We actively strive to not only make our research accessible for all, but to work with researchers, educators, and community members to form a more holistic approach and grow our collective knowledge.
We have many projects with collaborators worldwide and our research involves diverse populations. Additionally, our members present their research at local, national, and international academic conferences. We also partner with educators and community members to achieve a balanced approach between research and ‘real world’ applications such as the EMA@School and Neuralign projects. Our members also present at various workshops to share research, help develop academic skills, or raise awareness for our work through other mediums.
Although the former activities are not uncommon in labs, we’ve noticed that there are topics that are often overlooked – as part of regular academic requirements and lab meetings. Therefore, as a lab, we often discuss best practices of knowledge mobilization, accessibility, and the so-called ‘hidden curriculum’ of academic life. The hidden curriculum can be difficult to address, since ‘you don’t know what you don’t know’. It can also lead to further inequalities, especially when students don’t have anyone to advise them on these nuances. Since September 2022, Dr. LeFevre has allowed two graduate students, Taeko Bourque and Jenna Rice, to lead and organize our weekly MathLab meetings. This has allowed us to pursue topics that are of most help to the lab and gives members a platform to ask questions and learn about things which are not explicitly taught (i.e., how to get the most out of a conference, how to handle imposter syndrome, what makes a good presentation, how to get involved in research, what aspects of an academic CV are most important). Because our membership is so varied, we can gain perspective from all levels of academia and undergrads and junior grad students have the opportunity to be advised by senior students and professors. Our meetings are a mix of workshops (e.g., multilevel modeling in R, academic writing), discussions (e.g., use of AI in academia, summer motivation), and presentations (e.g., research talks, guest speakers).
Additionally, we have the Math Lab Socials team, which aims to share all of this knowledge with everyone! Started by Taeko, the team has grown to include many wonderful members who all strive to share our research and give everyone a behind-the-scenes glimpse at what it means to be part of the MathLab. We work on creating educational quizzes and behind-the-scenes posts about our research, sharing hidden curriculum tips, simplifying our published research papers, and much more for Instagram, Twitter, and the Math Lab website!