TY - JOUR
T1 - Student-led workshops
T2 - Filling skills gaps in computational research for life scientists
AU - LaTourrette, Katherine
AU - Stengel, Ashley
AU - Clarke, Jennifer
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Authors. Natural Sciences Education published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American Society of Agronomy
PY - 2021
Y1 - 2021
N2 - Computational skills are increasingly important for conducting research in the agricultural and natural sciences. However, barriers to training availability and accessibility have left many life scientists under-prepared. To address these challenges, we developed a workshop series led by graduate students to cover topics relevant to research needs among life scientists. Our workshops incorporated guided practice to facilitate a student-centered learning environment. Further, in response to changes mandated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the workshop series was converted to a virtual format and extended to life science researchers beyond our home institution. We highlight how to effectively structure workshops to develop computational skills and adapt in-person activities to the virtual environment. Survey data shows our workshops reached a highly diverse group of scientists, representing more than eight departments, in both in-person and virtual renditions. Further, we demonstrate an increase in self-reported confidence in student abilities to apply concepts to their own research following content delivery. This increase was facilitated in both virtual and in-person environments, showing that adapting content for online delivery is capable of supporting student learning gains. The success of this workshop series shows the importance of hands-on, guided practice in developing computational skills to fill gaps in training in the agricultural and natural sciences.
AB - Computational skills are increasingly important for conducting research in the agricultural and natural sciences. However, barriers to training availability and accessibility have left many life scientists under-prepared. To address these challenges, we developed a workshop series led by graduate students to cover topics relevant to research needs among life scientists. Our workshops incorporated guided practice to facilitate a student-centered learning environment. Further, in response to changes mandated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the workshop series was converted to a virtual format and extended to life science researchers beyond our home institution. We highlight how to effectively structure workshops to develop computational skills and adapt in-person activities to the virtual environment. Survey data shows our workshops reached a highly diverse group of scientists, representing more than eight departments, in both in-person and virtual renditions. Further, we demonstrate an increase in self-reported confidence in student abilities to apply concepts to their own research following content delivery. This increase was facilitated in both virtual and in-person environments, showing that adapting content for online delivery is capable of supporting student learning gains. The success of this workshop series shows the importance of hands-on, guided practice in developing computational skills to fill gaps in training in the agricultural and natural sciences.
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U2 - 10.1002/nse2.20052
DO - 10.1002/nse2.20052
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85118257262
SN - 2168-8273
VL - 50
JO - Natural Sciences Education
JF - Natural Sciences Education
IS - 1
M1 - e20052
ER -