Effectiveness of a new science communication course – A preliminary report

Abstract

As the ability to write and communicate scientific ideas and theories is a desired competency among Science graduates, the Faculty of Science and the Centre for English Language Communication at the National University of Singapore co-developed a new compulsory communication module for all Science freshmen. With a high student enrolment, the potential impact of this new module on the development of our students is significant. The objective of our preliminary study is therefore to evaluate the effectiveness of the new module with regards to its learning outcomes. Carefully designed pre- and post-course surveys are administered to rate the different learning outcomes, content of the module and extent of improvement in terms of the students’ confidence towards writing and communication. Our results suggest that the module has been effective in improving the competency and confidence in communication among our freshmen and further sheds light on the preference of reading materials among Science freshmen. Further research includes trend analysis, text mining analysis of self-reflective letters and longer-term surveys to evaluate the effectiveness of the module. In conclusion, our preliminary findings are positive and reaffirm the importance of a compulsory communication module for the Science undergraduates.