Abstract:

Pre-existing challenges of inequitable access to inclusive and meaningful science and education experiences have been widely exposed and magnified during the COVID-19 pandemic. As the transition towards a post-COVID reality begins, it is critical to continue to actively address these challenges. However, these problems transcend disciplines and the traditional siloed approach to science creates inefficiencies in problem solving and developing solutions to address systemic problems. In this paper, we discuss the transdisciplinary approach we applied to address educational inequities, which allowed us to begin to solve problems and ask questions in other diverse disciplinary areas. Specifically, the Squirrel Life project draws from and provides solutions to problems spanning the disciplines of Higher Education, the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, Ecology, Computer Science, Data Science, Software Engineering, and Graphic Design.

To demonstrate this approach, we present the Squirrel Life project as a case study for the usefulness of transdisciplinarity in addressing diverse and seemingly unrelated challenges while considering three key design priorities. These include:
1) Active and Experiential Learning,
2) Accessibility and Inclusion, and
3) Usability.

These key design priorities were informed by the needs of the various stakeholders, which were determined through collaboration with educators, students, and community members. While many of these needs were directly related to challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic, these requirements resulted in an initiative and tool that is more inclusive, accessible, and overall superior to something we would have developed had these considerations not been made.

Throughout the development process, we discovered additional benefits to participants, including support of physical and mental wellbeing, and fostering a sense of community. Squirrel Life started as a collaborative Google Spreadsheet, transitioned to a Google Form to record field notes and data, then a free data collection app (EpiCollect5), and has finally evolved into the Squirrel Life citizen science mobile application for Android and iOS smartphones. The mobile app will expand the reach of the project beyond the Guelph community. The intentional design of the Squirrel Life project and mobile application supports the integration of experiential learning into undergraduate science curriculum, and the creation of a citizen science project that engages individuals in large-scale environmental monitoring research. The EpiCollect5 trial version of the Squirrel Life app is currently in use by community members and over 650 undergraduate students, and the public release of the official version of the Squirrel Life mobile app is imminent.

Keywords:

Citizen science, higher education, experiential learning, transdisciplinary, active learning, accessibility, inclusion, digital tool, usability, app development.