Using Calibrated
Peer Review (CPR)
to Improve Student Communication Skills
Todd Nickle
If you ask any faculty member about what one
skill students should develop, literacy (especially
writing) occurs more often than not. Students often
haven’t had sufficient practice writing, and find clear
communication difficult. This mini‑workshop will
outline how I’ve incorporated the CPR program (presented
ABLE 2003 by Norris Armstrong) to give students practice
opportunities to develop their own lab (in a manner
similar to Kevin Piers’ Peer‑review format). Our
teaching method has students using Jan Pechenik’s “A
Short Guide to Writing About Biology” which sometimes
overwhelms students due to its length. CPR models writing
styles (both good and bad) and has students evaluate
features of writing. Additionally, CPR gives students
a chance to face the challenges of grading the work
of others (which has a very desirable side effect; the
grading does not fall solely on the shoulders of the
instructor!). CPR has proven to be an effective addition
to our laboratory curriculum. You can access CPR at
http://cpr.molsci.ucla.edu/
Beachcomber Ecology:
The Shannon-Weiner Species Diversity Index
Kathleen Nolan and Jill E. Callahan
Participants will be provided with seashells
collected from various beaches along the Atlantic coast.
These collections of “organisms” that have
washed up on a beach represent a subset of what is naturally
found on the sea floor, and will be used as our sample
“community”. Participants will count numbers
of organisms (shells), and will key them out to species
with shell guides. They will ascertain the species richness
and species diversity of each collection. The Shannon-Weiner
species diversity index is a simple calculation that
takes into consideration both species richness and the
proportion that each species makes up of the whole.
This exercise has been used successfully with high school
through college students in an attempt to teach ecological
principles such as species richness, range, and species
diversity. The shells preserve well and can be used
from year to year. Students can also study intraspecific
variation based on size and color.
Implementing Inquiry
Based Learning
in a General Microbiology Laboratory
Candace L. Walker, Arthur L. Buikema Jr. and Ann M. Stevens
In recent years there has been an increased
interest in inquiry-based learning, also known as experiential
learning or problem based learning, as a more appropriate
model of teaching science. The purpose of this study
was to incorporate inquiry-based learning in a college
sophomore General Microbiology Laboratory. The goal
of this course is to give students an introduction to
basic techniques and procedures necessary for the study
of microorganisms. Students enrolled in the course come
from majors that range across the life science spectrum
and have completed two semesters of Principles of Biology
Laboratory. One of the more challenging concepts that
the students have difficulty with is serial dilutions.
What is the alternative method? To look at the effect
of an alternative way to approach serial dilutions,
classes were randomly assigned to an experimental group
or a comparison group. The experimental group was taught
the concept of serial dilutions using an inquiry-based
learning approach whereas the comparison group was taught
using traditional teaching methods. During the spring
semester, the study involved approximately 350 students.
Preliminary analysis of the data indicated that the
experimental group and comparison groups had similar
mean scores as evaluated with a pre-quiz, mid-quiz,
and post-quiz. However, the experimental group had a
16% increase in the number of students receiving perfect
scores on the quiz.
Inexpensive Apparatus
for Measuring Respiration
and Photosynthesis Based on CO2
Paul Willing
This workshop presents a modification of a
previous ABLE workshop* which involved a comparison
of the metabolic rates of an ectotherm (lizard) and
an endotherm (mouse) at various temperatures. They sampled
gases over time from closed containers containing the
organisms. In our modification of this lab exercise,
students monitor respiration continuously in a closed,
circulating system, using a CO2 sensor, an analog to
digital interface (Lab Pro**), and a laptop computer
running Logger Pro software**. Students are able to
work in groups of 3 because each setup is relatively
inexpensive. CO2 sensors are usually based on infra
red light absorption and tend to be expensive, ranging
from $1000 on up. However, Vernier** has a CO2 sensor
for about $250 which has a sensitivity of + 20 ppm,
which is quite adequate for educational use. With some
modifications, this sensor can be built into a closed,
circulating, system to accurately monitor respiration
of a single cricket in as little as 5-10 minutes. By
simply switching chambers, the same apparatus and software
can be used to monitor photosynthesis in a subsequent
lab exercise.
Session 2: 9:30-10:30 AM
What Do Students
Really Know When They Enter College?
Arthur L. Buikema, Jr., Mary. A. Schaeffer and C. M. Webb
When students began to state that they had
already done our introductory laboratories in high school
we studied what students really know when they enter
college and what impact our laboratory exercises had
on their understanding of biology. Students were given
a multiple choice test on the first day of the semester
on facts we think they should know when they matriculated.
We also tested them again one week after each specific
laboratory exercise and again at the end of the each
semester. We found that most student scores were usually
less than 50% at the beginning. A post test after the
laboratory exercise yielded significant increases in
scores, and while their scores dropped somewhat by the
end of the semester, student scores were still significantly
higher at the end of the semester. We also asked students
about the proportion of overlap with their high school
laboratory exercises and the degree of overlap was typically
below 50%. When asked about the value of each exercise
and whether it was a good learning experience, more
than 70-80% of the students replied in the affirmative.
However, one laboratory exercise did not fair well.
This was mitosis and meiosis. In response to student
criticisms of this exercise, we instituted another exercise
that started with very little to no terminology to engage
student thinking about meiosis and we will share that
exercise at the conference.
Quantitative Investigations
of Hatching in Brine Shrimp Cysts
Charlie Drewes
WA novel method permits easy and precise determination
of percent hatching in diapause ‘eggs’ of
North American brine shrimp, Artemia franciscana. Small
numbers of dry eggs (actually encysted, gastrula-stage
embryos in animated suspension) are literally painted
onto a small, adhesive patch on the floor of a Petri
dish. This permits exact counting of cysts and subsequent
viewing in a single focal-plane underwater. Daily counts
of emerged nauplius larvae are quickly and easily made,
either in the lab classroom or dorm room settings. The
method reliably yields hatching curves that exceed 85%
in control groups. In experimental ‘treatment’
groups, students may investigate effects of a myriad
of environmental variables (e.g., heat, light, cold,
salinity, radiation, low oxygen, re-hydration, or pollutants)
on hatching success. Attendees take home free samples
of all materials and supplies.
Accessible Laboratory
Environments for Teaching Biology
Christy Horn, William Glider, Beth Whitaker*, Katherine Kalisek and
Adam Langan
This workshop will describe a classroom development
project that provides a fully inclusive and accessible
environment for all students including students with
disabilities. Science curriculum has many highly visual
and interactive components that create barriers to the
full participation of disabled students. New technologies
in the teaching of biology and in the accommodation
of students with disabilities have become available
to allow us to create learning spaces that will enhance
student-teacher and student-student interaction and
support multiple modes of learning. We will describe
a number of accommodation strategies that we have developed
over the last ten years to enhance learning for all
disability groups focusing on the use of technology
as a means to accommodate individual learning challenges.
Using Customized
Tools and Databases for Teaching
Bioinformatics in Lower-level Biology Courses
Melody Neumann* and Nicholas Provart
The developing field of Bioinformatics has
revolutionized modern cell and molecular biology, both
in the research lab and classroom. It is important that
students receive an introduction to the theory of Bioinformatics,
the use of bioinformatics tools as a means of addressing
biological questions, and the critical analysis of output
from these tools. Our second year Biology students (>1500)
expressed frustration with the use of publicly available
bioinformatics tools and databases since these can be
quite complicated, and frequently assume fairly sophisticated
computing skills as well as an understanding of complex
statistical theory or computational algorithms. This
computer mini-workshop will demonstrate exercises where
students were able to develop a basic understanding
of the field of Bioinformatics and practice using bioinformatics
tools and customized databases to solve real biological
problems. Simplified bioinformatics tools containing
the key features of common tools (eg. Blast and ClustalW)
will also be demonstrated. There will also be an opportunity
for workshop participants to discuss pedagogical and
logistical issues surrounding the implementation and
improvement of Bioinformatics computer labs, particularly
for introductory courses.
The Beautiful Moldy
World All Around Us
Karen Romanyk
Mycological material and techniques to use
for class demonstration and student projects in a biology/botany
course. We will relate fungi to it’s function
as a decomposer with emphasis on the lytic enzymes produced
by the fungi and then emphasis the classical characteristics
of the groups represented by our selected decomposers.
We will also look at 3 types of isolation experiments;
the use of moist chambers, selective plates and baiting
to introduce the students to the cryptogamic fungal
diversity of various substrates. This introduces the
students to various technical skills, observation skills,
and fungal diversity.
Session 3: 2:00-3:00 PM
Using National Public
Radio to Jump Start Research Projects
in Environmental Biology
Ruth E. Beattie
During the past three semesters, the presenter
has used National Public Radio (NPR) programs to stimulate
/ jump-start student interest in current environmental
issues in a non-majors human ecology course. The goals
of this presentation are: (a) to describe how NPR programs
are used in student research projects; (b) to discuss
the logistics of implementing student research projects
in a large-enrollment lecture-only course, and (c) to
discuss the evaluation of this activity in terms of
enhancing the academic experiences of non-science majors.
Using the Slime Mold
Physarum polycephalum
in Independent Student Research
Janice Bonner
This mini-workshop will introduce the acellular
slime mold Physarum polycephalum as an ideal organism
for use in independent research for first-year biology
students. There are many challenges to incorporating
independent research in introductory biology courses:
students don’t yet have sufficient conceptual
understanding to conduct the research, the experimental
organisms pose maintenance problems, necessary equipment
is expensive, and there is not enough room to accommodate
numerous experimental set-ups. Physarum polycephalum
addresses all of these problems. First, students do
not need detailed background information to understand
the organism. Its life cycle includes several distinct
stages that can easily be distinguished. The slime mold
can be induced to move from one stage to another by
manipulation of the nutrition source and light. Second,
Physarum is easily grown on 2% non-nutrient agar, fed
oatmeal flakes, and kept at room temperature. Third,
students can often design their own experimental apparatus
from PVC pipe and plastic storage containers. Fourth,
the entire experiment of a research team can be stored
in a single laboratory drawer or medium-sized box. At
College of Notre Dame of Maryland, first-semester biology
students conduct semester-long research projects involving
Physarum. At the end of the semester, students present
their results in a formal symposium presentation and
in a written report. Because this same organism has
been used by first-semester students for many years,
its use has become a “rite of passage” for students
in the department, linking students within the major.
Over the semesters, especially innovative or well-written
reports have been collected and “published”
in the department’s Journal of Physarum Research.
As students read these articles and others accessed
through the library’s data base, they are introduced
to the importance of studying the literature. In the
spring semester, first-year students are invited to
continue their project as independent research. Students
have taken the results of this extended research to
various undergraduate research symposiums.
Using Lab Reports
to Achieve Specific Learning Goals
in a Wide Range of Laboratory Settings
Miriam Ferzli and Michael Carter
By incorporating lab reports into various types
of laboratory investigations, we can offer students
the opportunity to become involved with the process
of science—learning how to ask scientific questions,
explain them, defend them, and communicate findings.
Usually, lab reports are assigned when students conduct
hypothesis-driven lab experiments; however, there are
different types of lab reports that respond to different
learning situations in the lab. Lab reports can lend
themselves well to “descriptive labs”—labs
based on observation, such as microscope labs or dissections,
or labs centered on learning laboratory procedures.
The descriptive lab report is a response to a lab that
doesn’t lend itself to making a hypothesis. Instead
of hypotheses, students ask questions before and during
the lab, write down observations, make drawings, explain
scientific concepts, and discuss what they learned.
Lab reports also fit in well with learning situations
in which students are asked to design their own lab
experiments. This type of lab report focuses on a problem
and experimental design formulated by the student. It
is a good preparation for learning how to write research
proposals and scientific papers. Another scenario that
calls for a specific type of lab report is a lab course
in which students write a “partial lab report,”
writing only one or more sections of the report at a
time, building a lab report gradually over a term. In
this workshop, we’ll explore these different types
of lab reports and how to incorporate them into your
lab courses with the help of LabWrite, a free online
tutorial that addresses lab report writing for a variety
of laboratory formats. The goal of the workshop is to
help biology lab instructors become more aware of the
kinds of learning they can promote by increasing the
opportunities for lab report writing in all lab investigations,
especially those traditionally not thought of as suitable
for lab report writing. Workshop participants will get
a hands-on experience with LabWrite as they explore
multiple types of laboratory reports in the context
of various kinds of lab experiences.
Developing Research
Opportunities of Undergraduate Students
Maggie Haag
One of the best methods to engage students
in inquiry-based learning is to provide them with opportunities
to participate in current research. While most undergraduate
programs afford this opportunity to their majors, it
is often done as a culmination of their degree/program
in their fourth year. Current studies show that earlier
exposure to scientific research may do much to both
attract and retain students in undergraduate programs.
This workshop will present a number of models of providing
research opportunities for undergraduate students at
all stages of their career. The main aim of the workshop
will be to foster a discussion about some of these models,
what works and what does not.
