RCN-UBE Undergraduate Virtual Experiences as a Recruitment Tool for Underrepresented Students in STEM

虚拟领域（thevirtualfield.org）的创建是为了扩大在现场站和海洋实验室（FSML）的本科生在STEM学科的变革性现场学习经验。传统的实地经验已被证明对学生的知识和参与科学有深远的影响。然而，这些机会往往是不可用的那些从社区学院（CC）和少数民族服务机构（MSI），由于财政，社会和后勤障碍。此外，COVID-19大流行进一步加剧了这些挑战，限制了现场机会。为了克服这些障碍并增加获得实地经验的机会，该项目将利用虚拟技术使实地生物学经验广泛获得。通过联合FSMLs、虚拟学习专家、摄像师和教育工作者，该项目旨在弥合差距，并将科学教育带到不同的社区，最终为增加实地科学多样性的更广泛目标做出贡献。该项目将侧重于调查和循证教学方面的培训，以及开发虚拟教材，以促进研究协调网络有效地使用和开发虚拟探究学习教材现场站和海洋实验室（FSML）。将创建一个在线社区，鼓励分享为服务不足的学生创造有效的虚拟学习体验的想法。该项目包括七个年度方向和培训研讨会，专家将介绍虚拟技术技能，课堂使用和教育评估。这些研讨会为促进讨论、分组会议和反馈收集提供了机会。该项目旨在收集有关网络参与者需求的反馈，识别访问内容的障碍，探索合作机会，并为教师和FSML开发实践社区文件。每两个月增加一次办公时间，供参与者和任何对项目感兴趣的人寻求支持和澄清。教师和FSML参与者将把虚拟材料整合到他们现有的课程和教育计划中，并采用严格的评估来量化成果，与其他参与者分享。该项目还侧重于新的虚拟材料和工具的协作开发，包括虚拟材料，教学视频和评估指南。评估专家将领导创建一个评估指南，其中包括评估学生学习和情感成果的协议，该协议将根据参与者的反馈每年更新。此外，该项目还寻求建立长期伙伴关系，以便在赠款有效期结束后维持虚拟实地经验。该项目由生物基础设施部生物科学理事会和本科教育部STEM教育理事会共同资助，作为应对本科生物学教育中的愿景和变革所带来的挑战的努力的一部分：行动呼吁（http：//visionandchange/finalreport/）。该奖项反映了NSF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。

The Virtual Field (thevirtualfield.org) was created to broaden access to transformative field learning experiences at Field Stations and Marine Labs (FSMLs) for undergraduate students in STEM disciplines. Traditional field experiences have been shown to have a profound impact on student knowledge and engagement in the sciences. However, these opportunities are often unavailable to those from Community Colleges (CCs) and minority-serving institutions (MSIs), due to financial, social, and logistical barriers. Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic further exacerbated these challenges, limiting in-person field opportunities. To overcome these barriers and increase access to field experiences, this project will leverage virtual technologies to make field biology experiences broadly accessible. By uniting FSMLs, virtual learning experts, videographers, and educators, this project aims to bridge the gap and bring science education to diverse communities, ultimately contributing to the broader goal of increasing diversity in the field sciences.The project will focus on training in inquiry- and evidence-based teaching, and the development of virtual materials to enhance the effective use and development of virtual inquiry-based learning materials by the Research Coordination Network (RCN) faculty and Field Station and Marine Labs (FSMLs). An online community will be created to encourage the sharing of ideas for creating effective virtual learning experiences for underserved students. The project includes seven annual orientation and training workshops where experts will present on virtual technology skills, classroom use, and educational assessment. These workshops provide opportunities for facilitated discussions, breakout sessions, and feedback collection. The project aims to collect feedback on the needs of network participants, identify barriers to accessing content, explore collaboration opportunities, and develop community of practice documents for faculty and FSMLs. Additional bimonthly office hours will be available for participants and anyone interested in the project to seek support and clarification. Faculty and FSML participants will integrate virtual materials into their existing courses and educational programs and employ rigorous assessments to quantify outcomes to share with other participants. The project also focuses on the collaborative development of new virtual materials and tools, including virtual materials, instructional videos, and an assessment guide. The assessment expert will lead the creation of an assessment guide with protocols for assessing student learning and affective outcomes, which will be updated annually based on participant feedback. Furthermore, the project seeks to establish long-term partnerships to sustain virtual field experiences beyond the duration of the grant. This project is being jointly funded by the Directorate for Biological Sciences, Division of Biological Infrastructure, and the Directorate STEM Education, 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.