Students' cellular and molecular explanations of genetic phenomena

Genetic concepts are assigned to three principal levels of organisation: macroscopic level, microscopic level, and submicroscopic level. In order to probe Israeli students' understanding at each level, and to gain a sense of their ability to connect ideas and concepts across different levels, we asked three different types of question. Two of the question types ask students to make a bridge between levels by asking them to explain a phenomenon at one level using concepts and processes from a different level. For example, to explain the appearance of phenotypic traits (macroscopic level) using concepts like genes or chromosomes (microscopic level). One question dealt with the molecular level only. We investigated three populations: 9^th graders, 12^th graders, and pre-service teachers. Based on our findings we suggest improvements both in terms of teaching methods and curriculum content.     

The Mathematical Basis of Mendelian Genetics

In a climate where increasing numbers of students are encouraged to pursue post-secondary education, the level of preparedness students have for college-level coursework is not far from the minds of all educators, especially high school teachers. Specifically within the biological sciences, introductory biology classes often serve as the gatekeeper or a pre-requisite for subsequent coursework in those fields and pre-professional programmes (eg pre-medicine or pre-veterinarian). Thus, how helpful high school science and mathematics experiences are in preparing students for their introductory biology classes is important and relevant for teachers, science educators and policy makers alike. This quantitative study looked at the association between students' high school science and mathematics experiences with introductory college biology performance. Using a nationally representative sample of US students (n?=?2667) enrolled in 33 introductory college biology courses, a multi-level statistical model was developed to analyse the association between high school educational experiences and the final course grade in introductory biology courses. Advanced high school science and mathematics coursework, an emphasis on a deep conceptual understanding of biology concepts and a prior knowledge of concepts addressed in well-structured laboratory investigations are all positively associated with students' achievement in introductory college biology.     

Treatment of specific macrovascular beds in patients with diabetes mellitus

Background

A ubiquitous dilemma in medical education continues to be whether and how to integrate research competencies into the predoctoral curriculum. Understanding research concepts is imbedded in the six core competencies for physicians, but predoctoral medical education typically does not explicitly include research education. In an effort to quickly report academic research findings to the field, this is the second in a series of articles reporting the outcomes of a research education initiative at one college of osteopathic medicine. The first article described the competency model and reported baseline performance in applied understanding of targeted research concepts. This second article reports on the learning outcomes from the inaugural year of a course in basic biomedical research concepts.

Methods

This course consisted of 24 total hours of classroom lectures augmented with web-based materials using Blackboard Vista, faculty moderated student presentations of research articles, and quizzes. To measure changes in applied understanding of targeted research concepts in the inaugural year of the course, we administered a pretest and a posttest to second year students who took the course and to first year students who took an informatics course in the same academic year.

Results

We analyzed 154 matched pretests and posttests representing 56% of the 273 first and second year students. On average, the first year (53) and second year students (101) did not differ in their mean pretest scores. At posttest the second year students showed significant improvement in their applied understanding of the concepts, whereas the first year students' mean posttest score was lower than their mean pretest score.

Conclusions

This biomedical research course appears to have increased the second year students' applied understanding of the targeted biomedical research concepts. This assessment of learning outcomes has facilitated the quality improvement process for the course, and improved our understanding of how to measure the benefits of research education for medical students. Some of the course content and methods, and the outcome measures may need to be approached differently in the future to more effectively lay the foundation for osteopathic medical students to utilize these concepts in the clinical setting.     

Prospective elementary science teachers’ understanding of photosynthesis and cellular respiration in the context of multiple biological levels as nested systems

In this study, Turkish prospective elementary science teachers’ understanding of photosynthesis and cellular respiration has been analysed within the contexts of ecosystem knowledge, organism knowledge and interconnection knowledge (IK). In the analysis, concept maps developed by 74 prospective teachers were used. The study was carried out with prospective teachers in their final year who were enrolled in the special teaching methods course. The results show that prospective teachers’ understanding of photosynthesis, cellular respiration, energy flow and matter cycling is quite different from one another’s. In addition, the present study revealed that prospective elementary science teachers showed weak understanding of energy flow and matter, cycling and cellular respiration concepts and IK category but they had strong understanding of photosynthesis concept. Prospective teachers also experience difficulties in understanding connections between macro- and microbiological systems. The study concludes with suggestions for more meaningful biology education.     

Pupils' perceptions of three-dimensional structures in biology lessons

An investigation into 11–15 year old pupils' ability to tackle tasks concerned with the understanding of threedimensional structures studied in school biology lessons is outlined. The investigation takes the form ofapaperand- pencil test, and the test items call for the interpretation of sectional views of three-dimensional structures (represented by diagrams and stereograms) studied in conventional biology syllabuses for 11–15 year olds. Test scores were subject to cluster analysis and the emergent groups are described.

The analysis pointed to the existence of two discrete skills used by pupils interpreting three-dimensional structures. These are the skill of abstracting sectional shapes and that of appreciating the spatial relationships of the internal parts of a structure-. Extracts from tape recordings of pupils ‘talking their way through’ selected tasks corroborate the two-skill theory.     

Spinal and sacroiliac assessment and treatment techniques used by osteopathic physicians in the United States

Background

Without systematic exposure to biomedical research concepts or applications, osteopathic medical students may be generally under-prepared to efficiently consume and effectively apply research and evidence-based medicine information in patient care. The academic literature suggests that although medical residents are increasingly expected to conduct research in their post graduate training specialties, they generally have limited understanding of research concepts. With grant support from the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, and a grant from the Osteopathic Heritage Foundation, the University of North Texas Health Science Center (UNTHSC) is incorporating research education in the osteopathic medical school curriculum. The first phase of this research education project involved a baseline assessment of students' understanding of targeted research concepts. This paper reports the results of that assessment and discusses implications for research education during medical school.

Methods

Using a novel set of research competencies supported by the literature as needed for understanding research information, we created a questionnaire to measure students' confidence and understanding of selected research concepts. Three matriculating medical school classes completed the on-line questionnaire. Data were analyzed for differences between groups using analysis of variance and t-tests. Correlation coefficients were computed for the confidence and applied understanding measures. We performed a principle component factor analysis of the confidence items, and used multiple regression analyses to explore how confidence might be related to the applied understanding.

Results

Of 496 total incoming, first, and second year medical students, 354 (71.4%) completed the questionnaire. Incoming students expressed significantly more confidence than first or second year students (F = 7.198, df = 2, 351, P = 0.001) in their ability to understand the research concepts. Factor analyses of the confidence items yielded conceptually coherent groupings. Regression analysis confirmed a relationship between confidence and applied understanding referred to as knowledge. Confidence scores were important in explaining variability in knowledge scores of the respondents.

Conclusion

Medical students with limited understanding of research concepts may struggle to understand the medical literature. Assessing medical students' confidence to understand and objectively measured ability to interpret basic research concepts can be used to incorporate competency based research material into the existing curriculum.     

From ‘ecologist’ to ‘conceptual ecologist’: the utility of the conceptual ecology analogy for teachers of biology

This paper advocates the application of established teaching models to the professional development of biology teachers. This is achieved by using the analogy of conceptual ecologies, made explicit through concept mapping. The approach is designed to support teachers' developing understanding of pupils' conceptual change by using familiar terminology and biological analogies. Monitoring of students' understanding at an ecosystemic level may also help distinguish between instances of conceptual change and contextual switching (described here with reference to photosynthesis).     

Make biology relevant again! Pre-service teachers’ views on the relevance of biology education

ABSTRACT

Biology education should be relevant to young students so that they can become interested in biology and understand biological topics in their everyday and vocational lives. We conducted interviews and collected mind maps to examine Finnish pre-service biology teachers’ (N = 16) views on the relevance of biology education. Furthermore, we analysed Finnish secondary school biology curricula, which were compared with the pre-service teachers’ answers. We classified the views on relevance into nine main categories using grounded theory as the methodological frame of reference. Pre-service teachers emphasised the relevance of biology to the student’s own life, whereas scientific practices and the nature of science were expressed in secondary school curricula more often. Novice pre-service teachers put more value on general knowledge, while more experienced pre-service teachers were more likely to mention sustainable futures and societal aspects in their reasoning. Based on the results, we identified two stages in the development of the views. This study suggests that pedagogical studies, teaching experience and teacher training have an impact on the pre-service teachers’ views about the relevance of biology education. Moreover, we could find differences between curricula and pre-service teachers’ views, especially regarding scientific practices and the role of the nature of science in biology education.     

Biology and Television

The paper deals with the problem of designing a teacher's guide which will encourage and assist a teacher to arrive at well-reasoned independent decisions, and respect the teacher's experience and intellectual autonomy. The method described pertains to independently developed materials, not developed for any particular curriculum or teaching approach, thus leaving decisions about their adoption and adaptation to the teacher. A representative sample of teachers was used to obtain feedback information before, during, and after teaching a newly developed laboratory block in genetics for the 11th–12th grade level (17–18 year olds). Questionnaire and interview methods were used. Twelve categories for possible inclusion in the teacher's guide emerged. Decisions on whether to include a category in the teacher's guide were shown to be based on the teachers' manifest degree of familiarity with it, their measure of (or lack of) awareness of its educational potential, and their expressed desires for assistance.     

Chilean Pre-service and In-service Teachers and Undergraduate Students’ Understandings of Evolutionary Theory

Despite the importance of the theory of evolution to scientific knowledge, a number of misconceptions continue to be found among teachers and undergraduate students. The aim of the present study was to describe and characterise knowledge about evolution among 120 freshman undergraduate students of two natural sciences programmes (environmental biology and veterinary medicine), 80 pre-service science teachers (elementary and biology) and 45 in-service teachers (elementary and biology high school) in Santiago, Chile. The research was carried out based on an eight-question questionnaire about evolution acceptance and understanding. The instrument included seven Likert-scale questions and one open-ended question. An analysis of the data revealed that more than 70% of teachers (pre-service and in-service) and undergraduate students recognised the theory of evolution as established scientific knowledge. When participants discussed the mechanism of evolution in the open-ended question, the most prevalent responses from students and teachers (33%) explained evolution as need-driven changes for survival purposes. Only 13% of the responses could be considered Darwinian, and 10% of responses included more than one view of evolution. The Darwinian responses generally included three important aspects: variation, inheritance and differential reproduction. The implications for biology teacher education are also discussed in this study.     

Equipment Review

The findings of this research indicate that it is important for teachers to be aware of students' concepts in genetics before they start teaching them. It also showed that once students had resolved any difficulty with the relationship between gene and allele, their performances in genetics showed a significant improvement. This research found that the use of a chromosome model as a conceptual challenge tool was a most effective way of resolving these difficulties, especially if teachers were aware of students' concepts, and had undergone some staff development in the model's use.     

Bridging Multiple Worlds: How African American and Latino Youth in Academic Outreach Programs Navigate Math Pathways to College

Universities have launched outreach programs to enhance their ethnic diversity, yet little developmental research examines students' pathways to college. This study compares capital models (highlighting family background) with challenge models (highlighting students' challenges and resources) in predicting pathways to college. The Bridging Multiple Worlds Model frames this longitudinal study of 120 African American and Latino youth in outreach programs. We examined students' family backgrounds; challenges and resources across family, school, peer, and community worlds; and high school math pathways as predictors of college eligibility and enrollment. African American students more typically had U. S. born, college-educated parents, and Latino students, immigrant parents with high school education or less. Second, students saw parents as greater resources than teachers, siblings, and themselves; peers and teachers were their greatest challenges. Youth distinguished resources and challenges more by their source than form. Third, high school math and English grades rose and fell together, with early math grades predicting college eligibility. Five math pathways emerged: steady, slowly declining, rapidly declining, increasing, and "back on track" toward college, but pathways did not always predict college choices. Fourth, although family background predicted few outcomes, parents' and teachers' help and siblings' challenges predicted grades, eligibility, and admission to prestigious colleges. Findings highlight both capital and challenge models for science, policy, and programs involving diversity and equity.     

设计性实验课中卡氏肺孢子菌的动物模型建立与教学改革之探讨

目的探索设计性实验课在病原生物学实验教学改革中的模式。方法通过卡氏肺孢子菌的动物模型建立,设计免疫功能低下的小鼠感染卡氏肺孢子菌及相关免疫低下指标的检测,使学生通过课堂指导,课后自己查找资料设计相关实验。结果拓展学生知识面,提高分析问题、解决问题的能力,激发学生创新意识。结论该设计性实验为病原生物学实验的教学改革做出了初步探索。     

Improving achievement through problem-based learning

In this study, the effect of problem-based learning on students' academic achievement and performance skills in a unit on he human excretory system was investigated. Sixty-one 10th grade students, from two full classes instructed by the same iology teacher, were involved in the study. Classes were randomly assigned as either the experimental or the control group and were pre- and post-tested to determine their academic achievement and performance skills before and after the treatment. The experimental group was taught with problem-based learning while the control group received traditionally-designed biology instruction. Results showed that although there was no pre-existing difference between two groups, students instructed with problem-based learning earned significantly higher scores than those instructed with traditionally-designed biology instruction — in terms of academic achievement and performance skills. Students in the experimental group appeared to be more proficient in the use and organisation of relevant information, in constructing knowledge and moving toward better conclusions.     

Leaf-mining and gall-forming insects: tools for teaching population ecology

Groups of Israeli and Australian science educationists, practising secondary school science teachers, practising scientists, and science graduates preparing to become science teachers were questioned as to the suitability of teleologically and anthropomorphically formulated statements for inclusion in fourth/fifth-form (14–16 year olds) level study material. Respondents' awareness of the dangers involved (i.e. literal acceptance by pupils of such statements) was acute in the science educationist group, but progressively less so with the teachers, the scientists, and the prospective teachers. It was recommended that all persons connected with science teaching become more aware of the problem, in particular persons engaged in teacher training, and those responsible for preparing texts.     

Noble Cows and Hybrid Zebras: Essays on Animals and History Harriet Ritvo

ABSTRACT

Ants may serve as powerful model organisms for uncovering principles of insect biology and social behavior. The aim of this study was to provide a quantitative analysis of secondary-school students' perceptions and knowledge of ants. It was part of a longitudinal project based on the concept of “ant research” in classrooms. The outcomes were to be used to implement studies of ants into a progressive curriculum for all secondary-school students. In order to design modules for science education, it was necessary to identify the perceptions and knowledge that students in different grades had of ants. Three hundred and twenty-one students from 14 classes in the 6th, 7th, 9th, and 12th grades participated in the study. A questionnaire was used and included closed- and open-ended questions, as well as a drawing task. The results indicated that students had little classroom experience with ants and lacked basic knowledge of ants. There were no significant differences in the knowledge scores of 7th, 9th, and 12th graders. However, the perceptions of ants differed between lower and upper secondary school students. While younger students tended to describe ants in terms of morphological characteristics, older students predominantly referred to ants using behavioral terms. Students exhibited few affective responses to ants. The findings indicate that students were more influenced by media portrayals of ants than by personal encounters with these animals. Therefore, school-curriculum developers should encourage direct contact with ant species.     

Weight Loss Surgery Eligibility According to Various BMI Criteria Among Adolescents

A BMI cutoff point at the 99th percentile for age and gender or at 40 kg/m² has been suggested for more aggressive treatment of adolescent obesity. The main objective of this study was to determine the proportion of adolescents eligible for weight loss surgery (WLS) based on various BMI cutoff points. Data was extracted from the electronic medical record database of an urban pediatric ambulatory care center over 4 years. National data were used to calculate BMI percentiles (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2000). Eligibility for WLS was based on a BMI percentile criterion (≥99th percentile) or the adult WLS cutoff point (≥40 kg/m²). The sample consisted of 3,220 adolescents aged 12–17.9 years, of which 53% were female, 55% were of black race, and 17% of Hispanic ethnicity. Overall, 88 (3%) adolescents had a BMI ≥40 kg/m² and 236 (7%) had a BMI ≥99th percentile (P < 0.001). All adolescents with BMI ≥40 kg/m² had a BMI ≥99th percentile. A total of 159/2,007 (8%) of 12–14.9‐year olds had a BMI ≥99th percentile compared with 77/1,213 (6%) 15–17.9‐year olds (P = 0.10), whereas 43/2,007 (2%) of 12–14.9‐year olds had a BMI ≥40 kg/m² compared with 45/1,213 (4%) 15–17.9‐year olds (P = 0.003). In summary, a relatively large proportion of adolescents from a diverse urban population would qualify for WLS based on the percentile criterion. Fewer adolescents would be eligible based on the adult WLS criterion, and younger adolescents would be less likely to be eligible for WLS than older adolescents.     

Emotional intimacy with nature and life & intellectual interest in life of pre-service biology teachers for environmental education

We investigated emotional intimacy with nature and life, and intellectual interest in life among South Korean pre-service teachers (N = 114) training in biology education, analysing the differences between these two constructs as well as their relationship to environmental behaviour and sensitivity. In addition, differences in the respondents’ experiences of nature, concerns about environmental problems and willingness to perform environmental education were explored. Four groups of pre-service biology teachers, categorised by the two investigated personal variables, showed different responses for the environment-related characteristics and other variables. Our results suggest that biology teachers should have higher emotional and intellectual interest in nature and life, and a balance between emotional intimacy with nature and life, and intellectual interest in life is needed to prepare them.     

A first attempt to bring computational biology into advanced high school biology classrooms

Computer science has become ubiquitous in many areas of biological research, yet most high school and even college students are unaware of this. As a result, many college biology majors graduate without adequate computational skills for contemporary fields of biology. The absence of a computational element in secondary school biology classrooms is of growing concern to the computational biology community and biology teachers who would like to acquaint their students with updated approaches in the discipline. We present a first attempt to correct this absence by introducing a computational biology element to teach genetic evolution into advanced biology classes in two local high schools. Our primary goal was to show students how computation is used in biology and why a basic understanding of computation is necessary for research in many fields of biology. This curriculum is intended to be taught by a computational biologist who has worked with a high school advanced biology teacher to adapt the unit for his/her classroom, but a motivated high school teacher comfortable with mathematics and computing may be able to teach this alone. In this paper, we present our curriculum, which takes into consideration the constraints of the required curriculum, and discuss our experiences teaching it. We describe the successes and challenges we encountered while bringing this unit to high school students, discuss how we addressed these challenges, and make suggestions for future versions of this curriculum.We believe that our curriculum can be a valuable seed for further development of computational activities aimed at high school biology students. Further, our experiences may be of value to others teaching computational biology at this level. Our curriculum can be obtained at http://ecsite.cs.colorado.edu/?page_id=149#biology or by contacting the authors.     

Age‐Related Differences in Daily Attention Patterns in Preschool,Kindergarten, First‐Grade,and Fifth‐Grade Pupils

The purpose of this study was to examine age‐related differences in the daily attention patterns of preschool, kindergarten, first‐grade, and fifth‐grade pupils by means of a cross‐sectional sample of 4–11‐year‐old French students. The importance of this study comes from the need to understand attention and apply the information it provides in educational settings. The first study conducted in a school setting with three age groups (4–5‐, 6–7‐, and 10–11‐year‐olds) demonstrated a rapid rhythmicity (60 minute period) for preschoolers (4–5 years old), with higher performance at the beginning of a teaching session. This pattern evolved until the fifth grade (10–11‐year‐olds), after which the temporal variation in attention was comparable to that of working adults, with fluctuations occurring on a half‐day basis. The children's scores on crossing‐out tests rose during the morning, declined in the early afternoon, and then rose again later during the afternoon. The second study enhanced our understanding of the change of the rhythm in attention of 4–7‐year‐old pupils. The rapid daily rhythmicity, linked to a session effect, seems to gradually disappear as children move from preschool 2 to kindergarten (4–5‐ to 5–6‐year‐olds) and then on to first grade (6–7‐year‐olds), where the daily attention patterns are closer to the standard pattern found by chronopsychology studies. The evolving patterns obtained from group means were confirmed by analysis of individual patterns. Exploratory statistical analysis of the data provided greater detail on the observed interindividual patterns, indicating that within each school grade, the attention patterns of some children are similar to the standard pattern while the attention patterns of others are more atypical. Deviations were mainly found in the 5–6‐year‐old age range (kindergarteners). The greatest ‘mixture’ of patterns was observed in the kindergartners (5–6‐year‐olds). Age plays a role not only in modifying daily changes but also in the distribution of interindividual differences in daily fluctuations, which occur most when children are of kindergarten age (5–6 years of age).