Gateway Science Workshop
- Overview
- History
- Students
- Facilitators
- Faculty
- Contact
Introduction
The Gateway Science Workshop (GSW) is a peer-led program designed to enhance students' learning as they successfully complete course sequences in chemistry, organic chemistry, biology, math, physics, and engineering.
Workshops are offered for:
- Biology 210
- Chemistry 101-102-103
- Chemistry 210 (see ESW program)
- Engineering Analysis
- Math 220-224-230
- Physics 130 and Physics 135
GSW provides a student-friendly environment where diverse groups of learners can ork together to solidify their understanding of course material. Students develop critical thinking skills by attending weekly sessions in groups of 5 to 7. In these sessions, students tackle challenging course-related material led by a student facilitator who has previously done well in the course.
Program History
The Gateway Science Workshop (GSW) program was developed in 1997 as a key part of Northwestern University's strategy to address the issue of retention of students in the science, technological, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Inspired by Uri Treisman's work in developing the Mathematics Workshop Program at the University of California-Berkeley, Northwestern faculty first applied the concepts of collaborative peer-led learning for Biology 210.
Because of the success of the pilot program in biology, faculty members from other science-related disciplines became interested in the workshop concept, and the program quickly grew. GSW now operates in five disciplines: biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, and engineering. The program is managed by the Searle Center for Teaching Excellence and was generously funded by the Andrew Mellon Foundation from 2000 to 2007. As of fall 2007, GSW has received institutional support from the Office of the Provost to continue its goal of continuing success of undergraduate learning in the sciences. The GSW team at the Searle Center for Teaching Excellence collaborates with academic and administrative departments at Northwestern to ensure the program's continued success.
WHAT IS GSW?
Advanced conceptual workshops associated with the following courses:
- Biology 210
- Chemistry 101-102-103
- Chemistry 210 (see ESW program)
- Physics 130/135
- Engineering Analysis
- Math 220-224-230
Approximately 100 workshops are offered every quarter. There are 12-20 workshops offered for each class. The workshops meet at various times during the week. Throughout the year about 500 students participate in the workshop program each quarter.
All students enrolled in any of the above course sequences are invited to participate in the workshop program. Please contact workshops@northwestern.edu if interested in participating in any of the listed workshops. Participating students meet once a week for two hours in groups of 5 to 7 students, with an undergraduate facilitator who completed the same course successfully in a previous year.
Students work collaboratively on conceptual, challenging, and interesting problems related to their course material. There is no formal evaluation on student performance in the workshop, though students receive a zero-credit notation on their transcripts for their participation in the program.
WHAT DO YOU DO IN GSW?
- Meet once a week in small groups of 5 to 7 students
- Tackle challenging, interesting conceptual problems that are relevant to course curriculum
- Meet in groups with undergraduate peer facilitators who excelled in the course in a previous year
- Participate in program evaluation activities, e.g. surveys, focus groups and interviews (if applicable)
HOW CAN YOU BENEFIT FROM GSW?
- Tackle more interesting, intriguing, and authentic questions
- Develop a better and richer understanding of important concepts
- Make your study time more effective
- Retain more knowledge which helps in both current and later work
- Meet friends and be a part of a cooperative learning community
- Learn new ways to answer hard questions
- Feel better prepared for tests
- Find out how other students have succeeded
- Have fun while learning!
HOW TO JOIN GSW?
Registration for all GSW workshops open the first day of each quarter. Students enrolled in any of the offered classes will be emailed the link to complete the online registration form for each class. The forms are also posted as an announcement on each course Blackboard site. Workshops will begin the second week each quarter.
Space is limited. Please register before all of the spots are taken.
Have questions or want more information? Contact us at workshops@northwestern.edu.
Facilitator Role and Responsibilities
Student facilitators play an essential role in the Gateway Science Workshop program. They commit to the position for one academic year, with the possibility of extending the service period.
Each facilitator is responsible for
- Preparing for and facilitating his/her assigned group once a week
- Attending a weekly facilitator meeting in advance of each workshop
- Participating in SESP 291: Undergraduate Teaching and Mentoring (PDF)
- Attending a new-facilitator orientation the day before fall quarter begins
- Assisting in program-management activities as required
- Participating in program-evaluation activities as required
- Participating in community-building activities as appropriate
How to Become a Facilitator
The GSW program recruits facilitators every spring. We look for the following qualities in applicants:
- Solid understanding of subject matter
- Ability to think critically and learn quickly
- Strong interest in teaching and a sincere desire to help others
- Excellent interpersonal skills
The facilitator recruitment procedure is as follows:
- Potential applicants are recommended by professors, academic advisors, teaching assistants, and facilitators.
- Potential applicants are invited to apply by completing an initial application.
- A portion of the applicants are selected to interviews based on various criteria.
- An interview committee (faculty and GSW staff) meets with the interviewees and makes the final decision.
Students who are interested in becoming facilitators but who do not receive an invitation may email us at workshops@northwestern.edu.
- Develop conceptual workshop problems
- Participate in weekly facilitator training meetings
- Provide feedback on the program
Faculty members develop the worksheets that provide content for each GSW session. While there are no rules for writing a good problem, our experience shows that well-received workshop problems usually are
- Conceptually focused
- Appropriately challenging
- Relevant to class material
- Complex, in that they integrate multiple concepts
- Conducive to group discussion
- Applicable to real life
- "Progressive," starting with basic questions, then gradually moving to challenging conceptual ones
Because our GSW faculty members have busy schedules, we provide support to reduce the amount of time they spend on program responsibilities. For example, we provide problem-writing guidelines (PDF) and a problem bank -- a set of problems that have been used in the past, along with facilitator and student ratings of each problem.
Faculty members who develop the workshop problems meet once a week with the facilitators to help them gain better understanding of the material. The training session typically follows the workshop model, in which facilitators work together to solve the problems with the faculty member's guidance.
The role of the faculty member in the training session is not to explain specific steps of how to solve a problem. Instead, faculty members provide background information, point out connections between concepts embedded in different questions, and emphasize important skills or knowledge that students should gain from the worksheet.
The faculty member's presence itself is very encouraging and important for the facilitators. Faculty members are asked to attend each session. However, graduate teaching assistants can step in when faculty absences are necessary.
The weekly training sessions typically take 1 to 2 hours and are scheduled based on the availability of both the faculty and the facilitators.
Faculty involvement is an essential element of the GSW program. Therefore, the Searle Center for Teaching Excellence actively solicits the feedback of faculty involved with the program through faculty interviews, advisory board meetings, departmental presentations, and other events.
The Gateway Science Workshop Program
Searle Center for Teaching Excellence
Northwestern University
627 Dartmouth Place
Evanston, IL 60208
Phone: 847-467-2338
E-mail: workshops@northwestern.edu
