Inquiry-Based-Learning Modules for Conservation Biology Education

跨学科(99)保护地球生物多样性是一个紧迫的问题，它激起和激励着来自广泛机构和学科背景的学生。保护生物学现在被广泛教授，但由于缺乏资源来挖掘其探究性学习的潜力，这一问题严重受阻。为了促进保护生物学的课程、课程和教育实践的变化，美国自然历史博物馆的生物多样性与保护中心(CBC)、纽约州立大学环境科学与林业学院(SUNY-ESF)和缅因州大学(UMaine)结成了合作伙伴关系，将教师、研究生和本科生与实践专业人员联系起来，生成一套广泛的课堂测试和探究式学习材料。每个完成的草稿模块将在UMaine和纽约州立大学ESF以及ASAT的几个试点地点的课堂环境中进行评估：安提阿新英格兰研究生院、霍利奥克社区学院、雷曼学院、纽约城市大学、长岛大学、伍德罗·威尔逊国家联谊基金会、普雷斯科特学院和哥伦比亚大学。向本科生讲师分发教材将通过三种媒介：1)商业出版商出版的编辑卷；2)由CBC以成本价分发的光盘；3)通过CBC托管的互联网门户网站。在三年的时间里，大约50名教师和50名学生将直接开发材料；25门不同课程的约20名教师将在试点地点与至少600名本科生一起测试模块并提供反馈。

Interdisciplinary (99)Conservation of the earth's biological diversity is a pressing problem that excites andmotivates students from a wide range of institutions and disciplinary backgrounds.Conservation biology is widely taught now, but it is seriously hampered by a lack ofresources that capture its potential for inquiry-based learning. To foster changes in coursecontent, curricula, and educational practices in conservation biology, The Center forBiodiversity and Conservation (CBC) at the American Museum of Natural History, theState University of New York's College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY-ESF), and the University of Maine (UMaine) have formed a partnership to link faculty,graduate students, and undergraduates with practicing professionals to generate anextensive set of classroom-tested, inquiry-based-learning materials. Each completed draftmodule will be evaluated in a classroom situation at UMaine and SUNY-ESF as well asat several pilot sites: Antioch New England Graduate School, Holyoke CommunityCollege, Lehman College, City University of New York, Long Island University,Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation, Prescott College, and ColumbiaUniversity. A distinguishing project feature is its self-sustaining dissemination.Distribution of materials to undergraduate instructors will happen through three media: 1)an edited volume published by a commercial publisher; 2) CD-ROMs distributed by theCBC at cost; and 3) via an internet portal website hosted by the CBC. Over three years,approximately 50 instructors and 50 students will work directly on developing materials;about 20 instructors in 25 diverse courses will test modules with at least 600undergraduate students at pilot sites and provide feedback.