Dr. Joshua Gray, a professor at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, is leading a group of faculty members from several institutions across the country in a comprehensive effort to incorporate research into undergraduate biology courses.
Their work recently resulted in a nearly $400k grant from the National Science Foundation that will support the addition of undergraduate research in biology courses nationwide. The funding will support the development and testing of laboratory modules, purchase of research supplies, and travel to scientific conferences to disseminate the work.
Traditionally, few undergraduate students have access to research experiences. By including research into his Biochemistry laboratory, Gray’s students are able to perform authentic scientific research rather than laboratory exercises with predictable, known outcomes. Gray, head of the Chemical and Environmental Sciences Dept. at the Academy, said “peer reviewed research shows that students exposed to research experiences earlier in their education have higher retention in science, perform better academically, and experience greater growth of scientific identity. This approach provides equitable benefits to students of all academic levels and backgrounds.”
Using the popular Course-based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) approach to teaching, Gray and his students do not know what the outcome of their research will be. While working in the lab students will work with Gray to generate their own theories and apply scientific techniques to determine if their hypotheses are correct. “The overall theme is biological stress, which is any condition that affects an organism’s ability to grow, reproduce, and thrive.”
Gray partnered with faculty members at Washington College, Husson University, Lincoln Memorial University, the University of Maine, and the Medical University of South Carolina. Together the group is creating a modular approach to the CURE methodology that will allow faculty members to pick and choose which protocols are most easily adaptable in the labs at their respective institutions. Gray, his colleagues, and their students perform their work on the nematode roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans, a common, inexpensive soil-dwelling worm used for genetics and biochemistry research.
These experimental protocols can be performed in undergraduate teaching labs for a variety of courses, including biology, biochemistry, and neuroscience, and the group plans to disseminate lessons learned to other faculty members at future educational conferences and through peer reviewed publication.
“This work will develop new approaches to science education which will leverage research as an integral part of the undergraduate experience,” said Capt. Greg Hall, a Distinguished Professor and Vice Provost for Research at the Academy. “This approach is crucial in teaching students how to think critically in our rapidly changing, uncertain, complex world. We are tremendously grateful to our partners in this effort and the National Science Foundation for their support.”