REU Site at the Blandy Experimental Farm--University of Virginia

布兰迪实验农场是弗吉尼亚大学的一个生物野外站，举办了一个为期10周的课程，本科生学习：1）环境生物学的基本原理，2）科学家增加我们对自然世界的理解的方法，以及3）科学研究的基本要素以及如何将这些放在旨在教育公众研究和生态学的背景下。 其目标是教学生，无论他们的主要研究领域，如何“做”科学，给他们一个机会进行原创的，在教师专业领域基本上独立的实地研究，并包装的结果，可以用来教育公众科学探究的形式。 该计划是跨学科的，其特点是对个人，人口，社区，生态系统过程的研究，并围绕五名科学家和两名教育工作者组成的多元化团队。 个别学生研究的重点是基本的科学和/或应用的重要性（动物行为，种群动态/相互作用，景观生态学和生物地球化学循环）的主题，特别是那些具有较高的启发式或社会价值的主题。 为了与布兰迪实验农场的使命保持一致，该计划正式将科学研究与环境教育相结合。学生们通过三个阶段取得进展：第一阶段-为期一周的正式讲座和"动手"练习，详细介绍科学方法、假设检验、实验设计、统计和基本原理介绍;第二阶段-为期8周的数据收集，数据分析，指导研究和实验;第三阶段-为期1周的数据分析，解释和结果交流。该计划包括来自不同文化背景，兴趣和家庭机构的学生。 学生居住在一个实地站设置，是一个更大的研究社区的15 - 25名其他学生参加课程，研究生论文，博士后研究人员和其他教师的一部分。 实地考察，每周研讨会和期刊俱乐部增加了学生的经验。 退出和后续访谈用于每年评估该计划。

The Blandy Experimental Farm, a biological field stations of the University of Virginia, hosts a 10-week program where undergraduates learn: 1) basic principles of environmental biology, 2) methods by which scientists increase our understanding of the natural world, and 3) essential elements of scientific research and how to put these in a context that is intended to educate the general public about research and ecology. The goal is to teach students, no matter what their major field of study, how to "do" science, give them an opportunity to conduct original, and largely independent field research in areas of faculty expertise, and to package the results in a form that can be used to educate the public about scientific inquiry. The Program is interdisciplinary, features research on individuals, populations , communities, ecosystem processes, and is built around a diverse team of five scientists and two educators. Individual student research focuses on topics of basic scientific and/or applied importance (animal behavior, population dynamics/interactions, landscape ecology, and biogeochemical cycles) and especially those topics that have high heuristic or societal value. In keeping with the mission of the Blandy Experimental Farm, the program formally combines scientific research with environmental education.Students progress through three phases: Phase I-1- week of formal lectures and "hands-on" exercises detailing the scientific method, hypothesis testing, experimental design, statistics and an introduction to basic pedagogies; Phase II-8 weeks of data collection, data analyses, directed study, and experimentation; and Phase III--1 week of data analysis, interpretation, and communication of results. The program includes students from a diversity of cultural backgrounds, interests, and home institutions. Students reside in a field-station setting and are part of a larger research community of 15-25 other students taking courses, graduate students working on theses, post-doctoral researchers, and other faculty. Field trips, weekly seminars, and journal clubs add to the student experience. Exit and follow-up interviews are used to assess the program each year.