The goal of this course was to help demystify the process of getting into biodiversity research for undergraduate students. We sought to do this by
- exposing students to a variety of biodiversity research settings to learn what encompasses biodiversity research with field trips;
- guiding students in the development of professional materials to help prepare them for the process of applying for research positions, including a CV, inquiry email, and personal statement, and provide guidance on how to find and apply for research positions;
- increasing student sense of belonging in biodiversity research by developing their professional network through interactions with a variety of biodiversity graduate students, faculty, and staff (N=16); and
- introducing students to the research process by coaching students through the preparation of a research proposal and having them communicate these ideas in both a written and oral format.
Development of the course began in the spring of 2022, and it was offered for the first time in the fall of 2023.
For the final OER deliverable, I developed a Pressbook containing all relevant materials utilized in the course's first offering. This material is published with the ISU Digital Press. The Pressbook includes:
- The course syllabus.
- Descriptive module for each component of the course and the corresponding learning objectives.
- In the field module – detailing field trip and field work components of the course.
- Peer review module – detailing peer review rationale and exercises.
- Preparing professional materials module – detailing development of a professional portfolio and exercises to support their development.
- Research proposal module – detailing course research proposal project and exercises supporting the proposal’s development.
- Eight appendices with supporting content for the instructor and students.
Outcomes
Feedback from students provided in final reflections and surveys indicated the course was successful in its intended goal. Students reported significant increases in understanding what biodiversity research involves, understanding how to find and apply for research experiences, knowing how to apply the scientific method to biodiversity research, knowing how to provide thoughtful, constructive feedback to their peers, comfort exploring scientific literature to support biodiversity research, and comfort building observations of the natural world into research questions. Students showed upward trends, if not significant ones in feeling they could belong in the community of biodiversity researchers at ISU (8.33/10) and comfort communicating their scholarship to their peers (7.67/10). Students particularly enjoyed the hands-on components of the course so these should be maintained or expanded in the future. Students also appreciated the opportunities to interact with faculty to expand their professional networks, reported gaining a greater appreciation for what research involves, and felt better prepared to pursue research opportunities in the future.
The course provided an excellent opportunity to leverage ISU’s research resources to help increase student sense of belonging in the biodiversity research sphere by showcasing it firsthand to students and building relationships among students and faculty. In fact, the overnight field trip to Lakeside Laboratory directly resulted in the acquisition of a research position for one of my students as a volunteer in a research laboratory. Students reported great enjoyment of the field trips generally, especially the field trip to Lakeside Laboratory. ISU has so many resources at its disposal, and it was exciting to introduce these to students.
Citation
Gessler, T.B. (2024). Experiences in biodiversity research: A field course. ISU Digital Press. https://doi.org/10.31274/isudp.2023.149