RCN-UBE Incubator: Promoting Authentic Research Experiences in Introductory Biology Laboratories

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This project will lay the framework for the development of a network to increase the use of authentic research experiences in undergraduate laboratory courses, especially at the introductory level.Intellectual Merit: Undergraduate research has been shown to increase student understanding of scientific content, experimental design, and the nature of science, yet surveys of teaching practices show that authentic research experiences in laboratory courses are the exception, rather than the norm. We will host a planning group of interested faculty from the Council for Undergraduate Research (CUR), the Association for Biology Laboratory Education (ABLE), and other organizations to identify key issues and develop ideas for implementing authentic research experiences in introductory laboratory courses. Meeting with the Preparing to Prepare the 21st Century Biology Student network will integrate this work with other research networks in undergraduate biology education. Finally, we propose to survey biology faculty on authentic research experiences in laboratory courses to identify successful models of and common barriers to incorporating authentic research experiences in laboratory courses.Broader Impacts: Participants in the planning group and in the survey will be recruited from a range of biology sub-disciplines, geographical regions, and institution types, including minority-serving institutions and community colleges. The work of the planning group will help develop this project into a full RCN-UBE proposal, and the findings of the survey will be published in a journal of the undergraduate STEM education community. This project is being jointly funded by the Directorate for Biological Sciences, Division of Biological Infrastructure and the Directorate for Education and Human Resources, Division of Undergraduate Education.