Biology Commons^™

Distribution Of Polar Bear Dens In The Canadian Arctic, Brice Schrenkel

Scientific Communication News

No abstract provided.

Adding Value To A Field-Based Course With A Science Communication Module On Local Perceptions Of Climate Change, Lorelei E. Patrick, Seth Thompson, Aud Halbritter, Brian J. Enquist, Vigdis Vandvik, Sehoya Cotner

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Field courses, while generally considered as beneficial for students, are challenging to implement and can lead to strained relationships between local residents and visiting scientists. Thus, it is critical to both maximize the educational value of field courses and help students develop contextualized science communication skills. We report on the development of a science communication module, integrated into an existing field-based ecology course, which aims to add value to an international field course enrolling students from multiple countries. Specifically, students surveyed local residents about their knowledge and perceptions of climate change, and then discussed their findings.

Full Issue-- Volume 3 Issue 1, 2020, Issue 1 Volume 3

Pursue: Undergraduate Research Journal

PURSUE: Undergraduate Research Journal

Volume 3 Issue 1, 2020

Article 1 - Harvesting Electrical Energy Produced by Electrogenic Bacteria in Microbial Fuel Cells

Article 2 – The Effects of Fertilizer Rate on the Growth of Egyptian Spinach in a Greenhouse

Article 3 – Exploring the Association Between Nutrition and Mental Health in Adolescence: A Systematic Literature Review

Article 4— Biological Pathways Associated with Wild and Domestic Animals

Lifelines Winter 2020, Southern Adventist University

Lifelines - Biology Department Newsletter

The Winter 2020 issue of Lifelines contains articles on students in service, insights from the professor, and departmental happenings.

The Importance Of Understanding Trophic Transfer In Top Marine Predators Due To An Increase In Plastic Production, Annika M. Markovich

Scientific Communication News

No abstract provided.

Deep Sea Sediments Of The Arctic Central Basin: A Potential Sink For Microplastics, Colleen Mcmaken

Scientific Communication News

No abstract provided.

Will Shark Skin Dissolve Under High Co2?, Emily K. Witt

Scientific Communication News

No abstract provided.

First Estimates Of Greenland Shark (Somniosus Microcephalus) Abundances In Arctic Waters, Taryn Szalay

Scientific Communication News

No abstract provided.

Thirty Years Of Data Sheds Light On Plastic Pollution In The Deep Sea, Adam Warren

Scientific Communication News

No abstract provided.

Dolphin Study Gives Insight Into Marine Mammal Threat Response, Marshall Hawkins

Scientific Communication News

No abstract provided.

Social Structure Of Killer Whales (Orcinus Orca) In The Galápagos Archipelago, Mary Gad

Scientific Communication News

No abstract provided.

Using Drones To Assess Great White Shark Behavior Along Coastal Beaches, Alydia Moorhead

Scientific Communication News

No abstract provided.

Water In Your Neighbourhood: A Model For Implementing A Semester-Long Course-Based Undergraduate Research Project In Introductory Biology, Ana Lucia Fuentes, Maria Entezari

Publications and Research

Undergraduate biology education has changed over the past decade, incorporating an iterative and evidence-based approach. Many educational assessments have confirmed the effectiveness of integrating authentic research and open-ended inquiry into introductory biology courses, demonstrating a significant positive impact on students’ learning and attitude towards STEM majors. Despite these findings, only a handful of Biology instructors in 2-year colleges adopt this approach, and when adopted, most activities constitute a small fraction of these courses. Finding a feasible, sustainable, semester-long, and cost-effective strategy to incorporate authentic research in the curriculum which promotes integrated understanding of science and addresses socio-scientific issues, is a …

Seen In Science: Lgbtq+ Inclusivity In Anatomy & Physiology Texts, Harshini Sirvisetty, Kat Ray King, Linda Catherine Fuselier

Undergraduate Arts and Research Showcase

Biology is unique from other science disciplines in that concepts taught in core classes can inform our student’s understanding of sex and gender. A biology major encounters lessons on sex determination, sexual reproduction, and sex characteristics in their courses. The language used in these units matters. It is imperative that educators consider how the language, examples, and content that we use in classrooms drive (or not) inclusivity for gender- and sexuality-diverse (GSD) (aka LGBTQ+) individuals. We chose to analyze four college-level human anatomy/physiology (AP) textbooks for GSD population inclusivity. We adopted a queer theory framework to critically examine how sex, …

Graphic Novels In Biology – A Novel Assessment Idea, Sowmya Anjur

Faculty Publications & Research

Galileo once said, “You cannot teach a man anything, you can only help him find it within himself.” (Goodreads, 2020). I have often pondered upon how best I could use this advice. I have been an educator for 24 years and have loved every minute of it. During this time, I have seen students of all cadres come and go, but they all have one thing in common - their innate fear of written assessments. In general, students in high school tend to have a different perspective on education than their adult counterparts - they tend to procrastinate, are usually …

Multiple True-False Questions Reveal More Thoroughly The Complexity Of Student Thinking Than Multiple-Choice Questions: A Bayesian Item Response Model Comparison, Chad Brassil, Brian A. Couch

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background: Within undergraduate science courses, instructors often assess student thinking using closed-ended question formats, such as multiple-choice (MC) and multiple-true-false (MTF), where students provide answers with respect to predetermined response options. While MC and MTF questions both consist of a question stem followed by a series of options, MC questions require students to select just one answer, whereas MTF questions enable students to evaluate each option as either true or false. We employed an experimental design in which identical questions were posed to students in either format and used Bayesian item response modeling to understand how responses in each …

Factors That Influence Persistence Of Biology Majors At A Hispanic-Serving Institution, Shetay Ashford-Hanserd, Kristy Daniel, Dana M. García, Jenn L. Idema

Journal of Research in Technical Careers

To promote diversity within the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workforce, we must identify factors that influence or hinder historically underrepresented minority (URM) students’ persistence to degrees in STEM. We documented potential factors that influence students’ persistence in an undergraduate biology program and created a 14-item, Likert-scale instrument. We recruited 137 undergraduate biology majors at a Hispanic-serving institution in Texas to report which factors they found influential in their decision to remain enrolled in their degree programs. We used a modified social cognitive career theory model of career choice to guide interpretation of the reported influences and identify patterns …

Gateway Scholarships In Biological Sciences: Year 3 Annual Report, Vicki Stieha, Julia Oxford, Amy Ulappa, Brittnee Earl, Jennifer Forbey, Laura Bond, Kevin Feris, Jocelyn Cullers

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

This report summarizes grant activities, progress toward goals, and broader impacts of the Gateway Scholars Program in the Boise State Department of Biological Sciences during the 2019-20 academic year.

Essential Concepts And Learning Outcomes For Cell And Molecular Biology, Laura L. Newcomb Phd, Mike Chao Phd, Dan Nickerson Phd, Paul Orwin Phd, Jeremy Dodsworth Phd, David Rhoads Phd

Q2S Enhancing Pedagogy

In the new, transformed Biology BS program for conversion from quarter to semester, multiple faculty will teach varied courses under the “Cell and Molecular” requirement for our program. Our old program required multiple core courses, leading to bottlenecks as students could not get seats in needed classes. We have designed our new program to provide students with options under core categories, providing students more flexibility which should improve time to graduation. Students must take at least ONE of the courses, although students who chose to focus on Cell and Molecular Biology should be able to learn new material in ALL …

Biology News 2020, University Of Northern Iowa. Department Of Biology.

Biology News

Contents:

Letter from the Department Head --- 2
Welcome to Our New Staff Members --- 3
Undergraduate Research --- 4
What's New in Our Department --- 7
Spotlight on Outstanding Teaching --- 9
Outdoors on Campus --- 10
Year in Review for UNI Biology --- 12
Thank you to Donors --- 13
Donor Form / Make a Gift --- 14

The Process And A Pitfall In Developing Biology And Chemistry Problems For Mathematics Courses, Mary Beisiegel, Lori Kayes, Devon Quick, Richard Nafshun, Michael Lopez, Steve Dobrioglo, Michael Dickens

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

In this paper, we describe our process for developing applied problems from biology and chemistry for use in a differential calculus course. We describe our conversations and curricular analyses that led us to change from our initial focus on college algebra to calculus. We provide results that allowed us to see the overlaps between biology and mathematics and chemistry and mathematics and led to a specific focus on problems related to rates of change. Finally, we investigate the problems that were developed by the partner disciplines for use on recitation activities in calculus and how those problems were modified by …

Innovative Teaching Knowledge Stays With Users, A. Kelly Lane, Jacob D. Mcalpin, Brittnee Earl, Stephanie Feola, Jennifer E. Lewis, Karl Mertens, Susan E. Shadle, John Svoretz, John P. Ziker, Brian A. Couch, Luanna B. Prevost, Marilyne Stains

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Programs seeking to transform undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics courses often strive for participating faculty to share their knowledge of innovative teaching practices with other faculty in their home departments. Here, we provide interview, survey, and social network analyses revealing that faculty who use innovative teaching practices preferentially talk to each other, suggesting that greater steps are needed for information about innovative practices to reach faculty more broadly.

Benefits Of A College Stem Faculty Development Initiative: Instructors Report Increased And Sustained Implementation Of Research-Based Instructional Strategies, Mary F. Durham, Oriana R. Aragón, Meghan E. Bathgate, Aiyanan Bobrownicki, Andrew J. Cavanagh, Xinnian Chen, William M. Trochim, Jonathan K. Waterhouse, Maek J. Graham, Brian A. Couch

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

The Summer Institutes on Scientific Teaching (SI) is a faculty development workshop in which science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) instructors, particularly from biology, are trained in the Scientific Teaching (ST) pedagogy. While participants have generally reported positive experiences, we aimed to assess how the SI affected participants’ teaching practices. Building on a previously developed taxonomy of ST practices, we surveyed SI participants from the 2004–2014 SI classes regarding specific ST practices. Participants’ self-reported use and implementation of ST practices increased immediately after SI attendance as well as over a longer time frame, suggesting that implementation persisted and even increased …

Gulf Coast Marine Laboratories Past, Present And Future, Donald F. Boesch

Gulf and Caribbean Research

I spent my nearly 50—year career in marine science working at marine laboratories, most of that as a chief executive officer. So, it is appropriate that my reflections are about marine laboratories, rather than my own science. After relating my career course, I turn my attention to the history and development of marine laboratories along the U.S. coast of the Gulf of Mexico (GOM). Surprisingly, the region’s first laboratory was actually constructed in 1903 at Cameron, LA, but operated less than a decade before closing. It was not until after World War II that the university—affiliated marine laboratories of today …

Analysis Of The Impact Of Professional Learning Teams On Teaching Practices And Student Achievement In Biology Using Dufour’S Model, Rowena K. Dawkins

Doctor of Education Dissertations

This mixed-methods study addresses the perceived impact of working in Professional Learning Teams (PLTs) on teaching practices and student achievement in biology. The study replicates Roberts’s (2010) study. Success in biology is important to the nation because it aligns with national efforts to prepare students to compete in global markets. Educators use PLTs to support development of educators and address student educational needs. PLTs share basic functions. Basic functions were defined using DuFour’s (2004) three big ideas of PLCs: ensuring students learn at high levels, promoting a collaborative culture, and focusing on academic results. Biology teachers completed an anonymous online …

An Investigation Of Problem-Based Learning On The Advanced Placement Exam Scores And Interest Of Ap Biology Students, Tia Hohler

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

This study reports the effectiveness of problem-based learning (PBL) on the interest and Advanced Placement (AP) Biology exam scores of high school students. The experimental group was exposed to a constructivist PBL environment using an overarching unit problem, inquiry style lab investigations and white board discussions while the comparison group received direct instruction in the same curriculum. AP Biology exam scores were collected for two years with direct instruction and two years with PBL instruction. An interest survey was given to a subset of the experimental group and included students enrolled in the course during the 2019-2020 school year. Analysis …

Early Child Development Amid The Pandemic, Zain Saeed Siddiqui

MSJ Capstone Projects

I would like to bring to notice the importance of early child development because the early years are crucial for the development especially the skills that are going to help children succeed in life. Basically, I would like to focus on the natural development of the human being from birth to maturity, enabling children to become the transforming elements of society, leading to a harmonious and peaceful world.

Emotional well-being and social competence provide a strong foundation for emerging cognitive abilities, and together they are the bricks and mortar that comprise the foundation of human development.

Generally, development happens in …

Collaboration And Inquiry For The Science Classroom, Jessica Amacher, Sarah O'Leary-Driscoll, Crystal Randall

Faculty Publications & Research

Science is a collaborative endeavor, where most of the significantly influential advances are achieved by groups of scientists working together across varying institutions and disciplines. To reflect this, we should offer opportunities for our students to learn, research, and communicate with their peers. In this workshop, we share models that we have found successful for designing opportunities, as well as ideas for topics that promote real world application and cross disciplinary work for students, drawing from our experiences with the International Student Science Fair and other international strategies. We will help interested teachers in developing their own working groups to …

Integrating Mathematics And Biology In The Classroom: A Compendium Of Case Studies And Labs, Becky Sanft, Anne Walter

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

Oscillation In Mathematical Epidemiology, Meredith Greer

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.