Long-Term Learning Gains in Students Using Community Based Learning

A significant promise of scientific research is that basic science discoveries lead to innovations that result in positive change for individuals and communities. Considering this, translational communication skills and motivation to engage the general population are critical measures to consider when educating future scientists. A community-based learning (CBL) teaching method has been shown to be effective in developing these skills when used in higher education humanities settings, as students are able to synthesize class information with real-life community problem solving. Despite this evidence, CBL approaches are not generally practiced in STEM classroom settings. To assess the efficacy of CBL within a STEM setting, 90 undergraduate seniors in a Developmental Neuroscience course at the University of Notre Dame from 2017-2019 completed pre/post surveys focusing on four areas: content knowledge, scientific literature literacy, effective communication of scientific literature to the general population, and degree of civic engagement. During the course, students participated in a CBL experience along with regular coursework but were not subject to high-stakes examinations. Ten of 90 alumni completed the same pre/post survey to assess long-term learning gains. Results indicated significant gains in content knowledge, literature literacy, and translational ability between pre-course and post-course conditions, with significant gains maintained over time in the alumni condition. These data make a valuable contribution to both the STEM and CBL literature by demonstrating the long-term efficacy of a CBL approach in a STEM course in the absence of high-stakes examinations, as well as demonstrate long-term learning gains associated with scientific communication skills and dispositions towards civic engagement.