Seeing Green with Drs. Sandland and Chazot

Chalk Radio

MIT has long been an innovator in online education. For even longer—for its whole history, in fact—it has championed hands-on learning. These two emphases may seem incompatible, but the MICRO initiative draws on both in an effort to increase diversity within the field of materials science. Dr. Jessica Sandland and Dr. Cécile Chazot, our guests for this episode, describe how MICRO recruits undergraduates from minoritized backgrounds to do impactful research remotely in collaboration with MIT researchers. Dr. Sandland and Dr. Chazot see this collaboration as a mutually beneficial relationship: the MICRO students gain valuable experience in cutting-edge research, as well as an introduction to a field they may not have had the opportunity to study previously, while the MIT researchers benefit both from the students’ work on the projects and from the fresh perspectives they bring to the field. In this episode, we also hear how MICRO supports participants’ professional development with guidance from “near-peer” grad-student mentors, who provide help not only in technical matters but also in developing soft skills such as writing abstracts or defining questions for research.

Relevant Resources:

MIT OpenCourseWare

The OCW Educator Portal

MICRO resource on OCW

Mentoring worksheets:

• Defining a Research Project and Aligning Expectations (PDF)
• Planning and Managing Remote Research Tasks (PDF)
• Effective and Inclusive Communication in Remote Mode (PDF)
• Fostering Independence (PDF)
• Establishing a Network of Mentors: The Mentoring Map (PDF)

Abstracts of research by MICRO participants

Apply to MICRO

Dr. Sandland’s faculty page

Dr. Chazot’s website

Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions

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If you have a suggestion for a new episode or have used OCW to change your life or those of others, tell us your story. We’d love to hear from you!

Call us @ 617-715-2517

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Credits

Sarah Hansen, host and producer

Brett Paci, producer

Dave Lishansky, producer

Show notes by Peter Chipman

Connect with Us

If you have a suggestion for a new episode or have used OCW to change your life or those of others, tell us your story. We’d love to hear from you!

Call us @ 617-715-2517

On our site

On Facebook

On X

On Instagram

On LinkedIn

Stay Current

Subscribe to the free monthly "MIT OpenCourseWare Update" e-newsletter.

Support OCW

If you like Chalk Radio and OpenCourseware, donate to help keep these programs going!

Credits

Sarah Hansen, host and producer

Brett Paci, producer

Dave Lishansky, producer

Show notes by Peter Chipman