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Quantitative digital course-based undergraduate research experience in plant biology.

Murren CJ, Jensen-Ryan D, Bisner A, Chang CC, Callahan HS

Summary

PubMed

Researchers created a digital version of a hands-on plant biology research course to keep undergraduate students engaged in authentic science during COVID-19 and beyond. The online format makes plant research education more flexible and scalable without sacrificing real research experience.

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Key Findings

1

A digital CURE (DCURE) was successfully developed as an adaptation of a live-plant manipulative experiment for undergraduate plant biology education.

2

The DCURE was designed to maintain authentic research engagement while addressing scalability and flexibility demands accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

3

The course supports student persistence in STEM and skill development comparable to traditional hands-on research experiences.

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Original Abstract

Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) provide authentic research while promoting student engagement, persistence in STEM, and skill development. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and growing demand for flexible, scalable educational tools in biology, we developed and implemented a digital CURE (DCURE) adapted from a live-plant manipulative experiment CURE. This DCURE engages students on research in

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