Course‐based undergraduate research experiences in a remote setting: Two case studies documenting implementation and student perceptions

Abstract

Similar to many institutions, Reed College (Portland, OR) transitioned to a remote leaning environment in Spring 2020, with 5 weeks remaining in the semester. Historically, many of Reed's upper division courses in math and natural sciences-including Ecology (Biology 301) and an interdisciplinary Environmental Science (ES 300) Junior Seminar (both full credit, one semester courses)-culminate in students pursuing independent research projects (IPs), a type of course-based undergraduate research experience, CURE (Linn et al., 2015). In conducting IPs, students conceive of an original research question, design and implement an appropriate research plan, work individually or in small teams, and conclude by communicating their findings to an audience of their peers and faculty member. A remote version of these IPs was enacted in Spring 2020 in response to the novel academic setting initiated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Pursuing IPs amidst the challenges of living through the COVID-19 pandemic are apparent. At the onset of this endeavor, we identified the following (explicitly not exhaustive) primary challenges associated with students living and studying remotely: (1) no access existed to our typical teaching laboratories, limiting instrumentation and software access; (2) limited access to known field sites in the areas surrounding students-both due to geographic distance between students and our campus, geographic variation in the extent

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