Emmanuel U. Nzewi, Prof. Civil & Environmental Engineering, Prairie View A&M University. 18. Brieah D. Hudson, Assist. Prof., Department of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation, Jackson State University. 19. Barbara Howard, Associate Professor, Department of Educational Administration, Jackson State University. 20. David K. Rop, Adjunct, Department of Mathematics and Statistical Sciences, Jackson State University. 21. Gloria S. Smith, Asso. Prof., School of Lifelong Learning, Jackson State University.22. Millard J. Bingham, Asso. Prof. of Interdisciplinary Studies, Jackson State University. 23. Hilliard L. Lackey, Asso. Prof. of Urban Higher Education, Jackson State University.