Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 193 Document Number: D07243
Notes:
Hal R. Taylor Collection, Author, Unpublished set of teaching resources. Features 25 sessions and 26 exercises for an 18-day workshop on agricultural science writing.
Russell, Clifford S. (author), Schiller, Andrew (author), Hunsaker, Carolyn T. (author), Kane, Michael A. (author), Wolfe, Amy K. (author), Dale, Virginia H. (author), Suter, Glenn W (author), Pion, Georgine (author), Jensen, Molly H. (author), and Konar, Victoria C. (author)
Format:
Journal article
Publication Date:
2001
Published:
USA
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 175 Document Number: C29927
Online via keyword search of UI Library eCatalog and Elsevier.com. Open access., Author offers "practical advice for developing, delivering and evaluating effective science communication initiatives, based on over a decade of experience as being a professional science communicator."
Researchers addressed an issue in teaching scientific communication. Surveys and interviews indicated that a disconnect existed between what instructors expected of their students in writing laboratory reports and what the stated learning outcomes were for their horticultural science courses. Researchers developed and tested a grading or analytic scoring rubric, observing positive results.
18 pages., via online journal., Meeting the demands of a proficient scientific workforce depends on students’ communication skill preparation. To describe students’ self-perceptions of their communication skills, we surveyed 315 students in Texas A&M University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Participants noted they were most proficient in their ability to listen effectively and least proficient in asking effective questions. Each communication skill characteristic showed a statistically significant difference before and after college engagement, but we found no statistically significant difference in the overall communication scores of students. Therefore, we recommend: 1) interviewing employers to understand their perceptions of entry-level employees; 2) investigating when students transition from false sense of confidence to actual confidence; 3) conducting a longitudinal study to investigate students’ perceptions of communication skills throughout their college experience; 4) evaluating faculty’s communication
teaching methods across disciplines; and 5) investigating the influence of self-reflection on students’ attained communication skills. Conducting such studies could lead to stronger connections between the academy and the industry, especially as faculty strive to align their teaching with needs of the industry.
