Progress 09/01/12 to 08/31/13
Outputs
Target Audience: The primary target audience was MS-level graduate students pursuing advanced training in quantitative genetics and genomics with particular application to agricultural species. However, students pursuing PhD-level degrees, and industry professionals, also participated. The curriculum continued to be offered using innovative programmatic tools in distance-delivery. This approach fitted the needs of increasingly technological sophisticated and non-traditional students, allowing engagement of a broader and more diverse audience. In total 64 individuals from 22 U.S. institutions and 5 foreign countries completed as many as 8 of the courses offered. Three of the students were enrolled in a Historically Black University. Many participants mentioned such coursework would otherwise be unavailable to them without this curriculum. Beyond formal instruction, CyberSheep, a web-based genetic simulation game, was used in 7 undergraduate classes at 6 land-grant universities in animal breeding during the reporting period. It provided an important educational experience to 424 students otherwise not possible within a typical university degree. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? The project provided 199 credit hours of instruction to 60 graduate students, and 4 industry and academic professionals, in diverse topics that integrate concepts in quantitative genetics and genomics to address challenges in Global Food Security and Health. Beyond the faculty members instructing the course, 2 research assistants gained valuable instructional and interpersonal skills by assisting with the preparation and delivery of the online materials. Beyond the training opportunities offered through the online curriculum, 424 students in 7 undergraduate courses at 6 Universities (Virginia Tech; North Carolina State, Ohio State and Michigan State Universities; Universities of Kentucky and Wyoming) participated in the launch of a new version of CyberSheep. CyberSheep is a web-based, genetic simulation game designed to allow students experience applying principles in quantitative genetics to a virtual sheep breeding cooperative. The game considers both genetic and economic principles. Students learned to collaborate with team members, and with outside teams, to make mutually beneficial selection and mating decisions within a large-scale collaborative breeding program. They saw the results of their decision-making within short timeframes, and used that information to make better selection and mating choices. Feedback from students and their course instructors indicated that this web-based game provided an important educational experience otherwise not possible within a typical university degree. Among the 150 students who completed an anonymous course evaluation, 93% indicated that their play of CyberSheep enhanced their understanding of concepts in animal breeding and genetics introduced in the classroom. Those experiences with the processes encountered in real-life animal breeding programs not only enhanced these student learning but increased their preparedness for professional positions once completing their degrees. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Project results were disseminated through two theatre presentations at the 59th NACTA conference held in Blacksburg, VA (June, 2013) in a session focused on distance learning. In addition two project members participated as panelist in a session organized by USDA-NIFA entitled “Cutting Edge Instructional Methods” at the start of that conference. The project also was featured in an article on the USDA blog (August 20, 2013; http://blogs.usda.gov/2013/08/20/virginia-tech-animal-breeding-graduate-program-makes-strides-in-online-learning/). In addition to describing the impact of the online curriculum, the article mentioned that the CyberSheep development team had received Virginia Tech’s 2013 XCaliber Award for Excellence for their work in contributing to technology-enriched learning. The web interface (http://enbgeo.iddl.vt.edu/index.php) was updated with information on the new courses and instructors. The website also provided a conduit for student online registration. As part of the fall 2012 and spring 2013 course registration, the curriculum was advertised through a targeted list-serv of approximately 130 animal breeding and genetics faculty member nation-wide. Those vehicles for disseminating information about the project appear to have been effective given the large enrollment in the courses offered. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? As part of objective (i), 3 new online courses will be developed and offered during the next reporting period. These are “Applied Variance Components Estimation in Livestock Genetics”, “From Markers to Gene Function: Functional Change” and “An Introduction to R Programming”. In addition, the existing 12 online courses, and 2 summer short courses, will be taught. Expert peer content and instructional design review will be carried out on several additional courses. In addition, student formative and summative feedback will be collected on the individual courses, and on the entirety of the curriculum. The course “An Introduction to R Programming” was originally scheduled to be offered as a face-to-face short course in summer 2013. However, due to unforeseen conflicts in scheduling, the instructor was unable to offer the course at that time. Based on discussions within the project team, and with the instructor, the course will instead be offered as an online course starting spring term 2014. In many ways that change is a positive development. As an online course integrated into the main curriculum, the materials will become available to a wider audience on a regular basis. A priority for the next reporting period will be taking the initial steps to shift the administration of the curriculum to the AG*IDEA consortium (objective (ii)). This will entail further discussion and endorsement of the project business plan by the AG*IDEA executive board, formalizing an AG*IDEA program assessment plan, initiating governance processes for course reviews at AG*IDEA member institutions, and networking with AG*IDEA campus coordinators to integrate the course offerings into class timetables on their campuses.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The goal of this project is to train graduates with the necessary skills to integrate advances in animal genomics with the agricultural systems emerging from our "New Biology for the 21st Century". Two main objectives are therefore being addressed: (i) further development and implementation of a distance-learning curriculum that integrates quantitative genetics and genomics in animal breeding; and, (ii) development of the organizational infrastructure to continue this program following the period of USDA-NIFA funding. With regards to objective (i), advanced graduate-level coursework encompassing quantitative and genomic aspects of genetics was made accessible nationally through this collaborative, distance-education curriculum. Beyond preparing and offering 2 new online courses – “MCMC Methods in Animal Breeding: A Primer” and “Introduction to Marker Association Analysis and QTL Detection” - 10 existing online courses were revised and taught between fall 2012 and spring 2013. As part of objective (i) anonymous student evaluations were conducted on each course offering. In addition, expert reviews were completed on 2 of the courses by project faculty, as well as external reviewers with expertise in the course content. An instructional design reviews was conducted on 1 course to gain additional external feedback on its pedagogical effectiveness. Since course development and implementation is intended to be iterative, such student and peer review and feedback is instrumental in the course revision process, and for ensuring the quality of the curriculum. As part of objective (ii), a business plan was prepared to establish the infrastructure and program assessment for integrating the curriculum into AG*IDEA, a national consortium of land grant universities. The plan included a critique of potential program revenues based on enrollment figures. Even based on the enrollments from previous years, which were smaller than those enjoyed currently, the program was deemed financially viable. The business plan was discussed (December, 2012), amended and then approved (August, 2013) by the project team as part of its twice-yearly project meeting (teleconference). As the next step, the finalized business plan will be vetted by the Executive committee of AG*IDEA. A key outcome is that the process for establishing a self-sustaining graduate curriculum in quantitative genetics and genomics is now in place. The project’s impact was confirmed by the growing enrollment in the curriculum nationally, and even internationally. During the year, 64 individuals from 22 U.S. academic institutions and 5 foreign countries completed as many as 8 of the courses offered; 12 of these students completed the entirety of the curriculum. Three of the students were enrolled in a Historically Black University. Four of the participants were in industry or professional positions. In total, 199 credit hours of instruction were completed, which was twice that of the previous year. Between 6 and 24 students completed the individual courses offered. Those counts are between 2- and 6-fold that of graduate student numbers in this discipline at a majority of individual universities. Anonymous student feedback on the content and structure of the courses remained overwhelmingly positive. As a key outcome, this curriculum provided a high quality, customized program to fulfill academic and industry needs for individuals with professional skills in quantitative genetics and genomics.
Publications
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Lewis, R. M., O. Hestnes, E. Gilmore, J. A. Meese, T. Ogle, and B.B. Lockee. 2013. Experiential Learning in Quantitative Genetics Online: CyberSheep. Proc. North Amer. College Teacher Agric. 57(Suppl. 1):54 (Abstr.).
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Lewis, R. M., G. C. M�rquez*, and B. B. Lockee. 2013. Integrating quantitative genetics and genomics in online graduate education. Proc. North Amer. College Teacher Agric. 57(Suppl. 1):92 (Abstr.).
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Progress 09/01/11 to 08/31/12
Outputs
OUTPUTS: Three new graduate courses were developed and implemented: "Economic Breeding Programs" (spring 2012), "Programming in Animal Breeding" (summer 2012), and "Genomic Selection in Livestock" (summer 2012). Economic Breeding Programs was taught as a 5-week asynchronous online course. The summer short-courses were taught face-to-face. Programming in Animal Breeding was taught over a 3-week period at the University of Georgia, Athens, while Economic Breeding Programs was taught over a 1-week period prior to the 2012 ADSA-AMPA-ASAS-CSAS-WSASAS Joint Annual Meetings in Phoenix, AZ. A new version of the Cybersheep genetic simulation game was developed and tested. Modifications included a complete redesign of the database, which allows several instances of the game to be played simultaneously. Internet access and security were enhanced to allow individual rather than team-based usernames and passwords to be provided to students. The web interface was completely revised to enhance the experience of the end user. A website devoted to the project - Engaging the New Biology, Graduate Education Online (http://enbgeo.iddl.vt.edu/index.php) - was updated with information on the new courses, instructors and partner institutions. The website also provided a conduit for student online registration. Working with Dr. Dale Van Vleck, a digital version of his renown graduate-level course notes in animal genetics (the Green Book) was prepared and released for download from the website. Project activities were disseminated in two theater presentations in the "Teaching/Undergraduate and Graduate Education Symposium: Online Education for a Hands-On Career" at the 2012 ADSA-AMPA-ASAS-CSAS-WSASAS Joint Annual Meetings. In an invited presentation - "Engaging the new biology: integrating quantitative genetics and genomics in animal breeding graduate learning" - the background, expansion and challenges of establishing a sustainable, multi-institutional and national graduate level distance-delivery program were discussed. In a graduate presentation - "Student learning in undergraduate animal breeding courses is improved through play of an online genetic simulation game" - the utility of CyberSheep as an experiential tool to support undergraduate learning in animal genetics was described. PARTICIPANTS: Over the reporting period, 7 collaborators located at 6 partner institutions (Colorado State, Iowa State, Kansas State and North Carolina State Universities, and Universities of Nebraska-Lincoln and Georgia) worked with the project director at Virginia Tech to implement the curriculum (8 online and 2 summer short-courses). The summer short-courses were offered with organizational assistance of the University of Georgia and the American Society of Animal Science. The construct of a new online course - "Economic Breeding Programs" - engaged input of an instructional design specialist in the School of Education at Virginia Tech. Four staff members in the Systems Development, Integration and Technology group at the Institute for Distance and Distributed Learning at Virginia Tech were involved in revising the project website, including course registration. In addition, they invested tremendous and successful effort in the revision of the CyberSheep game web interface and database. The development of guidelines for integrating the curriculum into AG*IDEA was led by a 6-member team at Kansas State University, including hosting a project meeting in Manhattan. In terms of graduate training, a PhD student at Virginia Tech was intimately involved in the development and delivery of online course materials; she gained skills in preparing audio-presentations and interacting with students in a virtual learning environment. Through a non-formal collaboration with the University of Wyoming, an MS student developed an evaluation form for CyberSheep, which was employed at 2 universities (University of Wyoming and North Carolina State University) to measure undergraduate student learning through use of this experiential tool. She analyzed and presented her results at a national meeting. TARGET AUDIENCES: The primary target audience was MS-level graduate students pursuing advanced training in quantitative genetics and genomics with particular application to animal breeding. The curriculum was offered using innovative programmatic tools in distance-delivery, complemented by on-site summer short courses. This approach fitted the needs of increasingly technological sophisticated and non-traditional students, allowing engagement of a broader and more diverse audience. Nearly 100 individuals from 24 states and 13 countries participated in the series of courses offered. The curriculum was advertised through a targeted list-serv, a project website and presentations at a national meeting. Those vehicles appear effective given the broad audience attracted. Beyond formal instruction, CyberSheep, a web-based game, was used as a virtual lab in 1 graduate (10 students) and in 4 undergraduate (nearly 200 students) classes in animal breeding during the reporting period. It provided an important educational experience to those students otherwise not possible within a typical university degree. They learned to collaborate with team members, and with outside teams, to make mutually beneficial selection and mating decisions within a large-scale collaborative breeding program. They saw the results of their decision-making within short timeframes, and used that information to make better selection and mating choices. Such experience with the processes encountered in "real-life" animal breeding programs not only enhances student learning but increases their preparedness for professional positions once completing their coursework. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.
Impacts
This project addresses two main objectives: (i) to further develop and implement a distance-learning curriculum that integrates quantitative genetics and genomics in animal breeding; and, (ii) to develop the organizational infrastructure to continue this program following the period of USDA-NIFA funding. With regards to objective (i), advanced graduate-level coursework encompassing quantitative and genomic aspects of genetics was made accessible nationally through this collaborative, distance-education curriculum. Beyond one new online course, 8 existing online courses were revised and taught between fall 2011 and spring 2012. Academic programs at 17 universities, including an 1890 land-grant university, benefitted from their students participation in these courses. Thirty-three graduate students and 3 industry participants successfully completed 93 credit hours of online coursework. Between 6 and 19 students completed the individual courses offered. Those counts are between 2- and 6-fold that of graduate student numbers in this discipline at a majority of individual universities. Anonymous student feedback on the content and structure of the courses was overwhelmingly positive, with useful suggestions for improvements. In addition, 43 graduate students, and 10 industry and 17 academic individuals, participated in two carefully targeted summer short-courses. As a key outcome, this curriculum provided a high quality, customized program to fulfill academic and industry needs for individuals with professional skills in animal breeding. As part of objective (ii), guidelines were established for integrating the curriculum into AG*IDEA, a national consortium of land grant universities. Those discussions began at a project meeting held at Kansas State University (November, 2011), followed-up with a teleconference (March, 2012). The guidelines consider agreements for student admissions standards and processing, institutional review of courses and academic standards, a negotiated common price per credit hour, and the opportunity for awarding a graduate certificate in animal genetics. The mechanics for offering courses, including combining current 1-credit courses into 3-credit bundles, also was considered.
Publications
- Kessler, K. L., R. M. Lewis, J. P. Cassady, and K. M. Cammack. 2012. Student learning in undergraduate animal breeding courses is improved through play of an online genetic simulation game. Vol. 90 (Suppl. 3):742 (Abstr.).
- Lewis, R. M., and B. B. Lockee. 2012. Engaging the new biology: Integrating quantitative genetics and genomics in animal breeding graduate learning. J. Anim. Sci. Vol. 90 (Suppl. 3):741 (Abstr.).
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