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

生物学中的一个基本概念是地球上的生命会随着时间的推移而变化。爱荷华州立大学教师研究体验(ISU BIORETS)计划旨在通过促进科学素养和好奇心，帮助教师和他们的学生更好地了解生物体如何适应或未能适应不断变化的环境，这影响了人们对公共政策及其执行的态度。在管理地球的过程中，科学、教育和行动从未像现在这样重要。教师在提高科学素养方面发挥着至关重要的作用，但研究表明，许多教师在教授生物体如何适应这一科学领域不断变化的环境和研究过程时缺乏信心。ISU BIORETS计划通过在大学研究实验室为教师，特别是那些在STEM领域任职人数不足的教师和那些教授边缘人群学生的教师提供真正的、实际操作的暑期培训来解决这一问题。帮助教育工作者发展他们的教学知识和课程开发技能，将提高他们的教学水平。反过来，他们的学生将就真正科学家的问题争论不休，以传达科学的累积本质--新数据增加了对更完整的理解。除了为教师提供暑期培训外，该项目还将在整个学年内在大学研究人员、教师和他们的学生之间建立创新的、持续的关系，为教师和学生提供机会，为解决现实世界的问题做出宝贵的科学贡献。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。教师将在夏季与东道主大学的教职员工合作六周，解决有关适应性的主要研究问题。东道主实验室的植物和动物研究系统将促进基本的生物学概念，同时解决植物意识不足的问题。不同生物学水平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，在学年期间有两次为期一天的教师队列活动，个人辅导，教师对高中的后续访问，以及学生对ISU的访问。两周一次的专业发展规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，交付成果将包括面对面活动和虚拟活动两个选项。对植物生物学的关注将吸引和招收不同的学生进入植物科学。教师和学生将从以下方面受益：1)增加教学知识和课程开发；2)扩大学生的教育和职业机会，特别是在STEM学科中来自代表性不足、经济困难或农村人口的学生；以及3)从代表性不足人口入学率较高的学区招聘教师，以及免费和减少午餐的学生。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级培训增强了美国的全球竞争力。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势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.