Education Commons^™

Exploring Pedagogical Approaches: A Comparative Analysis Of Information Delivery Methods In Fish Dissection Instruction, Kiara Smidt

Honors Projects

The Covid-19 pandemic prompted a global shift to remote work and education, challenging traditional teaching methods. This research explores the effectiveness of audiovisual versus visual-only guides in teaching perch dissection anatomy, safety, and procedure. The study involves a cross-sectional experiment with students from an Introduction to Biology course at Bowling Green State University. Participants were divided into groups using either a video or a written guide, and their knowledge was assessed before and after the dissection. Results calculated through a Student’s t-test indicate no significant difference in overall effectiveness between the two methods, apart from labeling an anatomy diagram and …

Exploring The Longitudinal Effects: Non-Traditional Pedagogies And Practical Learning On Biology Education And Medical Understanding, Thomas Ziebro

Honors Projects

Medical disinformation is becoming a rampant problem in the United States, and the Covid-19 pandemic highlighted it. There have been attempts to fight the problem at the source through fact verification. These attempts have been unsuccessful. This paper investigates the efficacy of non-traditional pedagogies and the correlation between them and an individual perceived and practical ability to understand their primary care provider. The purpose of this research was to establish whether non-traditional pedagogies at the secondary and post-secondary level are more effective than traditional lecture-based instruction. The research was conducted through an anonymous cross-sectional survey which included questions about educational …

Comparison Of Dual Enrollment Student Grades In Introductory Biology College Dual-Enrollment Courses Taken In Texas High Schools Or Colleges For School Leaders, Cynthia A. Gallardo

School Leadership Review

Dual Enrollment (DE) or Dual Credit (DC) programs have become increasingly prevalent at both the high school and college settings. These programs enable students to earn both high school and college credit and get a head start on their college education. Additionally, students in these programs must take university core curriculum courses to fulfill their college education requirements. A course that several students take is Introductory to Biology, a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) course. This course is an introductory science course and may present a challenge for students in that there is a large quantity of material discussed. …

How To Spark Bio Curiosity: An Innovative High School Biology Curriculum, Audrie Charles

Graduate Research Showcase

This project is a researched creative endeavor focused around the creation of an exemplary high school biology course. This presentation will showcase an original high school biology curriculum designed to ignite students’ innate curiosity and empower meaningful learning of core concepts like cell structure, genetics, evolution and ecology. Students revisit key ideas through a spiral curriculum that builds complexity, tackling open-ended problems and collaborating on hands-on inquiries like formulating hypotheses, designing experiments, collecting data and drawing evidence-based conclusions. Tangible projects allow students to demonstrate content knowledge in addition to critical thinking abilities like synthesizing concepts, evaluating claims and applying learning …

Effect Of Mastery Learning Strategy On Students' Learning Outcomes In Senior Secondary School Biology In Lagos State, Kassim O. Ajayi Prof, Fausat A. Adenaike Prof, Modupe O. Salomi Dr, Kehinde S. Momodu Mrs

Essays in Education

The study is a pre-test, post-test control group randomized quasi–experimental research design. The population comprised all SSII Biology Students in Lagos Education District II, with two intact classes of 60 students from two selected public secondary schools. Four instruments were used namely; Mastery Learning Strategy Instructional Aid, Conventional Teaching Strategy Instructional Aid, Biology Achievement Test (r = 0.77) and Biology Attitude Scale (r = 0.82). Six null hypotheses were tested using Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA). Findings showed significant main effect of treatment on achievement (F _{(1, 59) =} 2399.983, P (.000) < .05), no significant main effect of gender on achievement (F _{(1, 59) =} 1.677, P (.201) > .05) and no …

Zooming In On Zebrafish Findings, Lydia Post

The Voice

No abstract provided.

An Expository Analysis Of Textbook Usage In Classical Settings For High School Biology, Kristen Bissontz

Master of Arts in Classical Studies

AN EXPOSITORY ANALYSIS OF TEXTBOOK USAGE IN CLASSICAL SETTINGS FOR HIGH SCHOOL BIOLOGY

Kristen Bissontz

Southeastern University, Lakeland FL

The classical model of education has reemerged as a viable alternative to the modern education system. Many of the disciplines taught in a classical school, program or home education scenario appear to align with the classical philosophy with the exception of the sciences. This paper serves to uncover if textbooks are the primary source in classical settings, what resources are utilized, and offers suggestions to better align with the classical pedagogy.

A small sample of classical schools and programs in a …

Implementing Minnesota American Indian Tribe State Standard In Suburban Minnesota Ecology Curriculum, Sadie R. Spaeth

Leadership Education Capstones

The purpose of the study was to create curriculum supporting the new Minnesota Native American State Standard 4.2.2.

Using Multiple Modes Of Learning In A High School Genetic Engineering Lesson, Hannah Stuart

Inclusive Strategies for Teaching Secondary Mathematics and Science

The goal of this article is to discuss a genetic engineering lesson presented to high school biology students to obtain mastery of the Biology Standard of Learning (BIO.5e) associated with genetic engineering products and practices. The lesson described in this article follows the 5E lesson plan model. Therefore, the article will describe the 5Es used in the creation and implementation of this lesson: engage, explore, explain, elaborate, and evaluate. This article focuses on the use of resources and activities that appeal to students with varying learning styles and looks at the effectiveness of individualized teacher-student attention during individual practice time. …

Microscope Investigations: An Inquiry-Based Cell Lab, Joshua Whittaker, R. Whitlow

Inclusive Strategies for Teaching Secondary Mathematics and Science

This lesson is a collaborative effort between a student teacher and a cooperating senior teacher to design and implement an engaging and exploratory microscope lab for 7th-grade students. The goal of this lesson is to cultivate excitement, interest, and exploration in students who are new to using microscopes, aligning with the Virginia 7th Grade Life Science Standards of Learning on cells and cell theory. This lab incorporates two microscope stations—one focusing on fundamental skills and the other on inquiry-based exploration. By employing the 5E model of instruction, this paper details how students progress through engagement, exploration, explanation, elaboration, and evaluation …

Throwing Away The Late Work Penalty, Anthony Orttel

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

Abstract

This 2023 study examines the academic effects of a penalty-free late work policy. The study focuses on whether taking away penalties for late work significantly decreases the number of missing assignments at the end of an academic quarter. During the third quarter of the 2022/2023 academic school year, students will not receive point deductions for turning in late work. This research took place in South Florida and included approximately 50 10^th grade biology students. Data and results from the study will follow.

Extranodal Tumors And Chromosomal Abnormalities Associated With Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma In T(14;18)-Positive Patients, Alexis Finch

Honors Theses

Nebraska is mostly an agricultural state with a non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) incidence rate of 20.1 per 100,000 individuals, which is greater than the US incidence rate of 19 per 100,000 individuals. It is possible that the higher incidence rate in Nebraska is due to an increase in pesticide usage. Pesticide exposure is linked to t(14;18), a genetic translocation involving the BCL2 gene that regulates apoptosis. The dysregulation of apoptosis could contribute to the proliferation of NHL. This exploratory study utilized the Nebraska Lymphoma Study Group, which consists of patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Hodgkin disease, or some other neoplastic hematologic disorder …

Use Of Vocabulary Strategies To Aid English Language Learners In A General Education Biology Classroom, Virginia Perry

All Dissertations

The demographics of the typical American classroom continue to present as a more diverse student population with the increase of English Language Learners (ELL) entering public schools. General education teachers on a secondary level are challenged with incorporating academic language instruction into content instruction for ELLs. Many of these teachers seek appropriate instructional strategies to teach ELLs academic language skills related to literacy to comprehend the specific content taught at the secondary level. A deeper understanding of language and skill acquisition within a secondary classroom can help guide future efforts in implementing effective literacy strategies to address ELLs’ academic language …

The Evolution Of Science Education In High School And Undergraduate Institutions, Sanda Lalicic

All HCAS Student Capstones, Theses, and Dissertations

This literature review paper discusses the history, evolution, and current learning trends related to teaching biology in a 9-12 classroom, along with the history and evolution and suggestions for improvement and implementation. Science education has changed rapidly over the past few decades, and with modern technology and research available, the curriculum is ever-changing. With the medical and STEM fields growing at high rates, the focus on student comprehension and retention of science education is at an all-time high. This has caused a shift from a traditional classroom to a more modern, natural learning environment in schools. This paper reviews three …

Lesson Plans In Astronomy, Ecology And Biology, Admin Stem For Success

STEM for Success Showcase

This document contains various lesson plan ideas for concepts within the fields of biology, ecology, astronomy, and geology.

Plant Maze, Admin Stem For Success

STEM for Success Showcase

Students plant bean sprouts to observe their growth.

The Science Of Baking Bread, Admin Stem For Success

STEM for Success Showcase

Activity plan to teach biology and chemistry using a lesson on the baking of bread.

The Concentration Of Heavy Metals In Lincoln Nebraska's Tap Water, Evan Neuhaus

Honors Theses

Heavy metals are commonplace in nature, and are typically found in scarce quantities in all drinking sources. However, in high enough concentrations, they can have a myriad of negative health effects. This study seeks to find the concentrations of such metals in the Lincoln water supply utilizing the resources of the Water Center at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln. To test for discrete concentrations of trace elements, a method of using Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) was implemented. ICP-MS uses plasma to ionize and atomize a sample which is then filtered into a series of cones into a …

Can Tilt Be Used To Teach Study Tactics? A Case Study In A Biology Classroom, Anne Jacobs

Perspectives In Learning

Recently, there has been a movement encouraging instructors in higher education to use the Transparency in Teaching and Learning (TILT) framework when designing assignments. This framework helps instructors clarify their expectations and evaluation criteria. Making assignments more transparent may result in greater student success. However, it is less clear how this framework can be applied to classes that use exams as a main method of assessing student learning. One option might be to use a TILTed assignment to introduce students to learning tools to improve their studying. I did this by giving students in an introductory biology class an assignment …

Utilizing Markov Chains To Estimate Allele Progression Through Generations, Ronit Gandhi

Honors Theses

All populations display patterns in allele frequencies over time. Some alleles cease to exist, while some grow to become the norm. These frequencies can shift or stay constant based on the conditions the population lives in. If in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, the allele frequencies stay constant. Most populations, however, have bias from environmental factors, sexual preferences, other organisms, etc. We propose a stochastic Markov chain model to study allele progression across generations. In such a model, the allele frequencies in the next generation depend only on the frequencies in the current one.

We use this model to track a recessive allele …

High School Teachers’ Experiences And Perceptions Facilitating Student Discourse And Collaborative Structures For English Language Learners In Biology, Chrissy Ann Brouwer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The problem that was addressed in this study was that the academic needs of English Language Learners (ELLs) were not being met in biology classes in high schools in the local district because teachers were not consistently facilitating instruction using the required strategies of student discourse and collaborative structures. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore teachers’ successes, challenges, and need for supports when using the required strategies with their ELLs. Knowles’ theory of andragogy and Shulman’s theory of pedagogical content knowledge guided this study examining how the adults’ learning of the required strategies impacted their ability to …

High School Teachers’ Experiences And Perceptions Facilitating Student Discourse And Collaborative Structures For English Language Learners In Biology, Chrissy Ann Brouwer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The problem that was addressed in this study was that the academic needs of English Language Learners (ELLs) were not being met in biology classes in high schools in the local district because teachers were not consistently facilitating instruction using the required strategies of student discourse and collaborative structures. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore teachers’ successes, challenges, and need for supports when using the required strategies with their ELLs. Knowles’ theory of andragogy and Shulman’s theory of pedagogical content knowledge guided this study examining how the adults’ learning of the required strategies impacted their ability to …

Uncovering A Natural History Mystery At The University Of Akron, Gary M. Holliday, Lara Roketenetz

Proceedings from the Document Academy

Students were engaged in a combination of detective work, biology, archives, art, and education/outreach to prepare a collection of taxidermied birds donated to the University of Akron by the Rhodes family in the early 1900s for public access and exhibition. Students had the opportunity to learn from leading experts regarding the historical significance of biological collections, proper preservation protocols, digitizing and archival practices, and the urgency of science education and communication for a public audience. Many campus and community partners were involved, including experts from local museums and nature centers.

Reyna, Plymale, And Pruett Publish Research Paper On Ar-Cure Program, Kaitlyn Stoddard, Ouachita News Bureau

Press Releases

Ouachita Baptist University professors Dr. Nathan Reyna, Dr. Ruth Plymale, and Dr. Christin Pruett collaborated with colleagues at other universities on a research paper that has been published in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education, vol. 50, issue 5. Their paper, titled, “From genetics to biotechnology: Synthetic biology as a flexible course-embedded research experience,” details the implementation and assessment of the Arkansas Course Embedded Undergraduate Research Experience (AR-CURE) teaching model developed at Ouachita by Reyna and Plymale.

Reyna is professor of biology, Plymale is associate professor of biology and J.D. Patterson Chair of Biology, and Pruett is associate professor of biology. …

A Holistic Approach To Culturally Relevant Education In Biology To Examine Student Engagement, Robyn Brooke Biery

Theses and Dissertations

Recognizing that many students were disengaged in my grade-level biology class, this study sought to improve student engagement as a result of the implementation of CRE-enriched instruction and to describe themes associated with CRE and engagement. This qualitative action research study used a survey, exit tickets, and observations to discover emergent themes as a result of implementing CRE-enriched lessons. This action research study used member checking and disconfirming evidence to increase rigor and transferability. The results were that the use of CRE-enriched lessons increased the engagement of grade-level students in biology, and that engagement requires a two-pronged approach – cultural …

Understanding "Death": Creating Student Opportunities For Meaningful Emotional Expression In The Science Classroom, Zachary Schafer, Lawrence C. Scharmann

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

Understanding death as natural and integral to life cycles has been considered crucial and relevant in science teaching. The concept of death not only defines the physical end of life but also the end of a cycle and the beginnings of transformation. Adopting a broader definition of death thus empowers educators to directly address the affect and emotion that occurs for all students.

Drafting An Assessment Plan For Your Instruction Program: Sustainably Assessing Information Literacy In An Undergraduate Stem Course, Kevin Moore, Clinton K. Baugess

All Musselman Library Staff Works

Assessing student learning across a library instruction program can be infeasible without being strategic, intentional, and realistic. Librarians at a small college will share how they developed a sustainable, 3-year assessment plan for the ACRL Framework and targeted a 100-level biology course-one of the two high-enrollment STEM courses that receive library instruction on their campus each year. The presenters will share their assessment plan, flipped instruction model, workflow-management strategies, and lessons learned for collaborating with STEM faculty to assess information literacy.

Assessing The Role Of Biology Undergraduates' Metacognitive Calibration And Neural Activity During Model-Based Reasoning, Mei Grace Behrendt

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Metacognition refers to the critical awareness of or ability to monitor, regulate, control, and sequence of one's thoughts and performance. There is limited research that examines the relationship between metacognition and (a) academic performance and (b) general cognition among undergraduates. Moreover, there is an even greater paucity of literature that focuses more specifically on undergraduate biology students’ neural activity in relation to their metacognition.

This study aimed to examine the relationship between undergraduate life sciences students' metacognitive calibration, i.e., their capacity to self-evaluate their own performance, and their behavioral performance and brain activity during a biological error reasoning task. Thirty-four …

Students Interest And Thoughts On Stem, Chrisitine Girtain

STEM Month

I am Juan Sebastian Bohorquez Mora, I am a sophomore student at Toms River High School North. I am interested in biofuels because I believe they are a good option to replace fossil fuels. I am also interested in duckweed because biofuels are made out of crops, and people need to eat those crops. That’s when duckweed comes in and it can be used as a feedstock for ethanol production which is a biofuel. Bioethanol is a type of biofuel and it is derived from the corn’s starch. Instead of making ethanol from the corn’s starch, we can use duckweed …

Food For Thought: The Relationship Between Nutrition And Academic Performance, Sarah Freeman

Honors Projects in Science and Technology

Nutrition has been shown to impact the level of cognitive function in individuals. Through the analysis of nutritional diets, this new research will aim to uncover the impact that diet has on cognitive function of Bryant University students by analyzing their ability to perform on a variety of cognitive assessments. This study will provide recommendations to students at Bryant University on what they should eat so they can perform their best academically. This research will also investigate whether Bryant University is offering the best food for students to eat setting them up for success.