RCN-UBE Incubator: Incorporating a short but intensive botanical experience into formal college courses to alleviate plant blindness among undergraduate STEM students

“植物失明”是一种认知状况，个体在自己的环境中看不到或注意不到植物，通常导致无法认识到植物在环境和日常活动中的重要性。在当今世界，植物盲症是一个永恒的循环：没有接受过植物教育的儿童长大成人后，对环境和自然资源的知识却不完整。此外，这些孩子仍然不知道与植物和植物科学有关的各种职业道路。解决这种对环境和自然资源缺乏认识的一种方法是提供更多的实践经验，让学生与植物联系起来，了解它们在世界上的重要性。这项研究计划将汇集13位领先的植物科学家，分享有关当前和潜在的植物学经验的信息和想法。这些科学家将共同设计一系列的植物学体验，这些体验可以在不同的大学和植物学机构实施，作为更好地教育未来公民植物在人类事务中的重要性的一种方式。将特别考虑包括关于植物如何参与大多数职业的信息。这个原始的网络将继续发展，并将以植物学为重点的教育工作者联系起来，进一步扩大研究网络，以发展和促进基于植物学的科学教育的最佳实践。STEM专业的本科生通常不了解植物生命的复杂性，也不了解植物在生态系统功能和人类社会中的动态作用，这种现象被称为“植物盲”。如果放任不管，植物盲目性会造成现实世界的后果，包括由于缺乏公众支持、资源分配或不明智的政策而阻碍有效的植物保护措施。一学期的植物学课程可以帮助缓解植物盲症，然而，如果学生没有意识到他们的职业选择与植物有一定的关系，他们就不太可能选择这样的课程。此外，在过去的几十年里，植物学教育一直在下降，无论是从教师的数量还是从提供这些课程的大学的数量来看。因此，有必要提供有效的植物学经验，以吸引植物学课程之外的学生，并减轻植物盲目性，无论学生的职业轨迹如何。一种建议的解决方案是将更多的植物学实践经验整合到入门课程中，但是理想的植物学经验是什么样的，以及学生应该期望从这些经验中得到什么仍然是未知的。这些问题，以及更多的问题，将在13位著名的植物科学家聚集一堂，集中讨论减轻植物盲症和提高本科学生的植物学素养的研讨会上进行研究。具体来说，研讨会参与者将讨论并定义植物学经验应该包括什么，通过合作分享知识和最佳实践，与目前在本国机构发生的植物学经验有关。这个原始的网络将继续发展，并将以植物学为重点的教育工作者联系起来，进一步扩大研究网络，以发展和促进基于植物学的科学教育的最佳实践。该项目由生物基础设施司生物科学理事会和本科教育司教育和人力资源理事会共同资助，作为其应对《本科生物学教育的愿景与变革：行动呼吁》（http://visionandchange/finalreport/）所提出的挑战的努力的一部分。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

"Plant blindness" is a cognitive condition in which individuals fail to see or notice the plants in their own environment, often resulting in an inability to recognize the importance of plants in the environment and in everyday activities. In today's world, plant blindness is in a perpetual cycle: children who are not taught about plants become adults with incomplete knowledge about the environment and natural resources. In addition, these children remain unaware of various careers paths relating to plants and plant sciences. One way to address this lack of awareness about the environment and natural resources is by providing more hands-on experiences that allow students to connect with plants and understand their importance in the world. This research proposal will bring together thirteen leading plant scientists to share information and ideas about current and potential botanical experiences. Together, these scientists will design a series of botanical experiences that can be implemented at various universities and botanical institutions as a way to better educate future citizens on the importance of plants in human affairs. Special consideration will be given to including information on how plants are involved in a majority of careers. This original network will continue to grow and to connect botany-focused educators, further broadening the research network working to develop and promote best practices in botany-based science education. Undergraduate STEM students are usually not attuned to the intricacies of plant life, nor the dynamic role plants play in ecosystem function and human society, a phenomenon termed "plant blindness". Left unchecked, plant blindness has real world consequences, including impediment of effective plant conservation measures due to lack of public support, resource allocations, or ill-advised policies. Semester-long botany courses can help alleviate plant blindness, however, students are less likely to choose such a course if they do not perceive their career choices to be somewhat related to plants. Additionally, botany education has been on the decline in the past decades, both in terms of number of faculty members and universities offering these courses. As a result, there is a need to offer effective botanical experiences to engage students outside of a botany course and to alleviate plant blindness regardless of students' career trajectories. One proposed solution is to integrate more hands-on botanical experiences into introductory courses, but what an ideal botanical experience looks like and what students should be expected to take away from these experiences remains unknown. These questions, and more, will be examined when thirteen leading plant scientists convene at a workshop focused on alleviating plant blindness and increasing botanical literacy among undergraduate students. Specifically, workshop participants will discuss and define exactly what a botanical experience should include through collaborative sharing of knowledge and best practices related to botanical experiences currently taking place at their home institution. This original network will continue to grow and to connect botany-focused educators, further broadening the research network working to develop and promote best practices in botany-based science education. 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 as part of their efforts to address the challenges posed in Vision and Change in Undergraduate Biology Education: A Call to Action (http://visionandchange/finalreport/).This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.