生物化学与分子生物学本研教学一体化探索与实践

生物化学(Biochemistry)和分子生物学(Molecular Biology)课程是生命科学领域人才培养的基石。本研究以这些课程为桥梁,从知识框架重构、教学案例建设、教学资源共享、教学手段更新、立德树人格局的建立等方面入手,以学科特色科研成果案例和在线教学平台为支撑,通过课程教学实践,探索了以科研育人为导向,以课程建设为根基,以交流合作为推动力的本研一体化课程改革模式,搭建了“交流、实践、开放、信息化”的共享空间,实现了本、研教学以汲取知识为动力的自由、自主融合,使学生培养成效得到了提升。     

Exploring the context of biomedical research through a problem-based course for undergraduate students

Students in an interdisciplinary program explored the manufacture of biomedical knowledge in a problem-based course. Because the class size was two to three times larger than the normal tutorial group, suitable modifications were made (formation of floating groups around defined learning tasks, formal presentations, written reports, and evaluations by students and tutor). A variety of problems and/or cases drawn from research papers, newspapers, biographies, or web pages permitted students to appreciate the complex interactions between ideals, individuals, institutions, and investments that comprise modern biomedical research.     

A course in communication and information retrieval for undergraduate biologists

Most librarians, and at least some lecturers in institutions of higher education, recognise the need for students to receive instruction in the use of information sources. In the life sciences, the continuing growth in the number of these sources creates problems for biologists. To help students cope with the situation, a compulsory course in Communication and Information Retrieval has been introduced into the BSc degree in biology at Paisley College of Technology. The course, taught by the College library staff, covers the structure of scientific literature, the language barrier, techniques of literature searching and scientific writing, and the information network in the life sciences.     

An intensive hands-on course designed to teach molecular biology techniques to physiology graduate students

To address a growing need to make research trainees in physiology comfortable with the tools of molecular biology, we have developed a laboratory-intensive course designed for graduate students. This course is offered to a small group of students over a three-week period and is organized such that comprehensive background lectures are coupled with extensive hands-on experience. The course is divided into seven modules, each organized by a faculty member who has particular expertise in the area covered by that module. The modules focus on basic methods such as cDNA subcloning, sequencing, gene transfer, polymerase chain reaction, and protein and RNA expression analysis. Each module begins with a lecture that introduces the technique in detail by providing a historical perspective, describing both the uses and limitations of that technique, and comparing the method with others that yield similar information. Most of the lectures are followed by a laboratory session during which students follow protocols that were carefully designed to avoid pitfalls. Throughout these laboratory sessions, students are given an appreciation of the importance of proper technique and accuracy. Communication among the students, faculty, and the assistant coordinator is focused on when and why each procedure would be used, the importance of each step in the procedure, and approaches to troubleshooting. The course ends with an exam that is designed to test the students' general understanding of each module and their ability to apply the various techniques to physiological questions.     

Supporting upper-level undergraduate students in building a systems perspective in a botany course

Undergraduate biology majors require biological literacy about the critical and dynamic relationships between plants and ecosystems and the effect human-made processes have on these systems. To support students in understanding systems relationships, we redesigned an undergraduate botany course using an ecological framework and embedded systems modelling to support students in understanding the criticality of plant processes to the global carbon cycle. The class meetings included lectures, opportunities to develop systems models identifying the relationships between plant processes and other systems, reflections on their systems understanding and open-floor discussions about assigned primary and secondary readings that explored the relationships between plant systems, abiotic and biotic processes and global carbon cycling in their systems models. We used the systems models students developed at the beginning and end of the course to examine how their systems understanding grew. Our results suggest that at the beginning of term, students’ ideas about plants were egocentric identifying the purpose of plants was to support human life and they did not consider relationships between plants and global carbon systems. By the end of the term, their models and reflections identified elements of a systems perspective and the students considered human impact on this delicate balance.     

研究生生物化学课程教学改革的尝试

针对化工和轻化工专业研究生生物化学的教学特点,从教学方法、教学内容和教学手段上进行了一些改革和尝试。