RAPID: Optimizing distance learning programs to mitigate the effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on REU sites in biology.

COVID-19疫情削弱了国家为本科生提供现场研究体验（REU）的能力。由于大流行的迅速爆发，BIO-REU的主要研究人员（PI）在很大程度上没有准备好通过远程技术提供REU学习。该提案将利用BIO-REU PI发起的组织活动，提供远程REU计划。具体而言，PI正在对其计划进行重大修改，以使学生参与远程研究，包括转向可以远程进行的研究项目，提供在线研究指导和专业发展，以及提供远程交流的非正式渠道。向远程编程的转变是必要的和前所未有的。实质性的评估是必要的，以完善这些方法，以最大限度地提高学生的学习，并尽量减少对REU产品的干扰，这在发展研究队伍中发挥着至关重要的作用。该项目将通过进行此类评估来改善学生在远程BIO-REU站点的学习和发展。首先，远程雷乌斯将通过与学生和导师的虚拟焦点小组以及对同步远程活动的观察，在其规划的早期进行评估。这些评估的结果将迅速报告给BIO-REU PI，以便及时调整和改进远程计划活动。然后，将收集更多的焦点小组和调查数据，以确定远程雷乌斯能够在多大程度上（a）在他们的同龄人中建立社区意识，（B）确保学生对其研究项目的所有权，（c）提供远程优质导师，以及（d）影响学生的专业成长及其教育和职业兴趣。数据将在REU网站进行比较，并与人REU网站发表的研究，以确定有用的策略，提高远程雷乌斯学生的学习。结果将在报告中分享给每个REU网站，以进行改进，并为本科STEM教育社区发布，以在未来的本科研究规划中应用所吸取的经验教训。该项目将完成两个主要目标：（1）评估远程雷乌斯，以提高学生的学习和研究队伍的发展和（2）产生新的知识远程REU编程的有效性。使用既定的方法和测量来评估本科生的研究经验，该项目将涉及进行焦点小组，观察项目活动，并收集来自全国各地REU站点的本科生研究人员及其研究导师的调查数据，这些站点由于COVID 19而远距离运行。焦点小组和观察的分析结果将迅速报告给REU现场领导，以便立即做出改进，更好地支持学生的学习。从调查和焦点小组的结果将被用来确定在何种程度上的距离雷乌斯能够实现类似的目标，在人雷乌斯，包括建立社区意识，确保学生在研究中的强大参与，提供高质量的辅导在距离，并影响学生的专业成长和他们的教育和职业兴趣。该项目将产生测试策略，让本科生在远处进行研究，这可以应用于其他情况，如服务学生谁是无法前往遥远的REU网站或从事自然灾害后的学生。该项目将在生物学的背景下进行，这是STEM领域拥有最多的本科研究人员。该奖项由生物基础设施部（DBI）使用冠状病毒援助，救济和经济安全（CARES）法案的资金颁发。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 COVID-19 pandemic has undermined national capacity to offer onsite Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Sites. Due to the rapid onset of the pandemic, BIO-REU principal investigators (PIs) were caught largely unprepared to deliver REU learning through distance technologies. This proposal will capitalize of the organizing activities started by BIO-REU PIs to provide distance REU programs. Specifically, PIs are making substantial changes to their programs to engage students in research at a distance, including shifting to research projects that can be conducted at a distance, offering research mentoring and professional development online, and providing informal avenues for communication at a distance. The shift to distance programming is both necessary and unprecedented. Substantive evaluation is needed in order to refine these approaches to maximize student learning and minimize disruption to REU offerings, which play a critical role in developing the research workforce. This project will improve student learning and development in distance BIO-REU sites by carrying out such an evaluation. First, the distance REUs will be evaluated early in their programming through virtual focus groups with students and mentors as well as observations of synchronous, distance activities. The results of these evaluations will be reported rapidly to the BIO-REU PIs to enable prompt adjustments and refinements of distance program activities. Then, additional focus group and survey data will be collected to determine the extent to which distance REUs are able to (a) build a sense of community in their cohorts, (b) ensure student ownership of their research projects, (c) provide quality mentorship at a distance, and (d) influence students’ professional growth and their education and career interests. Data will be compared across REU sites and with published studies of in-person REU sites to identify strategies useful for improving student learning in distance REUs. Results will be shared in reports to each REU site in order to make improvements and published for the undergraduate STEM education community to apply lessons learned in future undergraduate research programming. This project will accomplish two major goals: (1) evaluating distance REUs in order to improve student learning and research workforce development and (2) producing new knowledge about the effectiveness of distance REU programming. Using established approaches and measurements for evaluating undergraduate research experiences, the project will involve conducting focus groups, observing program activities, and collecting survey data from undergraduate researchers and their research mentors at REU sites across the country that are operating at a distance due to COVID19. Results from analysis of focus groups and observations will be rapidly reported to REU site leaders to make immediate improvements to better support student learning. Results from surveys and focus groups will be used to determine the extent to which distance REUs are able to achieve similar goals to in-person REUs, including building a sense of community, ensuring robust student involvement in research, providing quality mentorship at a distance, and influencing students’ professional growth and their education and career interests. The project will produce tested strategies for engaging undergraduates in research at a distance, which could be applied to other circumstances such as serving students who are not able to travel to a distant REU site or engaging students following natural disasters. The project will be conducted in the context of biology, which is the domain of STEM with the largest number of undergraduate researchers. This RAPID award is made by the Division of Biological Infrastructure (DBI) using funds from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.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.