Cell spotting: Educational and motivational outcomes of cell biology citizen science project in the classroom

Silva, C. G. ; Monteiro, A. ; Manahl, C. ; Lostal, E. ; Holocher-Ertl, T. ; Andrade, N. ; Brasileiro, F. ; Mota, P. G. ; Serrano Sanz, F. ; Carrodeguas, J. A. (Universidad de Zaragoza) ; Brito, R. M. M.

Resumen: Success stories of citizen science projects widely demonstrate the value of this open science paradigm and encourage organizations to shift towards new ways of doing research. While benefits for researchers are clear, outcomes for individuals participating in these projects are not easy to assess. The wide spectrum of volunteers collaborating in citizen science projects greatly contributes to the difficulty in the evaluation of the projects'' outcomes. Given the strong links between many citizen science projects and education, in this work we present an experience with hundreds of students (aged 15-18) of two different countries who participate in a project on cell biology research-Cell Spotting-as part of their regular classroom activities. Apart from introducing the project and resources involved, we aim to provide an overview of the benefits of integrating citizen science in the context of formal science education and of what teachers and students may obtain from it. In this case, besides helping students to consolidate and apply theoretical concepts included in the school curriculum, some other types of informal learning have also been observed such as the feeling of playing a key role, which contributed to an increase of students'' motivation.

Idioma: Inglés

Año: 2016

Publicado en: JCOM, journal of science communication 15, 1 (2016), A03 [20 pp.]
ISSN: 1824-2049

Originalmente disponible en: Texto completo de la revista

Factor impacto SCIMAGO: 0.312 - Communication (Q2)

Financiación: info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/EC/FP7/312902/EU/Society as infrastructure for e-science via technology, innovation and creativity/Socientize

Tipo y forma: Article (Published version)

Área (Departamento): Área Bioquímica y Biolog.Mole. (Dpto. Bioq.Biolog.Mol. Celular)