Teaching Quantitative Skills and Carbon Sequestration Concepts with the EREN Permanent Forest Plot Project
Tested Studies in Laboratory Teaching, 2019, Volume 40
Laurel J. Anderson, Erin S. Lindquist, Karen Kuers, Jerald J. Dosch, & Jose-Luis Machado
Abstract
The Ecological Research as Education Network (EREN) teaches students quantitative and conceptual skills for working with multi-site ecological data using collaborative research projects. The EREN Permanent Forest Plot Project (PFPP) is a network of 20 x 20 m plots in forested sites across the nation in which students collect tree diameter data using standardized methods. During two lab periods, students measure tree diameters and then use the PFPP database to explore research questions about forest carbon uptake. Students gain experience in tree identification, forestry techniques, allometric equations, statistical analysis with large datasets, and thinking across spatial scales.
