Implementation of SCALE-UP in First-Year Chemistry at an HBCU
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33423/46rmbb85Keywords:
higher education, HBCU, NIGMS Diversity Program Consortium Dissemination and Translation Awards, SCALE-UP, chemistry, active learningAbstract
This study examines the implementation of the Student-Centered Active Learning Environment with Upside-down Pedagogies (SCALE-UP) in the first-year Chemistry course sequence for STEM majors at Hampton University, an HBCU. STEM majors at Hampton University must earn a grade of C or higher in all courses; grades below this threshold are designated STEM-FAIL. In Fall 2021, Chemistry 201 students were divided into a control lecture section and two SCALE-UP sections, all of which had identical assessments. Results showed lower STEM-FAIL rates (24% and 25%) in SCALE-UP sections compared to the lecture section (28%). In Spring 2022, both Chemistry 202 sections used SCALE-UP, and despite their differing enrollment sizes, they had identical STEM-FAIL rates (29%). This study revealed that SCALE-UP can be implemented at Hampton University. Additionally, the supportive environment and class sizes of under 60 students may also enhance student success.
References
Basu, P., Malik, D.J., & Graunke, S. (2025). A 24-year longitudinal study on a STEM gateway general chemistry course and the reduction of achievement disparities. PLOS ONE, 20(2), e0318882. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0318882
Beichner, R. (2008). The SCALE-UP project: A student-centered active learning environment for undergraduate programs. Retrieved from http://sites.nationalacademies.org/cs/groups/dbassesite/documents/webpage/dbasse_072628.pdf
Clemence-Mkhope, D.P., Varatharajah, P., Oldham, J.M., Tankersley, B., & Seongtae, K. (2019). SCALE-UP instructional redesign of a calculus course at an HBCU. International Journal for Innovation Education and Research, 7(1), 31–44. https://doi.org/10.31686/ijier.vol7.iss1.1279
Collins, T.W., Aley, S.B., Boland, T., Corral, G., Cox, M.B., Echegoyen, L.E., . . . Nazeran, H. (2017). BUILDing SCHOLARS: Enhancing diversity among U.S. biomedical researchers in the Southwest. BMC Proceedings, 11(Suppl 12), 12. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12919-017-0095-4
Daniels, H.A., Grineski, S.E., Collins, T.W., & Frederick, A.H. (2019). Navigating social relationships with mentors and peers: Comfort and belonging among men and women in STEM summer research programs. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 18(2), ar17. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.18-08-0150
Eddy, S.L., & Hogan, K.A. (2014). Getting under the hood: How and for whom does increasing course structure work? CBE—Life Sciences Education, 13(3), 453–468.
Erebholo, F. (2025). Does intervention improve precalculus performance among students in historically Black colleges and universities? Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice, 27(1), 290–306.
Estrada, M., Woodcock, A., Hernandez, P.R., & Schultz, P. (2011). Toward a model of social influence that explains minority student integration into the scientific community. Journal of Educational Psychology, 103(1), 206.
Freeman, S., Eddy, S.L., McDonough, M., Smith, M.K., Okoroafor, N., Jordt, H., & Wenderoth, M.P. (2014). Active learning increases student performance in science, engineering, and mathematics. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111(23), 8410–8415. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1319030111
Ghebreyessus, K., Ndip, E.M., Waddell, M.K., Asojo, O.A., & Njoki, P.N. (2022). Cultivating success through undergraduate research experience in a historically Black college and university. Journal of Chemical Education, 99(1), 307–316. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jchemed.1c00416
Hacisalihoglu, G., Stephens, D., Johnson, L., & Edington, M. (2018). The use of an active learning approach in a SCALE-UP learning space improves academic performance in undergraduate general biology. PLOS ONE, 13(5), e0197916. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0197916
Harris, R.B., Mack, M.R., Bryant, J., Theobald, E.J., & Freeman, S. (2020). Reducing achievement gaps in undergraduate general chemistry could lift underrepresented students into a “hyperpersistent zone.” Science Advances, 6(24), eaaz5687. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aaz5687
Jacimovic, N., Pulukuri, S.V., & Abrams, B. (2025). The hidden timeline for marginalized student groups: Drop and withdrawal outcomes in general chemistry. Journal of Chemical Education, 102(11), 4944–4949. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jchemed.5c00309
James, N.M., Anachebe, K., & LaDue, N.D. (2025). This class definitely changed my opinion of chemistry: How a pedagogical course reform improved students' chemistry attitudes. ACS Omega, 10(31), 34506–34521. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsomega.5c02931
Maton, K.I., Beason, T.S., Godsay, S., Sto Domingo, M.R., Bailey, T.C., Sun, S., & Hrabowski, F.A. (2016). Outcomes and processes in the Meyerhoff Scholars Program: STEM PhD completion, sense of community, perceived program benefit, science identity, and research self-efficacy. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 15(3). https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.16-01-0062
Maton, K.I., Pollard, S.A., McDougall Weise, T.V., & Hrabowski, F.A. (2012). Meyerhoff Scholars Program: A strengths-based, institution-wide approach to increasing diversity in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Mount Sinai Journal of Medicine, 79(5), 610–623. https://doi.org/10.1002/msj.21341
Maton, K.I., Sto Domingo, M.R., Stolle-McAllister, K.E., Zimmerman, J.L., & Hrabowski, F.A. (2009). Enhancing the number of African Americans who pursue STEM PhDs: Meyerhoff Scholarship Program outcomes, processes, and individual predictors. Journal of Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering, 15(1), 15–37. https://doi.org/10.1615/JWomenMinorScienEng.v15.i1.20
Soneral, P.A., & Wyse, S.A. (2017). A SCALE-UP mock-up: Comparison of student learning gains in high- and low-tech active-learning environments. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 16(1). https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.16-07-0228
Sto Domingo, M.R., Sharp, S., Freeman, A., Freeman, T., Harmon, K., Wiggs, M., . . . Summers, M.F. (2019). Replicating Meyerhoff for inclusive excellence in STEM. Science, 364(6438), 335–337. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aar5540
Stolle-McAllister, K., Sto Domingo, M.R., & Carrillo, A. (2011). The Meyerhoff way: How the Meyerhoff Scholarship Program helps Black students succeed in the sciences. Journal of Science Education and Technology, 20(1), 5–16. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21850153
Theobald, E.J., Hill, M.J., Tran, E., Agrawal, S., Arroyo, E.N., Behling, S., ... Freeman, S. (2020). Active learning narrows achievement gaps for underrepresented students in undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and math. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117(12), 6476–6483. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1916903117
Toven-Lindsey, B., Levis-Fitzgerald, M., Barber, P.H., & Hasson, T. (2015). Increasing persistence in undergraduate science majors: A model for institutional support of underrepresented students. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 14(2). https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.14-05-0082
