Student Monitoring of Amphibian Populations Student Monitoring of Amphibian Populations Student researchers, middle through high school age, from 30 schools across the United States are studying amphibian populations to contribute information to establish baseline data on local amphibian populations.
Students communicate with each other and experts via the internet.
This interdisciplinary unit was designed as part of a distance learning project on environmental topics for the Nebraska Department of Education's Technology Center. The work was funded through a grant from the United States Environmental Protection Agency. The objective of the six week unit is to provide reliable data on amphibian populations. Emphasis is placed on visual and auditory recognition skills, field safety, collection techniques and environmental ethics. Pre and post tests were given to students to see if exposure to amphibians and the knowledge gained from studying their habits and habitats, changed attitudes regarding the importance of these animals in the ecosystem.