Team science: A syllabus for success on big projects

Abstract

Interdisciplinary teams are on the rise as scientists attempt to address complex environmental issues. While the benefits of team science approaches are clear, researchers often struggle with its implementation, particularly for new team members. The challenges of large projects often weigh on the most vulnerable members of a team: trainees, including undergraduate students, graduate students, and post-doctoral researchers. Trainees on big projects have to navigate their role on the team, with learning project policies, procedures, and goals, all while also training in key scientific tasks such as co-authoring papers. To address these challenges, we created and participated in a project-specific, graduate-level team science course. The purposes of this course were to: (1) introduce students to the goals of the project, (2) build trainees' understanding of how big projects operate, and (3) allow trainees to explore how their research interests dovetailed with the overall project. Additionally, trainees received training regarding: (1) diversity, equity & inclusion, (2) giving and receiving feedback, and (3) effective communication. Onboarding through the team science course cultivated psychological safety and a collaborative student community across disciplines and institutions. Thus, we recommend a team science course for onboarding students to big projects to help students establish the skills necessary for collaborative research. Project-based team science classes can benefit student advancement, enhance the productivity of the project, and accelerate the discovery of solutions to ecological issues by building community, establishing a shared project vocabulary, and building a workforce with collaborative skills to better answer ecological research questions.

Keywords: collaboration; communication; graduate training; research skills; team science.

PANEL 1

Panel 1 illustrates an example of a conceptual model from a team science student. This student is interested in the effects of flow intermittency on stream macro‐invertebrates. In the first draft (top), the student created a series of panels describing how flow conditions might affect macro‐invertebrate density, biomass, diversity and nutrient stoichiometry throughout the year. The diagrams on the right detail the specific communities corresponding to these changes. Following discussions with other trainees and the instructor, the final draft (bottom) was revised to more clearly show the relationship of flow conditions throughout time with the predicted macro‐invertebrate density and biomass. The community composition panels were simplified, corresponding to each time period with descriptions of the major taxa traits that would contribute to changes in invertebrate stoichiometry.

FIGURE 1

Cross‐disciplinary (color‐coded circles) and cross‐regional collaborations on the Aquatic Intermittency effects of Microbiomes in Steams [AIMS] project were accelerated by the team science course. We highlight one representative collaborative effort lead within each of our three research themes (hydrology, biogeochemistry and macroinvertebrates, and microbiome) that is harnessing expertise from different professional levels and regions on the AIMS project.

FIGURE 2

Team science course participants (n = 12 respondents, representing 80% of the 15 total students who were enrolled) were assessed based on their feelings of inclusion and connectedness to other students and other AIMS team members. Data provided by Dr. Eric Welch, external evaluator of the AIMS project.