The iNaturalist Application in Biology Education: A Systematic Review
The iNaturalist application has been gaining traction in both biodiversity research and education. Increasingly more research is being carried out, lo.
- Pub. date: November 15, 2023
- Pages: 725-744
- 352 Downloads
- 1074 Views
- 2 Citations
The iNaturalist application has been gaining traction in both biodiversity research and education. Increasingly more research is being carried out, looking into using the iNaturalist application in biology education, to promote biodiversity and educate students about this topic. We used the PRISMA systematic literature review method to examine research carried out using the iNaturalist application in biology education by searching Web of Science and Scopus, and including citizen science in the process. We searched through the iNaturalist forum, where users contribute research performed using iNaturalist. We found that an increasing number of articles have been published on this topic over the years. Researchers are using iNaturalist to improve BioBlitz activities, to enhance outdoor education activities, and to help make herbaria. Summarizing the work performed in this area, we suggest guidelines for including and preparing the iNaturalist application in a school context to be used by teachers and researchers alike.
Keywords: BioBlitz, biology education, citizen science, iNaturalist, outdoor education.
References
Anđić, B., Cvijetićanin, S., Maričić, M., & Stešević, D. (2019). The contribution of dichotomous keys to the quality of biological-botanical knowledge of eighth grade students. Journal of Biological Education, 53(3), 310–326. https://doi.org/10.1080/00219266.2018.1469540
Anđić, B., Cvjetićanin, S., Lavicza, Z., Maričić, M., Novović, T., & Stešević, D. (2021). Mobile and printed dichotomous keys in constructivist learning of biology in primary school. Research in Science & Technological Education, 39(4), 393–420. https://doi.org/10.1080/02635143.2020.1763290
*Aristeidou, M., Herodotou, C., Ballard, H. L., Higgins, L., Johnson, R. F., Miller, A. E., Young, A. N., & Robinson, L. D. (2021). How do young community and citizen science volunteers support scientific research on biodiversity? The case of iNaturalist. Diversity, 13(7), Article 318. https://doi.org/10.3390/d13070318
*Aristeidou, M., Herodotou, C., Ballard, H. L., Young, A. N., Miller, A. E., Higgins, L., & Johnson, R. F. (2021). Exploring the participation of young citizen scientists in scientific research: The case of iNaturalist. PLOS ONE, 16(1), Article e0245682. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0245682
Arnstein, S. R. (1969). A ladder of citizen participation. Journal of the American Institute of Planners, 35(4), 216–224. https://doi.org/10.1080/01944366908977225
*Boaventura, D., Neves, A., Santos, J., Luís, C., Monteiro, A., Cartaxana, A., Colares Pereira, P., Caldeira, F., & Ponces de Carvalho, A. (2018). Using citizen science platforms and mobile digital technologies in primary education on climate change: Good for fun and good to learn? In Proceedings of the 11th annual International Conference of Education (pp. 5630–5636). IATED Academy. https://doi.org/10.21125/iceri.2018.2314
Bonney, R., Ballard, H., Jordan, R., McCallie, E., Phillips, T., Shirk, J., & Wilderman, C. C. (2009). Public participation in scientific research: Defining the field and assessing its potential for informal science education (A CAISE Inquiry Group Report). Center for Advancement of Informal Science Education. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED519688.pdf
Boone, M. E., & Basille, M. (2019). Using iNaturalist to contribute your nature observations to science: WEC413/UW458, 6/2019. EDIS, 2019(4), Article 5. https://doi.org/10.32473/edis-uw458-2019
D'Alessio, M., Rushing, G., & Gray, T. L. (2021). Monitoring water quality through citizen science while teaching STEM undergraduate courses during a global pandemic. Science of the Total Environment, 779, Article 146547. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146547
Dickinson, J. L., Shirk, J., Bonter, D., Bonney, R., Crain, R. L., Martin, J., Phillips, T., & Purcell, K. (2012). The current state of citizen science as a tool for ecological research and public engagement. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 10(6), 291–297. https://doi.org/10.1890/110236
*Echeverria, A., Ariz, I., Moreno, J., Peralta, J., & Gonzalez, E. M. (2021). Learning plant biodiversity in nature: The use of the citizen-science platform iNaturalist as a collaborative tool in secondary education. Sustainability, 13(2), Article 735. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13020735
*Gass, S., Mui, A., Manning, P., Cray, H., & Gibson, L. (2021). Exploring the value of a BioBlitz as a biodiversity education tool in a post-secondary environment. Environmental Education Research, 27(10), 1538–1556. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2021.1960953
*Gerhart, L. M., Jadallah, C. C., Angulo, S. S., & Ira, G. C. (2021). Teaching an experiential field course via online participatory science projects: A COVID‐19 case study of a UC California naturalist course. Ecology and Evolution, 11(8), 3537–3550. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.7187
Happywhale. (n.d.). About. Retrieved September 19, 2021, from https://happywhale.com/about
Hardy, C. R., & Hardy, N. W. (2018). Adapting traditional field activities in natural history education to an emerging paradigm in biodiversity informatics. The American Biology Teacher, 80(7), 501–519. https://doi.org/10.1525/abt.2018.80.7.501
*Harlin, J., Kloetzer, L., Patton, D., & Leonhard, C. (2018). Turning students into citizen scientists. In S. Hecker, M. E. Haklay, A. Bowser, Z. Makuch, J. Vogel, & A. Bonn (Eds.), Citizen science: Innovation in open science, society and policy (pp. 410–428). UCL Press. https://doi.org/10.14324/111.9781787352339
Hart, R. A. (2008). Stepping back from “the ladder”: Reflections on a model of participatory work with children. In A. Reid, B. B. Jensen, J. Nikel, & V. Simovska (Eds.), Participation and learning (pp. 19–31). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-6416-6_2
Hernawati, D., Chaidir, D. M., & Meylani, V. (2020). The use of iNaturalist on learning courses of zoology vertebrates for prospective biology teachers. Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 1440, Article 012064. https://doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/1440/1/012064
Hiller, S. E. (2012). The impact of a citizen science program on student achievement and motivation: A social cognitive career perspective [Doctoral dissertation, George Mason University]. Mason Archival Repository Service. https://shorturl.at/lyQT8
iNaturalist. (n.d.-a). About iNaturalist. iNaturalist.org. Retrieved September 19, 2021, from https://www.inaturalist.org/pages/about
iNaturalist. (n.d.-b). Site stats. iNaturalist.org. Retrieved September 19, 2021, from https://www.inaturalist.org/stats
iNaturalist Community Forum. (2019). Published papers that use iNaturalist data wiki 1 (up to 2019). forum.inaturalist.org. Retrieved January 15, 2023, from https://shorturl.at/bhvzM
iNaturalist Community Forum. (2021). Published papers that use iNaturalist data wiki 2 (2020 and 2021). forum.inaturalist.org. Retrieved January 15, 2023, from https://shorturl.at/puzE2
iNaturalist Community Forum. (2023). Published papers that use iNaturalist data wiki 3 (2022 and 2023). orum.inaturalist.org. Retrieved January 15, 2023, from https://shorturl.at/lqyR3
Irwin, A. (2018). No PhDs needed: How citizen science is transforming research. Nature, 562, 480–482. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-018-07106-5
Jacquemart, A.-L., Lhoir, P., Binard, F., & Descamps, C. (2016). An interactive multimedia dichotomous key for teaching plant identification. Journal of Biological Education, 50(4), 442-451. https://doi.org/10.1080/00219266.2016.1150870
Kellett, M. (2009). Children and young people’s participation. In H. Montgomery & M. Kellett (Eds.), Children and young people’s worlds: Developing frameworks for integrated practice (pp. 43–60). Bristol University Press/ Policy Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctt1t896bs.8
Korfiatis, K., & Petrou, S. (2021). Participation and why it matters: Children’s perspectives and expressions of ownership, motivation, collective efficacy and self-efficacy and locus of control. Environmental Education Research, 27(12), 1700–1722. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2021.1959900
Laganis, J., Prosen, K., & Torkar, G. (2017). Classroom versus outdoor biology education using a woody species identification digital dichotomous key. Natural Sciences Education, 46(1), 1-9. https://doi.org/10.4195/nse2016.11.0032
Marjanovič Umek, L., & Zupančič, M. (2020). Razvojna psihologija (1. zvezek) [Developmental psychology (Volume 1)]. Znanstvena Založba Filozofske Fakultete, Ljubljana.
Martínez-Sagarra, G., Castilla, F., & Pando, F. (2022). Seven hundred projects in iNaturalist Spain: Performance and lessons learned. Sustainability, 14(17), Article 11093. https://doi.org/10.3390/su141711093
*Mech, A., Rosenberger, D., Fanning, P., Riggins, J. J., Aukema, B., & Hartshorn, J. (2022). There’s an app for that: Teaching entomology in the online age. Natural Sciences Education, 51(2), Article e20081. https://doi.org/10.1002/nse2.20081
*Niemiller, K. D. K., Davis, M. A., & Niemiller, M. L. (2021). Addressing “biodiversity naivety” through project-based learning using iNaturalist. Journal for Nature Conservation, 64, Article 126070. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnc.2021.126070
*Paradise, C., & Bartkovich, L. (2021). Integrating citizen science with online biological collections to promote species and biodiversity literacy in an entomology course. Citizen Science: Theory and Practice, 6(1), Article 28. https://doi.org/10.5334/cstp.405
Phillips, T., Porticella, N., Constas, M., & Bonney, R. (2018). A framework for articulating and measuring individual learning outcomes from participation in citizen science. Citizen Science: Theory and Practice, 3(2), Article 3. https://doi.org/10.5334/cstp.126
*Pollock, N. B., Howe, N., Irizarry, I., Lorusso, N., Kruger, A., Himmler, K., & Struwe, L. (2015). Personal BioBlitz: A new way to encourage biodiversity discovery and knowledge in K–99 education and outreach. BioScience, 65(12), 1154–1164. https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/biv140
Ponciano, L., & Brasileiro, F. (2014). Finding volunteers' engagement profiles in human computation for citizen science projects. Human Computation, 1(2), 247-266. https://doi.org/10.15346/hc.v1i2.12
PRISMA. (2020). PRISMA homepage. http://www.prisma-statement.org/
Radesky, J. S. (2020). Smartphones and children: Relationships, regulation, and reasoning. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 23(6), 361–362. https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2020.29186.jsr
Robinson, L. D., Cawthray, J. L., West, S. E., Bonn, A., & Ansine, J. (2018). Ten principles of citizen science. In S. Hecker, M. E. Haklay, A. Bowser, Z. Makuch, J. Vogel, & A. Bonn (Eds.), Citizen science: Innovation in open science, society and policy (pp. 27–40). UCL Press. https://doi.org/10.14324/111.9781787352339
Rodríguez-Loinaz, G., Ametzaga-Arregi, I., & Palacios-Agundez, I. (2022). ICT tools and citizen science: A pathway to promote science learning and Education for Sustainable Development in schools. Journal of Biological Education. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/00219266.2022.2092192
*Rokop, M., Srikanth, R., Albert, M., Radonic, C., Vincent, R., & Stevenson, R. (2022). Looking more carefully: A successful bioblitz orientation activity at an urban public university. Citizen Science: Theory and Practice, 7(1), Article 1. https://doi.org/10.5334/cstp.451
Salas, J. C., & Barquero, M. D. (2021). Biological inventory at a university campus using ICT and citizen science participation. Journal of Ecotourism, 20(3), 301–307. https://doi.org/10.1080/14724049.2021.1956502
*Smith, H., Allf, B., Larson, L., Futch, S., Lundgren, L., Pacifici, L., & Cooper, C. (2021). Leveraging citizen science in a college classroom to build interest and efficacy for science and the environment. Citizen Science: Theory and Practice, 6(1), Article 29. https://doi.org/10.5334/cstp.434
Sung, Y.-T., Chang, K.-E., & Liu, T.-C. (2016). The effects of integrating mobile devices with teaching and learning on students' learning performance: A meta-analysis and research synthesis. Computers & Education, 94, 252-275. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2015.11.008
Thomas, R. L., & Fellowes, M. D. E. (2017). Effectiveness of mobile apps in teaching field-based identification skills. Journal of Biological Education, 51(2), 136–143. https://doi.org/10.1080/00219266.2016.1177573
Torkar, G. (2021). Effectiveness of digital and paper-based identification keys for plants with Slovenian pre-service teachers. European Journal of Educational Research, 10(2), 619–627. https://doi.org/10.12973/eu-jer.10.2.619
*Unger, S., Rollins, M., Tietz, A., & Dumais, H. (2021). iNaturalist as an engaging tool for identifying organisms in outdoor activities. Journal of Biological Education, 55(5), 537–547. https://doi.org/10.1080/00219266.2020.1739114
von Konrat, M., Campbell, T., Carter, B., Greif, M., Bryson, M., Larraín, J., Trouille, L., Cohen, S., Gaus, E., Qazi, A., Ribbens, E., Livshultz, T., Walker, T. J., Suwa, T., Peterson, T., Rodriguez, Y., Vaughn, C., Yang, C., Aburahmeh, S., ... Smith, A. (2018). Using citizen science to bridge taxonomic discovery with education and outreach. Applications in Plant Sciences, 6(2), Article e1023. https://doi.org/10.1002/aps3.1023
*Young, A. M., van Mantgem, E. F., Garretson, A., Noel, C., & Morelli, T. L. (2021). Translational science education through citizen science. Frontiers in Environmental Science, 9, Article 800433. https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2021.800433