Data for: Integrating open education practices with data analysis of open science in an undergraduate course

The open science movement produces vast quantities of openly published
data connected to journal articles, creating an enormous resource for
educators to engage students in current topics and analyses. However,
educators face challenges using these materials to meet course objectives.
I present a case study using open science (published articles and their
corresponding datasets) and open educational practices in a capstone
course. While engaging in current topics of conservation, students trace
connections in the research process, learn statistical analyses, and
recreate analyses using the programming language R. I assessed the
presence of best practices in open articles and datasets, examined student
selection in the open grading policy, surveyed students on their perceived
learning gains, and conducted a thematic analysis on student reflections.
First, articles and datasets met just over half of the assessed fairness
practices, but this increased with the publication date. There was a
marginal difference in how assessment categories were weighted by
students, with reflections highlighting appreciation for student agency.
In course content, students reported the greatest learning gains in
describing variables, while collaborative activities (e.g., interacting
with peers and instructor) were the most effective support. The most
effective tasks to facilitate these learning gains included coding
exercises and team-led assignments. Autocoding of student reflections
identified 16 themes, and positive sentiments were written nearly 4x more
often than negative sentiments. Students positively reflected on their
growth in statistical analyses, and negative sentiments focused on how
limited prior experience with statistics and coding made them feel
nervous. As a group, we encountered several challenges and opportunities
in using open science materials. I present key recommendations, based on
student experiences, for scientists to consider when publishing open data
to provide additional educational benefits to the open science community.