The SPUR Best Article subcommittee of the Scholarship and Practice of Undergraduate Research Editorial Board has selected the following honorees in the inaugural SPUR Best Article Awards:
Best Article: Bruce Evan Blaine (Dept. of Mathematical and Computing Sciences, St. John Fisher College), “Toward Greater Reproducibility of Undergraduate Behavioral Science Research” (SPUR, vol. 3, no. 1, fall 2019)
Honorable Mention: Franziska Nikolov, Constanze Saunders, and Heike Schaumburg (Professional School of Education, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin / Institute for German as a Foreign and Second Language and Intercultural Studies, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena), “Preservice Teachers on Their Way to Becoming Reflective Practitioners: The Relevance of Freedom of Choice in Research-Based Learning” (SPUR, vol. 3, no. 4, summer 2020)
Honorable Mention: Mitchell R. Malachowski (Dept. of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of San Diego), “Reflections on the Evolution of Undergraduate Research at Primarily Undergraduate Institutions Over the Past 25 Years” (SPUR, vol. 3, no. 2, winter 2019)
In making its decision, the subcommittee considered excellence with respect to the journal’s evaluation criteria, specifically “manuscripts that describe novel programs that can serve as models for other institutions, those containing significant assessment of outcomes, and those articulating research on the efficacy of undergraduate research programs.” It also weighed timeliness (addressing current issues in undergraduate research) and/or timelessness (demonstrating the potential of value over time), broad appeal in terms of generalizability to disciplines and types of institutions, and pedagogical value.
The Best Article honoree receives a $100 honorarium and a certificate. The Honorable Mention honorees receive certificates.
Scholarship and Practice of Undergraduate Research publishes scholarly work that examines effective practices and novel approaches, explores pedagogical models, and highlights the results of assessment of undergraduate research. As a peer-reviewed publication of the Council on Undergraduate Research, the journal provides useful and inspiring information that increases understanding of undergraduate student-faculty engagement in research, scholarship, and creative work in all disciplines and at all types of higher education institutions in the United States and abroad.
