Participants:
Biology faculty who teach introductory courses were invited as a team to represent their institution. Each team presented a poster featuring an aspect of teaching that has worked for them. Each team also selected an experiment currently used in one of their introductory courses to distribute. During the workshop, the groups discussed what they can do on their own campuses to institute change or sustain efforts to engage introductory learners.


Program:
The agenda began with a focus on issues dealing with group learning. Other educational concerns addressed included the increasing enrollment in biology, rapid expansion of biological knowledge, availability of new communication technologies, essential biological knowledge for both those planning to and not planning to become biologists, science literacy, interdisciplinary links, lecture size, lecture/lab relationships, and students in transition from high school.

    

In order to provide students with the opportunity to learn biology in an experiential, hands-on environment, we reorganized our Human Biology course into a workshop format. The goals of Workshop Human Biology were to increase student involvement with the material, to improve problem posing and problem solving, and to encourage students to become active learners, responsible for their own learning. We also hoped to increase academic success and decrease the number of students dropping Human Biology because of academic difficulty. The Human Biology Workshop was designed so that students would apply the information in the text book in understanding lab activities. Classes of 24 students met 3 times a week for two hours each time. Each class meeting included combined exploration/ experimentation or dissection and a discussion of the material. The Workshop Human Biology poster will give an overview of the course and activities. The Breakout session will provide an opportunity for participants to experience Workshop Human Biology problem solving activities and discuss issues in its pedagogy and organization. Both the poster and the Breakout session will also present preliminary evaluations of the Workshop HumanBiology course at Beloit College.

Building Mastery of the Scientific Method
in a Four-Semester Introduction to Biology

Diane C. Robertson, Chair
Grinnell College, Grinnell, IA 50112

Three years ago the Biology Department at Grinnell College introduced a new four-semester introductory sequence of courses designed to teach the process of science along with the specific subject matter of biology. The first course, Structure and Function of Organisms , covers basic plant and animal anatomy and physiology while also teaching the students how scientists approach a question. Experimental design is a major emphasis of the course, in both the lecture and laboratory. In lab, students design and carry out a number of experiments to answer their own questions regarding a particular topic. They then model the ways scientists communicate the results of their work in written lab reports, oral reports and in a poster paper. The second course, Evolution and Ecology, continues this emphasis and adds computer work in the laboratory. For example, after learning basic Mendelian genetics and the application of the Chi-squared test to various types of crosses, students move to the computer lab where they use a WWW application, Virtual FlyLab, to infer the inheritance patterns of unknown traits in virtual Drosophila melanogaster . The third course, Molecular Genetics , emphasizes independent thinking and problem solving skills in both lab and lecture. To facilitate student development of these processes, the lab consists of only four units permitting time for independent projects at the end of each unit. One unit is a subcloning experiment. After completing the generation and characterization of subclones as a class, students undertake independent projects focusing on one aspect of the cloning or characterization processes. The fourth course, Biology of Cells , continues the student-designed project approach. Students investigate questions related to cell-cell interactions, membrane transport, enzyme kinetics and bioenergetics. In this final course of our introductory sequence, students are also required to actively participate in a journal club in which they present and critically discuss papers in the primary scientific literature.

Ask the Egret:Community Building with an Advice Column

Donald Cronkite, James Gentile, Virginia McDonough, Lois Tverberg and KathyWinnett-Murray
Hope College, Holland, MI 49422-9000

Principles of Biology I at Hope College includes nearly 300 students in up to five sections. To build community in such large classes, we have adopted several tactics, including the publication of an advice column called Ask the Egret. Our aim is to open communication between students and faculty about the way the course is run, the educational philosophy of the faculty, additional information related to the class and connections between biology and the rest of the curriculum at Hope College. We also hope to give the students community symbols they can identify with and provide a light-hearted antidote to the stress first year students feel. Each week we publish an issue of Ask the Egret in which a mythical bird, The Egret, answers questions from students who either deposit them in the Egret Box which sits in the class room or send them to the Egret at its campus E-mail account. After one or two issues devoted to questions which the faculty make up, there is no difficulty producting a weekly issue from student questions. Their interests range from follow-up on material learned in class (In class the teachers said. . . ., but if that is true, why. . . ?) to questions about course structure (Why do we have so many quizzes?) and course content (Why do we have to learn so much about plants?) to questions about evolution or the behavior of squirrels on campus or even the etymology or correct spelling of words used in class. Answers to the questions are provided by whichever member of the faculty knows the answer, but they are put in a common style by one anonymous person. Student demand has resulted in continuation of Ask the Egret in the second semester of introductory biology, and the column now appears on the campus electronic communication system where it enjoys a loyal following of students, faculty and staff with no connection to Principles of Biology I.

Group Problem Solving in Large Classes

Alastair Inman, Linda Dybas, and Mark Brodl
Knox College, Galesburg, IL 61401

We have just begun to use case study methods developed for smaller, upper-level biology courses in our introductory course. Students work in groups to apply the facts and general concepts learned in their reading and lectures to specific situations. This gives them a deeper understanding of those facts and concepts, as well as how scientists think and work. Some ways that we have had to modify our approach for a larger classroom include less whole-class discussion of small group conclusions, and more structured "cruising" of the classroomby the professor and teaching assistants to keep students on task and provide guidance. Students are assessed by standard testing and peer and self evaluations.

The Introductory Biology Curriculum at Macalester College

Lin Aanonsen, Virginia Card, Daphne Foreman,
Jan Serie, Steve Sundby, Andrea Tilden
Macalester College, St. Paul, MN 55105

(612) 696-6470, (612) 696-6443 (fax), aanonsen@macalstr.edu

Major changes to the biology curriculum at Macalester College were instituted two years ago. The impetus for these changes originated from three major issues/observations: 1) enrollments in biology are growing significantly, 2) the body of knowledge in biology is increasing rapidly and 3) new students, in recent years, are entering Macalester with a strong biology background. The new biology curriculum is structured as follows: Core (introductory) courses: cellular and molecular biology, genetics, physiology, ecology. Intermediate/Advanced courses: four required (two must be laboratory courses.)Research experience and Capstone (senior paper and presentation) In this curriculum, the faculty of Macalester biology department seeks to introduce students to the major theories and methods of the biological sciences.These core courses are taught at a more advanced level than traditional introductory biology courses. This can be accommodated since the basics of biology are taught over four courses instead of in a one or two semester survey course. The core of the biology major provides the foundation for further study and specialization at the intermediate and advanced levels. All of the core courses are offered each semester and are limited to 48 students per term. Because the faculty is committed to teaching biology as a process of investigation, the laboratory components of the core courses provide an introduction to both the methods and process of scientific research. Two laboratory sections are taught for each course with enrollment limits of 24 students each. Individual faculty have explored a number of approaches to the teaching of these core biology courses. Contextual teaching, small group learning activities, and small group discussion are examples of some of the ways we have approached the teaching of these core courses. These approaches and their outcome will be a focus of the poster.

Facilitating Discussion in Large Lectures

Paul Cabe, Charles Umbanhower, Laurie Sammartano, and Anne Walter
St. Olaf, Northfield, Minnesota 55057

Lectures provide an efficient means by which to transmit information to students in large, introductory biology vourses. Unfortunately, research and our own experience suggest that lectures often encourage students to be passive learners and to assume, despite the best efforts of the lecturer, that success in science simply entails the accumulation of a large body of facts. Over the past several years, we have introduced a variety of small exercises to our lectures which are designed to encourage more critical thinking about science. These include small group discussions (followed by reporting back to the entire class), in-class debates, polling, and written responses to questions.

Authentic Assessments: Using the Community as Learning Resources

Jane Obbink
Southeast High School, Lincoln Nebraska 68506

Teaching, learning, and assessment should be connected in a meaningful way. With Authentic Assessments, our students are challenged to higher-level thinking and are given real-life tests to demonstrate their abilities. The assessment process then becomes a guide for learning, not an end point to the learning process. Authentic Assessment is a type of assessment that provides students with opportunities to demonstrate their knowledge and skills in real world situations. Authentic Assessments allow the teacher to ask questions or pose problems that encourage students to be: more responsible for their own learning, improved problem solvers, increased critical thinkers, and interdisciplinary learners by creating connections to other fields of knowledge. In my own classroom, I have given students the opportunity to apply their knowledge to real world situations. My tenth-grade students have applied their semester knowledge at the local Natural History Museum and Children's Zoo for final exams, taught elementary students by designing and implementing hands-on lessons, written children's books over a unit of study, and created/presented science plays at elementary schools. At the Museum and Zoo, students exhibited their ability to apply knowledge in real situations, while teaching lessons revealed their proficiency to plan, design models, and explain scientific concepts. Written stories and theatrical plays showed candid, accurate explanations on complex topics with an excellent use of English skills and creativity through plot development, colorful drawings, and prop design. Having applied the Authentic Assessment approach, I have observed the end results are far superior to traditional exams: students retain a deeper comprehension of scientific concepts and have the preferred capability to think about, understand, and apply science skills.

Evolution of an Introductory Biology Core

Robert V. Blystone and James R. Shinkle
Trinity University, San Antonio, TX 78212

In 1984, the Trinity University Department of Biology undertook the initial planning for a three semester, top-down, introductory core. In 1986 the three course sequence was put into place: 1) Evolution, Ecology and the Diversity of Life (Biology 318,118L), 2) Organismal Structure and Function (Biology 319, 119L), and 3) Cellular and Molecular Biology (Biology 310, 120L).

Several major decisions guided this curricular change: majors and non-majors would be taught together; a far more aggressive lab program was needed for cell and molecular topics: two semesters did not provide enough time to develop necessary introductory subject material: and students needed time to develop their chemistry backgrounds. Our solution was a three semester core with whole organism concepts developed first leading to cell and molecular topics in the third semester. Concurrently the Trinity Chemistry Department changed their curriculum where students took one semester of inorganic followed by two semesters of organic chemistry. Biology students taking the third course of the core (Cell and Molecular Biology), were also in the second semester of Organic. Non-majors seeking a lab science course were now out of the sequence and resources for a more aggressive cell and molecular course were spread over fewer students. We have gathered ten years experience with this introductory curricular philosophy. Increased student enrollments, computers, group learning paradigms, and inquiry-based learning paradigms have influenced the original curricular thinking. Our presentation will describe the ten-year evolution of the three course, top-down, introductory biology core.

 Other Projects
   of Interest:




    Project Kaleidoscope

AMCBT: Association of Midwest College Biology Teachers