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4160 Evaluating Student Team Dynamics
- Celia Chao, Emma Tumilty, Celia Chao, Judith Aronson, Jonathan D. Hommel, Mark R. Hellmich
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- Journal:
- Journal of Clinical and Translational Science / Volume 4 / Issue s1 / June 2020
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 29 July 2020, p. 61
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OBJECTIVES/GOALS: We aimed to explore the students’ assessments of workload distribution by comparing personal reflective commentaries and team documents defining division of labor in a team science setting. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: The Interprofessional Research Design course models the team science experience by bringing together MD and PhD students to write a research grant. Four teams of 13 students were tasked with both individual and team-based assignments: 1) Each week, each student reported their perception of their own and their team members’ effort over the week (totalling 100%). 2) Iterative work contracts for each team were submitted at four time-points; assigned work toward project completion totalled 100%. 3) Lastly, each student submitted a short commentary reflecting on the prior week’s team dynamics and teamwork. We retrospectively performed a mixed-methods analysis of the workload data. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Group-reporting in the team contracts remained static throughout the course, often stating equal distribution of workload, whereas individual reporting was more dynamic. Of 13 students, 8 rated more than 50% of the weeks as balanced. Among some students, there was a discordance of workload distribution when comparing the group document to the individual perceptions of work performed by their teammates. Reflective writing mapped more closely to individual quantitative reports. The data also revealed within team variations, where one student may report a higher proportion of their contributions, while the rest of the team attributed that student a lower percentage of the total work. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACT: An important aspect of team function is workload distribution. Group-based workload discussions may be a useful framework, but does not provide insight into team dynamics, whereas individually reported workload distributions and short reflections seem to more accurately inform us on team function.
Legacy effects of invasive grass impact soil microbes and native shrub growth
- Brooke Pickett, Irina C. Irvine, Eric Bullock, Keshav Arogyaswamy, Emma Aronson
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- Journal:
- Invasive Plant Science and Management / Volume 12 / Issue 1 / March 2019
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 01 May 2019, pp. 22-35
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In California, invasive grasses have displaced native plants, transforming much of the endemic coastal sage scrub (CSS) to nonnative grasslands. This has occurred for several reasons, including increased competitive ability of invasive grasses and long-term alterations to the soil environment, called legacy effects. Despite the magnitude of this problem, however, it is not well understood how these legacy effects have altered the soil microbial community and, indirectly, native plant restoration. We assessed the microbial composition of soils collected from an uninvaded CSS community (uninvaded soil) and a nearby 10-ha site from which the invasive grass Harding grass (Phalaris aquatica L.) was removed after 11 yr of growth (postinvasive soil). We also measured the survival rate, biomass, and length of three CSS species and P. aquatica grown in both soil types (uninvaded and postinvasive). Our findings indicate that P. aquatica may create microbial legacy effects in the soil that likely cause soil conditions inhibitory to the survival rate, biomass, and length of coastal sagebrush, but not the other two native plant species. Specifically, coastal sagebrush growth was lower in the postinvasive soil, which had more Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria, Agrobacterium, Bradyrhizobium, Rhizobium (R. leguminosarum), Candidatus koribacter, Candidatus solibacter, and rhizophilic arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, and fewer Planctomycetes, Acidobacteria, Nitrospira, and Rubrobacter compared with the uninvaded soil. Shifts in soil microbial community composition such as these can have important implications for restoration strategies in postinvasive sites.
3302 Student Leadership Training effects on team dynamics and collaborative work in high-pressure, interprofessional team environments
- Emma Tumilty, Celia Chao, Judith F. Aronson, Mark R. Hellmich
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- Journal:
- Journal of Clinical and Translational Science / Volume 3 / Issue s1 / March 2019
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 26 March 2019, p. 74
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OBJECTIVES/SPECIFIC AIMS: We aimed to explore the impact of leadership training on student’s abilities to work in interprofessional research teams successfully. The Translational Research Design and Interprofessional Skills Development Course (shortened, Interprofessional Research Design) brings together students from different disciplines (science & medicine) and education tracks (PhD, MD, MD/PhD training) in a seven-week course to learn interprofessional collaborative skills and leadership styles that support success in translational research environments, while undertaking a research grant writing project. Part of the course involves a two-day leadership training workshop (12 hours) with the goal of understanding leadership styles and how to develop productive working relationships with team members to help students work more effectively in high-performance, interprofessional team environments. The course incorporates personality testing to develop self-awareness, with various exercises meant to build empathy, as well as knowledge of project management and effective leadership. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: Nine teams of 32 students (23 MD; 9 Ph.D.) who took part in the Interprofessional Research Design course in 2017 and 2018 were required to write a reflective essay at the end of the course. We used an inductive thematic analysis to evaluate the essays. Reflective essays were coded openly by one study member. Codes were rationalized; then codes were collaboratively developed into themes by the study authors. We identified issues of integration between student groups that functioned well together and those that did not. Reflective writing responses were grouped into overall positive experiences and negative experiences. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Seven of the nine teams collectively described their experiences positively. Themes related to positive team experience were “empathizing with group members”, “sophisticated communication” and “collaborative workflow/styles.” We found that those who had a positive experience utilized knowledge and skills learned during leadership training to better understand and communicate with their teammates leading to a more collaborative and dynamic workflow. These groups had higher degrees of communication both between their task assignments and within task completion periods. They also showed more awareness of others’ needs in work and communication styles. For those that had a negative experience, themes were related to “basic communication”, “poor integration” and “theory-practice gap of leadership training.” Those who struggled showed much less in- and between-task communication and showed an inability to address the personal needs of other members in communication and workflow (while still often being able to identify them). DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACT: These findings demonstrate the usefulness of leadership training that facilitates student self-awareness and empathy, as well as effective communication, leading to collaborative high-functioning interprofessional teams. Further work incorporating conflict management and exercises to overcome the theory/practice gap of leadership and teamwork training are recommended.