EDUCATION RESEARCH Learning is a complex behavior with multiple intersectional components that can impact a student’s progress through their undergraduate degree. I strive to understand the relationship of these components to the student’s identity and how they are linked to the experience of scientific learning. I also work on creating positive and meaningful learning experiences for students based on evidence-based and experiential learning approaches. Most of my work on education has focused on two general topics:
1. Field and experiential learning courses as gateway to science I am interested in assessing the contribution of field courses to students’ critical thinking skills, science literacy, sense of belonging, and overall learning experience. To pursue these questions, I have developed collaborations to evaluate, first, how field courses affect graduate students’ progress and career success; and second, how field courses impact undergraduate students’ career choices, critical thinking, and sense of belonging.
2. The role of team-based learning as a tool to minimize opportunity gaps in undergraduate courses I also study how Team-Based Learning (TBL) pedagogy can be used in-person and online in large introductory evolution and biodiversity courses. I found that when using TBL online, learning outcomes and student performances are comparable to those of in-person courses, student retention in the TBL online course is also higher than reported in other for-credit online courses, and students report a sense of belonging with their team members. I plan to continue studying the role of structured team work on student performance, sense of belonging, and sense of scientific identity through the lens of field courses.
BIOLOGICAL RESEARCH My work studies the eco-evolutionary processes that allow species to maintain interactions and the effect of those interactions on species diversity.
Most of my work to date focuses in one of two general topics:
1.Host plant specialization and local adaptation My research examines life history trade-offs and host plant specificity in herbivorous insects as mechanisms underlying species diversification. I study these mechanisms with experimental and genetic approaches by comparing inter- and intraspecific insect variation in host plant preference and larval performance among different populations. I am currently working with the milkweed stem weevil in the genus Rhyssomatus that feeds exclusively on plants in the genus Asclepias, asking questions on host plant specialization and local adaptation mediated through host plants, geographic barriers, and environmental clines.
2. Diet compensation and its consequences for species interactions I study trade-offs in life history traits in response to changes in diet or feeding behavior. I use field and lab experiments to determine how insects compensate their diet when there are diet deficiencies in micro- and macro-nutrients, and how these compensatory behaviors can affect the insect interactions with other species, such as host plants or gut microbes.