A Scaffolded Module to Improve Scientific Literacy by Engaging Students with Primary Literature Using the Instructor’s Research Experience

To improve students’ scientific literacy, I designed a learning module that built upon my personal research experience and interest to actively engage students in reading primary literature. Here, I describe the scaffolded procedure in six steps, each linked to a learning outcome and assessment using Bloom’s taxonomy as a framework of increasing from lower-order to higher-order cognition: (i) storytelling and discussion, i.e., remember; (ii) guided reading, i.e., understand; (iii) group reading, i.e., apply; (iv) shared reading, i.e., analyze; (v) self-selected reading, i.e., evaluate; and (vi) research proposal, i.e., create. By using my personal science story as introduction and foundation, students were able to connect to the content and consider the importance of the process of science. By providing a scaffolded introduction and guided support, students were able to read primary literature with less frustration and with greater confidence. I assessed these activities to determine if they increased student engagement and student confidence in reading peer-reviewed scientific papers. Students completed a survey rating their confidence reading scientific papers on a scale of 1 (not at all) to 4 (extremely). Reported confidence increased following the activities (mean of 1.9 before to 3.2 after) and activities were rated as helpful (mean of 3.1). These activities can be applied to most fields of research, allowing faculty at nonresearch institutions the opportunity to incorporate their research into teaching while achieving successful general education outcomes.