OOS 3-3
Involving undergraduate students in ecological research: Examples from community colleges and the liberal arts
Experiential education for undergraduate students is one of the most effective ways to increase knowledge retention. Research has shown that students retain more knowledge when they ask their own questions and answer these questions through their own research. Involving undergraduate students in ecological research helps increase their excitement about ecology in general, and build their skill base in effective problem solving. Here we discuss an undergraduate research collaboration between a major research facility (Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve in East Bethel, Minnesota) and a local community college (Anoka Ramsey Community College in Minnesota). We also discuss the utility and feasibility of incorporating research methods and inquiry into ecology courses (including an example from Sarah Lawrence College in New York).
Results/Conclusions
From 2012-2014 an Independent Research Summer Program was established at the Anoka Ramsey Community College (ARCC) in conjunction with the University of Minnesota's College of Biological Sciences and the Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve (CCESR). During this timeframe, ARCC program coordinators chose, on a competitive basis, two to four of their students to participate. These students were paid for summer research from CCESR outreach funds designated specifically for undergraduate research. The program paired these talented undergraduate students with graduate students conducting research at CCESR. The community college students developed independent research questions based on current CCESR research and designed experiments of their own to test their questions. They also learned research methods and design principles from the major ecological experiments being conducted at the CCESR field sites. These students have subsequently presented research results at ESA and other scientific meetings, and several projects are currently in process manuscripts.