Inside the Michigan Research Community
I. Introduction to MRC and Learning Communities
As a large public institution, the University of Michigan can be very overwhelming for some students. However, the University of Michigan does a great job of creating small communities for students with similar backgrounds, identities, or interests. One of the small learning communities at the University of Michigan is the Michigan Research Community, otherwise known as MRC. In MRC, all of the individuals involved have a similar interest in conducting research. Although members in the community have various fields of research, everyone is passionate about learning more about their respective fields and ecstatic to work with successful and well-known professors. …show more content…
Although the community is very prestigious and takes their research seriously, students still find ways to meet new friends and attend social events with other members in the group. Dr. Chris Bass, director of the Michigan Research Community, stated about the social aspect of the community, “You can nurture and help students…and provide them protection and support” (Bass). She also mentioned how MRC was a place for students to grow from their first semester without them feeling judged (Bass). Based on this statement, students may feel uncomfortable at the beginning of the year with the transition from high school to college. But in MRC, with many events and opportunities, students change from the beginning of their freshman year to the beginning of their sophomore year. Amanda Loh, a Graduate Student Instructor and Graduate Assistant in the Michigan Research Community, stated the importance of social events in MRC as well. She said that the social aspect of MRC “builds” the community and “encourages you to break out of your shell” (Loh). These social events from MRC show how the language in the community is very informal but also inclusive. A similar outcome was determined in the study done at the Rochester Institute of Technology. The study stated: “An introductory course in manufacturing processes was taught to a cohort of engineering technology students participating in a learning community (LC) experiment and to a group of non-participating students” (M.H. Castro-Cedeno). The results showed that students in learning communities did better on homework and tests than students who were not members of a learning community (M.H. Castro-Cedeno). This experiment examines how all the students with connections in their community were able to succeed by assisting each other and providing information for the other members. It also shows how much easier it was for learning community students to form groups
I. Introduction to MRC and Learning Communities
As a large public institution, the University of Michigan can be very overwhelming for some students. However, the University of Michigan does a great job of creating small communities for students with similar backgrounds, identities, or interests. One of the small learning communities at the University of Michigan is the Michigan Research Community, otherwise known as MRC. In MRC, all of the individuals involved have a similar interest in conducting research. Although members in the community have various fields of research, everyone is passionate about learning more about their respective fields and ecstatic to work with successful and well-known professors. …show more content…
Although the community is very prestigious and takes their research seriously, students still find ways to meet new friends and attend social events with other members in the group. Dr. Chris Bass, director of the Michigan Research Community, stated about the social aspect of the community, “You can nurture and help students…and provide them protection and support” (Bass). She also mentioned how MRC was a place for students to grow from their first semester without them feeling judged (Bass). Based on this statement, students may feel uncomfortable at the beginning of the year with the transition from high school to college. But in MRC, with many events and opportunities, students change from the beginning of their freshman year to the beginning of their sophomore year. Amanda Loh, a Graduate Student Instructor and Graduate Assistant in the Michigan Research Community, stated the importance of social events in MRC as well. She said that the social aspect of MRC “builds” the community and “encourages you to break out of your shell” (Loh). These social events from MRC show how the language in the community is very informal but also inclusive. A similar outcome was determined in the study done at the Rochester Institute of Technology. The study stated: “An introductory course in manufacturing processes was taught to a cohort of engineering technology students participating in a learning community (LC) experiment and to a group of non-participating students” (M.H. Castro-Cedeno). The results showed that students in learning communities did better on homework and tests than students who were not members of a learning community (M.H. Castro-Cedeno). This experiment examines how all the students with connections in their community were able to succeed by assisting each other and providing information for the other members. It also shows how much easier it was for learning community students to form groups