An Advanced Undergraduate Laboratory Course: Calcium Imaging and Data Analysis - a Mini Graduate Research Experience

Calcium imaging has become a powerful and widely used technique to visualize and measure neural activity in real time, offering valuable insights into complex behaviors, neural networks, and brain function. However, implementing calcium imaging in undergraduate laboratories is challenging due to the need for specialized microscopy and advanced computational skills for data analysis. To help undergraduate students grasp the principles and analytical methods of calcium imaging through hands-on experience, we designed and taught a semester-long course. The course is structured around four key components, which reflect essential elements of graduate research training. (1) AI-assisted literature review helps students understand the fundamental principles of calcium imaging, its analytical methods, and relevant background information. (2) Calcium imaging demonstration provides students with hands-on exposure to calcium imaging procedures in a research setting. (3) Calcium imaging analysis introduces students using Python to analyze real research calcium imaging datasets. (4) Poster presentation allows students to present their findings and strengthen their scientific communication skills. The pedagogical goals of this course are to enhance students' understanding of calcium imaging and its analytic methods while strengthening their abilities to read scientific literature and effectively communicate their research. Progress toward these goals is assessed through multiple approaches, including chalk talks, written assignments, code-based data analyses, and poster presentations. In addition, this course mirrors real research process to help students explore potential career paths in science.