RCN-UBE Incubator: Planning a Research Network on Assessing Learning Technologies in Undergraduate Biology Education

本计画将规划一个研究合作网络，以探讨及分享评估本科生物学教育师生间科技介面对学生学习成效之策略。新技术，特别是涉及远程学习和Web 2.0工具的技术，正在被纳入生物学教育，使许多以前的学习评估工具无效。 因此，必须开发新的研究工具和评估，以确定这些技术增强的教学策略是否确实改善了学生的学习。为了这个项目的目的，我们将限制“技术在生物教育”的定义，这些技术作为教师和学生之间的接口。这些技术包括网络课程、视频会议、播客、社交网络和其他类似技术。该项目将为两次规划会议提供资金，这两次会议将确定关于这一专题的主要研究和评估问题，以便为解决这些问题的研究合作网络编写一份提案。规划会议将于2010年春季和初夏在德克萨斯州丹顿的北德克萨斯大学举行。拟议活动的智力价值包括汇集来自生物学，教学技术，评估和虚拟网络的专家。 该小组将规划必要的基础设施和评估，以支持和传播一个跨学科的研究社区，重点是评估本科生物学教育中学习技术的有效性。由于越来越多的本科生在生物学课程中接触到技术增强型教学，该项目将通过确定从事技术增强型生物学教育研究的学者社区所需的评估和合作类型来产生更广泛的影响。规划研讨会和焦点小组将吸引来自全国各地的生物学和教育研究人员，他们代表各种机构，学科和背景。该项目由生物科学理事会和本科教育部共同支持。

This project will plan a research collaboration network to explore and share strategies used in assessing the effectiveness on student learning of technology interfaces between faculty and students in undergraduate biology education. New technologies, especially those involving distance-learning and Web 2.0 tools, are being incorporated into biology education, making many previous learning assessment tools ineffective. Thus new research tools and assessments must be developed to determine whether these technology-enhanced teaching strategies indeed improve student learning. For the purpose of this project, we will limit the definition of "technology in biology education" to those technologies that serve as an interface between and among faculty and students. These technologies include web-based lessons, video conferencing, podcasting, social networking and other similar technologies. This project will fund two planning meetings which will identify the major research and assessment concerns on this topic in order to prepare a proposal for a Research Collaboration Network to address these issues. The planning meetings will be held at the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas in the spring and early summer of 2010. The intellectual merit of the proposed activity includes bringing together experts from biology, instructional technology, assessment, and virtual networking. The group will plan the necessary infrastructure and assessments that will be needed to support and disseminate an interdisciplinary research community focused on assessing the effectiveness of learning technologies in undergraduate biology education. Since a growing number of undergraduate students are exposed to technology-enhanced instruction in their biology courses, this project will have broader impact by determining the types of assessments and collaborations needed by the community of scholars who are engaging in research on technology-enhanced biology education. The planning workshops and focus groups will engage biology and education researchers from across the country who represent a variety of institutions, disciplines, and backgrounds.This project is supported jointly by the Biological Sciences Directorate and the Division of Undergraduate Education.