Integrating Imaging Physics into Undergraduate STEM Education

该项目旨在通过开发生物医学成像的教育资源来服务于国家利益，这是一个引人入胜的跨学科主题，可用于一系列STEM课程。该合作项目涉及刘易斯克拉克学院（奖励DUE-2315741）和波特兰州立大学（奖励DUE-2315742）的研究人员。影像无处不在。人们用眼睛看东西，用照相机拍照。科学家们用显微镜观察细胞内部，用望远镜观察太空。医生使用超声波、x射线、放射性同位素和磁共振成像（MRI）来观察人体内部。该项目将生成引人入胜的交互式教程，帮助下一代科学家和非科学家以及公众了解和掌握关键医学成像技术（如超声和核磁共振成像）的科学基础、诊断和治疗应用以及优缺点。此外，这些教程将通过说明STEM概念在医学成像和成像科学的迷人和高度相关领域中的关键作用，增强STEM的参与、学习和保留。多学科研究团队将开发、测试和传播一套有凝聚力的互动、探究驱动的教学模拟，涵盖医学成像及其科学基础。模拟，连同背景文本、评估问题和研究性调查，将被组织成四个模块，每个模块涵盖四种主要医学成像方式中的一种：超声、放射照相（基于x射线的平面和断层成像）、核成像（基于放射性核素的平面和断层成像）和MRI。为了促进在本科教育中的广泛应用，这些模块将是开源的，并设计用于常见的在线学习管理系统（如Moodle， Canvas）。项目团队的主要目标是：(1)开发四个模块；(2)在不同学生群体和教学环境的两所院校进行生物医学物理课程整合；(3)评估两所院校学生对课程单元的使用情况及对学生的影响；(4)传播和维护互动教育模块、评估材料、讲师资源和研究成果，支持相关教学社区。作为这项工作的教育研究部分，研究人员将进行基于调查和访谈的研究，以探索这些模块如何影响(1)STEM专业学生对跨学科科学背景重要性的态度，以及(2)STEM专业学生对传统学科边界的科学和职业的兴趣。NSF IUSE: EDU项目支持研究和开发项目，以提高所有学生STEM教育的有效性。通过其参与学生学习轨道，该计划支持有前途的实践和工具的创建，探索和实施。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。

This project aims to serve the national interest by developing educational resources on biomedical imaging -- an engaging, interdisciplinary topic -- for use in a range of STEM courses. This collaborative project involves investigators at Lewis & Clark College (Award DUE-2315741) and Portland State University (Award DUE-2315742). Imaging is everywhere. People use their eyes to see and cameras to take pictures. Scientists use microscopes to peer into cells, and telescopes to peer out into space. Physicians use ultrasound, X-rays, radioisotopes, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to look inside human bodies. This project will generate engaging, interactive tutorials that will help the next generation of scientists and non-scientists, and the general public, learn about and master the scientific foundations, diagnostic and therapeutic applications, and strengths and weaknesses of key medical imaging techniques, such as ultrasound and MRI. In addition, the tutorials will enhance engagement, learning, and retention in STEM by illustrating the pivotal role of STEM concepts in the fascinating and highly relevant fields of medical imaging and imaging science.The multidisciplinary team of investigators will develop, test, and disseminate a cohesive set of interactive, inquiry-driven teaching simulations that cover medical imaging and its foundations in science. The simulations, together with background text, assessment questions, and research-directed surveys, will be organized into four modules, each covering one of four major medical imaging modalities: ultrasound, radiography (planar and tomographic X-ray-based imaging), nuclear imaging (planar and tomographic radionuclide-based imaging), and MRI. To facilitate broad use in undergraduate education, the modules will be open-source and designed for use in common online learning management systems (e.g., Moodle, Canvas). The project team's major goals are (1) to develop the four modules; (2) to integrate them in two different biomedical physics courses at two institutions, which have different student populations and teaching environments; (3) to assess the modules' use by and impact on students at the two institutions; and (4) to disseminate and maintain the interactive educational modules, assessment materials, instructor resources, and research results to support relevant teaching communities. As part of the education research component of the work, the investigators will conduct survey- and interview-based research to explore how the modules impact (1) the attitudes of STEM majors about the importance of an interdisciplinary science background and (2) the interest of STEM majors in science and careers at the boundaries of traditional disciplines. The NSF IUSE: EDU program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. Through its Engaged Student Learning track, the program supports the creation, exploration, and implementation of promising practices and tools.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.