Students who participate in Fly-CURE demonstrate gains in self-efficacy and belonging across a Research Coordination Network both before and during the COVID-19 pandemic
Affiliations: 1) University of Detroit Mercy, Detroit, Michigan; 2) Nevada State College, Las Vegas, Nevada; 3) University of Evansville, Evansville, Indiana; 4) Illinois State University, Bloomington, Illinois
Keywords: f. classroom undergraduate research experience (CURE)
Fly-CURE is a consortium of fifteen institutions implementing a Drosophila centered research project within undergraduate genetics laboratory courses. In this CURE, students work to characterize and map novel EMS mutants isolated from a Flp/FRT screen. To date, students have mapped 19 mutants on chromosome 2R including alleles of Egfr, Shot, Hpo, and Shn. These findings have resulted in six micropublications with 368 student co-authors. To understand the impact of Fly-CURE on student learning and attitudes towards research, we have assessed students on their perceived changes in sense of self-efficacy and sense of belonging, as well as gains on genetics-based learning objectives. These results were segregated by whether students had a previous research experience prior to the Fly-CURE. Overall, students who participated in the Fly-CURE report statistically significant gains in science self-efficacy and sense of belonging. Further, those students without a prior research experience reported lower scores in science self-efficacy before the class but have levels of science self-efficacy indistinguishable from those with previous research experiences by the end of the Fly-CURE. During the academic transition resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, Fly-CURE labs were taught using virtual, hybrid, and in-person modalities. Despite these changes in delivery methods, we see no statistical differences in student-reported gains before or during the pandemic. The Fly-CURE is an adaptable Drosophila based CURE that impacts student attitudes towards research and contribute to the understanding of the genetic regulation of developmental growth.