Written by Dr. Kania Greer, Director of Institute for Interdisciplinary STEM Education at Georgia Southern University
Citizen science while a new term in our vernacular has been in practice for generations. Birdwatching and recording has been using citizen collected data since the late 1800’s and the Audubon Society has been conducting specific bird counts since the early 1900’s. With the widespread expansion of the internet it has become easier to engage people around the world in data collection and mining rather than relying on a select groups of individuals. In addition, the internet allows data to be quickly uploaded and added to the body of evidence giving scientists immediate access to it. With the advent of smart phones citizen science has grown even more, as now real time location data can be collected at the time an event/sighting is recorded (no need for field books or journals). This provides even more opportunities for regular people to add to the body of literature scientists use to understand how the world works and what changes are taking place. At its core, citizen science is the practice of engaging individuals or groups of individuals in scientific data collection. By its very nature it is engaging because it deals with local phenomena in a place that is familiar and important to those collecting the data. More often than not, no advanced technology or special equipment is needed and it simply requires people to do what they enjoy be it bird watching, internet searches, or hiking amongst other things. While engaging in these activities citizen scientists can take pictures, record sightings, or test water quality and then report it back on researcher based websites where it becomes part of a larger data set that scientists use to track changes over time. It is important to note, that citizen science can take place out on a school ground, backyard, park, shopping mall, or anywhere else people and things interact. Opportunities for data are everywhere! While engaging with scientists is an important factor of citizen science for groups just starting out (teachers, classes) you may not find a data repository for what you and your students are interested in studying or that is relevant to your location or place. This does not mean citizen science cannot take place in a more controlled environment. Your students could develop their own citizen science project just by investigating their school grounds, or a local body of water such as a drainage ditch, pond, or stream. In other words, to get started you don’t have to take students on a field trip to look at phenomena away from campus. Students on campus could observe the number and types of bugs, flowers, weeds, or birds that inhabit the school grounds over the changing seasons. If being outside is not an option students can collect data on the number of students who use recycling bins as opposed to those who don’t, or how early car line up to pick up students after school. There are a myriad of things that will allow students to get learn about observing their world. With a little thought, you can develop a citizen science project and basic data collection sheets and start recording data over time. This will allow you to continue to add to the data year after year. Better yet, find out what the students want to know. Read the local papers, find out what’s happening in your community and set up a project around that. If your students are able, have them collect data outside of school too. Having them start in a controlled environment ensures that when and if you do decide to participate in a more global project that the data your students collect is recorded properly and is valid for the project. Some examples of citizen science that you may get involved with are: Adopt-A-Stream Georgia Youth Birding Competition North American Butterfly Count Earthforce Seechi Dip-In Georgia Coastal Ecosystems LTER Georgia DNR Caterpillar Count FrogWatch USA
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June 2019
CategoriesSupported by the Gulf Research Program of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine under the Grant Agreement: 20000G9576
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