BIORETS Biological pathways to adaptability, interactions among the genome, epigenome and environment.

生物学的一个基本概念是地球上的生命会随着时间而变化。爱荷华州立大学教师研究经验（ISU BIORETS）项目旨在通过提高科学素养和好奇心来帮助教师和学生更好地理解生物如何适应或不适应不断变化的环境，这影响了对公共政策及其实施的态度。科学、教育和行动在管理地球方面从来没有像现在这样至关重要。教师在提高科学素养方面发挥着至关重要的作用，但是研究表明，许多教师在教授有机体如何适应不断变化的环境和这一科学领域的研究过程时缺乏信心。ISU BIORETS计划通过为教师，特别是那些在STEM领域代表性不足的教师和那些教边缘化群体学生的教师，提供在大学研究实验室进行真实的实践暑期培训来解决这一问题。帮助教育工作者发展他们的内容知识和课程开发技能将建立他们的教学熟练程度。反过来，他们的学生将争论真正的科学家提出的问题，以传达科学的累积性——新数据增加了对更完整的理解。除了对教师的暑期培训外，该项目还将在整个学年中建立大学研究人员、教师和学生之间创新的、持续的关系，为教师和学生提供为解决现实问题做出宝贵科学贡献的机会。ISU将与爱荷华州的四个学区和一个地区教育机构合作，在调查生物体如何适应不断变化的环境的基础上，开展一个RET站点。教师将在夏季与主办大学的教师合作六周，解决有关适应性的主要研究问题。东道国实验室的植物和动物研究系统将推进基本的生物学概念，同时解决植物意识不足的问题。不同生物层面的概念整合将在每周的教师/教师会议上得到发展和加强。教师导师和教师之间的关系长达一年，每学年有为期两天的教师队列活动，个别辅导，教师对高中的后续访问，以及学生对国际州立大学的访问。双周专业发展计划将帮助教师将研究经验转化为课堂实践，并开发新的课程，鼓励学生进行实验和基于困境的学习。在可能的情况下，可交付成果将有面对面和虚拟活动两种选择。对植物生物学的关注将吸引和招募不同的学生进入植物科学。教师和学生将受益于1)增加内容知识和课程开发；2)扩大学生的教育和就业机会，特别是来自STEM学科中代表性不足、经济弱势或农村人口的学生；3)从少数族裔高入学率的学区招聘教师，以及从享受免费和减少午餐的学生中招聘教师。这些好处推动了下一代科学标准的目标，并通过提高科学意识和世界一流的培训提高了美国的全球竞争力。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。

A fundamental concept in biology is that life on Earth changes over time. The Iowa State University Research Experience for Teachers (ISU BIORETS) program aims to help teachers and their students better understand how organisms adapt or fail to adapt to a changing environment by promoting scientific literacy and curiosity, which impacts attitudes towards public policy and its implementation. Never has there been a time where science, education, and action have been more critical in the stewardship of the planet. Teachers play a crucial role in enhancing scientific literacy, but studies show that many lack confidence when teaching how organisms adapt to changing environment and research processes in this area of science. The ISU BIORETS program addresses this issue by providing teachers, particularly those underrepresented in STEM fields and those who teach students from marginalized populations, with authentic, hands-on summer training in university research laboratories. Helping the educators develop their content knowledge and curriculum development skills will build their teaching proficiencies. In turn, their students will wrangle over real scientists' questions to convey the cumulative nature of science - that new data adds to a more complete understanding. In addition to summer training for teachers, the program will build innovative, on-going relationships among university researchers, teachers, and their students throughout the school year, offering teachers and students opportunities to make valuable scientific contributions towards solving real-world problems. ISU will partner with four Iowa school districts and an area education agency to conduct an RET site based on investigating how organisms adapt to changing environments. Teachers will partner with host university faculty for six weeks in the summer to address major research questions regarding adaptability. Plant and animal study systems in the hosts' labs will advance fundamental biological concepts, while addressing the plant-awareness deficit. Conceptual integration across different biological levels will be developed and reinforced during weekly teacher/faculty meetings. Relationships between faculty mentors and teachers is year-long, with two day-long teacher-cohort activities during the school year, individual coaching, follow-up visits by faculty to high schools, and student visits to ISU. Biweekly professional development programming will help teachers translate research experiences into classroom practices and develop new curriculum that encourages student experimentation and dilemma-based learning. Where possible, deliverables will have options for both in-person and virtual activities. A focus on plant biology will engage and recruit diverse students into the plant sciences. Teachers and students will benefit through 1) increased content knowledge and curriculum development; 2) expanded educational and career opportunities for students, especially from underrepresented, economically disadvantaged, or rural populations in STEM disciplines; and 3) recruitment of teachers from school districts with high enrollment of underrepresented populations and students who receive free and reduced lunch. These benefits advance the goals of the Next Generation Science Standards and enhance US global competitiveness through increased scientific awareness and world-class training.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.