Collaborative Research: The Ciliate Genomics Consortium Model for Sustainable Teaching-Research Integration

让更多的本科生参与研究经验是改善科学教育的一个优先事项，而基于课程的研究经验是一种有希望接触到更多学生的方法。纤毛虫基因组学联盟（CGC）是一个以学生为中心的全国性合作学习社区，使用可扩展的功能基因组学研究整合到各种生物学子学科的课程中。CGC采用综合的教学和研究模式，结合了探究驱动的课堂实验活动和合作联盟教学法，以促进教师的研究。此前，CGC开发了模块化的基于课程的研究课程，当使用纤毛虫四膜虫被研究界采用时，有效地吸引了更多的学生参与真实的研究，同时推进了教师的研究。这项工作通过创建新的或改进测试课程来扩大联盟，以促进它们的广泛采用，为教学/研究整合创造更多的机会。如果成功，该项目将提供证据，证明学生在课堂环境中可以通过各种模式生物为教师和社区的研究重点做出重大贡献。为实现项目目标，CGC将：1)开发适合教师研究兴趣的课程，整合联盟活动与研究社区资源，并评估学生的学习成果；2)通过培训研讨会传播CGC模式，评估对教师教学和学生学习的影响。课程通过年度研讨会传播，并测试研究社区是否能促进学习社区，促进教师采用课堂研究作为一种高影响力的教学实践。在这种模式下，研究社区的成员组成了一个专业学习社区，以加强和应用最佳的STEM教学实践。为了更多地了解这种方法对学生和教育者的有效性，该项目将评估这种教学法，并报告这种研究型课程相对于其他教学模式所带来的任何概念上的收获，以及所观察到的局限性和挑战。将使用几种经过验证的工具来测量信心和学习收益，并使用新开发的评估来评估预测的认知收益。每所院校的学生群体都被确定，不参与CGC课程，以控制教师和院校因素。

Engaging more undergraduates in research experiences is a priority for improving science education and course-based research experiences are a promising approach to reaching larger numbers of students. The Ciliate Genomics Consortium (CGC) is a student-centered, nation-wide collaborative learning community that uses scalable functional genomics research for integration into courses in a variety of biology sub-disciplines. The CGC employs an integrative teaching and research model that combines both inquiry-driven class laboratory activities and collaborative consortium pedagogies to advance faculty research. Previously, the CGC developed modular course-based research curricula that, when adopted by the research community using the ciliate Tetrahymena, effectively engaged greater numbers of students in authentic research while advancing faculty research. This work expands the consortium by creating new or improving tested curricula to promote their broad adoption, creating more opportunities for teaching/research integration. If successful, this project provide evidence that students in classroom settings can contribute substantially to faculty and community research priorities with a variety of model organisms. To achieve project goals, the CGC will: 1) develop curricula adaptable to faculty research interests, integrate consortium activities with research community resources, and assess student learning gains; and 2) disseminate the CGC model through training workshops and assess the impact on faculty teaching and student learning. Curricula are disseminated through annual workshops and test whether research communities can foster learning communities that promote faculty adoption of classroom-based research as a high impact teaching practice. In this model, members of a research community form a professional learning community to enhance and apply best STEM teaching practices. To learn more about the effectiveness of this approach for both students and educators, the project will assess the pedagogy and report any conceptual gains this research-based curriculum offers over other instructional models, and present limitations and challenges observed. Several validated instruments will be used to measure confidence and learning gains with newly developed assessments to evaluate predicted cognitive gains. Cohorts of students at each institution are identified, not engaged in the CGC curriculum, to control for instructor and institutional factors.