Testing the Benefits of Undergraduate Research-Based Learning at Various Curricular Levels Using Authentic Research Questions in Hydrogeomorphology

尽管STEM文献中已经描述了由个人完成的真实本科生研究的许多好处，但很少有人通过使用本科生研究小组在整个课程（从入门课程到顶点课程）中扩展本科生研究。这项研究是利用水文地貌领域和附近的PI校园作为背景，在整个地质课程实施经验适当的，真实的研究，并衡量这些研究经验对学生学习的影响。该研究通过定量和定性方法测试的基本问题是，与这些小组研究经验相关的学习收益是否与文献中广泛报道的单个本科生研究项目的研究收益相似。PI也正在研究学生研究员的体验式学习，他们作为学徒并帮助运行研究站。通过顶点高级研究研讨会参加入门课程的学生正在解决建立在教师研究实力基础上的经验适当的，真实的科学问题。这些课程充分整合了PI的研究和教学功能。水文地貌研究主题是与水质、滑坡、地下水和地表水相互作用、土地开发造成的侵蚀和景观演变有关的区域和科学问题。学生们在课堂上通过实验、监测、绘图和测量来解决自然环境和发达环境中的这些问题。该项目的智力价值是了解和评估地质学学生的学习收益，作为整个地质学课程中基于小组研究的学习的函数，其结果有助于STEM社区更好地了解学习收益在不同地质学课程水平上的差异。这项研究的更广泛的影响是确定小组研究和个人研究是否有类似的学习收益。从目前的研究中获得的见解如何实施本科生群体研究，促进其扩展到更大的学生群体。

Although many benefits of authentic undergraduate research done by individuals have been described in the STEM literature, few efforts have extended undergraduate research in classes throughout the curriculum (from introductory to capstone classes) by using undergraduate research groups. This study is using hydrogeomorphic field areas on and near the PIs' campus as a backdrop to implement experience-appropriate, authentic research throughout the geology curriculum and is measuring the impacts of these research experiences on student learning. The fundamental question that the study is testing through quantitative and qualitative methods is whether learning gains associated with these group research experiences are similar to the research gains of individual undergraduate research projects that are widely reported in the literature. The PIs are also examining the experiential learning of student research fellows that serve as apprentices and help run the research station.Students enrolled in introductory classes through a capstone senior research seminar are addressing experience-appropriate, authentic, science problems that build on the research strength of faculty. These classes are fully integrating the PIs research and teaching functions. Hydrogeomorphic research topics are regionally and scientifically relevant problems related to water quality, landslides, groundwater and surface-water interaction, erosion due to land development and landscape evolution. Students in classes are addressing these issues in both natural and developed settings through experiments, monitoring, mapping and measurements.The intellectual merit of the project is to understand and evaluate geology student learning gains as a function of group research based learning throughout the geology curriculum, and the results are helping the STEM community to better understand how learning gains vary at different geology class levels. The broader impact of this study is determining whether group research and individual research have similar learning gains. Insights gained from the current study of how to implement undergraduate group research is facilitating its extension to a larger population of students.