Open Science Network in Ethnobiology

The National Science Foundation has granted a Research Coordination Networks in Biological Sciences (RCN)- Unidergraduate Biology Education (UBE) award for a project titled "Open Science: an education network in Ethnobiolgoy to coordinate the development of a new culture in the undergraduate science classroom". 

This project forms an interdisciplinary network to approach undergraduate biology education through the use of emergent web-based technologies and to facilitate continual exchange of educational techniques, materials, and experiences across institutional and international borders.  The broader impact of this project will be the development of a network of ethnobiological collaborators with the primary objective of developing a new system of housing these ‘multiple expert voices’ (Liszka, et al., 2003) in the form of web-based portals. These portals will be available for use in traditional undergraduate classrooms as well as by nontraditional students via open technologies.  The curriculum developed and the lessons learned will be distributed widely via networks of members’ professional affiliations.  

 An Open-philosophy concept, based on the model of web tools such as Wikipedia, promotes the development of undergraduate curriculum through a team effort between connected universities, research institutions, educators and students themselves.  The network is intended to serve not just as a repository of information or data, but instead as a developing system intended to house the collective knowledge of both scientific experts and of the users (educators and students) inasmuch as those users contribute projects of merit.  The network, built to reflect the needs of the participants and the audiences served, will be flexible enough in its technological capabilities to evolve or change as the knowledge or needs change.   

 The Intellectual merits of the project center on the development of five “open-philosophy” approaches to the teaching of science. (See full description of the open science concept in Han Lau's article on  this blog http://www.wiserearth.org/article/f441c7ee9b11a907d5b5314036c9acdf.) 

Open participation in this project is encouraged.  An inaugural meeting for this group is scheduled for May 31 in Charleston (see Planning Meeting information on this site).  You are invited to participate in discussions and be involved in the planning.  Watch this site for more details!