Mutualism in museums: A model for engaging undergraduates in biodiversity science

Museums have an untapped potential to engage students in hands-on learning. Here, we describe the development of a tiered museum-based program at the University of California, Berkeley as a model for engaging undergraduates in biodiversity science. This decade-long effort to increase student participation in collections demonstrates the mutual benefits of undergraduate involvement. Museums benefit from critical help in collections care and an increased intellectual vitality, while students simultaneously gain essential research skills and an unparalleled exposure to biodiversity. Five first steps to creating a program are: dedicate a coordinator, offer credit, diversify participation, create a tiered structure, and build community.

[1]  I. Mazin,et al.  Theory , 1934 .

[2]  Linda J. Sax,et al.  Undergraduate Science Majors: Gender Differences in Who Goes to Graduate School , 2000 .

[3]  C. Kane,et al.  Evaluating a science diversity program at UC Berkeley: more questions than answers. , 2003, Cell biology education.

[4]  D. Lopatto.  Survey of Undergraduate Research Experiences (SURE): first findings. , 2004, Cell biology education.

[5]  R. Dalton.  Endangered collections , 2007, Nature.

[6]  Susan H. Russell,et al.  Benefits of Undergraduate Research Experiences , 2007, Science.

[7]  Deborah Kogan,et al.  Encouraging minority undergraduates to choose science careers: career paths survey results. , 2008, CBE life sciences education.

[8]  Randy Moore,et al.  IS THE AGE OF THE EARTH ONE OF OUR “SOREST TROUBLES?” STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS ABOUT DEEP TIME AFFECT THEIR ACCEPTANCE OF EVOLUTIONARY THEORY , 2010, Evolution; international journal of organic evolution.

[9]  David C. Haak,et al.  Increased Structure and Active Learning Reduce the Achievement Gap in Introductory Biology , 2011, Science.

[10]  J. Whitfield.  Superstars of botany: Rare specimens , 2012, Nature.

[11]  Helen Shen.  Chicago's Field Museum cuts back on science , 2012, Nature.

[12]  Steven R. Beissinger,et al.  The push and pull of climate change causes heterogeneous shifts in avian elevational ranges , 2012 .

[13]  M. J. Chang,et al.  From Gatekeeping to Engagement: A Multicontextual, Mixed Method Study of Student Academic Engagement in Introductory STEM Courses , 2011, Research in higher education.

[14]  M. Sunderland,et al.  Doing Natural History , 2012 .

[15]  Raymond Goulder,et al.  The Value of Fieldwork in Life and Environmental Sciences in the Context of Higher Education: A Case Study in Learning About Biodiversity , 2012 .

[16]  R. Nielsen,et al.  Unlocking the vault: next‐generation museum population genomics , 2013, Molecular ecology.

[17]  M. Sunderland.  Teaching natural history at the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology , 2013 .

[18]  Sue Allen,et al.  Outside the Pipeline: Reimagining Science Education for Nonscientists , 2013, Science.

[19]  Robert P. Guralnick,et al.  Natural History Collections as Emerging Resources for Innovative Education , 2014 .

[20]  Stephanie E. Hampton,et al.  Natural History's Place in Science and Society , 2014 .

[21]  Michelle K. Smith,et al.  Active learning increases student performance in science, engineering, and mathematics , 2014, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[22]  Anna K. Monfils,et al.  Revolutionizing the Use of Natural History Collections in Education. , 2014 .

[23]  Sara E. Brownell,et al.  Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences Can Make Scientific Research More Inclusive , 2014, CBE life sciences education.

[24]  B. Baker.  The Way Forward for Biological Field Stations Change needed to ensure survival and scientific relevance , 2015 .

[25]  Jessica A. Weber,et al.  Natural history collections-based research: progress, promise, and best practices , 2016, Journal of Mammalogy.

[26]  C. Kemp.  Museums: The endangered dead , 2015, Nature.

[27]  M. Nachman,et al.  Natural history collections as windows on evolutionary processes , 2016, Molecular ecology.

[28]  Anna Nowogrodzki.  Biological specimen troves threatened by funding pause , 2016, Nature.

[29]  Eileen A. Lacey,et al.  From Museum Cases to the Classroom: Emerging Opportunities for Specimen-based Education , 2016 .

[30]  W. Edge.  Learning for the Future: Educating Career Fisheries and Wildlife Professionals , 2016, Mammal Study.

[31]  Julia J. Snyder,et al.  Peer-Led Team Learning Helps Minority Students Succeed , 2016, PLoS biology.

[32]  Rachael Lallensack.  In Louisiana, a threatened natural history collection gets a reprieve , 2017 .

[33]  John Anderson.  Why Ecology Needs Natural History , 2017 .