• The "BIGs" Program
• What are BIGs?
• Objectives of the BIGs program
• Learning community for faculty
• Benefits to students
• Benefits to faculty
• Cases
• Cooperative Learning
• Building Community
• Assessment
• Resources

BIGs Insights > The "BIGs" Program > Objectives of the BIGs program

Objectives of the BIGs Program

There are certain fundamental principles that form the foundation of the BIGs program. The objectives and the methods for achieving these objectives are shown in the accompanying concept map. The central goal in the BIGs program is to build student ownership of learning, that is, showing students that they are responsible for becoming active participants in their learning and engaging in self-directed learning. Students become active participants through collaborative learning and problem solving where they are held accountable for their contribution to the learning goals. Therefore, built around this central theme are key objectives such as fostering critical thinking, teamwork and integrating knowledge all of which are important in training students to think and act like scientists.

 
The understanding is that each faculty member will view these objectives as an inherent part of the BIGs program, but, nonetheless, will have the freedom to add or modify goals and strategies in the process of developing individual BIG seminar courses. The common objectives for BIGs are outlined below.

Objectives for biology students:

• Appreciate the importance and relevance of their required courses in math and the physical sciences.
• Practice thinking about complex problems in the biological sciences and apply what they learn to other courses.
• Develop the confidence to confront complex problems.
• Become responsible for their own education and for integrating the knowledge, they acquire.
• Develop teamwork skills in a supportive learning community.

Objectives for current and future faculty:

• Form a cross-disciplinary learning community of respect and collaboration that includes research faculty, graduate students and undergraduate students.
• Learn new ways to promote learning in students through use of cases and empowering students in a student-centered environment.
• Provide a fun way to experiment on ways to use broad topical areas of research to engage young minds.

These goals (above) can be broken down into specific objectives that relate more precisely to each BIG seminar course and to the individual goals of faculty members. Each year the BIGs faculty compiles a list of specific objectives that guides the development of cases and each faculty members’ expectations of their students. Below are some of the important traits that the BIGs faculty, as a community, feels they would like their students to gain from the BIGs experience.

Enabling student ownership of learning – self reliance

• Learn how to find resources and access information
• Be engaged in life long learning
• Develop ability to assess one’s own knowledge
• Build confidence to confront complex problems

Training students to think and act like scientists

• Learn active problem solving for confronting real world problems
• Develop a “gut level feeling for the scientific method”
• Make evidence-supported statements
• Probe issues deeply, go beyond the simple explanation
• Differentiate evidence based conclusions from opinion
• Thinking critically, always asking questions
• Create an open (non-judgmental) environment for engaging in the process of learning

Linking knowledge

• Learn fundamental science/math skills to understand and assess current research
• Develop abstract thinking skills
• Learn to draw on different skills/courses/areas of study to seek solutions to problems
• Develop confidence to extrapolate, think about the big picture

Linking biology with calculus and chemistry

• Learn quantitative analysis skills
• Discover the relevance of math and chemistry

Developing teamwork skills

• Learn the value of teamwork
• Learn the value of diversity with regard to learning from each other
• Learn the “most effective” teamwork skills
• Value the opinions and differences of others
• Engage actively in building community

The BIGs program is aimed at incoming freshmen students. The reason for this is to engage students while they are still impressionable regarding "what it takes" to succeed in college. BIGs will help them develop good habits for success in science at UW, such as, accessing information, problem solving, teamwork, study habits. An important aspect of the program is to provide young students with the ‘tools’ needed to successfully navigate the science curriculum and benefit the most from all the University has to offer. The hope is that students will take these skills learned early on and apply them to the rest of their education. In summary, at the heart of the BIGs program is that students become active learners, deep thinkers, and advocates for their own education.