Symposium: Exemplary Practices in Herpetological Education IRoom: Ballroom 111A2022-07-31 08:30 - 09:30 |
| Moderator: Theodora Pinou |
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0. 08:30 Introduction.
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1. 08:45 Research While Teaching: Implementing a Course-based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) in the Herpetology Classroom. Emily Taylor*, California Polytechnic State University snakeymama@gmail.com
In the 10 years since the publication of Vision and Change: A View For the 21st Century in Undergraduate Biology Education, instructors have tested and refined the techniques that they developed to integrate the Vision and Change core competencies into their curricula. Key among these competencies are the “ability to apply the process of science” and the “ability to use quantitative reasoning” which are best obtained by conducting original research rather than pre-planned laboratory simulations. In many large universities, research experiences are not available to all students, and in some small colleges, faculty do not have enough time or resources to engage in meaningful research. A course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) is a technique that allows large numbers of students to obtain real research experience while merging teaching and research efforts for faculty. I conducted a CURE in my 10 week-long Herpetology class in spring 2021, and the resulting manuscript is being published with all 25 students as co-authors. In this presentation, I will describe the core learning objectives and best practices for short-term CUREs (i.e., confined to a single course), and provide suggestions for do’s and don’ts based on my experiences. I hope that this will inspire other instructors to conduct CUREs in their herpetology classrooms, as these projects are highly beneficial to students and faculty alike, are applauded by administration, and are an excellent way to aspire to the pedagogical challenges and solutions put forth in Vision and Change. |
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2. 09:00 Student Centered, Active Learning Models in Herpetology. John Maerz*, University of Georgia jcmaerz@uga.edu
Active learning significantly improves student comprehension and skill development. Active learning involves the purposeful adoption of practices that engage students in the learning process by providing time and activities to contemplate their own level of understanding, construct ideas or products, interact with other students to develop understanding, and reflect on the process of constructing knowledge. Organismal courses are ideal for active learning. I will describe two scaffolded “jigsaw” approaches used in Herpetology at the University of Georgia to facilitate active learning. First, students develop and teach the lab units in the course. This requires students to think about their current knowledge, set goals, learn materials, reflect on their own learning to develop labs, teach, and critically reflect on their teaching. Second, groups are tasked with an inventory of the amphibians and reptiles that “use” a particular pond that year. Students inherit data, vouchers, and reports from prior groups, and students can view data and reports from all groups studying other ponds. Students must critically evaluate prior reports, critically draft sampling plans, understand and comply with IACUC requirements, conduct sampling, manage voucher information and databases, and write a report that compares their findings with prior years and other sites. Students must quantitatively evaluate the extent to which the assemblage they documented is a product of local ecology versus different sampling approaches and effort. Students reflect critically on methodological challenges of sampling herpetofauna, the value of temporal and spatial data, and data credibility. |
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3. 09:15 The Importance of Community Building Around the Use of Natural History Collections in Education. Randy Singer*, University of Michigan; Anna Monfils, Central Michigan University; Jennifer Bauer, University of Michigan; Elizabeth Leith, University of Wisconsin; Molly Phillips, Florida Museum of Natural History; Julia Robinson, Hefner Museum of Natural History; Jessa Waters, Sam Noble Museum gregory.watkins-colwell@yale.edu
Natural History Collections offer a wealth of resources for educators and learners. To this end, digitization makes specimens, and the data and images associated with them, more accessible to a wide audience. However, educators and learners must know that resources exist, where to get those materials and how to use them. We, as collections professionals, must promote our outreach materials, make them readily available, and provide the background knowledge for accurate and safe use of specimens, data and supporting resources. The Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections Education Committee formed in 2020 to help develop, support, and promote formal (K-12, Undergraduate and Graduate) and informal education, and outreach relative to natural history collections and biodiversity science as informed by natural history collections. One of the first initiatives was an establishment of a QUBESHub site to aggregate natural history educational resources, published as Open Educational Resources, or OER called the Natural History Education Portal. Anyone can add an OER resource to this portal. Sharing the resource as an OER on QUBESHub means the resource will be assigned a DOI and will have usage metrics available. The SPNHC Education Committee also hosts an annual Natural History Education DemoCamp. The goal of the NHE DemoCamp is to share, discover, and discuss educational materials that have a framework in natural history. These initiatives will be presented. |