Lecturer of Biology Michaelyn Hartmann teaches with the intention that students will walk away from her class with the skills necessary to succeed not only as biologists, but also as learners and educators.
Hartmann conducts educational research, striving to find the best and most effective ways to help students learn and keep them engaged during their studies. This focus allows Hartmann to explore and employ different teaching methods in her introductory biology, genetics, and cell biology courses.
“You will not only learn content in my courses,” says Hartmann, “but you will learn how to apply that knowledge, how it relates to research and the world around you, and how to communicate science.”
With a passion for biology and teaching, Hartmann’s research is motivated by helping all of the students in her classroom succeed, no matter their level of college preparation or access to resources. She is actively learning in the classroom by keeping an open dialogue about course progress and structure with her students.
arts&sciences met with Hartmann to get to know more about her educational interests and research ahead of her upcoming “Professor Perspectives” talk.
What research are you currently working on at BU?
I am about to publish a paper on the educational research I will talk about in the Professor Perspectives event! That research is on incorporating scientific communication skills into the undergraduate classroom. I hope to continue some of that research as well as explore a new research area into what has been called “ungrading.” Ungrading refers to ways that offer different/alternative grading schemes into classes. I have incorporated some ungrading into an upper level class that I teach and would like to extend my research into this field to see how it impacts student learning.
Where does your passion for educational research come from, and how does your expertise in biology influence this interest?
My passion for educational research stems a lot from the fact that I am a first-generation college student. It has been shown that students from minoritized backgrounds, including first-gen students, face a disadvantage in the college classroom. Much of educational research is focused on how we can best support everyone in the classroom and allow everyone to succeed, not just the students that are already prepared for college. I love biology, I always loved learning biology, I love teaching biology, and I want to pass on that love for biology to the next generation of scientists. Everyone deserves to learn biology and my passion is to help every one of my students succeed. So, my passion for educational research stems from figuring out the best ways to help ALL of my students succeed.
How important has educational research been for universities since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic? What are some of the prevalent impacts the pandemic has had on learning and education?
It is so interesting to ask about the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on learning! While this is not my area of research/expertise, I have read about many studies on how zoom learning is different from in-person learning, but also research on the positive aspects of zoom learning as well. Many educational researchers have focused on how to make zoom learning better—- like how to make class engaging even while online. I even heard about a study that analyzed how students were using the chat function during class and what they got out of it! There have been a lot of good things to come out of zoom learning as well, notably the flexibility. It is so much easier now to record classes, which is beneficial for both students and professors when flexibility is needed.
As a university professor, what are some of the most effective methods you currently employ to assess student learning success in your classrooms beyond exams and assignments?
In the field of educational research, we often refer to assessments in two categories- formative and summative assessments. Formative assessments are meant to assess learning throughout the process of learning, and summative assessments measure how much students learned at the end of the learning process. We often think of exams and finals as summative assessments and see those as very important, but I like to focus a lot more on the formative assessments to make sure my students are learning throughout. My favorite ways to assess student learning are through in class questions that students answer online and then we work through how they came to the answers. This helps students learn how they should be thinking while answering a question and gives them great practice with exam-like questions. I also like to give my students problem sets or study guides to guide them through the learning/studying process. This gets at the idea that students should not be expected to already know how to study and learn on their own, but this is a skill that should be developed throughout college with assistance.
What are some ways students and professors can work together to facilitate academic success?
It is really important to think about how the learning process is collaborative. In order to learn the material, the professor has to provide the content and learning resources, but studying is hard work too! Students have to put in the hard work to learn and remember content- I wish it was as easy as me just handing you the information! But the more work that each party puts in, the more students will be able to learn. I also think it is important to have that collaborative mindset while teaching and designing courses- I send out a mid-semester survey to my students to see what is working for them or not working for them in class and what I can do to better support them. I try my best to provide what I can for students, but I also want them to know that a lot of the work happens when they study on their own as well.
What advice do you have for students who are figuring out how to learn and study on their own?
Seek advice! There are the obvious resources like workshops on how to study, but there are a lot of not-so-obvious resources too. Like your peers! Ask your friends how they study, or study with them, ask your tutors how they studied, ask your professor how they would recommend studying for their class. I love when students come to office hours to ask me about study methods. If you find good study methods that work for you, share those strategies with your friends!
If you could go back in time, what would you want your professors to know about teaching undergraduate students science topics in a university setting? What advice would you have for your undergraduate- self?
I think one of the hardest things about teaching is that our classes are so important to us. As instructors, we care so much about how our students do, we care that they learn as much as possible, we care that what we say makes sense, because all of that means we are doing a good job. So I think my advice stems from that idea for both my previous professors and for my undergraduate self- it’s all a balance. As professors, we need to remember that our course is not the only priority our students have, and I would tell my undergraduate self to know that my professors care so much about how I do in their course and they are trying to support me.
Hartmann’s current research on incorporating science communication skills in the undergraduate classroom will be discussed at the Professor Perspectives event, “Applying the Scientific Method to Learning”, on April 12 from 6:30 to 7:30pm at 100 Bay State Rd, Room 613B.