Jennifer Kovacs

Using NSF's NEON Data in an Undergraduate Ecology CURE on the Ecological Impacts of Global Climate Change part of CUREnet:CURE Collection
We live in a time where we can see a very real need for a basic understanding of ecological terminology, concepts, and methodologies to improve public policy and other ecological problem-solving decisions, especially in light of global climate change. Across the field, there is a major push to incorporate computational thinking and an understanding of human social systems throughout the science curriculum. In ecology and other STEMM fields, basic programming and coding skills have become essential and marketable, as has the ability to mine and analyze large data sets.In this semester-long CURE, students individually develop and answer their own ecological research question using a selection of publicly available datasets from the expansive NSF NEON data repository. Generally, at the beginning of the course the instructor selects several data products from a specific geographic region. After gaining familiarity with the NEON project through videos, a NEON data tutorial, and a case study, students also use these curated NEON data products to begin forming their independent research projects. Most students ultimately incorporate other data products either from NEON or other databases into their final research projects. Students use mostly R to download, wrangle, and analyze their data. The instructor assumes no prior knowledge of R or coding at the beginning of the course. Throughout the semester, students complete mini-assignments and tutorials which introduce them to the necessary coding skills to download, clean, analyze, and visualize their chosen data products. Additionally, students are provided with a wide range of free resources, including videos, tutorials, and the free online textbook Passion Driven Statistics to help them master the skills they need to complete their individual research projects. During weekly in-class one-on-one meetings with the instructor, students work to identify, collect, and analyze data that would address an existing hypothesis/ problem in the field of ecology and global climate change. Ultimately, students present their findings to the larger campus community during the annual undergraduate research day at our institution.