Translating mentoring interventions research into practice: Evaluation of an evidence-based workshop for research mentors on developing trainees’ scientific communication skills

Abstract

A key part of keeping doctoral and postdoctoral trainees in STEM research careers is mentoring. Our previous research indicates that mentoring trainees in scientific communication (SC) skill development increases research career intention through two social-cognitive constructs, self-efficacy in and outcome expectations for acquiring SC skills, as well as science identity. While many mentor training interventions exist, no programs focus on developing SC skills specifically. The “Scientific Communication Advances Research Excellence” (SCOARE) program trains mentors to address trainee scientific communication (SC) skill development as an innovative approach to increase trainee research career persistence. The SCOARE training is a half-day workshop for faculty mentors of research trainees at five sites nationally. Informed by previous research, workshop content focuses on practical, effective mentoring strategies to develop trainee speaking and writing skills. Anonymous evaluation data collected after each workshop indicates participant satisfaction and reported positive increases in skills and knowledge in applying new and various techniques when mentoring trainees (skills) and how linguistic bias influences our perception of others (knowledge). This article outlines the research-based development of the SCOARE program, the first two years’ of workshop evaluations showing positive increases in skills and knowledge, and lessons learned to increase participant satisfaction with the program.

“Research Mentors Should Support Students of Color by Taking an Extra Step.” Undergraduates’ Reasoning about Race and STEM Research Mentorship

“…This may be particularly the case for students from marginalized backgrounds, given that many of these students are underrepresented in their academic programs and encounter both subtle and overt bias in academic settings [20,21]. Students interested in pursuing a STEM career and/or furthering their education at the graduate level will commonly work with a research mentor [22]. Similar to more general forms of academic and career mentoring, STEM research mentoring is a mutually beneficial relationship in which a less experienced student learns the practice of scientific research by working under the guidance of a more experienced mentor [7].…”

Basics of faculty-to-faculty mentoring: A process to identify support and challenges

“…The rationale for the initiation of this program was to attach newly appointed junior faculty with a senior faculty for an understanding of AKU’s vision, mission and organizational culture for a smooth transition into their work and practice. Literature supports the role of workshops for training of mentors [ 10 ]. A series of workshops for faculty at AKU-MC were planned from the platform of Faculty Mentorship Forum in collaboration with Department for Educational Development to explore the perception of mentors and enhance their mentorship capability.…”

Percepción de la ciencia pre y post-pandemia: un estudio de caso sobre la comunicación científica en la didáctica de la Educación Secundaria

“…In order to perform good scientific communication, the development of communication skills is required, as well as skills to explain, teach or facilitate the understanding of ideas and perspectives to the different profiles that can be found in the population. (Dahlstrom et al, 2022;Davis & D'Lima, 2020;Ross-Hellauer et al, 2020). An example of the challenges posed by this scientific communication or communication to the population is the case experienced with the COVID-19 pandemic, where scientists cope with the task of providing scientific advances information to the wide audience in a very short period of time, with a lack of scientific edu-communicative skills training in social media (Iyengar & Massey, 2019;Navarro Zamora, 2021).…”