Biology student teachers’ dialogic talk in inquiry-based instruction

ABSTRACT

Inquiry-based learning has generally accepted by scholars as a most effective teaching approach in biology education. The talk during inquiry-based teaching needs to be practiced. There is less evidence how student teachers talk with students during their inquiry-based biology instruction. This knowledge is needed in supporting student teachers to develop their teachership in biology education. In this qualitative case study, the dialogic talk of biology student teachers (N = 6) was studied in the context of inquiry-based lessons in lower secondary school. The student teachers’ lessons were video and audio recorded and the data was analyzed using content analysis. The student teachers used dialogic talk in their inquiry-based instruction only occasionally, mainly in the examination and the conclusion stages. During the introduction stage, dialogic talk was less used and it was mainly explaining and instructing the content. In the examination stage, student teachers also guided students and stated facts. During the conclusion stage, student teachers mainly explained and also evaluated students’ statements. The lesson’s topics and methods used in inquiry-based learning may enable the dialogic talk of student teacher to some extent. However, teacher education should focus more on scaffolding student teachers’ talk with their students in all kinds of inquiry approaches.     

Testing Models: A Key Aspect to Promote Teaching Activities Related to Models and Modelling in Biology Lessons?

This study investigated biology teachers’ (N = 148) understanding of models and modelling (MoMo), their model-related teaching activities and relations between the two. A framework which distinguishes five aspects of MoMo in science (nature of models, multiple models, purpose of models, testing models and changing models) served as a theoretical background. Teachers’ understanding of MoMo was assessed using constructed-response items which were analysed qualitatively based on a coding scheme. The biology teachers mainly expressed a limited understanding of models as copies or idealised depictions used to show or to explain something. Model-related teaching activities were assessed through rating-scale items. The findings propose that models are primarily generated in biology lessons to show or to explain something but are rarely contrasted with other models, evaluated and modified. Significant correlations between teachers’ understanding of the aspect testing models and their intensity of model-related teaching activities were found. This suggests that the aspect testing models is a key aspect of promoting teaching activities related to MoMo in biology lessons. The findings are discussed with respect to relevant literature about MoMo in science education and educational implications are provided.     

An exploratory study of student teachers’ conceptions of teaching life science outdoors

Abstract

The purpose of this exploratory qualitative study was to investigate elementary student teachers’ conceptions of teaching life science outdoors. The study involved 99 student teachers who were enrolled in an elementary science methods course at a large public university in the United States of America. The study utilised drawings, and narratives to investigate the nature of these teachers’ conceptions. Data analysis revealed that three conceptions of teaching life science were common among the participants: (1) teaching life science is predominantly conceptualised as being situated in the schoolyard, (2) teaching life science outdoors is teacher-directed, and (3) teaching life science outdoors is disconnected from in-class science instruction. Implications include the need for (1) teacher education programmes to provide reflective supports that explicate student teachers’ conceptualisation of teaching life science and thus exposing prior frameworks; and (2) teacher educators to examine student teachers’ prior frameworks for teaching life science outdoors and provide knowledgeable theory and practice platforms that will serve as frameworks for student teachers to adopt, connect and routinize outdoor life science teaching with in-school teaching of life science.     

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.     

The teacher writing toolkit: enhancing undergraduate teaching of scientific writing in the biological sciences

ABSTRACT

Teaching scientific writing in biology classes is challenging for both teachers and students. This article offers and reviews several useful ‘toolkit’ items that instructors of science writing can use to improve college student success. The tools in this kit are both conceptual and practical, and include: 1) Understanding the role of student metacognition, cognitive instruction, and strategic teaching, 2) Recognition of different student writing levels, 3) Applying the writing process, 4) Demonstrational classroom revision and editing, 5) Student-teacher sentence editing, 6) Student peer editing and guided student editing, 7) Student copy-editing, 8) Reflective writing, 9) Addressing plagiarism, paraphrasing, and proper in-text citations and referencing, and 10) Using external, on campus and online resources. Additionally, we discuss the new challenges of teaching scientific writing online versus face-to-face. The discussions, approaches, and exercises presented in this paper empower teachers in assisting students in their development of a personal writing style, while simultaneously building student confidence. The tools we present augment our previous presentation of the student writing toolkit, and can improve and enhance the teaching of scientific writing to undergraduate students.     

Medical students and physical education students as CPR instructors: an appropriate solution to the CPR-instructor shortage in secondary schools?

Background

Integrating cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training in secondary schools will increase the number of potential CPR providers. However, currently too few certified instructors are available for this purpose. Training medical students and physical education student teachers to become CPR instructors could decrease this shortage.

Aim

Examine whether medical students and physical education student teachers can provide CPR training for secondary school pupils as well as (i.?e., non-inferior to) registered nurses.

Methods

A total of 144 secondary school pupils were randomly assigned to CPR training by a registered nurse (n = 12), a  medical student (n = 17) or a physical education student teacher (n = 15). CPR performance was assessed after training and after eight weeks in a simulated cardiac arrest scenario on a resuscitation manikin, using manikin software and video recordings.

Results

No significant differences were found between the groups on the overall Cardiff Test scores and the correctness of the CPR techniques during the post-training and retention test. All pupils showed sufficient CPR competence, even after eight weeks.

Conclusion

Training by medical students or physical education student teachers is non-inferior to training by a registered nurse, suggesting that school teachers, student teachers and medical students can be recruited for CPR training in secondary schools.

     

In vivo assessment of subcutaneous fat in dogs by real-time ultrasonography and image analysis

Background

Systems for estimating body condition score (BCS) are currently used in canine practice to monitor fatness levels. These tools are cheap and easy to use but lack the necessary precision to monitor small changes in body fat, particularly during weight control treatments or in research. The present work aims to study the application of real-time ultrasonography (RTU) together with image analysis in the assessment of subcutaneous fat depots in dogs. Ultrasound images were collected from five anatomical locations (chest, flank, abdomen, thigh and lumbar) from 28 healthy dogs of different breeds and with a body weight (BW) ranging from 5.2 to 33.0 kg. BCS was collected by visual appraisal using a 5-point scale. Subcutaneous fat thickness (SFT) was estimated from RTU images, using the average of three measurements taken in fat deposits located above the muscles represented in each image. Correlations were established between SFT and BW or BCS as well as a classification of BCS-based fatness [overweight (BCS = 4), ideal (BCS = 3) and lean (BCS = 2)].

Results

SFT was found to differ between the five regions considered (P < 0.001). Abdomen and thigh were the areas displaying the widest variation for the different dogs included in the study and also those correlating most with BW, in contrast to the chest, which showed the least variation. Overall, a strong correlation was found between BCS and SFT. The highest correlations were established for the flank, abdomen and lumbar areas. In every anatomical area, a decrease in SFT was observed across all three BCS classes, ranging from 48 to 65 % among overweight and ideal dogs, and from 46 to 83 % among ideal and lean dogs.

Conclusions

Preliminary data showed that within this population there was a strong correlation between BCS and SFT estimated from RTU images. It was also observed that RTU measurements for fat thickness differed among the anatomical points surveyed suggesting differences in their sensitivity to a change in BCS. The images displaying the best prediction value for fatness variations were those collected at the lumbar and abdomen areas.

     

Doing Philosophy Effectively: Student Learning in Classroom Teaching

An important aim of teaching philosophy in Dutch secondary schools is to learn about philosophy (i.e., the great philosophers) by doing philosophy. We examined doing philosophy and focused specifically on the relationship between student learning activities and teacher behavior; in doing so, a qualitative cross-case analysis of eight philosophy lessons was performed. The effectiveness of doing philosophy was operationalized into five learning activities comprising rationalizing, analyzing, testing, producing criticism, and reflecting, and scored by means of qualitative graphical time registration. Using CA we find a quantitative one-dimensional scale for the lessons that contrasts lessons that are more and less effective in terms of learning and teaching. A relationship was found between teaching by teachers and doing philosophy by students. In particular we found students to produce a higher level of doing philosophy with teachers who chose to organize a philosophical discussion with shared guidance by the teacher together with the students.     

An evaluation of educators’ views on the e-Bug resources in England

Introduction: e-Bug is an international educational resource for young people covering microbes, hygiene and antibiotics. e-Bug supports NICE guidance on changing public behaviour around antibiotic use. This study aimed to determine educators’ views of the e-Bug teacher resources to inform further development and dissemination of e-Bug. Methods: Age appropriate e-Bug resource packs were posted to every primary school (N = 19,142) and secondary school (N = 5637) in England with a cover letter signed by the Chief Medical Officer, Chief Executive of PHE and e-Bug Project Lead inviting educators to complete an online survey to evaluate the e-Bug resources. The online survey consisted of nine questions and took approximately 15 min to complete. Results: 695 participants completed the online survey. 94% of participants rated the e-Bug resource as excellent or good; one fifth of respondents used the e-Bug resources at least termly. Educators who used e-Bug rated the different lesson plans as excellent or good including ‘Introduction to Microbes’ (98%) and ‘Hand Hygiene’ (95%). Educators provided suggestions for the development of additional lessons plans. Conclusions: Educators view e-Bug as a valuable resource for teaching children about hygiene and antibiotics. Further e-Bug promotion and resource development is required to increase awareness and usage in schools.     

Expert video exchanges in bilingual biology lessons - student’s intrinsic motivation and subject-specific interest

ABSTRACT

This paper presents an instructional model to incorporate English-language communication between international practicing scientists and English learners into secondary science lessons. The aim was to identify a method that lets pupils practice English as the language of science and that elicits positive affective attitudes in the form of task-specific intrinsic motivation. As a central condition, the approach had to be feasible in realistic school settings. The pupils that participated in the two studies presented (total n = 218) were native German speakers and interacted with English-speaking experts in the curricular contexts of cytology and immunology via videos. We assessed pupils’ task-specific intrinsic motivation (as defined by their interest/enjoyment of the exchange and their relatedness to the expert) and compared it to their subject-specific interest in biology and English before and after the project. We further contrasted the motivational ratings of bilingually experienced and inexperienced groups of pupils. Both groups reported similar and remarkably high task-specific intrinsic motivation for the video exchange. Subject-specific interests remained constant before and after implementing the method and were correlated with interest/enjoyment in the standard, but not in the bilingually experienced classes. The applicability of the exchange model in different topics, subjects, and student groups is discussed.     

Comparing Alternate Approaches to Calculating Reliability for Dichotomous Data: The Sample Case of Adolescent Selection,Optimization, and Compensation

With the growing interest in the development of purpose in youth, one important role that requires attention is the school teacher. The current article explores student perceptions of the role teachers can play in fostering purpose in their students in the mid- and late adolescent years, and the teacher competencies that facilitate purpose development. The present investigation posits and tests a structural model in which student perceptions of teacher support predicts youth purpose, mediated by student perceptions of teacher competencies; in turn, youth purpose predicts broader positive youth development. Two samples of demographically diverse young people ages 13–18 were surveyed in the United States (n = 381) and Finland (n = 336). Results showed support for the role of teachers in fostering purpose, and provided evidence for the hypothesized model with some cross-cultural differences. Implications of these findings for developing purpose in schools are discussed.     

Hands-on or Video-based Learning with ANTicipation? A Comparative Approach to Identifying Student Motivation and Learning Enjoyment During a Lesson about Ants

The observation of living animals in school laboratories provides authentic views of biological research. Various studies stress the importance of primary experiences in biology classes. However, educational films may serve as an alternative in some cases. The aim of this study was to investigate student motivation before and after treatments, including (1) an educational film, (2) a hands-on activity with living animals accompanied by an educational film and (3) a hands-on activity with living animals. We investigated the influence of teaching method, gender and class level on student motivation and learning enjoyment. In all treatments, Temnothorax ants were addressed, which can be easily kept and observed. This paper is within the scope of a longitudinal project based on the concept of ‘ant research’ in class. Students (N = 140) from six classes (lower and intermediate secondary school levels) participated in the study. Student motivation was measured using a two-stage test design, including a standardised questionnaire on current motivation and a test on learning enjoyment. The findings of this study suggest that the younger students prefer hands-on activities, while students at an intermediate secondary school level are more interested in video-based learning. Since the combination of hands-on activity and video yielded the best results, the potential of using videos as facilitators for hands-on learning is discussed.     

Association of Per3 length polymorphism with susceptibility of Alzheimer disease (AD) in Chinese population

Objectives: The association of Per3 length polymorphism with susceptibility of Alzheimer Disease (AD) was examined in the present study. Methods: This study was constructed using the case-control method and investigated the association of Per3 length polymorphism with susceptibility of AD. Genotypes of APOE and Per3 length were determined by a PCR restriction fragment length polymorphism detection method. Results: In this study, we gathered 130 unrelated AD patients and 188 controls in performing an analysis the association of Per3 length polymorphism with susceptibility of AD. In the whole sample or APOE ε4 non-carriers, an increased prevalence of five repeat homozygotes of Per3 length in AD patients had significant higher than that in controls (in the whole sample: χ² = 7.261,= 0.0176; in APOE ε4 non-carriers: χ² = 6.086, p = 0.030). And, among APOE ε4 carriers, an increased prevalence of five repeat homozygotes of Per3 length in AD patients had also significant higher than that in controls (χ² = 3.893, p = 0.0319). Conclusions: Among APOE ε4 non-carriers, five repeat homozygotes of Per3 length was associated with a high susceptibility of AD among APOE ε4 carriers and non-carriers.     

Learning biology and geology through a participative teaching approach: the effect on student attitudes towards science and academic performance

ABSTRACT

The investigation has demonstrated that the science teaching strategy employed moderates the interest of students in learning the subject, along with academic achievement. In this article we used a mixed method design in a sample of secondary education students (n = 57) to examine the effect of the participative teaching approach in attitudes towards science and student academic performance in the Biology and Geology subject. We also analysed the influence of student learning styles in their academic performance. The statistical results show that the participative methodology has a positive effect on attitude towards student attitudes towards science and academic performance; this finding has been triangulated with class observations and the vision of the teacher participating in the experience. Furthermore, we identified different significances between boys and girls in pre-test academic performance, which disappeared post-test. Despite this, in both measurements the boys showed greater interest in and enjoyment of science learning than the girls. Finally, we are able to conclude that academic performance is positively related to attitude towards science and with reflexive and theoretical learning styles.     

Habent Fata Sua: The Rise and Fall of Garden Plants

Background: Rare cactus in the Americas and other species worldwide are threatened species because of their high level of habitat specialisation, narrow distribution range and continuing population decline.

Aims: To identify management units (MUs) based on genetic variability and demographic structure in order to propose assertive conservation actions for Mammillaria crucigera and to provide a model case study for other species that are under similar threats.

Methods: We genotyped through eight microsatellite loci in 171 individuals and described demographic structures in six populations of this cactus based on plots of 1 m².

Results: Across populations with a mean density of 2.6 m^?2 and a total of ~500 individuals counted, 30% of the individuals were reproductive (diameter >2 cm). The total heterozygosity was low (H_O = 0.54), but the inbreeding coefficient (F_IS = 0.29) and the allele diversity (N_A = 20) were high. Four genetic groups were distinguished, although considering the demographic structure, we propose three MUs.

Conclusions: It is critical to maintain the genetic connectivity within and among MUs, which can only be achieved through cooperation between government authorities and local habitants to halt the degradation and further destruction of the remnant populations. Searching MUs allows the identification of critical areas for conservation issues for all species whose extant populations are in a fragmented landscape.     

Coping with shift work-related circadian disruption: A mixed-methods case study on napping and caffeine use in Australian nurses and midwives

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Two of the most ubiquitous fatigue countermeasures used by shift-working nurses are napping and caffeine. This mixed-methods case study investigated the ways nurses and midwives utilised napping and caffeine countermeasures to cope with shift work, and associated sleep, physical health and psychological health outcomes.

Materials and Methods: N = 130 Australian shift-working nurses and midwives (mean age = 44 years, range = 21–67, 115F, 15M) completed the Standard Shiftwork Index. A sub-set of 22 nurses and midwives completed an in-depth interview.

Results: Nearly 70% of participants reported napping. Those who napped during night shifts had significantly less total sleep time before (F_2,75 = 5.5, p < 0.01) and between days off (F_2,82 = 3.9, p < 0.05). By the end of the night shift, average hours of time awake were significantly less for prophylactic and on-shift nappers compared to non-nappers (F_2,85 = 97.2, p < 0.001). Since starting shift work, the percentage of high caffeine consumers (>400 mg/day) increased from 15% to 33% of the sample and an average of 4 (SD = 2) caffeinated beverages per day was reported. Increased caffeine consumption was associated with greater sleep disturbance (r = 0.26, p < 0.05), psychological distress (r = 0.37, p < 0.001), abdomen pain (r = 0.27, p < 0.05) and weight gain since starting shift work (r = 0.25, p < 0.05). Interviews confirmed these relationships and revealed that caffeine consumption on night shift was common, whereas napping on night shift was dependent on a number of factors including ability to sleep during the day.

Conclusion: This study identified reasons shift workers chose to engage in or abstain from napping and consuming caffeine, and how these strategies related to poor sleep and health outcomes. Further research is required to help develop recommendations for shift workers regarding napping and caffeine consumption as fatigue countermeasures, whilst taking into account the associated hazards of each strategy.     

Scuola ed educazione naturalistica

Abstract

School and naturalistic education. In order that mankind may correctly fit in the balance of nature young people must be given the right scientific preparation during school years. This is why a better training of science teachers would be so important especially in Italy, where they come straight from University having followed various types of scientific degree courses, mainly theoretical, and with no special preparation for teaching.

The main basic requirement for a science teacher is that he has a solid preparation for laboratory but especially for field work. All other kinds of scientific and pedagogic knowledge is of course important but not as indispensable. It is therefore necessary to give science teachers the naturalistic training that University syllabuses do not provide for. At the same time work done inside the school should be supported from the outside by other organizations such as the Field Studies Council in England, or the « keeper-guides » of Israeli natural parks. In the present Italian school system one immediate step could be taken: teachers of « scientific observations » should not confine themselves to lecturing in classrooms but should spend most of their allotted time with their classes in the field or in the laboratory, in the same way as for instance teachers of « technical applications » do their teaching only in the workshop.     

Towards a characterization of the locomotor activity rhythm of the desertic species Porcellio olivieri (Crustacea,Isopoda) from Gabes (South of Tunisia)

The locomotor activity rhythm of the isopod, Porcellio olivieri, was investigated in Gannouch site in the south of Tunisia. The rhythm was monitored under constant temperature in individual animals in winter under two simultaneous regimens: the light–dark (LD) cycle and the continuous darkness (DD). Results revealed that whatever regimens, actograms, and mean activity curves showed that specimens of P. olivieri concentrated their activity during the experimental and subjective night. The species exhibited a locomotor rhythm period significantly shorter under LD (T = 23h13 ± 0h44) than DD (τ = 24h28 ± 0h58). However, the locomotor activity rhythm was less stable and the individuals were significantly more active under entraining conditions than constant darkness. The activity pattern of this species will be discussed as an adaptative strategy to respond to environmental conditions.     

A simple and efficient synthesis of puromycin, 2,2′-anhydro-pyrimidine nucleosides,cytidines and 2′,3′-anhydroadenosine from 3′,5′-O-sulfinyl Xylo-nucleosides

Synthesis of antibiotics, puromycin and 3 ′-amino-3 ′-deoxy-N ⁶,N ⁶-dimethyladenosine 11 was achieved by utilizing the cyclic sulfite 6a of the xylo-3 ′,5 ′-dihydroxy group as a new protective group. The key synthetic step is the deprotection of the sulfite moiety through the intramolecular cyclization of 2-α-carbamate 7. In a similar manner, 2,2 ′-anhydro-pyrimidine nucleosides 15, ribo-cytidines 17 and 2 ′,3 ′-anhydroadenosine 14 were prepared in high yields from the corresponding sulfites 4, 5, and 6b, respectively.     

Drama as a valuable learning medium in early childhood

ABSTRACT

Theater arts encompass unique art forms comprising highly developed pedagogical applications apart from theater as performance. Specifically, the use of drama as a learning medium, referred to in the field as process drama, is most emphatically applicable to the education of young children. Young children actively gain skills in dialogue, collaboration, and creative problem solving, by collectively pretending, with teacher guidance, to be in an imaginative elsewhere—something most are well adept at from their own natural dramatic play. This article argues that ages 3–8 represent a critical time for children to benefit from process drama integrated into the curriculum and highlights the unique impact process drama can make when it is used to explore a particular problem, situation, or theme, referencing related national core arts. Documentation from well-established programs is presented, and recommendations for training drama teachers on how to work in early childhood and for early childhood teachers on how to integrate process drama into their curriculum are presented.