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Securing the future of scientific research: Undergraduate education
Author(s) -
Hadzimichalis Norell Melissa,
Rork Tyler H.,
Baliga Sunanda S.,
Merrill Gary F.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.20.4.a17-a
Subject(s) - troubleshooting , graduation (instrument) , undergraduate research , computer science , mathematics education , medical education , psychology , engineering , medicine , mechanical engineering , operating system
Undergraduate students in biology‐related scientific disciplines must be armed with numerous skills prior to graduation. Our experience teaching upper‐level physiology laboratory and lecture courses at Rutgers University has provided valuable insight into successful methods for equipping future scientists with these skills. The laboratory course and employed teaching methods focus on an interactive approach to learning and are designed to expose approximately 350 students per year to the world of basic scientific research. Brief 30‐minute lectures are coupled with 2 hours of hands‐on experiments and data collection. Interactive computer‐based animations allow students to apply material in a format they are familiar with. In addition, the incorporation of modern data acquisition systems allows students to be current on data analysis trends in physiologic research. Experiments and associated assignments are designed to encourage students to properly draft a manuscript‐styled research paper using resources such as journals of the APS. Additionally, students learn to recognize and troubleshoot experimental obstacles in order to generate reliable data. The need for a collaborative group effort in this course enforces invaluable communication skills and simulates the need for investigators to work together in solving scientific problems. In our experience motivating and fascinating undergraduate students with interactive experiments encourages them to develop these valuable scientific skills.This work was funded by the Rutgers University Division of Life Sciences.