HIGHLIGHT #1 | 110
HIGHLIGHT | #1
Title
Undergraduate Research (UR):
Context, Benefits and UR in
Action
Author(s)
Chris Little
Contact
[email protected]
Department
Student Learning
Abstract
Undergraduate research (UR) is
a growing field of educational
research. Definitions of UR have
often focussed upon student-staff
collaborations where students assist
in, or are the subjects of, research
predominantly driven by staff.
However, UR is gaining momentum
as a field in its own right with more
and more undergraduate journals and
conferences occurring independent
of staff input. This paper will detail
pedagogic literature surrounding UR
and detail the benefits of enacting
UR for both students and staff. It will
also inform colleagues of the JADE
Student Learning Undergraduate
Conference 2016: an undergraduate
conference by undergraduates for
undergraduates leading to direct
publication routes in Keele’s Journal
of Academic Development and
Education (JADE). The conference
is due to take place on the 1st June
2016 and will feature original poster
and verbal presentations from
undergraduates across all-faculties
at Keele. This project was funded as
part of the Learning and Professional
Development Centre’s (LPDC)
Teaching Innovation Projects scheme.
Keywords
Undergraduate research, conferences,
skills development
This paper will review some of the literature pertinent to the
growing field of undergraduate research (UR) and discuss the
potential benefits to developing an undergraduate research
culture at Keele, citing the act of dissemination as crucial to
the growth of fully developed research skills. Additionally, it
will briefly detail an ongoing investigation into UR occurring
at Keele during the 2015/16 academic year, funded by Keele’s
Teaching Innovation Project (TIP) scheme. The JADE Student
Learning Undergraduate Conference will take place on 1st June
2016. Following the conference, the abstracts and proceedings
will be published in the Journal of Academic Development and
Education (JADE). The current progress of this undergraduate
conference will be detailed. This paper intends to increase
awareness of UR and its potential benefits for staff and students,
as well as offering a ‘view from the trenches’ from a learning
developer running an undergraduate conference this summer.
It is hoped that this may positively encourage colleagues who
perhaps may be thinking about pursuing UR by offering insight
into these processes.
Context
Undergraduate research is a burgeoning field of practice and
pedagogical research. The British Conference of Undergraduate
Research ((BCUR) 2010) occurs annually, hosted at a different
university each year. The 2014 conference was hosted by the
University of Nottingham, and the 2016 conference is scheduled
to take place at Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU)
on the 22-23rd March. The conference welcomes speakers
from across the country to present original research. The
organisation behind the conferences, based at the University
of Central Lancashire (UCLAN), also promotes and supports
undergraduate journal development. There are also a growing
number of undergraduate research journals, often exclusive to
the students of particular institutions. UCLAN’s undergraduate
journal, Diffusion: the UCLan Journal of Undergraduate
Research (2014), is one such example. However, there are some
which accept publications from students outside of their parent
institution, such as the University of Warwick’s Reinvention
(2013) journal. Keele’s own JADE also encoura ges student, be
they undergraduate or postgraduate, publication.
Walkington and Jenkins (2008) position publication as a route
through which undergraduates may get the opportunity to fully
enact the ‘research cycle’ (Caprio, 2014; Spronken-Smith et al,
2013). Here, research is seen as incomplete if authors do not
get the opportunity to disseminate their findings widely. After
all, the research and dissemination process for academic staff
is often dependent upon reception by peers which are tracked