Effect of changes in course delivery format in response to the COVID-19 pandemic on self-assessed learning gains in a large introductory biology CURE

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic presented many challenges for educators. In Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs), where students learn about the scientific process by working on novel research, few resources for remote learning were available. Here the impact of changes to course delivery format on student learning gains in a large-enrollment introductory biology CURE was assessed during Fall 2019 pre-COVID-19, a fully in-person CURE; Spring 2020 COVID interruption, where half of the semester was fully in-person and half was fully remote instruction; and Fall 2020 fully COVID-impacted, where the CURE followed a hybrid format (alternating between in-person one week and remote the next week). Remote course delivery was achieved through the use of video conferencing software for remote laboratories and pre-recorded videos for lecture. Analyses of the results from pre- and post-surveys and the Laboratory Course Assessment Survey (LCAS) verified that a structured remote process that utilizes collaborative software embedded into a hybrid lab format was equivalent in student self-reported gains to the fully in-person mode. Thus, with assistance from remote software for certain activities, it is possible to conduct large-enrollment CUREs despite major disruption such as COVID precautions related to social distancing and therefore CURE need not be abandoned in situations that necessitate alternative modes of instruction.