80 research outputs found
The Acclaim Programme in the South Atlantic and Southern Oceans
The ACCLAIM sea level network consists of six coastal tide gauge sites and approximately a dozen bottom pressure stations in the South Atlantic and Southern Oceans. Since 1985, an extensive dataset of regional sea level and bottom pressure measurements has been acquired. This dataset is being employed at POL in a number of scientific analyses and is available to any interested research worker through the World Ocean Circulation Experiment. In this paper, a review is given of the development and status of the ACCLAIM network and the technology installed at each site. Plans are presented for developments over the next 1-2 years
A Broadly Implementable Research Course in Phage Discovery and Genomics for First-Year Undergraduate Students
Engaging large numbers of undergraduates in authentic scientific discovery is desirable but difficult to achieve. We have developed a general model in which faculty and teaching assistants from diverse academic institutions are trained to teach a research course for first-year undergraduate students focused on bacteriophage discovery and genomics. The course is situated within a broader scientific context aimed at understanding viral diversity, such that faculty and students are collaborators with established researchers in the field. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Science Education Alliance Phage Hunters Advancing Genomics and Evolutionary Science (SEA-PHAGES) course has been widely implemented and has been taken by over 4,800 students at 73 institutions. We show here that this alliance-sourced model not only substantially advances the field of phage genomics but also stimulates students’ interest in science, positively influences academic achievement, and enhances persistence in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Broad application of this model by integrating other research areas with large numbers of early-career undergraduate students has the potential to be transformative in science education and research training
A Broadly Implementable Research Course in Phage Discovery and Genomics for First-Year Undergraduate Students
Engaging large numbers of undergraduates in authentic scientific discovery is desirable but difficult to achieve. We have developed a general model in which faculty and teaching assistants from diverse academic institutions are trained to teach a research course for first-year undergraduate students focused on bacteriophage discovery and genomics. The course is situated within a broader scientific context aimed at understanding viral diversity, such that faculty and students are collaborators with established researchers in the field. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Science Education Alliance Phage Hunters Advancing Genomics and Evolutionary Science (SEA-PHAGES) course has been widely implemented and has been taken by over 4,800 students at 73 institutions. We show here that this alliance-sourced model not only substantially advances the field of phage genomics but also stimulates students’ interest in science, positively influences academic achievement, and enhances persistence in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Broad application of this model by integrating other research areas with large numbers of early-career undergraduate students has the potential to be transformative in science education and research training
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A Broadly Implementable Research Course in Phage Discovery and Genomics for First-Year Undergraduate Students
Engaging large numbers of undergraduates in authentic scientific discovery is desirable but difficult to achieve. We
have developed a general model in which faculty and teaching assistants from diverse academic institutions are trained to teach a
research course for first-year undergraduate students focused on bacteriophage discovery and genomics. The course is situated
within a broader scientific context aimed at understanding viral diversity, such that faculty and students are collaborators with
established researchers in the field. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Science Education Alliance Phage Hunters
Advancing Genomics and Evolutionary Science (SEA-PHAGES) course has been widely implemented and has been taken by over
4,800 students at 73 institutions. We show here that this alliance-sourced model not only substantially advances the field of
phage genomics but also stimulates students’ interest in science, positively influences academic achievement, and enhances persistence
in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Broad application of this model by integrating
other research areas with large numbers of early-career undergraduate students has the potential to be transformative in science
education and research training.
IMPORTANCE: Engagement of undergraduate students in scientific research at early stages in their careers presents an opportunity
to excite students about science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines and promote continued interests
in these areas. Many excellent course-based undergraduate research experiences have been developed, but scaling these to a
broader impact with larger numbers of students is challenging. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Science Education
Alliance Phage Hunting Advancing Genomics and Evolutionary Science (SEA-PHAGES) program takes advantage of the
huge size and diversity of the bacteriophage population to engage students in discovery of new viruses, genome annotation, and
comparative genomics, with strong impacts on bacteriophage research, increased persistence in STEM fields, and student selfidentification
with learning gains, motivation, attitude, and career aspirations
Instructional Models for Course-Based Research Experience (CRE) Teaching
The course-based research experience (CRE) with its documented educational benefits is increasingly being implemented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education. This article reports on a study that was done over a period of 3 years to explicate the instructional processes involved in teaching an undergraduate CRE. One hundred and two instructors from the established and large multi-institutional SEA-PHAGES program were surveyed for their understanding of the aims and practices of CRE teaching. This was followed by large-scale feedback sessions with the cohort of instructors at the annual SEA Faculty Meeting and subsequently with a small focus group of expert CRE instructors. Using a qualitative content analysis approach, the survey data were analyzed for the aims of inquiry instruction and pedagogical practices used to achieve these goals. The results characterize CRE inquiry teaching as involving three instructional models: 1) being a scientist and generating data; 2) teaching procedural knowledge; and 3) fostering project ownership. Each of these models is explicated and visualized in terms of the specific pedagogical practices and their relationships. The models present a complex picture of the ways in which CRE instruction is conducted on a daily basis and can inform instructors and institutions new to CRE teaching
Models of classroom assessment for course-based research experiences
Course-based research pedagogy involves positioning students as contributors to authentic research projects as part of an engaging educational experience that promotes their learning and persistence in science. To develop a model for assessing and grading students engaged in this type of learning experience, the assessment aims and practices of a community of experienced course-based research instructors were collected and analyzed. This approach defines four aims of course-based research assessment—(1) Assessing Laboratory Work and Scientific Thinking; (2) Evaluating Mastery of Concepts, Quantitative Thinking and Skills; (3) Appraising Forms of Scientific Communication; and (4) Metacognition of Learning—along with a set of practices for each aim. These aims and practices of assessment were then integrated with previously developed models of course-based research instruction to reveal an assessment program in which instructors provide extensive feedback to support productive student engagement in research while grading those aspects of research that are necessary for the student to succeed. Assessment conducted in this way delicately balances the need to facilitate students’ ongoing research with the requirement of a final grade without undercutting the important aims of a CRE education
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