OOS 51-9
The future of the Ecological Research as Education Network
The Ecological Research as Education Network (EREN) (www.erenweb.org) is a five-year project funded by the National Science Foundation Research Coordination Networks-Undergraduate Biology Education Program. EREN’s mission is to create and test models for collaborative ecological research that generate high quality, publishable data involving undergraduate students and faculty across a continental-scale network of research sites. EREN works by inviting network members to propose research projects that are scientifically interesting, collaborative across sites and institutions, appropriate for undergraduate participation, and feasible for diverse kinds of institutions. EREN facilitates online communication between these “Lead Scientists” and network members, who then volunteer to become collaborators on the project and engage students in data collection and analysis. EREN also provides funding for annual meetings where research ideas and pedagogical strategies are discussed. There are currently 237 members of EREN representing 173 different institutions, most of which are primarily undergraduate institutions (PUIs). Currently six projects provide collaborative opportunities for EREN members. These include the Permanent Forest Plot Project (PFPP), Emerald Ash Borer Project (EAB), Landscape Ecology Project (LAND), Urbanization Effects on Turtle Populations (TurtlePop), Decomposition in Aquatic and Terrestrial Invaded Systems (DATIS), Distribution of Earthworms (WORMS), Bird-Window Collisions (BirdWin) and the Oak Mast Project (MAST).
Results/Conclusions
The successful building of the EREN network from the founding group of 22 people to 237 members over four years attests to the desire of primarily undergraduate faculty to collaborate with colleagues and their students in ecological research. We have found that EREN members have incorporated these projects and data collected into their courses to enhance their teaching and research programs. They point to the value of both synchronous and asynchronous peer mentoring as an enhancement to their professional development. The potential of EREN as a focus of networking studies and pedagogical research has been recognized. We see EREN evolving to make better use of its diverse and growing ecological datasets, and using our network to develop and test methods for teaching undergraduates through multi-site datasets and building the quantitative skills undergraduates need to cope with the large-scale data they were engaged in collecting. Student to student interactions across the network are being planned. Building from the success of the initial projects, members have been actively pursuing long term funding for continental scale research projects and further collaborative networking activities.