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Take a CHANCE: Assessing a Virtual and International Undergraduate Research Experience in Sustainability Education

By Jacqueline McLaughlin and Laura Cruz

Abstract: The present survey-based study assesses the cognitive, affective, and behavioral outcomes associated with student participation in a virtual, bi-national, mentored undergraduate research experience focused on sustainability issues in the regions of southeastern Europe through which the Danube River flows. The perceived gains in ability, beliefs, and benefits enabled through this fully virtual iteration of the pedagogical model suggest that programs that integrate multiple high-impact practices (in this case, undergraduate research and global learning), have the potential to be transformative for participating students, regardless of their country of origin, and to contribute towards the growth of an increasingly diverse and globally oriented STEM workforce and to foster the next generation of global citizens actively engaged in the work of environmental sustainability. Findings also reflect upon the growing need to develop similar virtual exchange modalities to tackle systemic equity and access issues in sustainability education, and the need to advance assessment tools that are both culturally responsive and broadly relevant in bi-national/transnational courses and/or programming.

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