Collaborative Research: NRT-IGE: Employing Model-Based Reasoning in Environmental Science (EMBeRS)

合作研究：NRT-IGE：在环境科学中采用基于模型的推理 (EMBeRS)

• 批准号: 1545404
• 负责人: Deana Pennington
• 金额: $ 27.95万
• 依托单位: University of Texas at El Paso
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2015
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2015-09-15 至 2019-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1545404&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; NRT; IGE; Employing

NRT-IGE: Employing Model-Based Reasoning in Environmental Science (EMBeRS) Scientific synthesis across disciplines is at the heart of addressing important challenges, such as impacts of global change, trade-offs between water, food, and energy production, and the need for sustainable cities. Studies of interdisciplinary research teams indicate that team members struggle to achieve knowledge synthesis across disciplines. Issues arise due to the inability of team members to develop deep knowledge at the frontier of other disciplines and to connect that knowledge with their own expertise to provide a collaborative path forward. The ability to work collaboratively in a research team with others who may hold very different perspectives is a critical aspect of preparing today's students to meet future workforce demands. This National Science Foundation Research Traineeship (NRT) award in the Innovations in Graduate Education (IGE) track is a collaborative project led by the University of Texas at El Paso involving graduate students and faculty from multiple institutions. The project will test a new model for training graduate student teams in environmental sciences to overcome knowledge integration and synthesis challenges. This model will draw on findings from cognitive, learning, and social sciences to develop and test training for graduate students and faculty in model-based reasoning approaches. Model-based reasoning theory posits that humans reason by constructing an internal mental model of the situations, events, and processes that they encounter, and that external representations can be used to facilitate construction of these mental models. External representations include the use of analogies, metaphor, visual models, diagrams and/or other representations for abstraction and communication of complex concepts. In a team setting, these external representations are called boundary negotiating objects. This project will place doctoral students in multidisciplinary teams and facilitate a structured, participatory process that includes a progression of standard, individual, and group model-based reasoning activities as well as instruction on the purposeful co-creation of boundary negotiating objects. Students from multiple institutions will learn together through two-week summer experiences; students who are conducting research in conjunction with larger interdisciplinary teams will be targeted. In addition, the project will train faculty from multiple institutions in the model. The project will examine the implementation by ten faculty members. Survey, interview, and digital data will be collected to examine how graduate students respond to being directly exposed to theories behind the approach as well as the efficacy of the approach as faculty employ it in their graduate classes. This design will allow comparison of the outcomes from guiding students on what to do, versus teaching students why and how to do it. The NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) Program is designed to encourage the development and implementation of bold, new, potentially transformative, and scalable models for STEM graduate education training. The Innovations in Graduate Education Track is dedicated solely to piloting, testing, and evaluating novel, innovative, and potentially transformative approaches to graduate education.

NRT-IGE：在环境科学中采用基于模型的推理 (EMBeRS) 跨学科的科学综合是解决重要挑战的核心，例如全球变化的影响、水、粮食和能源生产之间的权衡以及需求为了可持续发展的城市。对跨学科研究团队的研究表明，团队成员很难实现跨学科的知识综合。由于团队成员无法在其他学科的前沿发展深厚的知识并将这些知识与自己的专业知识联系起来以提供协作的前进道路，因此出现了问题。在研究团队中与持不同观点的其他人合作的能力是当今学生满足未来劳动力需求的一个关键方面。研究生教育创新 (IGE) 领域的国家科学基金会研究实习 (NRT) 奖项是德克萨斯大学埃尔帕索分校牵头的一个合作项目，涉及多个机构的研究生和教师。该项目将测试一种新的环境科学研究生团队培训模式，以克服知识整合和综合的挑战。该模型将借鉴认知、学习和社会科学的研究成果，为研究生和教师开发和测试基于模型的推理方法的培训。基于模型的推理理论认为，人类通过构建他们遇到的情况、事件和过程的内部心理模型来进行推理，并且可以使用外部表征来促进这些心理模型的构建。外部表示包括使用类比、隐喻、视觉模型、图表和/或其他表示来抽象和传达复杂概念。在团队环境中，这些外部表示称为边界协商对象。该项目将把博士生安排在多学科团队中，并促进结构化的参与性过程，其中包括一系列基于标准、个人和群体模型的推理活动，以及有目的地共同创造边界谈判对象的指导。来自多个院校的学生将通过为期两周的暑期体验共同学习；与更大的跨学科团队合作进行研究的学生将成为目标。此外，该项目还将在该模型中培训来自多个机构的教师。该项目将由十名教员检查实施情况。将收集调查、访谈和数字数据，以研究研究生对直接接触该方法背后的理论的反应，以及教师在研究生课程中使用该方法的有效性。这种设计将允许比较指导学生做什么和教导学生为什么以及如何做的结果。 NSF 研究培训计划 (NRT) 旨在鼓励为 STEM 研究生教育培训开发和实施大胆、新颖、具有潜在变革性和可扩展的模型。研究生教育创新轨道专门致力于试点、测试和评估新颖、创新且具有潜在变革性的研究生教育方法。