Students were asked to prepare a joint review of the course. Students were asked to provide feedback about all aspects of the course, including safety, travel, research experience, and general satisfaction with the instructor team.
Below are some of excerpts from the students' joint review. In the spirit of full transparency, only a couple of slightly negative comments were received; these had nothing to do with safety or general experience. Rather, these comments focused on (1) the instructor getting a violent stomach bug, and (2) the instructor taking the students to Panama City when everything was closed for a national holiday. These two events were not coincident, which could be viewed as a minimum level of success.
Below are some of excerpts from the students' joint review. In the spirit of full transparency, only a couple of slightly negative comments were received; these had nothing to do with safety or general experience. Rather, these comments focused on (1) the instructor getting a violent stomach bug, and (2) the instructor taking the students to Panama City when everything was closed for a national holiday. These two events were not coincident, which could be viewed as a minimum level of success.
"Dr. Kelley did an excellent job in preparing us for this trip with the time allotted to him, and we felt safe before, during, and leaving Panama as well as we felt well informed as to what safety and travel expectations he and the University had for us. We were supplied with travel checklists, safety information, and research inspirations from Dr. Kelley, as well as a safety meeting before we left from the UWYO travel Abroad program."
"We all LOVED this trip immensely!! From delicious meals (gluten free and vegetarian friendly), great housing with WiFi, smooth and predictable transportation, to our incredible time in the most diverse tropicals forests we have ever seen, we all enjoyed our time here so much and would return in a heartbeat. Learning to navigate our first field work, watching and getting excited as we learned more and more about the environment and our specific projects, and even learning before we arrived from “A Neotropical Companion” all made for a successful, fun-filled, and complete trip here in the beautiful country of Panama."
"The instructors did an amazing job at keeping us all safe, happy, fed, and enjoying our time here. “A change of plans” is a common phrase heard while you are traveling anywhere, yet our professor and TA, and even the group members, rolled with every punch and we feel that the instructors did an unbelievable job at staying flexible as our leaders. Missing busses, changing meal plans, changing field work space and plans, and working around sick individuals and preferences of the group are just a few examples of events that were out of anyone’s control and that could have been quite problematic, yet Dr. Kelley and Laura navigated us out of and away from any possible catastrophes. They both know their way around and keep cool heads under pressure."
"We would recommend this course because it is very beneficial in learning how to adapt and overcome problems in a real world situation with field testing and group communication etc… as well as we feel so very fortunate to have had this opportunity and would come back anytime we could to enjoy and learn as much as possible."
Additional student reflections are available at the following locations:
- Course blog: www.EngageLaramie.Science.Blog
- Course Facebook page: facebook.com/wyopanama
- Spring 2020 UW Biodiversity Institute social media campaign featuring WyoPanama course
- BI Facebook: facebook.com/BiodiversityInstitute
- BI Instagram: instagram.com/biodiversityinstitute
- BI Twitter: twitter.com/WyoBio
Student Outcomes
During WyoPanama 1.0 (2019), three of five students completed projects that they are now preparing for publication in peer-reviewed scientific journals. One student from WyoPanama 1.0 is now expanding the research started during the course as Wyoming Research Scholar.
Another Wyoming Research Scholar is among the five of eight WyoPanama 2.0 students (2020) complete projects that they will prepare for publication, including a screenplay, a science journalism magazine, and three peer-reviewed publications.
Several WyoPanama 2.0 students will be applying to participate in the Wyoming Research Scholars program or other undergraduate research fellowship programs.
Three of the projects from the past two years will be continued by Dr. Kelley and Dr. Tarwater's field crews during their regular field seasons in Panama, and several projects could be continued or expanded upon by students in subsequent iterations of the WyoPanama course.
For more about student outcomes, see:
Another Wyoming Research Scholar is among the five of eight WyoPanama 2.0 students (2020) complete projects that they will prepare for publication, including a screenplay, a science journalism magazine, and three peer-reviewed publications.
Several WyoPanama 2.0 students will be applying to participate in the Wyoming Research Scholars program or other undergraduate research fellowship programs.
Three of the projects from the past two years will be continued by Dr. Kelley and Dr. Tarwater's field crews during their regular field seasons in Panama, and several projects could be continued or expanded upon by students in subsequent iterations of the WyoPanama course.
For more about student outcomes, see:
- Student blog posts at EngageLaramie.Science.Blog
- Student posts on the course Facebook page: facebook.com/wyopanama