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How do we get students involved with marine and coastal citizen science when classes are allowed to go to the beach (for budgetary and liability reasons)? Welcome suggestions for “field” projects that can be done in a classroom setting

This is a concern I’ve heard echoed by other people. In addition to the difficulties around getting students outside, there can be issues of integrating activities into the curriculum, supporting teachers in science research skills, providing students with opportunities for inquiry (asking questions, analyzing data…), and more.

Others? Hit “Like” if a conversation about ideas and opportunities for citizen science in school settings would be of interest to you…

This is a challenge that many educators face and I think it’s a great topic to share ideas about. In addition to logistics and safety concerns, and related to tying in with the curriculum, I would be interested in examples of projects that have been successful in making the student role in research meaningful (not just busy work) and useful for researchers.

* Setting up data review mechanisms – though this is a vital process in setting up citizen science participatory forums, often the actual schema / brainstorming that went into the validation systems are under wraps. Perhaps a discussion of how validation flows are designed? Moreover, how they can incorporate citizen-driven as also expert community reviews!
* Sustainability ideas – most projects, if not hosted by large institutions / governmental agencies, tend to have a limited funding period. What mechanisms can be implemented to make a portal self-reliant, community-driven after its project period?
* What are the global legal policies for sharing biodiversity related information?

Lot more ideas…but these seem to be the most pressing!

(P.S – Being a newbie, I realise that I may have overlooked / missed out on some older threads. If my questions have been dealt with before, I would be grateful if you could just direct me to the relevant material. Thanks)

 Devayani, great suggestions! And welcome!  I’m excited that there will be a discussion in May about data management which I think will cover a number of the issues you raise. This will be hosted by members of the DataONE Citizen Science Working Group, folks who know where the real pressing questions and new ideas are right now about this topic.

For policies related to sharing biodiversity data, you may want to check out some thoughts in the ethics thread, and maybe even post a question there to this effect. I’m not sure that it’s something that was covered in full, but it’s certainly something that I know many projects have encountered and may be able to offer insights.

Would LOVE to have a discussion about sustainability. Question to the field: any suggestions as to a good person/organization to host?  We’ll get it in the line-up!

Thanks Jennifer, sounds most interesting! I hope field travel allows me the time to participate heartily! Just setting up our own data management systems now, so shall have some fodder by May :) 
Would data review processes also fall within this category though? We are looking at them as storage spaces at this point in time.
Thanks, I shall look into the ethics section, even some starter guidelines will be great.
Shall keep the ideas/topics flowing!

One of the ways we could work to  improve citizen science awareness is connecting to approaches and research happening in areas like the social sciences. One recent paper which ties to the issue of nature deficit disorder was a study in “Sociological Inquiry”:  The study has found that over the last several decades, nature has increasingly taken a back seat in award-winning children’s picture books — and suggests this sobering trend is consistent with a growing isolation from the natural world. http://newsroom.unl.edu/blog/?p=966. “Increasingly, children’s books are where the wild things aren’t. Was your favorite childhood book crawling with wild animals and set in places like jungles or deep forests? Or did it take place inside a house or in a city, with few if any untamed creatures in sight?” The full paper is open access at: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1475-682X.2011.00399.x/pdf

 Interesting insight, it does seem like children’s connections with the natural world are becoming more tenous! However, I feel there may be cultural disparities in nature animation featuring in Children’s books. India – with its mythological heritage, the Jataka Tales and Panchatantra comics (equivalent to Aesop’s fables or Jean de La Fontaine) still hold charm for non-urban/urban children. Though the citizen science programmes are still to come of age…some environmental education/natural science values are structured into school syllabi.

The topic I’d most like to hear about is managing the volunteers’ experience. We’ve got a few ideas about it and would like to hear what this community thinks. 
Rob