A Laboratory Exercise Relating Soil Energy Budgets to Soil Temperature

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koenig, Richard T.; Cerny-Koenig, Teresa; Kotuby-Amacher, Janice; Grossl, Paul R.

2008-01-01

Enrollment by students in degree programs other than traditional horticulture, agronomy, and soil science has increased in basic plant and soil science courses. In order to broaden the appeal of these courses to students from majors other than agriculture, we developed a hands-on laboratory exercise relating the basic concepts of a soil energy…

Examining the Impact of Strength and Conditioning Internships on Exercise and Sport Science Undergraduate Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Desai, Farzanah; Seaholme, Tim

2018-01-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate undergraduate exercise and sport science students' learning experiences in a strength and conditioning internship. There was a special emphasis on the interns' personal development, the influence of supervision (academic supervisor functioning as a dual professional) and feedback on their development as a…

Classroom to Community: Field Studies for Exercise Science Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Melton, Deana; Dail, Teresa K.

2017-01-01

The field of kinesiology has seen growth in terms of the number of highly specialized subdisciplines, such as exercise physiology, motor learning, biomechanics, sport and exercise psychology, and fitness management. While some undergraduate students may be comfortable with a chosen concentration, others may enter the kinesiology curriculum lacking…

Exercise Science Academic Programs and Research in the Philippines

PubMed Central

MADRIGAL, NORBERTO; REYES, JOSEPHINE JOY; PAGADUAN, JEFFREY; ESPINO, REIL VINARD

2010-01-01

In this invited editorial, professors from leading institutions in the Philippines, share information regarding their programs relating to Exercise Science. They have provided information on academic components such as entrance requirements, progression through programs, and professional opportunities available to students following completion; as well as details regarding funding available to students to participate in research, collaboration, and specific research interests. PMID:27182343

Comparing Levels of Anti-Fat Bias between American and Mexican Athletes and Undergraduate Physical Education and Exercise Science Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alameda, Miriam Wood; Whitehead, James R.

2015-01-01

Stigmatization consequent to anti-fat bias (AFB) may affect the services people who are obese receive from health professionals, including physical education and exercise science (PEX) professionals. In this study, we compared AFB levels of American and Mexican PEX students and Mexican athletes. We also investigated if socially desirable (SD)…

The simulation method in learning interpersonal communication competence--experiences of masters' degree students of health sciences.

PubMed

Saaranen, Terhi; Vaajoki, Anne; Kellomäki, Marjaana; Hyvärinen, Marja-Leena

2015-02-01

This article describes the experiences of master students of nursing science in learning interpersonal communication competence through the simulation method. The exercises reflected challenging interactive situations in the field of health care. Few studies have been published on using the simulation method in the communication education of teachers, managers, and experts in this field. The aim of this study is to produce information which can be utilised in developing the simulation method to promote the interpersonal communication competence of master-level students of health sciences. This study used the qualitative, descriptive research method. At the Department of Nursing Science, the University of Eastern Finland, students major in nursing science specialise in nursing leadership and management, preventive nursing science, or nurse teacher education. Students from all three specialties taking the Challenging Situations in Speech Communication course participated (n=47). Essays on meaningful learning experiences collected using the critical incident technique, underwent content analysis. Planning of teaching, carrying out different stages of the simulation exercise, participant roles, and students' personal factors were central to learning interpersonal communication competence. Simulation is a valuable method in developing the interpersonal communication competence of students of health sciences at the masters' level. The methods used in the simulation teaching of emergency care are not necessarily applicable as such to communication education. The role of teacher is essential to supervising students' learning in simulation exercises. In the future, it is important to construct questions that help students to reflect specifically on communication. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Introduce Science to Students Using the Environment: A Guide for Teachers of Native American Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Richau, Deborah

Written for science teachers of elementary and secondary Native American students, the guide offers 18 science-related activities that integrate science with Indian culture and life. A teacher preparation exercise is presented first to allow the teacher to look at him/herself and use the information as a tool to understanding the students'…

Eating disorder risk, exercise dependence, and body weight dissatisfaction among female nutrition and exercise science university majors.

PubMed

Harris, Natalie; Gee, David; d'Acquisto, Debra; Ogan, Dana; Pritchett, Kelly

2015-09-01

Past research has examined eating disorder risk among college students majoring in Nutrition and has suggested an increased risk, while other studies contradict these results. Exercise Science majors, however, have yet to be fully examined regarding their risk for eating disorders and exercise dependence. Based on pressures to fit the image associated with careers related to these two disciplines, research is warranted to examine the potential risk for both eating disorder and exercise dependence. The purpose of this study is to compare eating disorder risk, exercise dependence, and body weight dissatisfaction (BWD) between Nutrition and Exercise Science majors, compared to students outside of these career pathways. Participants (n = 89) were divided into three groups based on major; Nutrition majors (NUTR; n = 31), Exercise Science majors (EXSC; n = 30), and other majors (CON; n = 28). Participants were given the EAT-26 questionnaire and the Exercise Dependence Scale. BWD was calculated as the discrepancy between actual BMI and ideal BMI. The majority of participants expressed a desire to weigh less (83%) and EXSC had significantly (p = .03) greater BWD than NUTR. However, there were no significant differences in eating disorder risk or exercise dependence among majors. This study suggested there was no significant difference in eating disorder risk or exercise dependence between the three groups (NUTR, EXSC, and CON).

Eating disorder risk, exercise dependence, and body weight dissatisfaction among female nutrition and exercise science university majors

PubMed Central

Harris, Natalie; Gee, David; D’Acquisto, Debra; Ogan, Dana; Pritchett, Kelly

2015-01-01

Background and Aims Past research has examined eating disorder risk among college students majoring in Nutrition and has suggested an increased risk, while other studies contradict these results. Exercise Science majors, however, have yet to be fully examined regarding their risk for eating disorders and exercise dependence. Based on pressures to fit the image associated with careers related to these two disciplines, research is warranted to examine the potential risk for both eating disorder and exercise dependence. The purpose of this study is to compare eating disorder risk, exercise dependence, and body weight dissatisfaction (BWD) between Nutrition and Exercise Science majors, compared to students outside of these career pathways. Methods Participants (n = 89) were divided into three groups based on major; Nutrition majors (NUTR; n = 31), Exercise Science majors (EXSC; n = 30), and other majors (CON; n = 28). Participants were given the EAT-26 questionnaire and the Exercise Dependence Scale. BWD was calculated as the discrepancy between actual BMI and ideal BMI. Results The majority of participants expressed a desire to weigh less (83%) and EXSC had significantly (p = .03) greater BWD than NUTR. However, there were no significant differences in eating disorder risk or exercise dependence among majors. Discussion and Conclusions This study suggested there was no significant difference in eating disorder risk or exercise dependence between the three groups (NUTR, EXSC, and CON). PMID:26551912

Investigating Plants: Hands-On, Low-Cost Laboratory Exercises in Plant Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sinclair, Thomas R.; Johnson, Marty

This manual describes 14 hands-on exercises for middle school introductory biology courses that are designed to allow all students to be involved in self-discoveries about life and plant life in particular. The exercises were developed to supplement normal classroom activities by allowing students to initiate ongoing projects to investigate the…

Introducing Students to the Application of Statistics and Investigative Methods in Political Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wells, Dominic D.; Nemire, Nathan A.

2017-01-01

This exercise introduces students to the application of statistics and its investigative methods in political science. It helps students gain a better understanding and a greater appreciation of statistics through a real world application.

Drawing Students out: Using Sketching Exercises to Hone Observation Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weekes, Harry

2005-01-01

In this article, the author discusses how drawing exercise can be an invaluable tool in teaching Biology classes. The author uses drawing exercises and requires students to sketch everything from prepared slides of mitosis and plant anatomy to field sightings of birds and protists. His primary goal in integrating art into science is to hone…

Trying a Case on Ethics in Scientific Research: A Role-Playing Exercise for Students and Faculty in a Summer Undergraduate Research Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hoggard, Patrick E.

2008-01-01

While most prepared exercises for ethics in science programs--including an excellent AAAS video series--present a complete account of the relevant facts, a role-playing exercise is described here in which the participants are provided with differing reports of events. The exercise is based on a true case involving a student who was convicted of…

Applying Cognitive Science Principles to Improve Retention of Science Vocabulary

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shore, Rebecca; Ray, Jenna; Gooklasian, Paula

2015-01-01

We investigated whether three student-centred strategies influenced retention of science vocabulary words among 7th grade students. Two of the strategies (drawing pictures and talking about the definition of the terms) were developed to involve the students in more constructive and interactive exercises when compared to the technique that was in…

Writing across the Curriculum: A Hermeneutic Study of Students' Experiences in Writing in Food Science Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dzurec, David J.; Dzurec, Laura Cox

2005-01-01

Writing can enhance learning by helping students put words to their thinking about course material. The purposes of this study were to assess the influence of a structured academic journal writing exercise on student learning in a food science class and to examine student responses to the experience. Hermeneutics, a philosophy of science and…

Information visualization courses for students with a computer science background.

PubMed

Kerren, Andreas

2013-01-01

Linnaeus University offers two master's courses in information visualization for computer science students with programming experience. This article briefly describes the syllabi, exercises, and practices developed for these courses.

Investigations Into Life Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mentzer, Dean Samuel

This laboratory manual, containing 44 exercises, is intended to be used as part of an audio-tutorial approach to laboratory work in a life-science course for student nurses. Exercises include basic techniques of miscroscopy, microbiology, electrophysiology, routine biochemical analyses of blood and urine, and microscopic examination of prepared…

Common Student Misconceptions in Exercise Physiology and Biochemistry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morton, James P.; Doran, Dominic A.; MacLaren, Don P. M.

2008-01-01

The present study represents a preliminary investigation designed to identify common misconceptions in students' understanding of physiological and biochemical topics within the academic domain of sport and exercise sciences. A specifically designed misconception inventory (consisting of 10 multiple-choice questions) was administered to a cohort…

Hot Salsa: A Laboratory Exercise Exploring the Scientific Method.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Levri, Edward P.; Levri, Maureen A.

2003-01-01

Presents a laboratory exercise on spicy food and body temperature that introduces the scientific method to introductory biology students. Suggests that when students perform their own experiments which they have developed, it helps with their understanding of and confidence in doing science. (Author/SOE)

Promoting Female Students' Learning Motivation towards Science by Exercising Hands-On Activities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wen-jin, Kuo; Chia-ju, Liu; Shi-an, Leou

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study is to design different hands-on science activities and investigate which activities could better promote female students' learning motivation towards science. This study conducted three types of science activities which contains nine hands-on activities, an experience scale and a learning motivation scale for data…

Can an Inquiry Approach Improve College Student Learning in a Teaching Laboratory?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rissing, Steven W.; Cogan, John G.

2009-01-01

We present an inquiry-based, hands-on laboratory exercise on enzyme activity for an introductory college biology course for science majors. We measure student performance on a series of objective and subjective questions before and after completion of this exercise; we also measure performance of a similar cohort of students before and after…

Learning While Exercising for Science Education in Augmented Reality among Adolescents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hsiao, Kuei-Fang; Chen, Nian-Shing; Huang, Shih-Yu

2012-01-01

Because of a shortage of physical exercise, concerns about adolescents have recently been raised in Taiwan. In educational environments where student exercise has been limited by scheduling constraints and the lack of physical exercise has become a vital problem, "learning while exercising" may be part of a possible solution. This study…

Enhancing Employability of Exercise Science Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reddan, Gregory

2017-01-01

The notion of employability is gaining importance as an essential outcome of many degrees in institutions of higher education throughout Australia. This paper aims to determine the effects of an Exercise Science course, which includes elements of both career development learning and work-integrated learning, on six dimensions of employability -…

Science and Creative Writing: An Ad(d)verse Relationship?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blake, William E.

1983-01-01

Suggests integrating creative writing activities into field trips or outdoor education experiences in science as a method of providing "right-brain" and "left-brain" activities in the same exercise. Provides instructions given to students and a poem written from student "photographs" using imaginary cameras. Also provides two student poems. (JM)

Place-Based Investigations and Authentic Inquiry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sarkar, Somnath; Frazier, Richard

2008-01-01

Although many science students perform hands-on activities as inquiry exercises, such activities sometimes remain disconnected in the student's mind and fail to nurture a deeper understanding of methods of science and the role these methods play in scientific inquiry. Students may be able to reiterate the steps of the standard "scientific…

Teaching Basic Science Content via Real-World Applications: A College-Level Summer Course in Veterinary Anatomy and Physiology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maza, Paul; Miller, Allison; Carson, Brian; Hermanson, John

2018-01-01

Learning and retaining science content may be increased by applying the basic science material to real-world situations. Discussing cases with students during lectures and having them participate in laboratory exercises where they apply the science content to practical situations increases students' interest and enthusiasm. A summer course in…

Land Use Planning Exercise Using Geographic Information Systems and Digital Soil Surveys

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stout, Heidi M.; Lee, Brad D.

2004-01-01

Geographic information system (GIS) technology has become a valuable tool for environmental science professionals. By incorporating GIS into college-level course curricula, agricultural students become better qualified for employment opportunities. We have developed a case study-based laboratory exercise that introduces students to GIS and the…

Impact of Giving Students a Choice of Homework Assignments in an Introductory Computer Science Class

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fulton, Steven; Schweitzer, Dino

2011-01-01

Student assignments have long been an integral part of many university level computer science courses to reinforce material covered in class with practical exercises. For years, researchers have studied ways to improve such student assignments by making them more interesting, applicable, and valuable to the student with a goal of improving…

An open-source textbook for teaching climate-related risk analysis using the R computing environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Applegate, P. J.; Keller, K.

2015-12-01

Greenhouse gas emissions lead to increased surface air temperatures and sea level rise. In turn, sea level rise increases the risks of flooding for people living near the world's coastlines. Our own research on assessing sea level rise-related risks emphasizes both Earth science and statistics. At the same time, the free, open-source computing environment R is growing in popularity among statisticians and scientists due to its flexibility and graphics capabilities, as well as its large library of existing functions. We have developed a set of laboratory exercises that introduce students to the Earth science and statistical concepts needed for assessing the risks presented by climate change, particularly sea-level rise. These exercises will be published as a free, open-source textbook on the Web. Each exercise begins with a description of the Earth science and/or statistical concepts that the exercise teaches, with references to key journal articles where appropriate. Next, students are asked to examine in detail a piece of existing R code, and the exercise text provides a clear explanation of how the code works. Finally, students are asked to modify the existing code to produce a well-defined outcome. We discuss our experiences in developing the exercises over two separate semesters at Penn State, plus using R Markdown to interweave explanatory text with sample code and figures in the textbook.

A pharmacy practice laboratory exercise to apply biochemistry concepts.

PubMed

Harrold, Marc W; McFalls, Marsha A

2010-10-11

To develop exercises that allow pharmacy students to apply foundational knowledge discussed in a first-professional year (P1) biochemistry course to specific disease states and patient scenarios. A pharmacy practice laboratory exercise was developed to accompany a lecture sequence pertaining to purine biosynthesis and degradation. The assignment required students to fill a prescription, provide patient counseling tips, and answer questions pertaining to the disease state, the underlying biochemical problem, and the prescribed medication. Students were graded on the accuracy with which they filled the prescription, provided patient counseling, and answered the questions provided. Overall, students displayed mastery in all of these areas. Additionally, students completed a course survey on which they rated this exercise favorably, noting that it helped them to integrate basic science concepts and pharmacy practice. A laboratory exercise provided an opportunity for P1 students to apply foundational pharmacy knowledge to a patient case and can serve as a template for the design of additional exercises.

Construction of a model demonstrating neural pathways and reflex arcs.

PubMed

Chan, V; Pisegna, J M; Rosian, R L; DiCarlo, S E

1996-12-01

Employment opportunities in the future will require higher skills and an understanding of mathematics and science. As a result of the growing number of careers that require solid science and mathematics training, the methods of science education are undergoing major reform. To adequately equip students for technologically advanced positions, new teaching methods must be developed that prepare tomorrow's workforce for the challenges of the 21st century. One such method is the use of models. By actively building and manipulating concrete models that represent scientific concepts, students are involved in the most basic level of Piaget's learning scheme: the sensorimotor stage. Models are useful in reaching all students at the foundational levels of learning, and further learning experiences are rapidly moved through higher learning levels. This success ensures greater comprehension and understanding compared with the traditional methods of rote memorization. We developed an exercise for the construction of an inexpensive, easy-to-build model demonstrating neural pathways and reflex arcs. Our exercise also includes many supplemental teaching tools. The exercise is designed to fulfill the need of sound physiological teaching materials for high school students.

Using a Hybrid of Student-Sourced Data and Web-Based Data for an Undergraduate Earth System Science Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sinton, C.

2014-12-01

In an undergraduate Earth System Science (ESS) course, students learn about the processes in which material and energy move between the different earth spheres. It is critical that quantitative analysis be part of the class in order to have students understand rates and magnitudes of these processes. It is even better if the students generate the data and research questions. At Ithaca College, ESS is a requirement for all Environmental Science majors and is their introduction into earth science. The majority of the lab periods for the class are devoted to research-based exercises in which students are asked to generate research questions and working hypotheses prior to data gathering. Several exercises use a hybrid of student-generated data and information available from on-line sources such as NOAA and USGS. For example, student groups gather water data from four water bodies on the campus over the course of the semester (e.g., temperature, pH, turbidity, conductivity) while at the same time accessing NOAA climatic data from a nearby weather station. The advantages of this approach include student ownership (and responsibility) and rich, diverse datasets that can be used to answer a variety of questions. Disadvantages include the inability of the instructor to fully anticipate the results, which can make planning difficult. In addition, considerable time is required to have students wade through the data, make mistakes, and then correct the mistakes. Nevertheless, the overall approach results in a richer and more effective learning experience compared to lab exercises that use data sets provided by the instructor.

English Skills for Life Sciences: Problem Solving in Biology. Tutor Version [and] Student Version.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

California Univ., Los Angeles. Center for Language Education and Research.

This manual is part of a series of materials designed to reinforce essential concepts in physical science through interactive, language-sensitive, problem-solving exercises emphasizing cooperative learning. The materials are intended for limited-English-proficient (LEP) students in beginning physical science classes. The materials are for teams of…

Undergraduate Student Attitudes and Perceptions toward Low- and High-Level Inquiry Exercise Physiology Teaching Laboratory Experiences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Henige, Kim

2011-01-01

The purpose of this investigation was to compare student attitudes toward two different science laboratory learning experiences, specifically, traditional, cookbook-style, low-inquiry level (LL) activities and a high-inquiry level (HL) investigative project. In addition, we sought to measure and compare students' science-related attitudes and…

Cross-Disciplinary Thermoregulation and Sweat Analysis Laboratory Experiences for Undergraduate Chemistry and Exercise Science Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mulligan, Gregory; Taylor, Nichole; Glen, Mary; Tomlin, Dona; Gaul, Catherine A.

2011-01-01

Cross-disciplinary (CD) learning experiences benefit student understanding of concepts and curriculum by offering opportunities to explore topics from the perspectives of alternate fields of study. This report involves a qualitative evaluation of CD health sciences undergraduate laboratory experiences in which concepts and students from two…

Video Laboratories for the Teaching and Learning of Professional Ethics in Exercise Physiology Curricula

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Senchina, David S.

2011-01-01

Student researchers in physiology courses often interact with human subjects in classroom research but may be unfamiliar with the professional ethics of experimenter-subject interactions. This communication describes experiences related to an interactive video used in exercise science and general biology courses to help students become aware of,…

A Simple Exercise Reveals the Way Students Think about Scientific Modeling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ruebush, Laura; Sulikowski, Michelle; North, Simon

2009-01-01

Scientific modeling is an integral part of contemporary science, yet many students have little understanding of how models are developed, validated, and used to predict and explain phenomena. A simple modeling exercise led to significant gains in understanding key attributes of scientific modeling while revealing some stubborn misconceptions.…

Planetary Exploration in the Classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Slivan, S. M.; Binzel, R. P.

1997-07-01

We have developed educational materials to seed a series of undergraduate level exercises on "Planetary Exploration in the Classroom." The goals of the series are to teach modern methods of planetary exploration and discovery to students having both science and non-science backgrounds. Using personal computers in a "hands-on" approach with images recorded by planetary spacecraft, students working through the exercises learn that modern scientific images are digital objects that can be examined and manipulated in quantitative detail. The initial exercises we've developed utilize NIH Image in conjunction with images from the Voyager spacecraft CDs. Current exercises are titled "Using 'NIH IMAGE' to View Voyager Images", "Resolving Surface Features on Io", "Discovery of Volcanoes on Io", and "Topography of Canyons on Ariel." We expect these exercises will be released during Fall 1997 and will be available via 'anonymous ftp'; detailed information about obtaining the exercises will be on the Web at "http://web.mit.edu/12s23/www/pec.html." This curriculum development was sponsored by NSF Grant DUE-9455329.

L'Entrainement a la Comprehension Ecrite des Etudiants Etrangers de la Faculte des Sciences (Reading Comprehension Training for Foreign Students in the Science Faculty). Melanges Pedagogiques, 1977.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Duda, R.; Regent, O.

The ability of foreign students to read non-scientific material efficiently is important for rapid social and cultural integration. This report describes the reading comprehension section of a French language course aimed at foreign students at the Nancy Science Faculty. Exercises are presented which cover morpho-syntactic, communicative and…

Astronomy Education in Greece

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Metaxa, M.

Basic education is fundamental to higher education and scientific and technological literacy. We can confront the widespread adult ignorance and apathy about science and technology. Astronomy, an interdisciplinary science, enhances students' interest and overcomes educational problems. Three years ago, we developed astronomy education in these ways: 1. Summer School for School Students. (50 students from Athens came to the first Summer School in Astrophysics at the National Observatory, September 2-5, 1996, for lectures by professional astronomers and to be familiarized with observatory instruments. 2. Introducing Students to Research. (This teaches students more about science so they are more confident about it. Our students have won top prizes in European research contests for their studies of objects on Schmidt plates and computations on PCs.) 3. Hands-on Activities. (Very important because they bring students close to their natural environment. Activities are: variable-star observations (AAVSO), Eratosthenes project, solar-eclipse, sunspot and comet studies. 4. Contact with Professional Astronomers and Institutes. (These help students reach their social environment and motivate them as "science carriers". We try to make contacts at astronomical events, and through visits to appropriate institutions.) 5. Internet Programs. (Students learn about and familiarize themselves with their technological environment.) 6. Laboratory exercises. (Students should do science, not just learn about it We introduced the following lab. exercises: supernova remnants, galaxy classification, both from Schmidt plates, celestial sphere.

Decisions Based on Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Campbell, Vincent; Lofstrom, Jocelyn; Jerome, Brian

This guide makes the case for a decision-making focus in the science curriculum as a response to concern over preparing scientifically literate students. The student activities are organized by guided activities and independent exercises. Themes of the guided activities include xenotransplants, immunizations, household cleaning products, ozone,…

An Infiltration Exercise for Introductory Soil Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barbarick, K. A.; Ippolito, J. A.; Butters, G.; Sorge, G. M.

2005-01-01

One of the largest challenges in teaching introductory soil science is explaining the dynamics of soil infiltration. To aid students in understanding the concept and to further engage them in active learning in the soils laboratory course, we developed an exercise using Decagon Mini-Disk Infiltrometers with a tension head (h[subscript o]) of 2 cm.…

Learning about the Nature of Science Using Algae

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Edelmann, Hans G.; Martius, Thilo; Hahn, Achim; Schlüter, Kirsten; Nessler, Stefan H.

2016-01-01

Enquiry learning and teaching about the nature of science (NoS) is a key element of science education. We have designed an experimental setting for students aged 12-14 years to exercise enquiry-learning skills and to introduce students to the NoS aspects of creativity and imagination. It also illustrates the impact of carbon dioxide on the growth…

Laboratory Activities for Developing Process Skills.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Institute for Services to Education, Inc., Washington, DC.

This workbook contains laboratory exercises designed for use in a college introductory biology course. Each exercise helps the student develop a basic science skill. The exercises are arranged in a hierarchical sequence suggesting the scientific method. Each skill facilitates the development of succeeding ones. Activities include Use of the…

The Sweetness of Aspartame: A Biochemistry Lab for Health Science Chemistry Courses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stein, Paul J.

1997-09-01

A laboratory exercise for Health Science Biochemistry students to study the effect of aspartame concentration on sweetness has been developed. The concentration dependence of the absorbance of aspartame at 257 nm is also studied. Data from all members of the class are averaged and plotted on the same graph as absorbance and taste rating vs. [aspartame]. The absorbance plot follows Beer's law while the taste rating plot displays the typical hyperbolic response of protein-ligand binding plots. This laboratory exercise illustrates the concept of binding saturation to students.

Introducing Stereochemistry to Non-science Majors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Luján-Upton, Hannia

2001-04-01

Stereochemistry is often a difficult topic for both science and non-science majors to learn. The topics covered in most undergraduate textbooks, although fundamental, seem very abstract to most students. This manuscript describes two simple exercises that can be used to introduce concepts associated with stereochemistry such as "sameness", superimposability, chirality, enantiomers, optical activity, polarimetry, and racemic mixtures. One exercise compares chirality in hands with the achiral nature of two textbooks. The other exercise involves a murder mystery, the solution of which hinges upon understanding the concept of optical activity, specifically in natural products such as toxins from poisonous mushrooms.

The Utility of Inquiry-Based Exercises in Mexican Science Classrooms: Reports from a Professional Development Workshop for Science Teachers in Quintana Roo, Mexico

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Racelis, A. E.; Brovold, A. A.

2010-12-01

The quality of science teaching is of growing importance in Mexico. Mexican students score well below the world mean in math and science. Although the government has recognized these deficiencies and has implemented new policies aimed to improve student achievement in the sciences, teachers are still encountering in-class barriers to effective teaching, especially in public colleges. This paper reports on the utility of inquiry based exercises in Mexican classrooms. In particular, it describes a two-day professional development workshop with science teachers at the Instituto Tecnologico Superior in Felipe Carrillo Puerto in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo. Felipe Carrillo Puerto is an indigenous municipality where a significant majority of the population speak Maya as their first language. This alone presents a unique barrier to teaching science in the municipality, but accompanied with other factors such as student apathy, insufficient prior training of both students and teachers, and pressure to deliver specific science curriculum, science teachers have formidable challenges for effective science teaching. The goals of the workshop were to (1) have a directed discussion regarding science as both content and process, (2) introduce inquiry based learning as one tool of teaching science, and (3) get teachers to think about how they can apply these techniques in their classes.

Predictors of obesity bias among exercise science students.

PubMed

Langdon, Jody; Rukavina, Paul; Greenleaf, Christy

2016-06-01

The purpose of the present study was to investigate particular psychosocial predictors of obesity bias in prehealth professionals, which include the internalization of athletic and general body ideals, perceived media pressure and information, and achievement goal orientations. Exercise science undergraduate students (n= 242) filled out a survey containing questions of demographic characteristics, achievement goals, social-cultural attitudes toward appearance (using Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire-3), and obesity bias measurements (using the antifat attitudes test and fat phobia scale). The results indicated that students were explicitly biased toward overweight and obese individuals, held had high task and ego goals, and had high internalization of an athletic body type ideal, as determined by mean scores being above the median values for each scale. Internalization of the athletic body type predicted obesity bias for fat phobia, weight control blame, and physical/romantic attractiveness. In conclusion, exercise science students may enter programs socialized from society and sport, and, potentially, these psychosocial attitudes and beliefs may have implications to working with future clients, especially for those of the general population and those whose body shape and size are different than themselves. Copyright © 2016 The American Physiological Society.

Common student misconceptions in exercise physiology and biochemistry.

PubMed

Morton, James P; Doran, Dominic A; Maclaren, Don P M

2008-06-01

The present study represents a preliminary investigation designed to identify common misconceptions in students' understanding of physiological and biochemical topics within the academic domain of sport and exercise sciences. A specifically designed misconception inventory (consisting of 10 multiple-choice questions) was administered to a cohort of level 1, 2, and 3 undergraduate students enrolled in physiology and biochemistry-related modules of the BSc Sport Science degree at the authors' institute. Of the 10 misconceptions proposed by the authors, 9 misconceptions were confirmed. Of these nine misconceptions, only one misconception appeared to have been alleviated by the current teaching strategy employed during the progression from level 1 to 3 study. The remaining eight misconceptions prevailed throughout the course of the degree program, suggesting that students enter and leave university with the same misconceptions in certain areas of exercise physiology and biochemistry. The possible origins of these misconceptions are discussed, as are potential teaching strategies to prevent and/or remediate them for future years.

Oh, Garbage! Decisions about Waste Disposal. Creative Role-Playing Exercises in Science and Technology Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parisi, Lynn; Pearson, Janice

This document is one of a series of role plays that focus on science-related social issues of concern in contemporary public policy formation. The role plays are designed to help students develop information-processing and decision making skills needed to deal effectively with such issues. The role plays guide students in analyzing science related…

Preparing Students for Science in the Face of Social Controversy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bramschreiber, Terry; Westmoreland, David

2015-01-01

Science educators often teach topics that are largely resolved in the scientific community yet remain controversial in broader society. In such cases, students may perceive the teacher as biased. We present two exercises that foster more objective learning about the scientific underpinnings of socially controversial topics. The first exercise…

An Online Guided E-Journal Exercise in Pre-Clerkship Years: Oxidative Phosphorylation in Brown Adipose Tissue

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abali, Emine Ercikan; Phadtare, Sangita; Galt, Jim; Brodsky, Barbara

2014-01-01

The rationale for this mandatory, guided online e-journal exercise is to foster the ability of students to independently read medical and scientific literature in a critical manner and to integrate journal reading with their basic science knowledge. After a lecture on oxidative phosphorylation, students were assigned to read an article on brown…

Why Drill Here? Teaching to Build Student Understanding of the Role Sediment Cores from Polar Regions play in Interpreting Climate Change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pound, K. S.; St. John, K.; Krissek, L. A.; Jones, M. H.; Leckie, R. M.; Pyle, E. J.

2008-12-01

That the ocean basins provide a record of past global climate changes through their sediment cores is often a surprise or novel idea for students. Equally surprising to many students is the fact that current research is being undertaken in remote polar regions, even though sedimentary records already exist from the low and mid latitude regions. Students are often also perplexed about how decisions are made regarding the selection of drill sites in the polar regions. Using an inquiry-based approach we are developing a series of simple exercises that are scaffolded to build student understanding around the question "Why Drill Here?" The exercises are based on IODP Expedition 302 (ACEX) in the Arctic, and on the Antarctic Geological Drilling (ANDRILL) program, which are used as case studies. The "Why Drill Here?" question is addressed at multiple levels so students can formulate a scientific rationale behind selection of sites for seafloor drilling in the Arctic and Antarctic regions. Technological challenges and solutions to doing field-based science in polar regions are explored. Finally, a subset of research results are investigated and compared with the current scientific paradigm on Cenozoic climate evolution to demonstrate that science is an evolving process. These exercises can be adapted for use in a variety of Introductory Earth Science classes.

Aerobic exercise, ball sports, dancing, and weight lifting as moderators of the relationship between stress and depressive symptoms: an exploratory cross-sectional study with swiss university students.

PubMed

Gerber, Markus; Brand, Serge; Elliot, Catherine; Holsboer-Trachsler, Edith; Pühse, Uwe

2014-12-01

This exploratory study was designed to compare four types of exercise activities in Swiss university students. A sample of 201 medical students (136 women, 65 men; M age = 23.2 yr., SD = 2.4) and 250 exercise and health sciences students (144 women, 106 men; M age = 22.3 yr., SD = 2.2) participated in the study. They completed the Perceived Stress Scale, the Depression Scale, and the Office in Motion Questionnaire. Interaction effects between stress and exercise activities were analysed using hierarchical regression analyses, after controlling for age, sex, and academic discipline. Frequent participation in ball sports and dancing were associated with decreased depressive symptoms among students with elevated perceived stress, whereas no such relationship existed among their peers with lower perceived stress. No stress-moderating effect was found for aerobic exercise. Weight lifting was only associated with lower depressive symptoms among students with low perceived stress. The present findings suggest that, among Swiss university students, certain exercises may have better potential to moderate the relationship between perceived stress and depressive symptoms than others. Future research could analyze whether personalized exercise programs created to satisfy participants' individual needs are more beneficial for stress management.

Academic and Research Programs in Exercise Science, South Korea

PubMed Central

PARK, KYUNG-SHIN; SONG, WOOK

2009-01-01

We appreciate the opportunity to review academic curriculum and current research focus of Exercise Science programs in South Korea. The information of this paper was collected by several different methods, including e-mail and phone interviews, and a discussion with Korean professors who attended the 2009 ACSM annual conference. It was agreed that exercise science programming in South Korea has improved over the last 60 years since being implemented. One of distinguishable achievement is that exercise science programs after the 1980’s has been expanded to several different directions. It does not only produce physical education teachers but also attributes more to research, sports medicine, sports, leisure and recreation. Therefore, it has produced various jobs in exercise-related fields. Some of exercise science departments do not require teacher preparation course work in their curriculum which allows students to focus more on their specialty. Secondly, we believe we South Korea has caught up with advanced countries in terms of research quality. Many Korean researchers have recently published and presented their investigations in international journals and conferences. The quality and quantity of these studies introduced to international societies indicate that Exercise Science programs in South Korea is continuing to develop and plays an important part in the world. PMID:27182314

An Exercise Using Lichens as Indicators of Air Quality

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gottfried, Jeffry

1978-01-01

High school students learned to monitor air quality using lichens in a National Science Foundation sponsored program. In this article, monitoring procedures are discussed briefly along with means to adapt the exercise to your own area. (MA)

I'll Tell You What You Think: An Exercise in Pseudoscience Debunking in an Introductory Astronomy Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Caton, Dan

2013-01-01

At Appalachian State University students have to take just two semesters of a physical or biological science to satisfy the general education requirements. Most non-science major students have little time in their crowded schedules to take additional science courses, whether they want to or not, and in fact face a surcharge when taking more…

Critical Thinking in Physical Geography: Linking Concepts of Content and Applicability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wolf, Joy; Stanton, Michael; Gellott, Laura

2010-01-01

This study investigates critical thinking in a Physical Geography course and illustrates how students can understand physical geography in the context of their world. As a general education science course, most students are in non-science disciplines and feel disconnected from the material. By using exercises that challenge learning and concept…

Teaching Bioethics via the Production of Student-Generated Videos

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Willmott, Christopher J. R.

2015-01-01

There is growing recognition that science is not conducted in a vacuum and that advances in the biosciences have ethical and social implications for the wider community. An exercise is described in which undergraduate students work in teams to produce short videos about the science and ethical dimensions of current developments in biomedicine.…

Ciencias 1. (Science 1). [Student's Workbook].

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Raposo, Lucilia

Ciencias 1 is the first in a series of science books designed for elementary Portuguese-speaking students. The book contains five sections divided into 43 lessons. The five sections are (1) Matter, (2) The Human Body, (3) Weather, (4) Solids, Liquids, and Gases, and (5) Living Things. Pictorial presentations and picture exercises are included for…

Students' framing of laboratory exercises using infrared cameras

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haglund, Jesper; Jeppsson, Fredrik; Hedberg, David; Schönborn, Konrad J.

2015-12-01

Thermal science is challenging for students due to its largely imperceptible nature. Handheld infrared cameras offer a pedagogical opportunity for students to see otherwise invisible thermal phenomena. In the present study, a class of upper secondary technology students (N =30 ) partook in four IR-camera laboratory activities, designed around the predict-observe-explain approach of White and Gunstone. The activities involved central thermal concepts that focused on heat conduction and dissipative processes such as friction and collisions. Students' interactions within each activity were videotaped and the analysis focuses on how a purposefully selected group of three students engaged with the exercises. As the basis for an interpretative study, a "thick" narrative description of the students' epistemological and conceptual framing of the exercises and how they took advantage of the disciplinary affordance of IR cameras in the thermal domain is provided. Findings include that the students largely shared their conceptual framing of the four activities, but differed among themselves in their epistemological framing, for instance, in how far they found it relevant to digress from the laboratory instructions when inquiring into thermal phenomena. In conclusion, the study unveils the disciplinary affordances of infrared cameras, in the sense of their use in providing access to knowledge about macroscopic thermal science.

Periodic Table of Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Mike

1998-01-01

Presents an exercise in which an eighth-grade science teacher decorated the classroom with a periodic table of students. Student photographs were arranged according to similarities into vertical columns. Students were each assigned an atomic number according to their placement in the table. The table is then used to teach students about…

EarthLabs Meet Sister Corita Kent

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Quartini, E.; Ellins, K. K.; Cavitte, M. G.; Thirumalai, K.; Ledley, T. S.; Haddad, N.; Lynds, S. E.

2013-12-01

The EarthLabs project provides a framework to enhance high school students' climate literacy and awareness of climate change. The project provides climate science curriculum and teacher professional development, followed by research on students' learning as teachers implement EarthLabs climate modules in the classroom. The professional development targets high school teachers whose professional growth is structured around exposure to current climate science research, data observation collection and analysis. During summer workshops in Texas and Mississippi, teachers work through the laboratories, experiments, and hand-on activities developed for their students. In summer 2013, three graduate students from the University of Texas at Austin Institute for Geophysics with expertise in climate science participated in two weeklong workshops. The graduate students partnered with exemplary teacher leaders to provide scientific content and lead the EarthLabs learning activities. As an experiment, we integrated a visit to the Blanton Museum and an associated activity in order to motivate participants to think creatively, as well as analytically, about science. This exercise was inspired by the work and educational philosophy of Sister Corita Kent. During the visit to the Blanton Museum, we steered participants towards specific works of art pre-selected to emphasize aspects of the climate of Texas and to draw participants' attention to ways in which artists convey different concepts. For example, artists use of color, lines, and symbols conjure emotional responses to imagery in the viewer. The second part of the exercise asked participants to choose a climate message and to convey this through a collage. We encouraged participants to combine their experience at the museum with examples of Sister Corita Kent's artwork. We gave them simple guidelines for the project based on techniques and teaching of Sister Corita Kent. Evaluation results reveal that participants enjoyed the activity and saw its value for enhancing their own appreciation of climate science. However, participants expressed skepticism about using the exercise with their own students. Teachers' perception was that students would not make the same connections that they did. From our perspective and participants' enthusiasm we encourage collaboration between art and science teachers in joint activities that emphasize the link between art and science.

Faculty Workshops for Teaching Information Assurance through Hands-On Exercises and Case Studies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yuan, Xiaohong; Williams, Kenneth; Yu, Huiming; Rorrer, Audrey; Chu, Bei-Tseng; Yang, Li; Winters, Kathy; Kizza, Joseph

2017-01-01

Though many Information Assurance (IA) educators agree that hands-on exercises and case studies improve student learning, hands-on exercises and case studies are not widely adopted due to the time needed to develop them and integrate them into curricula. Under the support of the National Science Foundation (NSF) Scholarship for Service program, we…

Idea Bank.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Science Teacher, 1986

1986-01-01

Provides descriptions of activities and programs that have been successful with secondary science students. Includes ideas related to repairing radio-controlled cars, cooperative science-library center, observation exercises, recordkeeping skills and peer grading, DC power supply, chemistry of poison ivy, spore science, and a tic-tac-toe review…

A Guided Inquiry on Hubble Plots and the Big Bang

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Forringer, Ted

2014-04-01

In our science for non-science majors course "21st Century Physics," we investigate modern "Hubble plots" (plots of velocity versus distance for deep space objects) in order to discuss the Big Bang, dark matter, and dark energy. There are two potential challenges that our students face when encountering these topics for the first time. The first challenge is in understanding and interpreting Hubble plots. The second is that some of our students have religious or cultural objections to the concept of a "Big Bang" or a universe that is billions of years old. This paper presents a guided inquiry exercise that was created with the goal of introducing students to Hubble plots and giving them the opportunity to discover for themselves why we believe our universe started with an explosion billions of years ago. The exercise is designed to be completed before the topics are discussed in the classroom. We did the exercise during a one hour and 45 minute "lab" time and it was done in groups of three or four students, but it would also work as an individual take-home assignment.

Using Clickers for Deliberate Practice in Five Large Science Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hodges, Linda C.; Anderson, Eric C.; Carpenter, Tara S.; Cui, Lili; Feeser, Elizabeth A.; Gierasch, Tiffany Malinky

2017-01-01

Clickers are often used as an active learning tool in face-to-face classes to enhance student engagement and assess student learning. In this article we share the variety of ways that we use clicker questions to promote deliberate practice in large science courses. Deliberate practice is the use of specifically structured exercises that develop…

Effect of Personal Response Systems on Student Perception and Academic Performance in Courses in a Health Sciences Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

FitzPatrick, Kathleen A.; Finn, Kevin E.; Campisi, Jay

2011-01-01

To increase student engagement, active participation, and performance, personal response systems (clickers) were incorporated into six lecture-based sections of four required courses within the Health Sciences Department major curriculum: freshman-level Anatomy and Physiology I and II, junior-level Exercise Physiology, and senior-level Human…

Virtual Laboratories in Science Education: Students' Motivation and Experiences in Two Tertiary Biology Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dyrberg, Nadia Rahbek; Treusch, Alexander H.; Wiegand, Claudia

2017-01-01

Potential benefits of simulations and virtual laboratory exercises in natural sciences have been both theorised and studied recently. This study reports findings from a pilot study on student attitude, motivation and self-efficacy when using the virtual laboratory programme Labster. The programme allows interactive learning about the workflows and…

A Statistical Analysis of Student Questions in a Cell Biology Laboratory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keeling, Elena L.; Polacek, Kelly M.; Ingram, Ella L.

2009-01-01

Asking questions is an essential component of the practice of science, but question-asking skills are often underemphasized in science education. In this study, we examined questions written by students as they prepared for laboratory exercises in a senior-level cell biology class. Our goals were to discover 1) what types of questions students…

An Innovative Approach to Science Instruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McNamara, Bernard; Burnham, Chris; Bridges, Bill

1994-12-01

This paper reports on the results of a multi-year NSF project aimed at undergraduate instruction in astronomy. Its goal is to help incoming university students, particularly from minority groups, develop critical thinking skills and a better understanding of basic scientific principles. The project employs the techniques of ``Writing Across the Curriculum" to counter student math and science anxiety. It employs a workbook consisting of four sections: (1) basic skills exercises, (2) an evolving cosmology, (3) chapter reading responses, and (4) an astronomical scrapbook. Experience with this workbook in introductory astronomy classes at NMSU is discussed, along with suggestions on how the exercises can be incorporated into beginning astronomy classes at other universities.

Building Science-Relevant Literacy with Technical Writing in High School

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Girill, T R

2006-06-02

By drawing on the in-class work of an on-going literacy outreach project, this paper explains how well-chosen technical writing activities can earn time in high-school science courses by enabling underperforming students (including ESL students) to learn science more effectively. We adapted basic research-based text-design and usability techniques into age-appropriate exercises and cases using the cognitive apprenticeship approach. This enabled high-school students, aided by explicit guidelines, to build their cognitive maturity, learn how to craft good instructions and descriptions, and apply those skills to better note taking and technical talks in their science classes.

Students' Framing of Laboratory Exercises Using Infrared Cameras

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haglund, Jesper; Jeppsson, Fredrik; Hedberg, David; Schönborn, Konrad J.

2015-01-01

Thermal science is challenging for students due to its largely imperceptible nature. Handheld infrared cameras offer a pedagogical opportunity for students to see otherwise invisible thermal phenomena. In the present study, a class of upper secondary technology students (N = 30) partook in four IR-camera laboratory activities, designed around the…

Paint-Stirrer Submarine

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Young, Jocelyn; Hardy, Kevin

2007-01-01

In this article, the authors discuss a unique and challenging laboratory exercise called, the paint-stir-stick submarine, that keeps the students enthralled. The paint-stir-stick submarine fits beautifully with the National Science Education Standards Physical Science Content Standard B, and with the California state science standards for physical…

Doing Science and Asking Questions II: An Exercise That Generates Questions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hurt Middlecamp, Catherine; Nickel, Anne-Marie L.

2005-08-01

Given the importance of questions in science, it is critical that students learn to ask questions as well as learning to answer them. This paper describes a classroom exercise to help students better ask their own questions. It has been classroom-tested in multiple formats and has also been used for curriculum development workshops for faculty. This exercise in creating questions can be easily customized to suit different instructional contexts; some variations are outlined. More broadly, this paper also discusses the pedagogical significance of questioning, raising four salient points: (1) learners are more likely to have a personal interest in the questions they raise; (2) questions can serve as entry points for issues relating to ethnicity and gender; (3) questions give control to the person who asks them; and (4) questions can challenge existing structures, categories, and norms.

Improving academic performance of sport and exercise science undergraduate students in gross anatomy using a near-peer teaching program.

PubMed

Viana, Ricardo Borges; Campos, Mário Hebling; Santos, Douglas de Assis Teles; Xavier, Isabela Cristina Maioni; Vancini, Rodrigo Luiz; Andrade, Marília Santos; de Lira, Claudio Andre Barbosa

2018-04-16

Peer and near-peer teaching programs are common in medical undergraduate courses. However, there are no studies that have investigated the effectiveness of a near-peer teaching program on the academic performance of undergraduate students pursuing sport and exercise science coursework. This study was conducted to analyze the effectiveness of such a program for students who participated in a course on the functional anatomy of the locomotor apparatus. A total of 39 student participants were divided into two groups: students in one group voluntarily attended at least one session of a near-peer teaching program, and students in the other group attended no sessions. The final grade (range 0-100%) was recorded and used as an indicator of academic performance. The final grade of students who attended the near-peer teaching program (69.5 ± 16.0%) was 38.7% higher (P = 0.002, d = 1.06) than those who did not (50.1 ± 20.4%). When the academic performance of the same students was evaluated in another course (exercise physiology) that did not offer a near-peer teaching program, there were no significant differences between the groups (students who attended or did not attend the near-peer teaching program). A significant positive association was found between near-peer teaching program frequency and the number of students approved and not approved in the course (P = 0.041). A significant difference (P = 0.001) was found in the attendance at regular classes between the group who participated in the near-peer teaching program (median: 62 hours; IQR [interquartile ranges]: 4.0 hours) and those who did not (median: 58 hours; IQR: 4.0 hours). Gender was not a moderating factor on academic performance or near-peer teaching program attendance. These results highlight the effectiveness of a near-peer teaching program on the academic performance of students from a sport and exercise science degree program while enrolled in an anatomy course. Anat Sci Educ. © 2018 American Association of Anatomists. © 2018 American Association of Anatomists.

Active-learning assignments to integrate basic science and clinical course material.

PubMed

Marshall, Leisa L; Nykamp, Diane

2010-09-10

To develop, implement, and evaluate active-learning exercises requiring the integration and application of pathophysiology, medicinal chemistry, pharmacology, and therapeutics knowledge of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis to formulate therapeutic recommendations for patients with musculoskeletal disorders. Two team-based case study exercises, one evaluating a patient with osteoarthritis and the second, a patient with rheumatoid arthritis, were developed, incorporating material and questions from pathophysiology, medicinal chemistry, pharmacology, and therapeutics. The learning assignments were implemented in a required pharmacotherapy module. Student learning was evaluated using performance on the team-based case study exercises and on 2 examinations. A standard student course evaluation was used to assess students' impressions of the learning activity. The mean student grades for the osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis activities were 9.1 and 8.9, respectively, on a 10-point scale. The majority of students indicated that the learning exercises were more than adequate to excellent in helping students learn. The addition of active-learning activities was successful in teaching pharmacy students the knowledge needed to formulate therapeutic recommendations for patients with musculoskeletal disorders.

Chemical Analysis of Soils: An Environmental Chemistry Laboratory for Undergraduate Science Majors.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Willey, Joan D.; Avery, G. Brooks, Jr.; Manock, John J.; Skrabal, Stephen A.; Stehman, Charles F.

1999-01-01

Describes a laboratory exercise for undergraduate science students in which they evaluate soil samples for various parameters related to suitability for crop production and capability for retention of contaminants. (Contains 18 references.) (WRM)

Designing Appropriate Scaffolding for Student Science Projects

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Marie; Smith, Mark

2008-01-01

The authors have developed a successful approach to teaching and inspiring undergraduate science and nonscience majors to complete creditable, semester-long, hands-on science research projects. This approach utilizes a carefully developed scaffolding consisting of in-class exercises and discussions, preparatory homework and lab events, and three…

Teaching programming and modelling skills to first-year earth & environmental science undergraduates: outcomes and lessons learned from a pilot project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fisher, J. A.; Brewer, C.; O'Brien, G.

2017-12-01

Computing and programming are rapidly becoming necessary skills for earth and environmental scientists. Scientists in both academia and industry must be able to manipulate increasingly large datasets, create plots and 3-D visualisations of observations, and interpret outputs from complex numerical models, among other tasks. However, these skills are rarely taught as a compulsory part of undergraduate earth science curricula. In 2016, the School of Earth & Environmental Sciences at the University of Wollongong began a pilot program to integrate introductory programming and modelling skills into the required first-year core curriculum for all undergraduates majoring in earth and environmental science fields. Using Python, a popular teaching language also widely used by professionals, a set of guided exercises were developed. These exercises use interactive Jupyter Notebooks to introduce students to programming fundamentals and simple modelling problems relevant to the earth system, such as carbon cycling and population growth. The exercises are paired with peer review activities to expose students to the multitude of "correct" ways to solve computing problems. In the last weeks of the semester, students work in groups to creatively adapt their new-found skills to selected problems in earth system science. In this presentation, I will report on outcomes from delivering the new curriculum to the first two cohorts of 120-150 students, including details of the implementation and the impacts on both student aptitude and attitudes towards computing. While the first cohort clearly developed competency, survey results suggested a drop in student confidence over the course of the semester. To address this confidence gap for the second cohort, the in-class activities are now being supplemented with low-stakes open-book review quizzes that provide further practice with no time pressure. Research into the effectiveness of these review quizzes is ongoing and preliminary findings will be discussed, along with lessons learned in the process and plans for the future.

Rearing Media as a Variable in Fruit Fly Fecundity: An Activity to Introduce Scientific Methods of Inquiry to Biology Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wollard, Laura; Klein, Benjamin; Carlson, Darby J.; Carlson, Kimberly A.

2006-01-01

A major challenge in teaching the process of science to students is designing and implementing laboratory activities that emulate what is actually done in a research laboratory. To facilitate this effort, science educators have been encouraged to design exercises that span multiple laboratory periods, encourage independent thinking, promote…

OER Approach for Specific Student Groups in Hardware-Based Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ackovska, Nevena; Ristov, Sasko

2014-01-01

Hardware-based courses in computer science studies require much effort from both students and teachers. The most important part of students' learning is attending in person and actively working on laboratory exercises on hardware equipment. This paper deals with a specific group of students, those who are marginalized by not being able to…

Introductory Psychology: How Student Experiences Relate to Their Understanding of Psychological Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Toomey, Thomas; Richardson, Deborah; Hammock, Georgina

2017-01-01

Many students who declare a psychology major are unaware that they are studying a scientific discipline, precipitating a need for exercises and experiences that help students understand the scientific nature of the discipline. The present study explores aspects of an introductory psychology class that may contribute to students' understanding of…

A quarter-long exercise that introduces general education students to neurophysiology and scientific writing.

PubMed

Krilowicz, B I; Henter, H; Kamhi-Stein, L

1997-06-01

Providing large numbers of general education students with an introduction to science is a challenge. To meet this challenge, a quarter-long neurophysiology project was developed for use in an introductory biology course. The primary goals of this multistep project were to introduce students to the scientific method, scientific writing, on-line scientific bibliographic databases, and the scientific literature, while improving their academic literacy skills. Students began by collecting data on their own circadian rhythms in autonomic, motor, and cognitive function, reliably demonstrating the predicted circadian changes in heart rate, eye-hand coordination, and adding speed. Students wrote a journal-style article using pooled class data. Students were prepared to write the paper by several methods that were designed to improve academic language skills, including a library training exercise, "modeling" of the writing assignment, and drafting of subsections of the paper. This multistep neurophysiology project represents a significant commitment of time by both students and instructors, but produces a valuable finished product and ideally gives introductory students a positive first experience with science.

Remote Sensing Mars Landing Sites: An Out-of-School Time Planetary Science Education Activity for Middle School Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anderson, R. B.; Gaither, T. A.; Edgar, L. A.; Milazzo, M. P.; Vaughan, R. G.; Rubino-Hare, L.; Clark, J.; Ryan, S.

2017-12-01

As part of the Planetary Learning that Advances the Nexus of Engineering, Technology, and Science (PLANETS) project, we have developed an out-of-school time unit for middle school students focused on planetary remote sensing. The activity is divided into two exercises, with the goal of choosing a scientifically interesting and safe landing site for a future Mars mission. Students are introduced to NASA data from several actual and proposed landing sites and must use what they learn about remote sensing to choose a site that satisfies scientific and engineering criteria. The activity also includes background information for educators, including a summary of how landing on Mars helps answer major scientific questions, brief overviews of the data sets that the students will use, summaries of the site geology, and a list of relevant vocabulary. The first exercise introduces students to the concept of reflectance spectroscopy and how it can be used to identify the "fingerprints" of different minerals on the surface of Mars. Students are provided with simplified maps of mineral spectra at the four sites, based on Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer (CRISM) observations, as well as a reference sheet with the spectra of common minerals on Mars. They can use this information to determine which sites have hydrated minerals, mafic minerals, or both. The second exercise adds data from the Mars Orbital Laser Altimeter (MOLA), and high resolution visible data from the Context Camera (CTX) on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Students learn about laser altimetry and how to interpret topographic contours to assess whether a landing site is too rough. The CTX data allow students to study the sites at higher resolution, with annotations that indicate key landforms of interest. These data, along with the spectroscopy data, allow students to rank the sites based on science and engineering criteria. This activity was developed as a collaboration between subject matter experts at the USGS Astrogeology Science Center and education experts from the Northern Arizona University Center for Science Teaching and Learning. It works as either a stand-alone activity or as an extension of the "Worlds Apart" Engineering is Everywhere unit, also developed as part of the PLANETS project in collaboration with the Boston Museum of Science.

Creative Role-Playing Exercises in Science and Technology.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parisi, Lynn, Ed.

Five simulations for addressing science-related social issues in either the secondary science or social studies classroom are presented. Following a foreword, introduction, and description of the conceptual basis for the activities, each of the activities is presented in its entirety. Complete teacher and student materials for conducting each of…

Evaluation of an Environmental Science Laboratory Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berger, Toby Esther

The curriculum evaluated in this study is a series of innovative exercises offered as part of an introductory science course at Barnard College. It was hypothesized that students receiving the experimental treatment in the laboratory would show significant changes in cognitive achievement in environmental science and in their attitudes towards…

Incorporating a Modified Problem-Based Learning Exercise in a Traditional Lecture and Lab-Based Dairy Products Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liceaga, Andrea M.; Ballard, Tameshia S.; Skura, Brent J.

2011-01-01

A modified problem-based learning (PBL) exercise was implemented in a food science Dairy Products course, which had previously been taught in the traditional lecture and laboratory format only. The first 10 wk of the course consisted of weekly lectures and laboratory exercises. During the remaining 3 wk, students were presented with a case study…

Computer Use in Research Exercises: Some Suggested Procedures for Undergraduate Political Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Comer, John

1979-01-01

Describes some procedures designed to assist instructors in developing a research component using the computer. Benefits include development of research skills, kindling student interest in the field of political science, and recruitment potential. (Author/CK)

Improving the Laboratory Experience for America's High School Students. Hearing before the Subcommittee on Research and Science Education of the Committee on Science and Technology, House of Representatives, One Hundred Tenth Congress, First Session (March 8, 2007). Serial Number 110-9

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

US House of Representatives, 2007

2007-01-01

This hearing discussed how lack of coordination between laboratory exercises and classroom lectures, inadequately trained teachers, languishing facilities, and current high school organization diminish the value these exercises can have or prohibit them all together, and highlighted how a strong hands-on experience can create scientifically…

Lunar Team Report from a Planetary Design Workshop at ESTEC

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gray, A.; MacArthur, J.; Foing, B. H.

2014-04-01

On February 13, 2014, GeoVUsie, a student association for Earth science majors at Vrijie University (VU), Amsterdam, hosted a Planetary Sciences: Moon, Mars and More symposium. The symposium included a learning exercise the following day for a planetary design workshop at the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) for 30 motivated students, the majority being from GeoVUsie with little previous experience of planetary science. Students were split into five teams and assigned pre-selected new science mission projects. A few scientific papers were given to use as reference just days before the workshop. Three hours were allocated to create a mission concept before presenting results to the other students and science advisors. The educational backgrounds varied from second year undergraduate students to masters' students from mostly local universities.The lunar team was told to design a mission to the lunar south pole, as this is a key destination agreed upon by the international lunar scientific community. This region has the potential to address many significant objectives for planetary science, as the South Pole-Aitken basin has preserved early solar system history and would help to understand impact events throughout the solar system as well as the origin and evolution of the Earth-Moon system, particularly if samples could be returned. This report shows the lunar team's mission concept and reasons for studying the origin of volatiles on the Moon as the primary science objective [1]. Amundsen crater was selected as the optimal landing site near the lunar south pole [2]. Other mission concepts such as RESOLVE [3], L-VRAP [4], ESA's lunar lander studies and Luna-27 were reviewed. A rover and drill were selected as being the most suitable architecture for the requirements of this mission. Recommendations for future student planetary design exercises were to continue events like this, ideally with more time, and also to invite a more diverse range of educational backgrounds, i.e., both engineering and science students/professionals.

Library-Labs-for-Science Literacy Courses.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pestel, Beverly C.; Engeldinger, Eugene A.

1992-01-01

Describes two library-lab exercises the authors have incorporated into their college chemistry course. The first exercise introduces students to scientific information and familiarizes them with the tools for accessing it. The second provides a framework for evaluating the reliability of that information and addresses the criteria that should be…

The Math You Need at Trinity College, Hartford CT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geiss, C. E.

2011-12-01

Trinity College is a small, private, highly selective liberal arts college with approximately 2400 students. Most students have relatively well developed quantitative skills, but many are nevertheless insecure about their abilities and reluctant to engage in courses that stress quantitative content. I have used The Math You Need (TMYN) modules in an introductory geology course which serves both majors and non-majors in Trinity's Environmental Science Program. This dual audience makes the introduction of quantitative exercises labor intensive and challenging for both students and instructor. TMYN was introduced to a) offer the students an independent support structure outside of class and to b) free up some class and office hour time that would have been spent on mathematical background information. THMY was added to the course as a set of homework assignments preceding related laboratory exercises and homework assignments. During the semester most feedback regarding TMYN was negative. Some outspoken students either saw it as additional busywork or generally disliked "being taught by a computer". A review of pre- and post-test data, however, revealed that the exercises improved students' quantitative skills. Furthermore, in the assignments most students ranked the exercises as useful and rewarding. These positive results were relatively independent of student skill levels.

Tracing "Ethical Subjectivities" in Science Education: How Biology Textbooks Can Frame Ethico-Political Choices for Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bazzul, Jesse

2015-02-01

This article describes how biology textbooks can work to discursively constitute a particular kind of "ethical subjectivity." Not only do textbooks constrain the possibilities for thought and action regarding ethical issues, they also require a certain kind of "subject" to partake in ethical exercises and questions. This study looks at how ethical questions/exercises found in four Ontario textbooks require students and teachers to think and act along specific lines. These include making ethical decisions within a legal-juridical frame; deciding what kinds of research should be publically funded; optimizing personal and population health; and regulation through policy and legislation. While engaging ethical issues in these ways is useful, educators should also question the kinds of (ethical) subjectivities that are partially constituted by discourses of science education. If science education is going to address twenty-first century problems such as climate change and social inequality, educators need to address how the possibilities for ethical engagement afforded to students work to constitute specific kinds of "ethical actors."

Students' Understanding of Alkyl Halide Reactions in Undergraduate Organic Chemistry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cruz-Ramirez de Arellano, Daniel

2013-01-01

Organic chemistry is an essential subject for many undergraduate students completing degrees in science, engineering, and pre-professional programs. However, students often struggle with the concepts and skills required to successfully solve organic chemistry exercises. Since alkyl halides are traditionally the first functional group that is…

Students' Understanding of Alkyl Halide Reactions in Undergraduate Organic Chemistry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cruz-Ramírez de Arellano, Daniel; Towns, Marcy H.

2014-01-01

Organic chemistry is an essential subject for many undergraduate students completing degrees in science, engineering, and pre-professional programs. However, students often struggle with the concepts and skills required to successfully solve organic chemistry exercises. Since alkyl halides are traditionally the first functional group that is…

Predicting Precipitation in Darwin: An Experiment with Markov Chains

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boncek, John; Harden, Sig

2009-01-01

As teachers of first-year college mathematics and science students, the authors are constantly on the lookout for simple classroom exercises that improve their students' analytical and computational skills. In this article, the authors outline a project entitled "Predicting Precipitation in Darwin." In this project, students: (1) analyze…

Earth Science Curriculum Enrichment Through Matlab!

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Salmun, H.; Buonaiuto, F. S.

2016-12-01

The use of Matlab in Earth Science undergraduate courses in the Department of Geography at Hunter College began as a pilot project in Fall 2008 and has evolved and advanced to being a significant component of an Advanced Oceanography course, the selected tool for data analysis in other courses and the main focus of a graduate course for doctoral students at The city University of New York (CUNY) working on research related to geophysical, oceanic and atmospheric dynamics. The primary objectives of these efforts were to enhance the Earth Science curriculum through course specific applications, to increase undergraduate programming and data analysis skills, and to develop a Matlab users network within the Department and the broader Hunter College and CUNY community. Students have had the opportunity to learn Matlab as a stand-alone course, within an independent study group, or as a laboratory component within related STEM classes. All of these instructional efforts incorporated the use of prepackaged Matlab exercises and a research project. Initial exercises were designed to cover basic scripting and data visualization techniques. Students were provided data and a skeleton script to modify and improve upon based on the laboratory instructions. As student's programming skills increased throughout the semester more advanced scripting, data mining and data analysis were assigned. In order to illustrate the range of applications within the Earth Sciences, laboratory exercises were constructed around topics selected from the disciplines of Geology, Physics, Oceanography, Meteorology and Climatology. In addition the structure of the research component of the courses included both individual and team projects.

Making Quantitative Genetics Relevant: Effectiveness of a Laboratory Investigation that Links Scientific Research, Commercial Applications, and Legal Issues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rutledge, Michael L.; Mathis, Philip M.; Seipelt, Rebecca L.

2005-01-01

As students apply their knowledge of scientific concepts and of science as a method of inquiry, learning becomes relevant. This laboratory exercise is designed to foster students' understanding of the genetics of quantitative traits and of the nature of science as a method of inquiry by engaging them in a real-world business scenario. During the…

Teaching and Learning Science in Authoritative Classrooms: Teachers' Power and Students' Approval in Korean Elementary Classrooms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Jeong-A.; Kim, Chan-Jong

2017-09-01

This study aims to understand interactions in Korean elementary science classrooms, which are heavily influenced by Confucianism. Ethnographic observations of two elementary science teachers' classrooms in Korea are provided. Their classes are fairly traditional teaching, which mean teacher-centered interactions are dominant. To understand the power and approval in science classroom discourse, we have adopted Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA). Based on CDA, form and function analysis was adopted. After the form and function analysis, all episodes were analyzed in terms of social distance. The results showed that both teachers exercised their power while teaching. However, their classes were quite different in terms of getting approval by students. When a teacher got students' approval, he could conduct the science lesson more effectively. This study highlights the importance of getting approval by students in Korean science classrooms.

Using Affinity Chromatography to Investigate Novel Protein–Protein Interactions in an Undergraduate Cell and Molecular Biology Lab Course

PubMed Central

2009-01-01

Inquiry-driven lab exercises require students to think carefully about a question, carry out an investigation of that question, and critically analyze the results of their investigation. Here, we describe the implementation and assessment of an inquiry-based laboratory exercise in which students obtain and analyze novel data that contribute to our understanding of macromolecular trafficking between the nucleus and cytoplasm in eukaryotic cells. Although many of the proteins involved in nucleocytoplasmic transport are known, the physical interactions between some of these polypeptides remain uncharacterized. In this cell and molecular biology lab exercise, students investigate novel protein–protein interactions between factors involved in nuclear RNA export. Using recombinant protein expression, protein extraction, affinity chromatography, SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and Western blotting, undergraduates in a sophomore-level lab course identified a previously unreported association between the soluble mRNA transport factor Mex67 and the C-terminal region of the yeast nuclear pore complex protein Nup1. This exercise immersed students in the process of investigative science, from proposing and performing experiments through analyzing data and reporting outcomes. On completion of this investigative lab sequence, students reported enhanced understanding of the scientific process, increased proficiency with cellular and molecular methods and content, greater understanding of data analysis and the importance of appropriate controls, an enhanced ability to communicate science effectively, and an increased enthusiasm for scientific research and for the lab component of the course. The modular nature of this exercise and its focus on asking novel questions about protein–protein interactions make it easily transferable to undergraduate lab courses performed in a wide variety of contexts. PMID:19723816

The Puzzle of Science; Making Sense of Incomplete Information

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shorey, B. U.

2015-12-01

There are many topics within Earth science including evolution, historical geology, and climate change, which have gained the status of theory becuse they have overwhelming evidence, yet there is still fragmentary information which can frustrate a student from coming to solid conclusions. Using a jigsaw puzzle whose image has been hidden, and the pieces only given out sparingly, students go though the process of getting more information. How does one get more puzzle pieces and what is the interpretive process? Experience with this exercise demonstrates how students can sketch out an incredibly accurate conception of the "big picture", despite not having all the puzzle pieces. The goal of this talk is to give a complete tool kit to perform as a comprehensive lesson plan. Guiding questions and copies of lesson plans and materials are supplied for this exercise.

Water in the Solar System: The Development of Science Education Curriculum Focused on Planetary Exploration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Edgar, L. A.; Anderson, R. B.; Gaither, T. A.; Milazzo, M. P.; Vaughan, R. G.; Rubino-Hare, L.; Clark, J.; Ryan, S.

2017-12-01

"Water in the Solar System" is an out-of-school time (OST) science education activity for middle school students that was developed as part of the Planetary Learning that Advances the Nexus of Engineering, Technology, and Science (PLANETS) project. The PLANETS project was selected in support of the NASA Science Mission Directorate's Science Education Cooperative Agreement Notice, with the goal of developing and disseminating OST curriculum and related professional development modules that integrate planetary science, technology, and engineering. "Water in the Solar System" is a science activity that addresses the abundance and availability of water in the solar system. The activity consists of three exercises based on the following guiding questions: 1) How much water is there on the Earth? 2) Where can you find water in the solar system? and 3) What properties affect whether or not water can be used by astronauts? The three exercises involve a scaling relationship demonstration about the abundance of useable water on Earth, a card game to explore where water is found in the solar system, and a hands-on exercise to investigate pH and salinity. Through these activities students learn that although there is a lot of water on Earth, most of it is not in a form that is accessible for humans to use. They also learn that most water in the solar system is actually farther from the sun, and that properties such as salinity and pH affect whether water can be used by humans. In addition to content for students, the activity includes background information for educators, and links to in-depth descriptions of the science content. "Water in the Solar System" was developed through collaboration between subject matter experts at the USGS Astrogeology Science Center, and curriculum and professional development experts in the Center for Science Teaching and Learning at Northern Arizona University. Here we describe our process of curriculum development, education objectives of "Water in the Solar System" and lessons learned.

The impact of collaborative groups versus individuals in undergraduate inquiry-based astronomy laboratory learning exercises

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sibbernsen, Kendra J.

One of the long-standing general undergraduate education requirements common to many colleges and universities is a science course with a laboratory experience component. One of the objectives frequently included in the description of most of these courses is that a student will understand the nature and processes of scientific inquiry. However, recent research has shown that learners in traditional undergraduate science laboratory environments are not developing a sufficiently meaningful understanding of scientific inquiry. Recently, astronomy laboratory activities have been developed that intentionally scaffold a student from guided activities to open inquiry ones and preliminary results show that these laboratories are successful for supporting students to understand the nature of scientific inquiry (Slater, S., Slater, T. F., & Shaner, 2008). This mixed-method quasi-experimental study was designed to determine how students in an undergraduate astronomy laboratory increase their understanding of inquiry working in relative isolation compared to working in small collaborative learning groups. The introductory astronomy laboratory students in the study generally increased their understanding of scientific inquiry over the course of the semester and this held true similarly for students working in groups and students working individually in the laboratories. This was determined by the examining the change in responses from the pretest to the posttest administration of the Views of Scientific Inquiry (VOSI) survey, the increase in scores on laboratory exercises, and observations from the instructor. Because the study was successful in determining that individuals in the astronomy laboratory do as well at understanding inquiry as those who complete their exercises in small groups, it would be appropriate to offer these inquiry-based exercises in an online format.

Earth Science Outreach: A Move in the Right Direction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McLarty Halfkenny, B.; Schröder Adams, C.

2009-05-01

There is concern within the Geoscience Community about the public's limited understanding of Earth Science and its fundamental contribution to society. Earth Science plays only a minor role in public school education in Ontario leaving many students to stumble upon this field of study in post-secondary institutions. As the Earth Sciences offer relevant advice for political decisions and provide excellent career opportunities, outreach is an increasingly important component of our work. Recruitment of post-secondary students after they have chosen their discipline cannot remain the sole opportunity. Outreach must be directed to potential students at an early stage of their education. High school teachers are influential, directing students towards professional careers. Therefore we are first committed to reach these teachers. We provide professional development, resources and continued support, building an enthusiastic community of educators. Specific initiatives include: a three day workshop supported by a grant from EdGEO introducing earth science exercises and local field destinations; a resource kit with minerals, rocks, fossils, mineral identification tools and manuals; a CD with prepared classroom exercises; and in-class demonstrations and field trip guiding on request. Maintaining a growing network with teachers has proven highly effective. Direct public school student engagement is also given priority. We inspire students through interaction with researchers and graduate students, hand-on exercises, and by providing opportunities to visit our department and work with our collections. Successful projects include our week-long course "School of Rock" for the Enrichment Mini-Course Program, classroom visits and presentations on the exciting and rewarding career paths in geology during Carleton University open houses. Outreach to the general public allows us to educate the wider community about the Geoheritage of our region, and initiate discussions about science and global issues such as climate science and stewardship of our natural resources. A new initiative for Science and Technology Week, 'Explore Geoheritage Day' introduced the public to the geological history of the National Capital Region. We have found collaborations with other agencies very effective. We work with PDAC's "Mining Matters", LTS, the Ottawa Gatineau Geoheritage Project, Ottawa Heritage, STAO, local school boards, naturalist groups, and other community organizations to promote Earth Science education. Our efforts over the last 5 years have brought tangible results in: a) a considerable increase in student enrolment at the university level in our department; b) increased teaching of the Grade 12 Earth and Space Sciences course at local high schools through teachers who were inspired by our workshops; c) a flourishing network of enthusiastic earth science educators sharing ideas with us to define each other's needs; and d) a growing interaction with the general public. Future initiatives need to consider lobbying for curriculum changes to give Earth Science a prominent place in the public education system. As well, only few university education departments currently allow Earth Science graduates into their programs, requiring them to first take additional courses in other "teachable" subjects. This must change. University graduates with an Earth Science degree and an interest in teaching must be permitted direct entry into these programs so that their skills will be passed on to the next generation of science students.

Cross-disciplinary thermoregulation and sweat analysis laboratory experiences for undergraduate Chemistry and Exercise Science students.

PubMed

Mulligan, Gregory; Taylor, Nichole; Glen, Mary; Tomlin, Dona; Gaul, Catherine A

2011-06-01

Cross-disciplinary (CD) learning experiences benefit student understanding of concepts and curriculum by offering opportunities to explore topics from the perspectives of alternate fields of study. This report involves a qualitative evaluation of CD health sciences undergraduate laboratory experiences in which concepts and students from two distinct disciplines [chemistry (CHEM) and exercise physiology (EPHE)] combined to study exercise thermoregulation and sweat analysis. Twenty-eight senior BSc Kinesiology (EPHE) students and 42 senior BSc CHEM students participated as part of their mutually exclusive, respective courses. The effectiveness of this laboratory environment was evaluated qualitatively using written comments collected from all students as well as from formal focus groups conducted after the CD laboratory with a representative cohort from each class (n = 16 CHEM students and 9 EPHE students). An open coding strategy was used to analyze the data from written feedback and focus group transcripts. Coding topics were generated and used to develop five themes found to be consistent for both groups of students. These themes reflected the common student perceptions that the CD experience was valuable and that students enjoyed being able to apply academic concepts to practical situations as well as the opportunity to interact with students from another discipline of study. However, students also reported some challenges throughout this experience that stemmed from the combination of laboratory groups from different disciplines with limited modification to the design of the original, pre-CD, learning environments. The results indicate that this laboratory created an effective learning opportunity that fostered student interest and enthusiasm for learning. The findings also provide information that could inform subsequent design and implementation of similar CD experiences to enhance engagement of all students and improve instructor efficacy.

Digitized Educational Technology: A Learning Tool Using Remotely Sensed Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Love, Gloria Carter

1999-01-01

Digitized Educational software for different levels of instruction were developed and placed on the web (geocities). Students attending the Pre-Engineering Summer 1998 Camp at Dillard University explored the use of the software which included presentations, applications, and special exercises. Student comments were received and considered for adjustments. The second outreach program included students from Colton Junior High School and Natural Science Majors at Dillard University. The Natural Majors completed a second survey concerning reasons why students selected majors in the Sciences and Mathematics. Two student research assistants (DU) and faculty members/parents of Colton Junior High assisted.

Structural Biology of Tumor Necrosis Factor Demonstrated for Undergraduates Instruction by Computer Simulation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roy, Urmi

2016-01-01

This work presents a three-dimensional (3D) modeling exercise for undergraduate students in chemistry and health sciences disciplines, focusing on a protein-group linked to immune system regulation. Specifically, the exercise involves molecular modeling and structural analysis of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) proteins, both wild type and mutant. The…

Imploding Soda Cans: From Demonstration to Guided-Inquiry Laboratory Activity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eichler, Jack F.

2009-01-01

A guided-inquiry exercise conducted in both the lecture and laboratory components of a college introductory chemistry course for non-science majors is described. The exercise gave students the opportunity to independently determine the relationship between the temperature of water in an aluminum soda can and the intensity of implosion upon placing…

Using "Fremyella Diplosiphon" as a Model Organism for Genetics-Based Laboratory Exercises

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Montgomery, Beronda L.

2011-01-01

In this pilot study, a genetics-based laboratory exercise using the cyanobacterium Fremyella diplosiphon was developed and trialled with thirteen Natural Sciences undergraduates. Despite most students only having limited prior exposure to molecular genetics laboratory methods, this cohort confirmed that they were able to follow the protocol and…

Problem-Based Learning and Creative Instructional Approaches for Laboratory Exercises in Introductory Crop Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Teplitski, Max; McMahon, Margaret J.

2006-01-01

The implementation of problem-based learning (PBL) and other inquiry-driven educational techniques is often resisted by both faculty and students, who may not be comfortable with this learning/instructional style. We present here a hybrid approach, which combines elements of expository education with inquiry-driven laboratory exercises and…

George Orwell's Animal Farm: a case study in leadership/management for undergraduate nursing students.

PubMed

Metcalf, James A

2005-07-01

Many BSN curricula require a "leadership and management" course. At George Mason University, that course is Leadership and Management in Nursing and Health Science. This article describes how George Orwell's classic novel Animal Farm was used as a case study in leadership and management. This exercise complemented the traditional course material, united the class in a common intellectual exercise, and fostered creative thinking. A nursing student, Anne Lord, offers reaction to the assignment as a signed "In-Box" exemplar.

Osteoporosis Knowledge among Future Healthcare Practitioners: Findings from a Malaysian Public University

PubMed Central

Elnaem, Mohamed Hassan; Jamshed, Shazia Qasim; Elkalmi, Ramadan Mohamed; Baharuddin, Muhammad Farhan; Johari, Muhammad Afif; Aziz, Nur Ashikin Binti Ab; Sabri, Siti Farhanah Binti Ahmad; Ismail, Nur Akmal Binti

2017-01-01

Background and Objectives: Students in relevant health-care academic programs are the future professionals who should play an active role in increasing community awareness regarding chronic diseases such as osteoporosis. This research aimed to evaluate the knowledge of osteoporosis, one of the growing health-care burdens in Malaysia, among students belong to three different health occupations programs in a Malaysian University. Methods: A cross-sectional study design was conducted to assess the level of knowledge on osteoporosis and to explore the potential association between the study program and osteoporosis-related knowledge among medicine, pharmacy, and allied health sciences students in a Malaysian University. A total of 348 students were approached. The data were collected using validated revised Osteoporosis Knowledge Test questionnaire. Results: The results showed variability in knowledge score between students belonging to different study programs. allied health sciences students have the highest overall total score (median = 20) and nutrition score (median = 16), but for exercise score, both students in allied health sciences and medicine programs shared a similar median score (median = 11.5). More than half of the respondents showed adequate knowledge on osteoporosis. The students from allied health sciences exhibited more knowledge on osteoporosis compared to students in other study programs. Among the Kulliyyah of Pharmacy respondents, the majority did not manage to answer correctly on the whole scale. This was evident by total percentage of 69.91% of the respondents scored below than median score. Conclusion: There is a considerable gap of knowledge regarding osteoporosis among students in various health occupations academic programs. Pharmacy students particularly need focused learning related to exercise and nutrition in preventing osteoporosis during their academic program. PMID:28717334

Osteoporosis Knowledge among Future Healthcare Practitioners: Findings from a Malaysian Public University.

PubMed

Elnaem, Mohamed Hassan; Jamshed, Shazia Qasim; Elkalmi, Ramadan Mohamed; Baharuddin, Muhammad Farhan; Johari, Muhammad Afif; Aziz, Nur Ashikin Binti Ab; Sabri, Siti Farhanah Binti Ahmad; Ismail, Nur Akmal Binti

2017-01-01

Students in relevant health-care academic programs are the future professionals who should play an active role in increasing community awareness regarding chronic diseases such as osteoporosis. This research aimed to evaluate the knowledge of osteoporosis, one of the growing health-care burdens in Malaysia, among students belong to three different health occupations programs in a Malaysian University. A cross-sectional study design was conducted to assess the level of knowledge on osteoporosis and to explore the potential association between the study program and osteoporosis-related knowledge among medicine, pharmacy, and allied health sciences students in a Malaysian University. A total of 348 students were approached. The data were collected using validated revised Osteoporosis Knowledge Test questionnaire. The results showed variability in knowledge score between students belonging to different study programs. allied health sciences students have the highest overall total score (median = 20) and nutrition score (median = 16), but for exercise score, both students in allied health sciences and medicine programs shared a similar median score (median = 11.5). More than half of the respondents showed adequate knowledge on osteoporosis. The students from allied health sciences exhibited more knowledge on osteoporosis compared to students in other study programs. Among the Kulliyyah of Pharmacy respondents, the majority did not manage to answer correctly on the whole scale. This was evident by total percentage of 69.91% of the respondents scored below than median score. There is a considerable gap of knowledge regarding osteoporosis among students in various health occupations academic programs. Pharmacy students particularly need focused learning related to exercise and nutrition in preventing osteoporosis during their academic program.

Using Experiential Learning Through Science Experiments to Increase the Motivation of Students Classified as Emotionally Disturbed

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crozier, Marisa

When learning is an adventure rather than an exercise in memorization, students can enjoy the process and be motivated to participate in classroom activities (Clem, Mennicke, & Beasley, 2014). Students classified as emotionally disturbed are prone to disruptive behaviors and struggle learning in a traditional science classroom consisting of lecture and demonstrations. They cannot maintain the necessary level of attention nor have the strong reading, writing or memory skills needed to succeed. Therefore, this study examined whether the use of experiential learning would increase on-task behavior and improve the motivation of emotionally disturbed, middle school students in science. Students completed four hands-on experiments aligned with the science curriculum. The data collection methods implemented were an observation checklist with corresponding journal entries, a summative assessment in the form of lab sheets, and student interviews. Through triangulation and analysis, data revealed that the students had more on-task behaviors, were engaged in the lessons, and improved grades in science.

Teaching and Learning about Qualitative Research in the Social Sciences: An Experiential Learning Approach Amongst Marketing Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hopkinson, Gillian C.; Hogg, Margaret K.

2004-01-01

There is significant evidence that student-centred approaches to learning using experiential exercises considerably enhance students' understanding of substantive theory and also aid acquisition of transferable skills, such as those pertaining to research management and investigation. We consider an experiential pedagogic approach to be…

Theory into Practice--The Translation of Research Findings into the Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kennedy, Eileen

This paper discusses a research project that investigated the effectiveness of student surveys administered to eighth grade students on student involvement and learning. The surveys are called "Thinking About" and are presented at the beginning of each chapter in Core Science Textbooks. Two exercises were chosen for the study--chemical or physical…

The Impact of a Student-Led Pedometer Intervention Incorporating Cognitive-Behavioral Strategies on Step Count and Self-Efficacy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Raedeke, Thomas D.; Focht, Brian C.; King, Jenna S.

2010-01-01

This study evaluated the effectiveness of a student-led physical activity intervention that incorporated pedometers and cognitive-behavioral strategies. Undergraduate students (N = 117) enrolled in upper division exercise and sport science courses recruited participants. Participants in the cognitive-behavioral intervention condition received…

Group Work and Leadership: Perception of FCS Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arendt, Susan W.; Gregoire, Mary B.

2006-01-01

No known studies have examined the perception of family and consumer science (FCS) students related to group work in the classroom and its relationship to leadership. In this qualitative study, two groups of FCS students--hospitality management and dietetics--viewed group projects as exercises in leadership skills that had many barriers.…

Knowledge of healthy foods does not translate to healthy snack consumption among exercise science undergraduates.

PubMed

McArthur, Laura H; Valentino, Antonette; Holbert, Donald

2017-06-01

This cross-sectional survey study compared the on- and off-campus snack choices and related correlates of convenience samples of exercise science (ES) ( n = 165, M = 45%, F = 55%) and non-exercise science (NES) ( n =160, M = 43%, F = 57%) undergraduates. The hypothesis posed was that knowledge of healthy foods will not translate to healthier snack consumption by the ES students, and that the snack choices and related correlates of ES and NES students will be similar. Data were collected using self-administered questionnaires completed in classrooms (ES sample) and at high-traffic locations on-campus (NES sample). Chi-square and t-test analyses compared ES and NES students on snack correlates. Snacks consumed most often by the ES and NES students on-campus were health bars/squares ( n = 56 vs. n = 48) and savory snacks ( n = 55 vs. n = 71), and off-campus were savory snacks ( n = 60 vs. n = 71) and fruits ( n = 41 vs. n = 34). Over half of both samples believed their snack choices were a mix of unhealthy and healthy. Fruits were considered healthier snacks and chips less healthy by both samples, and fruits were the most often recommended snack. About 20% believed these choices would impact their health unfavorably, and about two thirds self-classified in the action stages for healthy snacking. Since knowledge about healthy food choices did not translate to healthy snack selection, these students would benefit from interventions that teach selection and preparation of healthy snacks on a restricted budget.

Assessing the Effectiveness of Inquiry-based Learning Techniques Implemented in Large Classroom Settings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Steer, D. N.; McConnell, D. A.; Owens, K.

2001-12-01

Geoscience and education faculty at The University of Akron jointly developed a series of inquiry-based learning modules aimed at both non-major and major student populations enrolled in introductory geology courses. These courses typically serve 2500 students per year in four to six classes of 40-160 students each per section. Twelve modules were developed that contained common topics and assessments appropriate to Earth Science, Environmental Geology and Physical Geology classes. All modules were designed to meet four primary learning objectives agreed upon by Department of Geology faculty. These major objectives include: 1) Improvement of student understanding of the scientific method; 2) Incorporation of problem solving strategies involving analysis, synthesis, and interpretation; 3) Development of the ability to distinguish between inferences, data and observations; and 4) Obtaining an understanding of basic processes that operate on Earth. Additional objectives that may be addressed by selected modules include: 1) The societal relevance of science; 2) Use and interpretation of quantitative data to better understand the Earth; 3) Development of the students' ability to communicate scientific results; 4) Distinguishing differences between science, religion and pseudo-science; 5) Evaluation of scientific information found in the mass media; and 6) Building interpersonal relationships through in-class group work. Student pre- and post-instruction progress was evaluated by administering a test of logical thinking, an attitude toward science survey, and formative evaluations. Scores from the logical thinking instrument were used to form balanced four-person working groups based on the students' incoming cognitive level. Groups were required to complete a series of activities and/or exercises that targeted different cognitive domains based upon Bloom's taxonomy (knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation of information). Daily assessments of knowledge-level learning included evaluations of student responses to pre- and post-instruction conceptual test questions, short group exercises and content-oriented exam questions. Higher level thinking skills were assessed when students completed exercises that required the completion of Venn diagrams, concept maps and/or evaluation rubrics both during class periods and on exams. Initial results indicate that these techniques improved student attendance significantly and improved overall retention in the course by 8-14% over traditional lecture formats. Student scores on multiple choice exam questions were slightly higher (1-3%) for students taught in the active learning environment and short answer questions showed larger gains (7%) over students' scores in a more traditional class structure.

Development of a transferable student engagement and knowledge retention framework for the earth sciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Palsole, Sunay Vasant

The earth sciences play an important role in engaging students in science and in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines, because of the integrative nature of the disciplines. It then becomes important for us to provide an engaging experience for students taking earth science courses, because it serves a dual purpose of possibly increasing new majors in the discipline and helping to create a science literate population. Given that a majority of students in the larger introductory courses are non-majors, it behooves us to explore alternative engagement techniques and measure their efficacy in student engagement, which in turn can help inform instructional design for advanced geoscience courses. This study focused on creating a highly engaging course using inquiry based learning scenarios inter-spread throughout the semester along with heuristic quizzes (a series of questions in a specific sequence that map to a process) with very specific feedback that help students understand the development of the earth processes. Along with the heuristic quizzes, the course was transformed into an active learning based hybrid course, where the didactic content was uploaded and made available to the students using a learning management system and class time was spent working on application exercises that were developed by me. I chose specific scenarios and processes that the students could possibly encounter in the greater El Paso region to provide a local and situational aspect to the exercises. The course and instructional design process followed a period of 18 months with each semester providing data to jigsaw into the final design. Student performance data, both qualitative (self efficacy, self reported engagement ) as well as quantitative scales (performance on assessments, course grades) was collected over the entire development period. Comparative data of the hybrid course and a traditional course indicate improved student performance in the active learning course over the traditional course. The data also indicate that the students had greater content retention 8 week after the course had ended in the hybrid course over the traditional course. The study then presents a nascent model for the design of earth science courses.

Engaging Students by Emphasising Botanical Concepts over Techniques: Innovative Practical Exercises Using Virtual Microscopy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bonser, Stephen P.; de Permentier, Patrick; Green, Jacinta; Velan, Gary M.; Adam, Paul; Kumar, Rakesh K.

2013-01-01

Student interest in botany and enrolment in plant sciences courses tends to be low compared to that in other biological disciplines. One potential way of increasing student interest in botany is to focus on course material designed to raise student enthusiasm and satisfaction. Here, we introduce and evaluate virtual microscopy in botany teaching.…

Discovery of the Collaborative Nature of Science with Undergraduate Science Majors and Non-Science Majors through the Identification of Microorganisms Enriched in Winogradsky Columns.

PubMed

Ramirez, Jasmine; Pinedo, Catalina Arango; Forster, Brian M

2015-12-01

Today's science classrooms are addressing the need for non-scientists to become scientifically literate. A key aspect includes the recognition of science as a process for discovery. This process relies upon interdisciplinary collaboration. We designed a semester-long collaborative exercise that allows science majors taking a general microbiology course and non-science majors taking an introductory environmental science course to experience collaboration in science by combining their differing skill sets to identify microorganisms enriched in Winogradsky columns. These columns are self-sufficient ecosystems that allow researchers to study bacterial populations under specified environmental conditions. Non-science majors identified phototrophic bacteria enriched in the column by analyzing the signature chlorophyll absorption spectra whereas science majors used 16S rRNA gene sequencing to identify the general bacterial diversity. Students then compiled their results and worked together to generate lab reports with their final conclusions identifying the microorganisms present in their column. Surveys and lab reports were utilized to evaluate the learning objectives of this activity. In pre-surveys, nonmajors' and majors' answers diverged considerably, with majors providing responses that were more accurate and more in line with the working definition of collaboration. In post-surveys, the answers between majors and nonmajors converged, with both groups providing accurate responses. Lab reports showed that students were able to successfully identify bacteria present in the columns. These results demonstrate that laboratory exercises designed to group students across disciplinary lines can be an important tool in promoting science education across disciplines.

Laboratory Instruction in the Service of Science Teaching and Learning: Reinventing and Reinvigorating the Laboratory Experience

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McComas, William

2005-01-01

The Benchmarks for Science Literacy and the National Science Education Standards strongly suggest that students should be engaged in hands-on learning. However, from many corners, the original "mental training" rationale for school labs has been criticized, the "cookbook" nature of laboratory exercises condemned, and the prevalence of using…

Group Active Engagement Exercises: Pursuing the Recommendations of "Vision and Change" in an Introductory Undergraduate Science Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jardine, Hannah E.; Levin, Daniel M.; Quimby, B. Booth; Cooke, Todd J.

2017-01-01

"Vision and Change in Undergraduate Education: A Call to Action," published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2011, suggested cultivating biological literacy and practicing more student-centered learning in undergraduate life sciences education. We report here on the use of Group Active Engagement (GAE)…

Looking into the Earth

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mussett, Alan E.; Aftab Khan, M.; Button, Illustrated By Sue

2000-12-01

Looking Into the Earth comprehensively describes the principles and applications of both `global' and `exploration' geophysics on all scales. It forms an introduction to geophysics suitable for those who do not necessarily intend to become professional geophysicists, including geologists, civil engineers, environmental scientists, and field archaeologists. The book is organised into two parts: Part 1 describes the geophysical methods, while Part 2 illustrates their use in a number of extended case histories. Mathematical and physical principles are introduced at an elementary level, and then developed as necessary. Student questions and exercises are included at the end of each chapter. The book is aimed primarily at introductory and intermediate university students taking courses in geology, earth science, environmental science, and engineering. It will also form an excellent introductory textbook in geophysics departments, and will help practising geologists, archaeologists and engineers understand what geophysics can offer their work. Accessible to students with little background in maths and physics Covers both global and applied geophysics Well illustrated and contains many student exercises and case studies Written by experienced teachers of geophysics

[Approach to Evidence-based Medicine Exercises Using Flipped Teaching: Introductory Education for Clinical Practice for 4th-Year Pharmacy Students].

PubMed

Onda, Mitsuko; Takagaki, Nobumasa

2018-01-01

　Osaka University of Pharmaceutical Sciences has included an evidence-based medicine (EBM) exercise in the introductory education for clinical practice for 4th-year pharmacy students since 2015. The purpose of this exercise is to learn the process of practice and basic concepts of EBM, especially to cultivate the practical ability to solve patients' problems and answer their questions. Additionally, in 2016, we have attempted flipped teaching. The students are instructed to review the basic knowledge necessary for active learning in this exercise by watching video teaching materials and to bring reports summarizing the contents on the flipped teaching days. The program includes short lectures [overview of EBM, document retrieval, randomized controlled trials (RCTs), and systematic review], exercises [patient, intervention, comparison, outcome (PICO) structuring, critical appraisal of papers in small groups with tutors], and presentations. The program includes: step 1, PICO structuring based on scenarios; step 2, critical appraisal of English-language papers on RCTs using evaluation worksheets; and step 3, reviewing the results of the PICO exercise with patients. The results of the review are shared among groups through general discussion. In this symposium, I discuss students' attitudes, the effectiveness of small group discussions using flipped teaching, and future challenges to be addressed in this program.

Science Laboratory Exercises for Vocational Agriculture Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thompson, Dale E.

This manual provides learning activities for use in two vocational agriculture courses--ornamental horticulture I and agricultural technology I. These activities are intended as aids in the teaching of application of science principles. An introductory chart gives a summary of how vocational agriculture objectives match objectives of specific…

Simulations in a Science and Society Course.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maier, Mark H.; Venanzi, Thomas

1984-01-01

Provides a course outline which includes simulation exercises designed as in-class activities related to science and society interactions. Simulations focus on the IQ debate, sociobiology, nuclear weapons and nulcear strategy, nuclear power and radiation, computer explosion, and cosmology. Indicates that learning improves when students take active…

Phun Week: Understanding Physiology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Limson, Mel; Matyas, Marsha Lakes

2009-01-01

Topics such as sports, exercise, health, and nutrition can make the science of physiology relevant and engaging for students. In addition, many lessons on these topics, such as those on the cardiovascular, respiratory, and digestive systems, align with national and state life science education standards. Physiology Understanding Week (PhUn…

Acute Effect of Various Exercise Intensities on Cognitive Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ceylan, Halil Ibrahim; Saygin, Ozcan

2018-01-01

The aim of this study was to examine the acute effect of various exercise intensities on coincidence anticipation timing at different stimulus speeds. Fifteen male students who attend to Faculty of Sport Sciences at Mugla Sitki Kocman University, have been dealing with individual or team sports and having licenses for 5 or more years with no…

A Learner-Centered Molecular Modeling Exercise for Allied Health Majors in a Biochemistry Class

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fletcher, Terace M.; Ershler, Jeff

2014-01-01

Learner-centered molecular modeling exercises in college science courses can be especially challenging for nonchemistry majors as students typically have a higher degree of anxiety and may not appreciate the relevance of the work. This article describes a learner-centered project given to allied health majors in a Biochemistry course. The project…

A Web-Based Genetic Polymorphism Learning Approach for High School Students and Science Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Amenkhienan, Ehichoya; Smith, Edward J.

2006-01-01

Variation and polymorphism are concepts that are central to genetics and genomics, primary biological disciplines in which high school students and undergraduates require a solid foundation. From 1998 through 2002, a web-based genetics education program was developed for high school teachers and students. The program included an exercise on using…

Pitching Environmental Science to Business Majors: Engaging Students in Renewable Energy Choices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodgers, Vikki L.

2014-01-01

This article describes an active learning strategy for engaging undergraduate business students, a group often ignored in scientific pedagogy, in learning about renewable energy technology and associated trade-offs. I designed a small-group activity to appeal to and engage business students, but the exercise could easily be used for a variety of…

Objecting To Dissection: A College Student's Handbook.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Anti-Vivisection Society, Chicago, IL.

In a number of states, students from kindergarten through high school have won the right to refuse to dissect or kill animals and the right to substitute an alternative project. This booklet was designed to help college science students take an ethical stand by refusing to participate in dissection exercises. The booklet begins with an overview of…

Health Instruction Packages: The Human Life Cycle.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yapundich, Eleanor F.; And Others

Text, illustrations, and exercises are utilized in these four learning modules to instruct health sciences students and other interested persons in the various stages of human development. The first module, designed by Eleanor Yapundich for associate degree nursing students learning about growth and development, examines the fundamental…

The Use of a Virtual Online Debating Platform to Facilitate Student Discussion of Potentially Polarising Topics

PubMed Central

McGreevy, Paul D.; Tzioumis, Vicky; Johnson, Jane; Brown, Robert; Sands, Mike; Starling, Melissa J.; Phillips, Clive J. C.

2017-01-01

Simple Summary The Human Continuum is a classroom exercise for secondary and tertiary students that offers a cooperative/cognitive learning strategy, requiring students to identify and commit to a position in response to a stimulus question. The purpose of the current submission is to contextualize and introduce online, a virtual human continuum for teaching purposes. It describes an innovative tool design while also reporting its use for a particular cohort: a small group of veterinary science students. Abstract The merits of students exchanging views through the so-called human continuum exercise (HCE) are well established. The current article describes the creation of the virtual human continuum (VHC), an online platform that facilitates the same teaching exercise. It also reports feedback on the VHC from veterinary science students (n = 38). First-year Doctor of Veterinary Medicine students at the University of Sydney, Australia, trialed the platform and provided feedback. Most students agreed or strongly agreed that the VHC offered: a non-threatening environment for discussing emotive and challenging issues; and an opportunity to see how other people form ideas. It also made them think about how to express their ideas and make arguments; and left them feeling more comfortable about expressing their views using it than they would discussing ideas face-to-face (98%, 84%, 79% and 76%, respectively). All respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the VHC encouraged them to consider other opinions. These data suggest that the transition of the HCE to an online platform facilitates dialogue on difficult ethical issues in a supportive environment. PMID:28869501

The Emerging Microbe Project: Developing Clinical Care Plans Based on Pathogen Identification and Clinical Case Studies †

PubMed Central

O’Donnell, Lauren A.; Perry, Michael W.; Doup, Dane’t R.

2015-01-01

For many students in the health sciences, including doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) students, basic and clinical sciences often appear detached from each other. In the infectious disease field, PharmD students additionally struggle with mastering the diversity of microorganisms and the corresponding therapies. The objective of this study was to design an interdisciplinary project that integrates fundamental microbiology with clinical research and decision-making skills. The Emerging Microbe Project guided students through the identification of a microorganism via genetic sequence analysis. The unknown microbe provided the basis for a patient case that asked the student to design a therapeutic treatment strategy for an infected patient. Outside of lecture, students had two weeks to identify the pathogen using nucleotide sequences, compose a microbiology report on the pathogen, and recommend an appropriate therapeutic treatment plan for the corresponding clinical case. We hypothesized that the students would develop a better understanding of the interplay between basic microbiology and infectious disease clinical practice, and that they would gain confidence and skill in independently selecting appropriate antimicrobial therapies for a new disease state. The exercise was conducted with PharmD students in their second professional year of pharmacy school in a required infectious disease course. Here, we demonstrate that the Emerging Microbe Project significantly improved student learning through two assessment strategies (assignment grades and exam questions), and increased student confidence in clinical infectious disease practice. This exercise could be modified for other health sciences students or undergraduates depending upon the level of clinical focus required of the course. PMID:26753029

Integrating Facebook into a University Cohort to Enhance Student Sense of Belonging: A Pilot Program in Sport and Exercise Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McGuckin, Teneale Alyce; Sealey, Rebecca Maree

2013-01-01

University initiatives that enhance a students' sense of belonging may increase student retention and the overall student experience. Previous initiatives have largely focussed on face-to-face interactions however with the high usage of social networking, an online initiative may prove beneficial. The aim of this study was to establish a Facebook…

Herbicide Leaching Column for a Weed Science Teaching Laboratory.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ahrens, W. H.

1986-01-01

Presents an experiment which enables weed science students to observe first-hand the process of herbicide leaching in soils. Features of this technique which demonstrate the movement of herbicide within a column of soil are outlined. Diagrams are provided of the apparatus employed in the exercise. (ML)

Physical Chemistry: Developing a Dynamic Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schwenz, Richard W., Ed.; Moore, Robert J., Ed.

Many teachers and other educators have expressed a concern regarding the lack of student interest in many of the traditional science courses. Concerns have also been expressed by teachers of their dissatisfaction with much of the lecture material and the laboratory exercises in some science classes. To help rectify this problem a collaborative…

Interview with a Wild Animal: Integrating Science and Language Arts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scarnati, James T.

1994-01-01

Using a unit on earthworms, this article shows how science and language arts can be successfully integrated in a middle school classroom through hands-on observation, interviewing, and writing exercises. The integration process engages students, uses class time more efficiently, encourages dialog, and improves outcomes and appreciation of the…

Ciencias 3. (Science 3). Student Book.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Raposo, Lucilia

This grade 3 textbook, the third in a series of elementary science textbooks written in Portuguese, consists of readings, activities, and review exercises on biological, physical, geological, and nutrition/health concepts. The book is organized into nine sections. Among the topic areas included in these sections are: (1) solar energy, electricity,…

Climate-Literacy Laboratory Exercises for Undergraduate Students in an Introductory Weather and Climate Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Diem, J.; Elliott, W.; Criswell, B.; Morrow, C. A.

2012-12-01

A suite of NASA-sponsored, Web-based exercises are in development for an introductory weather and climate course at Georgia State University (GSU) to improve climate literacy among undergraduate students. An extremely small percentage of the students are STEM majors. The exercises make extensive use of NASA resources and are guided in part by the concepts in Climate Literacy: The Essential Principles of Climate Science. At least two thousand undergraduate students have completed a majority of the exercises over the past two years. Nine of the twelve exercises in the course are connected strongly to climate literacy. The topics of those nine exercises are as follows: (1) Solar Irradiance, (2) Stratospheric Ozone, (3) Tropospheric Air, (4) The Carbon Cycle, (5) Global Surface Temperature, (6) Glacial-Interglacial Cycles, (7) Temperature Changes during the Past Millennium, (8) Climate & Ecosystems, and (9) Current & Future Climate Change. Two of the exercises (Tropospheric Air and The Carbon Cycle) make use of carbon dioxide (CO2) measurements made by students themselves and by a stationary CO2 monitor at GSU. The three remaining exercises, The Hadley Cell, Atlanta Weather, and Air Pollution, are less connected to multiple climate-literacy concepts; nonetheless, they provide a more complete experience for the students in the understanding of climate processes, differences between weather and climate, and human impacts on the atmosphere. All exercises are based on an inquiry-based learning cycle (i.e. 7 Es) and require substantial amounts of engagement, applied thinking, and critical thinking by the students. Not only do students become knowledgeable about the essential principles of climate change, especially global warming, but extensive use of geographical-information software and hand-held measurement devices has provided students with training in geography and technology. Student attitudes towards the labs were gathered via an on-line, anonymous survey from hundreds of students in Geography 1112 during the Fall semester of 2010. Students liked the use of high-quality imagery and animations, using Google™ earth, using Microsoft® Excel for calculations and chart production, going outside to collect data, and working in groups. Students did not like the large number of questions in some of the labs, not receiving a "lecture" in the beginning lab exercise, and improperly working Web links. Students suggested having a small lecture at the beginning in addition to having the topics be presented in the lecture sessions before doing the lab exercises as way to improve the labs. Therefore, students desired a more traditional approach to instruction. Seven lab instructors, all of whom were graduate students in the Department of Geosciences, were interviewed by the project evaluator in April of 2011. The main findings were as follows: the instructors viewed themselves as facilitators of the student-centered exercises; the students are uncomfortable with an inquiry-based approach; and there is disconnection between the lecture and lab portions of the course. Future work involves major pedagogical renovations to the exercises, training the lab instructors in the leading of inquiry-based exercises, and assessing student learning of climate-change concepts using pre- and post-tests.

Cooperative Project To Develop a Database of Discipline-Specific Workbook Exercises for Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Entomology, and Biological Sciences Courses.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ellsbury, Susan H.; And Others

A two-part text, "Science Resources: A Self-Paced Instructional Workbook," was designed to provide science students at Mississippi State University with: (1) instruction on basic library usage and reference tools common to most scientific disciplines; (2) materials adapted to specific disciplines; and (3) services available to them from the…

Thinking Connections: Concept Maps for Life Science. Book B.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burggraf, Frederick

The concept maps contained in this book (for grades 7-12) span 35 topics in life science. Topics were chosen using the National Science Education Standards as a guide. The practice exercise in concept mapping is included to give students an idea of what the tasks ahead will be in content rich maps. Two levels of concept maps are included for each…

MLS student active learning within a "cloud" technology program.

PubMed

Tille, Patricia M; Hall, Heather

2011-01-01

In November 2009, the MLS program in a large public university serving a geographically large, sparsely populated state instituted an initiative for the integration of technology enhanced teaching and learning within the curriculum. This paper is intended to provide an introduction to the system requirements and sample instructional exercises used to create an active learning technology-based classroom. Discussion includes the following: 1.) define active learning and the essential components, 2.) summarize teaching methods, technology and exercises utilized within a "cloud" technology program, 3.) describe a "cloud" enhanced classroom and programming 4.) identify active learning tools and exercises that can be implemented into laboratory science programs, and 5.) describe the evaluation and assessment of curriculum changes and student outcomes. The integration of technology in the MLS program is a continual process and is intended to provide student-driven active learning experiences.

Utilizing the Scientist as Teacher Through the Initiating New Science Partnerships in Rural Education (INSPIRE) Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pierce, D.; McNeal, K. S.; Radencic, S.

2011-12-01

The presence of a scientist or other STEM expert in secondary school science classroom can provide fresh new ideas for student learning. Through the Initiating New Science Partnerships in Rural Education (INSPIRE) program sponsored by NSF Graduate STEM Fellows in K-12 Education (GK-12), scientists and engineers at Mississippi State University work together with graduate students and area teachers to provide hands-on inquiry-based learning to middle school and high school students. Competitively selected graduate fellows from geosciences, physics, chemistry, and engineering spend ten hours per week in participating classrooms for an entire school year, working as a team with their assigned teacher to provide outstanding instruction in science and mathematics and to serve as positive role models for the students. We are currently in the second year of our five-year program, and we have already made significant achievements in science and mathematics instruction. We successfully hosted GIS Day on the Mississippi State University campus, allowing participating students to design an emergency response to a simulated flooding of the Mississippi Delta. We have also developed new laboratory exercises for high school physics classrooms, including a 3-D electric field mapping exercise, and the complete development of a robotics design course. Many of the activities developed by the fellows and teachers are written into formal lesson plans that are made publicly available as free downloads through our project website. All participants in this program channel aspects of their research interests and methods into classroom learning, thus providing students with the real-world applications of STEM principles. In return, participants enhance their own communication and scientific inquiry skills by employing lesson design techniques that are similar to defining their own research questions.

Chaotic....!! Active and Engaged. Effects of an active learning classroom on student retention and engagement.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Palsole, S.; Serpa, L. F.

2014-12-01

Scientific literacy has been defined as the foremost challenge of this decade (AAAS, 2012). The Geological Society of American in its position statement postis that due to the systemic nature of the discipline of earth science, it is the most effective way to engage students in STEM disciplines. Given that the most common place for exposure to earth sciences is at the freshman level for non majors, we decided to transform a freshman introductory geology course to an active, student centered course, using an inquiry based approach. Our focus was to ensure the students saw the earth sciences as broadly applicative field, and not an esoteric science. To achieve this goal, we developed a series of problems that required the students to apply the concepts acquired through their self guided learning into the different topics of the course. This self guided learning took the form of didactic content uploaded into the learning management system (the various elements used to deliver the content were designed video clips, short text based lectures, short formative assessments, discussion boards and other web based discovery exercises) with the class time devoted to problem solving. A comparison of student performance in the active learning classroom vs. a traditional classroom as measured on a geoscience concept inventory (the questions were chosen by a third party who was not teaching either courses) showed that the the students in the active learning classroom scored 10% higher on the average in comparison to the traditional class. In addition to this heightened performance, the students in the active classroom also showed a higher degree of content retention 8 weeks after the semester had ended. This session will share the design process, some exercises and efficacy data collected.

The Extraction and Partial Purification of Bacterial DNA as a Practical Exercise for GCE Advanced Level Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Falconer, A. C.; Hayes, L. J.

1986-01-01

Describes a relatively simple method of extraction and purification of bacterial DNA. This technique permits advanced secondary-level science students to obtain adequate amounts of DNA from very small pellets of bacteria and to observe some of its polymer properties. (ML)

An "in Silico" DNA Cloning Experiment for the Biochemistry Laboratory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Elkins, Kelly M.

2011-01-01

This laboratory exercise introduces students to concepts in recombinant DNA technology while accommodating a major semester project in protein purification, structure, and function in a biochemistry laboratory for junior- and senior-level undergraduate students. It is also suitable for forensic science courses focused in DNA biology and advanced…

"Earthquake!"--A Cooperative Learning Experience.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hodder, A. Peter W.

2001-01-01

Presents an exercise designed as a team building experience for managers that can be used to demonstrate to science students the potential benefit of group decision-making. Involves the ranking of options for surviving a large earthquake. Yields quantitative measures of individual student knowledge and how well the groups function. (Author/YDS)

Interactive mobile learning: a pilot study of a new approach for sport science and medical undergraduate students.

PubMed

Bruce-Low, S S; Burnet, S; Arber, K; Price, D; Webster, L; Stopforth, M

2013-12-01

Mobile learning has increasingly become interwoven into the fabric of learning and teaching in the United Kingdom higher education sector, and as technological issues become addressed, this phenomena has accelerated. The aim of the study was to examine whether learning using a mobile learning device (Samsung NC10 Netbook) loaded with interactive exercises promoted learning compared with a traditional library exercise. Using a randomized trial, 55 students from an undergraduate sports science course (n = 28) and medical course (n = 27) volunteered to participate in this study. A mixed-model design ANOVA was used to examine the percent change in test score after a 3-wk intervention. Results showed that there was a significant difference between the two courses (P < 0.001), methods (P = 0.01), and trials (P < 0.001). The findings suggested that both methods augmented student knowledge and understanding in sports science and medical students. The sports science group demonstrated proportionally greater increases in test performance when exposed to the mobile interactive intervention compared with the traditional library approach. Qualitative data suggest an increased level of engagement with the Netbooks due to the stimulating interactive content. In conclusion, the Netbooks were an effective additional learning tool, significantly enhancing knowledge and understanding in students. Further research should ensure that participants are assessed for preferred learning styles, the subjective task value of expectancy value, and readiness for mobile learning to ascertain if this has an effect on the potential for using mobile learning and interactivity.

An Active Learning Mammalian Skeletal Muscle Lab Demonstrating Contractile and Kinetic Properties of Fast- and Slow-Twitch Muscle

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Head, S. I.; Arber, M. B.

2013-01-01

The fact that humans possess fast and slow-twitch muscle in the ratio of approximately 50% has profound implications for designing exercise training strategies for power and endurance activities. With the growth of exercise and sport science courses, we have seen the need to develop an undergraduate student laboratory that demonstrates the basic…

The Role of Social Self-Efficacy on Physical Activity: A Cross-Cultural Comparision

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alemdag, Serdar

2018-01-01

The purpose of this cross-cultural study exposes stages of change for exercise behavior (SCEB) in relation to perceived social self-efficacy (PSSE) between Turkey and England sport sciences students. The study group of the research consists of 168 (66 women and 102 men) students from Turkey and 217 (112 women and 105 men) students from England who…

Using Virtual Astronomical Observatory Tools for Astronomy 101

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mighell, Kenneth J.; Garmany, K.; Larson, K.; Eastwood, K. D.

2009-01-01

The Virtual Observatory provides several tools that are useful for educators. With these tools, instructors can easily provide real data to students in an environment that engages student curiosity and builds student understanding. In this poster we demonstrate how the tools Aladin and TOPCAT can be used to enhance astronomy education. The Aladin Sky Atlas is a Virtual Observatory portal from the CDS that displays images, superimposes catalogs, and provides interactive access to data. For illustration, we show an exercise for non-science majors in a college-level astronomy course that introduces students to the HR diagram of star clusters. After launching the pre-loaded Aladin applet, students select their own stars, connecting visual cues of brightness and color to the conceptual meaning behind a quantitative HR diagram. TOPCAT can be linked with Aladin on the desktop to let students analyze their data, perform calculations, and create professional-quality graphs. The basic exercise can be easily expanded to address other learning objectives and provides a launching point for students to access, visualize, and explore multi-wavelength data as they continue in astronomy. As a second example, we show an exercise that uses TOPCAT to do three-dimensional plotting of the positions of open and globular cluster to illustrate galactic structure. Detailed information is available at the following website: http://www.noao.edu/staff/mighell/nvoss2008/ . This research was done at the 2008 U.S. National Virtual Observatory Summer School which was held in Santa Fe, New Mexico on September 3 - 11, 2008 and was sponsored by the National Science Foundation.

I'll Tell You What You Think: An Exercise in Pseudoscience Debunking in an Introductory Astronomy Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Caton, Dan

2013-11-01

At Appalachian State University students have to take just two semesters of a physical or biological science to satisfy the general education requirements. Most non-science major students have little time in their crowded schedules to take additional science courses, whether they want to or not, and in fact face a surcharge when taking more courses than needed to graduate. Given this environment, it is essential that we cover more than just the basics of one particular discipline, like astronomy in my case. We should teach something about the overall philosophy of science, the scientific method, and the importance of science in our lives.

Digital Geological Mapping for Earth Science Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

England, Richard; Smith, Sally; Tate, Nick; Jordan, Colm

2010-05-01

This SPLINT (SPatial Literacy IN Teaching) supported project is developing pedagogies for the introduction of teaching of digital geological mapping to Earth Science students. Traditionally students are taught to make geological maps on a paper basemap with a notebook to record their observations. Learning to use a tablet pc with GIS based software for mapping and data recording requires emphasis on training staff and students in specific GIS and IT skills and beneficial adjustments to the way in which geological data is recorded in the field. A set of learning and teaching materials are under development to support this learning process. Following the release of the British Geological Survey's Sigma software we have been developing generic methodologies for the introduction of digital geological mapping to students that already have experience of mapping by traditional means. The teaching materials introduce the software to the students through a series of structured exercises. The students learn the operation of the software in the laboratory by entering existing observations, preferably data that they have collected. Through this the students benefit from being able to reflect on their previous work, consider how it might be improved and plan new work. Following this they begin fieldwork in small groups using both methods simultaneously. They are able to practise what they have learnt in the classroom and review the differences, advantages and disadvantages of the two methods, while adding to the work that has already been completed. Once the field exercises are completed students use the data that they have collected in the production of high quality map products and are introduced to the use of integrated digital databases which they learn to search and extract information from. The relatively recent development of the technologies which underpin digital mapping also means that many academic staff also require training before they are able to deliver the course materials. Consequently, a set of staff training materials are being developed in parallel to those for the students. These focus on the operation of the software and an introduction to the structure of the exercises. The presentation will review the teaching exercises and student and staff responses to their introduction.

Physics of Health Sciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baublitz, Millard; Goldberg, Bennett

A one-semester algebra-based physics course is being offered to Boston University students whose major fields of study are in allied health sciences: physical therapy, athletic training, and speech, language, and hearing sciences. The classroom instruction incorporates high-engagement learning techniques including worksheets, student response devices, small group discussions, and physics demonstrations instead of traditional lectures. The use of pre-session exercises and quizzes has been implemented. The course also requires weekly laboratory experiments in mechanics or electricity. We are using standard pre- and post-course concept inventories to compare this one-semester introductory physics course to ten years of pre- and post-course data collected on students in the same majors but who completed a two-semester course.

Introductory Soil Science Exercises Using USDA Web Soil Survey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Post, Christopher J.; Mikhailova, Elena; McWhorter, Christopher M.

2007-01-01

The USDA, Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) Web Soil Survey is a valuable teaching tool for soil science education. By incorporating the Web Soil Survey into an undergraduate-level course, students are able to use the most detailed digital soil survey information without the steep learning curve associated with geographic information…

Geology Museum-Based Learning in Soil Science Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mikhailova, E. A.; Tennant, C. H.; Post, C. J.; Cicimurri, C.; Cicimurri, D.

2013-01-01

Museums provide unique learning opportunities in soil science. The Bob Campbell Geology Museum in Clemson, SC, features an exhibit of minerals and rocks common in the state and in its geologic history. We developed a hands-on laboratory exercise utilizing an exhibit that gives college students an opportunity to visualize regional minerals and…

Thinking about Evolution: Combinatorial Play as a Strategy for Exercising Scientific Creativity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wingate, Richard J. T.

2011-01-01

An enduring focus in education on how scientists formulate experiments and "do science" in the laboratory has excluded a vital element of scientific practice: the creative and imaginative thinking that generates models and testable hypotheses. In this case study, final-year biomedical sciences university students were invited to create and justify…

Scientific Reasoning for Pre-service Elementary Teachers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sadaghiani, Homeyra R.

2010-10-01

The objectives of K-12 teacher education science courses often focus on conceptual learning and improving students overall attitude towards science. It is often assumed that with the use of research-based curriculum material and more hands on inquiry approaches, without any explicit instruction, student scientific and critical thinking skills would also be enhanced. In the last three years, we have been investigating student scientific and evidence-based reasoning abilities in a K-8 pre-service science course at Cal Poly Pomona. After recognizing student difficulties understanding the elements of scientific reasoning, we have provided explicit feedback using a rubric to assist students to become more rigorous and reflective thinkers; to use appropriate and accurate vocabulary; exercise evidence-base reasoning; and develop skepticism with respect to their own views. We will share the rubric and report on the preliminary results.

Students' Perceptions of an Applied Research Experience in an Undergraduate Exercise Science Course.

PubMed

Pearson, Regis C; Crandall, K Jason; Dispennette, Kathryn; Maples, Jill M

2017-01-01

Applied research experiences can provide numerous benefits to undergraduate students, however few studies have assessed the perceptions of Exercise Science (EXS) students to an applied research experience. The purpose of this study was two-fold: 1) to describe the rationale and implementation of an applied research experience into an EXS curriculum and 2) to evaluate EXS undergraduate students' perceptions of an applied research experience. An EXS measurement course was chosen for implementation of an applied research experience. The applied research experience required groups of students to design, implement, and evaluate a student-led research project. Fourteen questions were constructed, tailored to EXS undergraduate students, to assess students' perceptions of the experience. Qualitative analysis was used for all applicable data, with repeated trends noted; quantitative data were collapsed to determine frequencies. There was an overall positive student perception of the experience and 85.7% of students agreed an applied research experience should be continued. 84.7% of students perceived the experience as educationally enriching, while 92.8% reported the experience was academically challenging. This experience allowed students to develop comprehensive solutions to problems that arose throughout the semester; while facilitating communication, collaboration, and problem solving. Students believed research experiences were beneficial, but could be time consuming when paired with other responsibilities. Results suggest an applied research experience has the potential to help further the development of EXS undergraduate students. Understanding student perceptions of an applied research experience may prove useful to faculty interested in engaging students in the research process.

BiteScis: Connecting K-12 teachers with science graduate students to produce lesson plans on modern science research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Battersby, Cara

2016-01-01

Many students graduate high school having never learned about the process and people behind modern science research. The BiteScis program addresses this gap by providing easily implemented lesson plans that incorporate the whos, whats, and hows of today's scienctific discoveries. We bring together practicing scientists (motivated graduate students from the selective communicating science conference, ComSciCon) with K-12 science teachers to produce, review, and disseminate K-12 lesson plans based on modern science research. These lesson plans vary in topic from environmental science to neurobiology to astrophysics, and involve a range of activities from laboratory exercises to art projects, debates, or group discussion. An integral component of the program is a series of short, "bite-size" articles on modern science research written for K-12 students. The "bite-size" articles and lesson plans will be made freely available online in an easily searchable web interface that includes association with a variety of curriculum standards. This ongoing program is in its first year with about 15 lesson plans produced to date.

An empirical examination of the effects of family commitment in education on student achievement in seventh grade science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Jianjun; Wildman, Louis

A national data base from the Longitudinal Study of American Youth (LSAY) was employed to examine the effects of family commitment in education on student achievement in seventh grade science. The backward elimination procedure in the Statistical Analysis System (SAS) was adopted in this study to select significant variables of family commitment at = .05. The results show that around 22% of the variance in student science achievement can be explained by the selected significant LSAY variables. An analysis of the impact of family commitment seems to indicate that parental education and encouragement are important factors in the improvement of student achievement. However, educators, including school personnel and parents, should exercise caution regarding how they help students with their homework and how they reward students for good grades.Received: 14 June 1994; Revised: 31 October 1994;

Improving the Quality of Lab Reports by Using Them as Lab Instructions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haagen-Schuetzenhoefer, Claudia

2012-10-01

Lab exercises are quite popular in teaching science. Teachers have numerous goals in mind when teaching science laboratories. Nevertheless, empirical research draws a heterogeneous picture of the benefits of lab work. Research has shown that it does not necessarily contribute to the enhancement of practical abilities or content knowledge. Lab activities are frequently based on recipe-like, step-by-step instructions ("cookbook style"), which do not motivate students to engage cognitively. Consequently, students put the emphasis on "task completion" or "manipulating equipment."2

FCS Teacher Takes on Obesity Epidemic

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carlton, Toni

2007-01-01

Fighting the childhood obesity problem at Mayfield Middle School is an ongoing campaign. As a family and consumer sciences (FCS) teacher, the author decided to go outside the box to teach students and their families how to cook healthy dishes, eat a balanced and nutritious diet, and exercise regularly. All students at Mayfield attend a 6-week…

Hands-On Laboratory Simulation of Evolution: An Investigation of Mutation, Natural Selection, & Speciation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hildebrand, Terri J.; Govedich, Fredric R.; Bain, Bonnie A.

2010-01-01

Evolutionary theory is the foundation of the biological sciences, yet conveying it to General Biology students often presents a challenge, especially at larger institutions where student numbers in foundation courses can exceed several hundred per lecture section. We present a pedagogically sound exercise that utilizes a series of simple and…

Course-Based Undergraduate Research--It Can Be Accomplished!

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Allyn, Debra A.

2013-01-01

This article describes a senior seminar course in the Health and Human Performance (HHP) Department at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. All students in the HHP department are required to complete the course. The emphases within HHP include physical education, health education, and exercise and sport science. In this course students learn…

Enhancing Students' Self-Efficacy in Making Positive Career Decisions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reddan, Gregory

2015-01-01

Field Project A is an elective course in the Bachelor of Exercise Science program at Griffith University and includes elements of both career development learning and work-integrated learning. This paper aims to determine the effects of the learning activities and assessment items developed for the course on students' self-efficacy in making…

The educational effectiveness of computer-based instruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Renshaw, Carl E.; Taylor, Holly A.

2000-07-01

Although numerous studies have shown that computer-based education is effective for enhancing rote memorization, the impact of these tools on higher-order cognitive skills, such as critical thinking, is less clear. Existing methods for evaluating educational effectiveness, such as surveys, quizzes and pre- or post-interviews, may not be effective for evaluating impact on critical thinking skills because students are not always aware of the effects the software has on their thought processes. We review an alternative evaluation strategy whereby the student's mastery of a specific cognitive skill is directly assessed both before and after participating in a computer-based exercise. Methodologies for assessing cognitive skill are based on recent advances in the fields of cognitive science. Results from two studies show that computer-based exercises can positively impact the higher-order cognitive skills of some students. However, a given exercise will not impact all students equally. This suggests that further work is needed to understand how and why CAI software is more or less effective within a given population.

University courses, eating problems and muscle dysmorphia: are there any associations?

PubMed

Bo, Simona; Zoccali, Rossana; Ponzo, Valentina; Soldati, Laura; De Carli, Luca; Benso, Andrea; Fea, Elisabetta; Rainoldi, Alberto; Durazzo, Marilena; Fassino, Secondo; Abbate-Daga, Giovanni

2014-08-07

Orthorexia and muscle dysmorphia are disorders affecting above all young adults whose prevalence and social impact are still unclear. We aimed to evaluate the prevalence of the traits of orthorexia and muscle dysmorphia among freshmen attending university courses focused on nutrition (Dietetics) and body care (Exercise and Sport Sciences). Students of Biology were considered as a control group. The prevalence of eating disorder (ED) traits were also evaluated. All participants (n = 440; n = 53 Dietetics school, n = 200 Exercise and Sport Sciences school, n = 187 the Biology school) completed the following questionnaires: ORTO-15, Muscle-Dysmorphic-Disorder-Inventory, and Eating Attitudes Test-26. The prevalence of the traits of EDs, orthorexia, and muscle dysmorphia was 9.1%, 25.9%, and 5.9%, respectively. When compared to other students, those attending the Dietetics school showed a 2-fold higher risk of EDs and those from the Exercise and Sport Sciences school a 10-fold higher risk of muscle dysmorphia. The prevalence of orthorexia traits was high in all schools (35.9%, 22.5%, 26.5% in Dietetics, Biology, and Exercise and Sport Sciences schools, respectively). Overall, individuals with traits of any of these disorders were more frequently on diet or on supplement use. In a logistic regression model, attending the Dietetics school (OR = 2.71; 95% CI 1.14-6.48) was significantly associated with the ED traits, but not with the orthorexia traits (OR = 1.75; 95% CI 0.93-3.29), while attending the Exercise and Sport Sciences school was significantly associated with the muscle dysmorphia traits (OR = 5.15; 95% CI 1.44-18.4). Finally, when evaluating the relationships among the types of study programs as dependent variables and traits of these disturbances, the associations between the traits of ED (OR = 3.35; 95% CI 1.38-8.13) and matriculation at the school of Dietetics, and between the traits of muscle dysmorphia (OR = 4.32; 95% CI 1.16-16.1) and the choice of the Exercise and Sport Sciences school were confirmed. The choice of the university courses might be influenced by pre-existing disorders in eating behaviors, which were relatively frequent in the considered sample.

Sport science internships for learning: a critical view.

PubMed

Malone, James J

2017-12-01

Sport science has gained vast popularity with students who have an interest in both physiology and the underpinning mechanisms of exercise concerning performance and health. The high numbers of graduates each year, coupled with the low number of graduate positions working in sports, has led to a high level of competition between students. To stand out from the crowd, sport science students may undertake an internship placement as part of their course, designed to enhance theoretical, practical, and soft skills in an applied setting. In the present article, we highlight some of the positives and negatives of sport science internships and ways in which they can be implemented and facilitated. Suggestions have also been provided to make students more aware of the reality of working in professional sports, which includes awareness of the potential for long and unsociable hours of work. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

kNOw Soil - kNOw Life: Integrating soil science across disciplines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lindbo, D. L.; Kozlowski, D.; Robinson, C.; Chapman, S.

2014-12-01

Teaching primary and secondary school students (K-12) about science and art, although absolutely critical, can be difficult. Teachers have specific standards or subject matters that they are required to cover and often soils and soil science is not included in that list. We have struggled with ways to bring soil science information to the larger audience as the direct approach meets with resistance due to the time commitments to other standards. Our approach now is to use soils as a media or vehicle to teach key concepts in broad subject areas. We have developed several lesson plans in science, geography, math and art that focus on a concept but use soils to convey it. For example students make "mini" monoliths of a state soil. During this exercise students need to use skills in geography to find where their state soil occurs in their state and in the country. They need to understand colors in order to choose the correct colors to use to make their monolith. Finally, they must understand how scales work in order to make the monolith accurate in terms of horizon depths. Throughout the exercise discussion on my certain colors occur in the soil can be discussed. This discussion can lead to a qualitative understanding of chemistry and biology. This presentation will demonstrate this lesson and several others that have been developed and available through the Soil Science Society of America's K12 Education Committee and our International Year of Soil website.

Research-Based Learning for Undergraduate Students in Soil and Water Sciences: A Case Study of Hydropedology in an Arid-Zone Environment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Al-Maktoumi, Ali; Al-Ismaily, Said; Kacimov, Anvar

2016-01-01

This article reports the efficacy of a research-based learning (RBL) exercise on hydropedology of arid zones, with guided and open research projects (OPR) carried out by teams of undergraduate students in Oman. A range of activities and assessments was used to support student learning during the three-month course. Assessment included monitoring…

The Cassette Tape Recorder Means Versus Written and Symbolic Means of Providing Feedback of a Student's Performance on Secondary School Science Laboratory Exercises.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tauber, Robert T.; Fowler, H. Seymour

Reported is a study of the relationship between student's performance scores and teacher's means of providing evaluative feedback. The sample included 12 classes of 224 students from the tenth through the twelfth grades. The classes included the disciplines of biology, chemistry, and physics including regular, advanced, traditional, PSSC, and…

The electrocardiogram as an electronic filter and why ac circuits are important for pre-health physics students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dunlap, Justin C.; Kutschera, Ellynne; Van Ness, Grace R.; Widenhorn, Ralf

2015-01-01

We present a general physics laboratory exercise that centres around the use of the electrocardiogram sensor as an application of circuits and electronic signal filtering. Although these topics are commonly taught in the general physics classroom, many students consider topics such as alternating current as unrelated to their future professions. This exercise provides the motivation for life science and pre-health majors to learn concepts such as voltage, resistance, alternating and direct current, RLC circuits, as well as signal and noise, in an introductory undergraduate physics lab.

Ecological Economics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Common, Michael; Stagl, Sigrid

2005-10-01

Taking as its starting point the interdependence of the economy and the natural environment, this book provides a comprehensive introduction to the emerging field of ecological economics. The authors, who have written extensively on the economics of sustainability, build on insights from both mainstream economics and ecological sciences. Part I explores the interdependence of the modern economy and its environment, while Part II focuses mainly on the economy and on economics. Part III looks at how national governments set policy targets and the instruments used to pursue those targets. Part IV examines international trade and institutions, and two major global threats to sustainability - climate change and biodiversity loss. Assuming no prior knowledge of economics, this textbook is well suited for use on interdisciplinary environmental science and management courses. It has extensive student-friendly features including discussion questions and exercises, keyword highlighting, real-world illustrations, further reading and website addresses. A comprehensive introduction to a developing field which will interest students from science, economics and management backgrounds A global approach to the problems of sustainability and sustainable development, issues which are increasingly prominent in political debate and policy making Filled with student-friendly features including focus areas for each chapter, keyword highlighting, real-world illustrations, discussion questions and exercises, further reading and website addresses

Use of Feedback-Oriented Online Exercises to Help Physiology Students Construct Well-Organized Answers to Short-Answer Questions.

PubMed

Carnegie, Jacqueline

2015-01-01

Postsecondary education often requires students to use higher-order cognitive skills (HOCS) such as analysis, evaluation, and creation as they assess situations and apply what they have learned during lecture to the formulation of solutions. Summative assessment of these abilities is often accomplished using short-answer questions (SAQs). Quandary was used to create feedback-oriented interactive online exercises to help students strengthen certain HOCS as they actively constructed answers to questions concerning the regulation of 1) metabolic rate, 2) blood sugar, 3) erythropoiesis, and 4) stroke volume. Each exercise began with a SAQ presenting an endocrine dysfunction or a physiological challenge; students were prompted to answer between six and eight multiple-choice questions while building their answer to the SAQ. Student outcomes on the SAQ sections of summative exams were compared before and after the introduction of the online tool and also between subgroups of students within the posttool-introduction population who demonstrated different levels of participation in the online exercises. While overall SAQ outcomes were not different before and after the introduction of the online exercises, once the SAQ tool had become available, those students who chose to use it had improved SAQ outcomes compared with those who did not. © 2015 J. Carnegie. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2015 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

Roemer Redux: A Virtual Observational Exercise on Jupiter's Moons and the Speed of Light from Project CLEA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dabrowski, Jan Paul; Snyder, G. A.; Marschall, L. A.

2009-01-01

Project CLEA announces a new laboratory exercise which allows students to determine the speed of light by timing eclipses of Jupiter's moon Io. The experiment is similar to Ole Roemer's classic 17th Century work which established, for the first time, that light did not travel through space instantaneously. Students view a simulated telescopic view of Jupiter and its satellites, similar to that used in the CLEA exercise, The Revolution of the Moons of Jupiter. After identifying Io, they record the precise time when the moon enters Jupiter's shadow at a date about two months after conjunction. Using the recorded time of this eclipse and the known period of Io, students predict the time of an eclipse near opposition and then record the observed time of that eclipse. The discrepancy between the predicted and observed times, along with the difference in the distance between Earth and Jupiter at the two eclipses yields a value of the speed of light accurate to about 10%. Software provided with the exercise enables students to calculate predicted times and Earth/Jupiter distances, as well as to analyze the time discrepancy and to visualize the logic of the analysis. A student manual, including historical and scientific background of the exercise is provided. Our poster will present examples of the screens and manuals for the exercise and will discuss the limits of accuracy of the method and sources of error. For further information on CLEA exercises, please visit http://www.gettysburg.edu/ marschal/clea/CLEAhome.html This research was sponsored by the National Science Foundation and Gettysburg College.

The Science of Flames.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cornia, Ray

1991-01-01

Describes an exercise using flames that allows students to explore the complexities of a seemingly simple phenomenon, the lighting of a candle. Contains a foldout that provides facts about natural gas flames and suggestions for classroom use. (ZWH)

Learning about Energy. Superific Science Book XI. A Good Apple Science Activity Book for Grades 5-8+.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Conway, Lorraine

Based on the idea that active participation stimulates the processes by which learning takes place, this document provides teachers and students with a variety of information and learning activities dealing with energy. Concepts about energy are presented through the use of laboratory experiments, demonstrations, worksheet exercises and individual…

Student Learning Identities: Developing a Learning Taxonomy for the Political Science Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Driver, Darrell; Jette, Kyle; Lira, Leonard

2008-01-01

The present article uses Q-Method to uncover, what we refer to as, learning identities in an undergraduate core political science course. The term "learning identities" is employed to highlight the self-referential quality of the learning perspectives revealed in the Q-Sorting exercise. Drawing on a set of 41 objectivist statements…

Mendel Meets CSI: Forensic Genotyping as a Method to Teach Genetics & DNA Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kurowski, Scotia; Reiss, Rebecca

2007-01-01

This article describes a forensic DNA science laboratory exercise for advanced high school and introductory college level biology courses. Students use a commercial genotyping kit and genetic analyzer or gene sequencer to analyze DNA recovered from a fictitious crime scene. DNA profiling and STR genotyping are outlined. DNA extraction, PCR, and…

An Exercise to Demonstrate Soil Microbial Diversity in Introductory Environmental Science Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yarwood, Stephanie A.; Sulzman, Elizabeth W.

2008-01-01

High diversity of microorganisms in the soil matrix has been the focus of extensive research in the fields of soil biology and microbial ecology, and is a key concept that students in the environmental or biological sciences should understand. Two activities to demonstrate diversity and highlight the challenges faced in studying soil microbial…

Acid Precipitation Learning Materials: Science, Environmental and Social Studies, Grades 6-12.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hessler, Edward W.

The major environmental problem of acid precipition is addressed through a series of activities contained in this guide for teachers of grades 6 through 12. Exercises are provided to help students learn science inquiry skills, facts, and concepts while focusing on the acid rain situation. Activities are organized by content areas. These include:…

Communicating science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crease, Robert P.

2010-03-01

A dozen young graduate students stand awkwardly in a line on stage. They look around hesitantly as Alan Alda prepares to lead them in an improvisation exercise. The 73-year-old actor, best known for his appearances in hit TV shows such as M*A*S*H and The West Wing, is trying to see if such exercises, more commonly associated with theatrical training, can help young scientists to improve their public-speaking skills.

Expanded Financial Literacy Unit Helps Students Make Wise Choices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Franklin, Iris E.

2007-01-01

Financial literacy is a national, state, and local concern these days. At one time, the financial unit in high school family and consumer sciences (FCS) classes was as simple as looking at budgets and doing checkbook exercises. However, after students at Meeker High School in Meeker, Colorado began to ask more in-depth questions and realized that…

Biology School Textbooks and Their Role for Students' Success in Learning Sciences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pop-Pacurar, Irina; Ciascai, Liliana

2010-01-01

What is the quality of the Romanian biology textbooks? The article gives answers to this question by watching the evolution of a textbook and by suggesting an exercise for analyzing and assessing the alternative biology textbooks. The opportunity of this analysis has been offered to students, future teachers of biology, around the time when they…

Student Perceptions of the Value of Career Development Learning to a Work-Integrated Learning Course in Exercise Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reddan, Gregory; Rauchle, Maja

2012-01-01

Work-integrated learning has become a significant feature of Australian universities over the past decade. Earlier research indicates that some form of career development is essential to prepare undergraduate students for a competitive employment market. The 2008 National Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services (NAGCAS) Symposium sought…

Introduction to Political Risk Analysis. Learning Packages in the Policy Sciences, PS-24.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coplin, William D.; O'Leary, Michael K.

This package introduces college students to the kind of analysis that multinational corporations undertake to assess risks to their business operations due to political and economic conditions. Designed to be completed in 3 weeks, the four exercises enable students to (1) identify the major sources of political risk; (2) determine what social,…

LINUX, Virtualization, and the Cloud: A Hands-On Student Introductory Lab

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Serapiglia, Anthony

2013-01-01

Many students are entering Computer Science education with limited exposure to operating systems and applications other than those produced by Apple or Microsoft. This gap in familiarity with the Open Source community can quickly be bridged with a simple exercise that can also be used to strengthen two other important current computing concepts,…

Enabling Remote Access to Fieldwork: Gaining Insight into the Pedagogic Effectiveness of "Direct" and "Remote" Field Activities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stokes, Alison; Collins, Trevor; Maskall, John; Lea, John; Lunt, Paul; Davies, Sarah

2012-01-01

This study considers the pedagogical effectiveness of remote access to fieldwork locations. Forty-one students from across the GEES disciplines (geography, earth and environmental sciences) undertook a fieldwork exercise, supported by two lecturers. Twenty students accessed the field site directly and the remainder accessed the site remotely using…

Using a Review Book to Improve Knowledge Retention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Elmas, Ridvan; Aydogdu, Bülent; Saban, Yakup

2017-01-01

This study has two primary objectives. The first one is preparation of an efficient review book including a series of activities, which will help fourth grade students exercise what they learned in the elementary science course in a year. The second objective is examination of the prepared book in the framework of student and teacher opinions. In…

Student Friendly Technique to Demonstrate Coordination between Postural (Involuntary) and Voluntary Muscle Contractions.

PubMed

Colgan, Wes

2015-01-01

Electromyography is a very useful technique for a number of clinical and research applications in physiology and other life science applications. We have adapted this technique as a student exercise to explore important aspects of postural control. With minimal effort and some mathematical calculations this student friendly technique efficiently demonstrates the interaction of anticipatory, or feedforward, mechanisms and feedback correction from sensory input.

Video laboratories for the teaching and learning of professional ethics in exercise physiology curricula.

PubMed

Senchina, David S

2011-09-01

Student researchers in physiology courses often interact with human subjects in classroom research but may be unfamiliar with the professional ethics of experimenter-subject interactions. This communication describes experiences related to an interactive video used in exercise science and general biology courses to help students become aware of, sensitive to, and comfortable with implementing professional ethics into their own thinking and behavior as researchers before entering the laboratory. The activity consisted of a filmed exercise physiology experiment complemented with interactive question sheets followed by small- and large-group discussion and culminating with individual student reflections. Student written responses from multiple courses indicated that students were able to 1) identify and consider the ethics of experimenter-subject interactions from the movie, 2) generalize broader ideas of professional ethics from those observations, and 3) consider their observations in terms of future experiments they would be conducting personally and how they should interact with human subjects. A majority of students indicated a positive reaction to the video and identified specific aspects they appreciated. It is hoped that this report will encourage other instructors to consider the use of interactive videos in the teaching and learning of professional ethics related to their courses.

Try and Prove It: An Exercise in the Logic of Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bady, Richard J.; Enyeart, Morris A.

1978-01-01

Presents a classroom activity which can be used both to assess student's modes of thought and to clarify the logic of hypothesis testing. The task is based on Piaget's theories of cognitive development. (HM)

Science Alive!: Connecting with Elementary Students through Science Exploration.

PubMed

Raja, Aarti; Lavin, Emily Schmitt; Gali, Tamara; Donovan, Kaitlin

2016-05-01

A novel program called Science Alive! was developed by undergraduate faculty members, K-12 school teachers, and undergraduate students to enrich science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) literacy at community schools located near the university. The ultimate goal of the program is to bolster the scientific knowledge and appreciation of local area students and community members and serve as a model for similar programs. Through the program, we observed that elementary school students made gains toward learning their grade-level science curricula after a hands-on learning experience and had fun doing these hands-on activities. Through the program, undergraduate students, working with graduate students and alumni, build scientific learning modules using explanatory handouts and creative activities as classroom exercises. This helps better integrate scientific education through a collaborative, hands-on learning program. Results showed that elementary school students made the highest learning gains in their performance on higher-level questions related to both forces and matter as a result of the hands-on learning modules. Additionally, college students enjoyed the hands-on activities, would consider volunteering their time at such future events, and saw the service learning program as a benefit to their professional development through community building and discipline-specific service. The science modules were developed according to grade-level curricular standards and can be used year after year to teach or explain a scientific topic to elementary school students via a hands-on learning approach.

Visualizing Science Dissections in 3D: Contextualizing Student Responses to Multidimensional Learning Materials in Science Dissections

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Walker, Robin Annette

A series of dissection tasks was developed in this mixed-methods study of student self-explanations of their learning using actual and virtual multidimensional science dissections and visuo-spatial instruction. Thirty-five seventh-grade students from a science classroom (N = 20 Female/15 Male, Age =13 years) were assigned to three dissection environments instructing them to: (a) construct static paper designs of frogs, (b) perform active dissections with formaldehyde specimens, and (c) engage with interactive 3D frog visualizations and virtual simulations. This multi-methods analysis of student engagement with anchored dissection materials found learning gains on labeling exercises and lab assessments among most students. Data revealed that students who correctly utilized multimedia text and diagrams, individually and collaboratively, manipulated 3D tools more effectively and were better able to self-explain and complete their dissection work. Student questionnaire responses corroborated that they preferred learning how to dissect a frog using 3D multimedia instruction. The data were used to discuss the impact of 3D technologies, programs, and activities on student learning, spatial reasoning, and their interest in science. Implications were drawn regarding how to best integrate 3D visualizations into science curricula as innovative learning options for students, as instructional alternatives for teachers, and as mandated dissection choices for those who object to physical dissections in schools.

Climate Change Education in Earth System Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hänsel, Stephanie; Matschullat, Jörg

2013-04-01

The course "Atmospheric Research - Climate Change" is offered to master Earth System Science students within the specialisation "Climate and Environment" at the Technical University Bergakademie Freiberg. This module takes a comprehensive approach to climate sciences, reaching from the natural sciences background of climate change via the social components of the issue to the statistical analysis of changes in climate parameters. The course aims at qualifying the students to structure the physical and chemical basics of the climate system including relevant feedbacks. The students can evaluate relevant drivers of climate variability and change on various temporal and spatial scales and can transform knowledge from climate history to the present and the future. Special focus is given to the assessment of uncertainties related to climate observations and projections as well as the specific challenges of extreme weather and climate events. At the end of the course the students are able to critically reflect and evaluate climate change related results of scientific studies and related issues in media. The course is divided into two parts - "Climate Change" and "Climate Data Analysis" and encompasses two lectures, one seminar and one exercise. The weekly "Climate change" lecture transmits the physical and chemical background for climate variation and change. (Pre)historical, observed and projected climate changes and their effects on various sectors are being introduced and discussed regarding their implications for society, economics, ecology and politics. The related seminar presents and discusses the multiple reasons for controversy in climate change issues, based on various texts. Students train the presentation of scientific content and the discussion of climate change aspects. The biweekly lecture on "Climate data analysis" introduces the most relevant statistical tools and methods in climate science. Starting with checking data quality via tools of exploratory data analysis the approaches on climate time series, trend analysis and extreme events analysis are explained. Tools to describe relations within the data sets and significance tests further corroborate this. Within the weekly exercises that have to be prepared at home, the students work with self-selected climate data sets and apply the learned methods. The presentation and discussion of intermediate results by the students is as much part of the exercises as the illustration of possible methodological procedures by the teacher using exemplary data sets. The total time expenditure of the course is 270 hours with 90 attendance hours. The remainder consists of individual studies, e.g., preparation of discussions and presentations, statistical data analysis, and scientific writing. Different forms of examination are applied including written or oral examination, scientific report, presentation and portfolio work.

Integration of Information and Scientific Literacy: Promoting Literacy in Undergraduates

PubMed Central

Wolbach, Kevin C.; Purzycki, Catherine B.; Bowman, Leslie A.; Agbada, Eva; Mostrom, Alison M.

2010-01-01

The Association of College and Research Libraries recommends incorporating information literacy (IL) skills across university and college curricula, for the goal of developing information literate graduates. Congruent with this goal, the Departments of Biological Sciences and Information Science developed an integrated IL and scientific literacy (SL) exercise for use in a first-year biology course. Students were provided the opportunity to access, retrieve, analyze, and evaluate primary scientific literature. By the completion of this project, student responses improved concerning knowledge and relevance of IL and SL skills. This project exposes students to IL and SL early in their undergraduate experience, preparing them for future academic advancement. PMID:21123700

Adventures in supercomputing: Scientific exploration in an era of change

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gentry, E.; Helland, B.; Summers, B.

1997-11-01

Students deserve the opportunity to explore the world of science surrounding them. Therefore it is important that scientific exploration and investigation be a part of each student`s educational career. The Department of Energy`s Adventures in Superconducting (AiS) takes students beyond mere scientific literacy to a rich embodiment of scientific exploration. AiS provides today`s science and math students with a greater opportunity to investigate science problems, propose solutions, explore different methods of solving the problem, organize their work into a technical paper, and present their results. Students learn at different rates in different ways. Science classes with students having varying learningmore » styles and levels of achievement have always been a challenge for teachers. The AiS {open_quotes}hands-on, minds-on{close_quotes} project-based method of teaching science meets the challenge of this diversity heads on! AiS uses the development of student chosen projects as the means of achieving a lifelong enthusiasm for scientific proficiency. One goal of AiS is to emulate the research that takes place in the everyday environment of scientists. Students work in teams and often collaborate with students nationwide. With the help of mentors from the academic and scientific community, students pose a problem in science, investigate possible solutions, design a mathematical and computational model for the problem, exercise the model to achieve results, and evaluate the implications of the results. The students then have the opportunity to present the project to their peers, teachers, and scientists. Using this inquiry-based technique, students learn more than science skills, they learn to reason and think -- going well beyond the National Science Education Standard. The teacher becomes a resource person actively working together with the students in their quest for scientific knowledge.« less

Assessment of numeracy in sports and exercise science students at an Australian university

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Green, Simon; McGlynn, Susan; Stuart, Deidre; Fahey, Paul; Pettigrew, Jim; Clothier, Peter

2018-05-01

The effect of high school study of mathematics on numeracy performance of sports and exercise science (SES) students is not clear. To investigate this further, we tested the numeracy skills of 401 students enrolled in a Bachelor of Health Sciences degree in SES using a multiple-choice survey consisting of four background questions and 39 numeracy test questions. Background questions (5-point scale) focused on highest level of mathematics studied at high school, self-perception of mathematics proficiency, perceived importance of mathematics to SES and likelihood of seeking help with mathematics. Numeracy questions focused on rational number, ratios and rates, basic algebra and graph interpretation. Numeracy performance was based on answers to these questions (1 mark each) and represented by the total score (maximum = 39). Students from first (n = 212), second (n = 78) and third (n = 111) years of the SES degree completed the test. The distribution of numeracy test scores for the entire cohort was negatively skewed with a median (IQR) score of 27(11). We observed statistically significant associations between test scores and the highest level of mathematics studied (P < 0.05), being lowest in students who studied Year 10 Mathematics (20 (9)), intermediate in students who studied Year 12 General Mathematics (26 (8)) and highest in two groups of students who studied higher-level Year 12 Mathematics (31 (9), 31 (6)). There were statistically significant associations between test scores and level of self-perception of mathematics proficiency and also likelihood of seeking help with mathematics (P < 0.05) but not with perceived importance of mathematics to SES. These findings reveal that the level of mathematics studied in high school is a critical factor determining the level of numeracy performance in SES students.

Anthropometric traits, blood pressure, and dietary and physical exercise habits in health sciences students; the obesity observatory project.

PubMed

Gutiérrez-Salmeán, Gabriela; Meaney, Alejandra; Ocharán, M Esther; Araujo, Juan M; Ramírez-Sánchez, Israel; Olivares-Corichi, Ivonne M; García-Sánchez, Rubén; Castillo, Guadalupe; Méndez-Bolaina, Enrique; Meaney, Eduardo; Ceballos, Guillermo

2013-01-01

Obesity and the metabolic syndrome affect a considerable segment of the population worldwide, including health professionals. In fact, several studies have reported that physicians tend to have more cardiovascular risk factors than their patients. The present cross-sectional study assessed whether the Health Sciences students had a healthier lifestyle, thus could have a more preventive attitude towards chronic diseases than the general population. Students of the medical-biological areas were surveyed by answering a questionnaire about familiar cardiovascular risk factors, personal smoking, alcohol drinking, dietary and exercise habits. Blood pressure was also measured, along with weight, height, and abdominal circumference. 23.4% of the participants were overweight and 10% obese. Parental obesity was the most frequent risk factor, followed by social drinking and smoking. We found high consumption of animal derived foods, breakfast- like cereals, pastries, white bread and sweetened beverages; while low intake of fruit and vegetables were reported. More than half the sample reported to practice very little or no exercise at all. We found similar or even higher rates of risk factors than the average population, that may eventually lead to the development of chronic cardiometabolic diseases. Thus we can infer that biomedical education is inefficient in inducing healthy lifestyles among biomedical students, which could have impact in their future practice as they will most probable become obese health-professionals, thus fail to effectively treat their own patients. Copyright © AULA MEDICA EDICIONES 2013. Published by AULA MEDICA. All rights reserved.

Geology in the Movies: Using Hollywood Films as a Teaching Tool in Introductory Geosciences Courses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lawrence, K. T.; Malinconico, L. L.

2008-12-01

A common challenge in introductory Geoscience courses is engaging students who often do not have a long- standing interest in science. In recent years Hollywood has produced a number of geoscience-themed films (Dante's Peak, Deep Impact, Day After Tomorrow, Inconvenient Truth), most of which contain kernels of scientific truth as well as gross misrepresentations of scientific reality. In our introductory courses (Geological Disasters: Agents of Chaos and Earth's Climate: Past Present and Future) we have had great success using these films as a way of both engaging students and accomplishing many of our course goals. Even though most of the students in these courses will not become geoscience majors, it is important for them to realize that they can make informed judgments about concepts portrayed in the popular media. We have incorporated short written movie critiques into our suite of introductory course laboratory exercises. Through these movie-critique labs, students have an opportunity to apply their new geoscience expertise to examining the validity of the scientific concepts presented in the film. Along the way, students start to see the relevance of course materials to their everyday lives, think more critically about how science is portrayed by non-scientists, synthesize what they have learned by applying their knowledge to a new problem, and improve their ability to communicate what they have learned. Despite the fact that these movie-critique labs require significantly more out-of-lab effort that our other introductory lab assignments, in our course evaluations many students rate the movie critiques as not only one of the most interesting lab exercises of the semester, but also the lab exercise containing the most educational value.

Fossils, Facies and Geologic Time: Active Learning Yields More Expert-Like Thinking in a Large Class for Senior Science Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sutherland, S.; Jones, F. M.

2012-12-01

Teaching and assessing concepts involving the relationships between deep time and the Earth System can be challenging. This is especially true in elective courses for senior general science students who should be starting to think more like experts, but lack background knowledge in geology. By comparing student activities and work, both before and after introducing active learning strategies, we show that increased maturity of thinking about geological time was achieved in the science elective "Earth and Life through Time" taken by 150 upper level general science students. Student demographics were very similar in 2010 and 2011 allowing comparison of data from a consistent end of term survey, classroom observations, and test or exercise questions used in both years. Students identified the workload as greater in 2011, yet they also gave the course a stronger overall rating of excellence. Also, students in 2011 felt assessments and homework were more appropriate and expressed a nearly unanimous preference for group versus solo class work. More objective indicators of improvement include item analysis on test questions which shows increased difficulty and discrimination without compromising overall scores. The wide variety of changes introduced in 2011 do make it difficult to rigorously ascribe specific causes for improvement in how students think about geologic time. However the shift towards more sophisticated thinking involving skills rather than recall can be demonstrated by comparing geological interpretations produced by students in early and improved versions of exercises. For example, labs have always involved basic identification of rocks and fossils. Now, the new in-class group-based activities enable students to use data to establish the relative history of a geologic section, including environments, ages of known materials, and time spans of materials missing at unconformities. In addition to activities, specific exam questions and corresponding results from both versions of the course also reveal improvements. In order to help educators improve teaching and assessment of geologic time in similar settings, we will offer some details about course modifications and activities. First, learning goals were adjusted to emphasize skills geologists use when interpreting the geological record, rather than focusing on specific knowledge such dates, time spans and rock or fossil names. Then, one third of the lectures were replaced with 50-minute guided group activities, higher level clicker-based questioning strategies were introduced, labs were restructured to include follow up in-class group activities, structured reading and homework exercises were added, and formative and evaluative assessments were diversified. In conclusion, we will show that introducing active learning strategies has helped meet the challenges of increasing the sophistication of students' thinking about geologic time, at the same time as increasing their satisfaction. The specific strategies should be transferrable to any course in which senior general science students learn to use the rock and fossil record to experience the ways in which geoscientists integrate geology and paleontology to interpret the Earth System's evolution.

Values Affirmation Intervention Reduces Achievement Gap between Underrepresented Minority and White Students in Introductory Biology Classes.

PubMed

Jordt, Hannah; Eddy, Sarah L; Brazil, Riley; Lau, Ignatius; Mann, Chelsea; Brownell, Sara E; King, Katherine; Freeman, Scott

2017-01-01

Achievement gaps between underrepresented minority (URM) students and their white peers in college science, technology, engineering, and mathematics classrooms are persistent across many white-majority institutions of higher education. Attempts to reduce this phenomenon of underperformance through increasing classroom structure via active learning have been partially successful. In this study, we address the hypothesis that the achievement gap between white and URM students in an undergraduate biology course has a psychological and emotional component arising from stereotype threat. Specifically, we introduced a values affirmation exercise that counters stereotype threat by reinforcing a student's feelings of integrity and self-worth in three iterations of an intensive active-learning college biology course. On average, this exercise reduced the achievement gap between URM and white students who entered the course with the same incoming grade point average. This result suggests that achievement gaps resulting from the underperformance of URM students could be mitigated by providing students with a learning environment that removes psychological and emotional impediments of performance through short psychosocial interventions. © 2017 H. Jordt et al. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2017 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

Learning from human cadaveric prosections: Examining anxiety in speech therapy students.

PubMed

Criado-Álvarez, Juan Jose; González González, Jaime; Romo Barrientos, Carmen; Ubeda-Bañon, Isabel; Saiz-Sanchez, Daniel; Flores-Cuadrado, Alicia; Albertos-Marco, Juan Carlos; Martinez-Marcos, Alino; Mohedano-Moriano, Alicia

2017-09-01

Human anatomy education often utilizes the essential practices of cadaver dissection and examination of prosected specimens. However, these exposures to human cadavers and confronting death can be stressful and anxiety-inducing for students. This study aims to understand the attitudes, reactions, fears, and states of anxiety that speech therapy students experience in the dissection room. To that end, a before-and-after cross-sectional analysis was conducted with speech therapy students undertaking a dissection course for the first time. An anonymous questionnaire was administered before and after the exercise to understand students' feelings and emotions. State-Trait Anxiety Inventory questionnaires (STAI-S and STAI-T) were used to evaluate anxiety levels. The results of the study revealed that baseline anxiety levels measured using the STAI-T remained stable and unchanged during the dissection room experience (P > 0.05). Levels of emotional anxiety measured using the STAI-S decreased, from 15.3 to 11.1 points (P < 0.05). In the initial phase of the study, before any contact with the dissection room environment, 17% of students experienced anxiety, and this rate remained unchanged by end of the session (P > 0.05). A total of 63.4% of students described having thoughts about life and death. After the session, 100% of students recommended the dissection exercise, giving it a mean score of 9.1/10 points. Anatomy is an important subject for students in the health sciences, and dissection and prosection exercises frequently involve a series of uncomfortable and stressful experiences. Experiences in the dissection room may challenge some students' emotional equilibria. However, students consider the exercise to be very useful in their education and recommend it. Anat Sci Educ 10: 487-494. © 2017 American Association of Anatomists. © 2017 American Association of Anatomists.

Theory and use of modern microscopical methods with applications to studies of wetlands microbial community dynamics. Final performance reports

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

NONE

1995-12-31

Funds were granted to the University of Southwestern Louisiana to coordinate and offer a summer enhancement institute for science teachers. Following are highlights from that institute: (1) 20 teachers from Louisiana attended the institute as students; (2) institute faculty included staff members from USL`s Departments of Biology, Mathematics, and Education and 3 principal scientists plus technicians from the Southern Science Center; (3) the institute began June 5, 1995 and ended June 30, 1995, and it featured daily lectures, laboratory exercises, examinations, and field trips--assignments for students included journal keeping, lesson plan development, and presentations, the student`s journal entries proved valuablemore » for evaluating institute activities, students received copies of lesson plans developed at the institute, videos entitled ``Pond Life Diversity`` and ``Chesapeake: The Twilight Estuary,`` a guide to ``Free-lining Freshwater Protozoa,`` a graphing calculator, 2 x 2 slide set of pond life, software or hardware (selected by the teacher to meet specific needs), a field manual for water quality monitoring laboratory exercises (Project Green), and a book on Benchmarks for Science Literacy; (4) follow-up measures included the following--a newsletter disseminated by USL but written with teacher input; making equipment (such as a trinocular compound microscope and video monitor) and materials and supplies available to the teachers and their students in the classroom; and mentoring between USL and SSC staff and the teachers during the school year. Attached to this report are copies of the institute agenda and lesson plans developed in the institute.« less

Growing Up in Swaziland, Africa, and in Tepotzlan, Mexico: Pupil's Pamphlet [And] Teacher's Guide. Social Science 3.1.4.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Simpson, Sam

Two contrasting cultures are briefly examined in this unit of study for elementary school students. The student's pamphlet outlines the significant aspects of Swazi and Tepotzlan societies, highlighting customs of the two cultures from birth through death. Objectives of the lessons and exercises provided in the teacher's manual are to help…

Political Analysis through the Prince System. Learning Packages in the Policy Sciences, PS-23.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coplin, William D.; O'Leary, Michael K.

This package introduces college students to the elements of the Prince System, a widely used system for making political forecasts and developing political strategies. Designed to be completed in two to three weeks, the two exercises enable students to (1) identify political issues that the Prince System can help them understand, (2) determine the…

Over the Counter Drugs (and Dietary Supplement) Exercise: A Team-based Introduction to Biochemistry for Health Professional Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Phadtare, Sangita; Abali, Emine; Brodsky, Barbara

2013-01-01

For successful delivery of basic science topics for health-professional students, it is critical to reduce apprehension and illustrate relevance to clinical settings and everyday life. At the beginning of the Biochemistry course for Physician Assistants, a team-based assignment was designed to develop an understanding of the mechanism of action,…

The Role of Work-Integrated Learning in Developing Students' Perceived Work Self-Efficacy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reddan, Gregory

2016-01-01

The notion of work self-efficacy is significant as the self-efficacy beliefs of an individual have considerable influence on his/her level of motivation and performance in the workplace. This paper aims to determine the effects of the learning activities of a work-integrated learning course in Exercise Science in relation to students' perceived…

Project Atlantis--An Exercise in the Application of Earth Science to a Critical Examination of a Pseudoscience Hypothesis.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Earle, Steven

2003-01-01

Describes an activity in which students are asked to write an essay on the Crustal Displacement hypothesis, an hypothesis that is inconsistent with the accepted understanding of crustal and mantle processes. The assignment is useful because it forces students to solidify their understanding of plate tectonics by applying their knowledge in a new…

Students’ Perceptions of an Applied Research Experience in an Undergraduate Exercise Science Course

PubMed Central

PEARSON, REGIS C.; CRANDALL, K. JASON; DISPENNETTE, KATHRYN; MAPLES, JILL M.

2017-01-01

Applied research experiences can provide numerous benefits to undergraduate students, however few studies have assessed the perceptions of Exercise Science (EXS) students to an applied research experience. The purpose of this study was two-fold: 1) to describe the rationale and implementation of an applied research experience into an EXS curriculum and 2) to evaluate EXS undergraduate students’ perceptions of an applied research experience. An EXS measurement course was chosen for implementation of an applied research experience. The applied research experience required groups of students to design, implement, and evaluate a student-led research project. Fourteen questions were constructed, tailored to EXS undergraduate students, to assess students’ perceptions of the experience. Qualitative analysis was used for all applicable data, with repeated trends noted; quantitative data were collapsed to determine frequencies. There was an overall positive student perception of the experience and 85.7% of students agreed an applied research experience should be continued. 84.7% of students perceived the experience as educationally enriching, while 92.8% reported the experience was academically challenging. This experience allowed students to develop comprehensive solutions to problems that arose throughout the semester; while facilitating communication, collaboration, and problem solving. Students believed research experiences were beneficial, but could be time consuming when paired with other responsibilities. Results suggest an applied research experience has the potential to help further the development of EXS undergraduate students. Understanding student perceptions of an applied research experience may prove useful to faculty interested in engaging students in the research process. PMID:29170695

Space Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Davis, Jeffrey R.

2006-01-01

This abstract covers a one hour presentation on Space Exploration. The audience is elementary students; therefore there are few words on the slides, mostly pictures of living and working in space. The presentation opens with a few slides describing a day in the life of a space explorer. It begins with a launch, discussions of day-night cycles, eating, exercising, housekeeping, EVA, relaxation, and sleeping. The next section of the presentation shows photos of astronauts performing experiments on the ISS. Yokomi Elementary School launched this fall with the most advanced educational technology tools available in schools today. The science and technology magnet school is equipped with interactive white boards, digital projectors, integrated sound systems and several computers for use by teachers and students. The only elementary school in Fresno Unified with a science focus also houses dedicated science classrooms equipped specifically for elementary students to experience hands-on science instruction in addition to the regular elementary curriculum.

Design of a Soil Science practical exercise to understand the carbon sequestration in soil after biochar application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gascó, Gabriel; Méndez, Ana; Antón, José Manuel; Grau, Juan; Sánchez, María Elena; Moratiel, Rubén; María Tarquis, Ana

2013-04-01

The adaptation of the Universities to European Higher Education Area (EHEA) involves changes in the learning system. Students must obtain specific capabilities in the different degrees or masters. For example, in the degree of Agronomy at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM,Spain), they must command Soil science, Mathematics or English. Sometimes, There is not a good communication between teachers and it causes that students do not understand the importance of the different subjects of a career. For this reason, teachers of the Soil Science and Mathematics Departments of the UPM designed a common practice to teach to the students the importance of Soil Science and Mathematics in the study of carbon sequestration in a soil treated by biochar. The objective of this paper is to explain the followed steps to the design of the practice.

Nuclear Forensics for High School Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mader, Catherine; Doss, Heide; Plisch, Monica; Isola, Drew; Mirakovitz, Kathy

2011-04-01

We developed an education module on nuclear forensics, designed for high school science classrooms. The lessons include a mix of hands-on activities, computer simulations, and written exercises. Students are presented with realistic scenarios designed to develop their knowledge of nuclear science and its application to nuclear forensics. A two-day teacher workshop offered at Hope College attracted 20 teachers. They were loaned kits to implement activities with their students, and each teacher spent 3--7 days on the lessons. All who reported back said they would do it again and would share the lessons with colleagues. Many said that access to equipment and ready-made lessons enabled them to expand what they taught about nuclear science and introduce nuclear forensics. A few teachers invited guest speakers to their classroom, which provided an excellent opportunity to share career information with students. We acknowledge generous support from the Department of Homeland Security and the AIP Meggars Award.

Sverdlovsk Anthrax Outbreak: An Educational Case Study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Steele, S. J.; van der Vink, G.

2002-05-01

In April and May of 1979 an Anthrax epidemic broke out in the city of Sverdlovsk (now Ekaterinburg) in the former Soviet Union. Sixty-four people were reported to have died from the outbreak, although there is still debate concerning the actual number of victims. While Soviet officials initially attributed this outbreak to contaminated meat, the US Government maintained that the outbreak was due to a leakage from a biological weapons facility. We have created and implemented an undergraduate educational exercise based on the forensic analysis of this event. Students were provided case data of the victims, area satellite images and meteorological data. One goal of the exercise was for students to reconstruct the most probable scenario of events through valid inference based on the limited information and uncertainties associated with the data set. Another goal was to make students sensitive to issues of biological weapons and bioterrorism. The exercise was highly rated by students even before the events of September 11. There is a clear need to educate students, particularly in the sciences, to be aware of the signatures of terrorist activities. Evidence of terrorist activities is more likely to appear from unintended discoveries than from active intelligence gathering. We believe our national security can be enhanced by sensitizing those that monitor the natural environment to the signatures of terrorist activities through the types of educational exercises that we have developed.

Thundercloud: Domain specific information security training for the smart grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stites, Joseph

In this paper, we describe a cloud-based virtual smart grid test bed: ThunderCloud, which is intended to be used for domain-specific security training applicable to the smart grid environment. The test bed consists of virtual machines connected using a virtual internal network. ThunderCloud is remotely accessible, allowing students to undergo educational exercises online. We also describe a series of practical exercises that we have developed for providing the domain-specific training using ThunderCloud. The training exercises and attacks are designed to be realistic and to reflect known vulnerabilities and attacks reported in the smart grid environment. We were able to use ThunderCloud to offer practical domain-specific security training for smart grid environment to computer science students at little or no cost to the department and no risk to any real networks or systems.

Developing the critical thinking skills of astrobiology students through creative and scientific inquiry.

PubMed

Foster, Jamie S; Lemus, Judith D

2015-01-01

Scientific inquiry represents a multifaceted approach to explore and understand the natural world. Training students in the principles of scientific inquiry can help promote the scientific learning process as well as help students enhance their understanding of scientific research. Here, we report on the development and implementation of a learning module that introduces astrobiology students to the concepts of creative and scientific inquiry, as well as provide practical exercises to build critical thinking skills. The module contained three distinct components: (1) a creative inquiry activity designed to introduce concepts regarding the role of creativity in scientific inquiry; (2) guidelines to help astrobiology students formulate and self-assess questions regarding various scientific content and imagery; and (3) a practical exercise where students were allowed to watch a scientific presentation and practice their analytical skills. Pre- and post-course surveys were used to assess the students' perceptions regarding creative and scientific inquiry and whether this activity impacted their understanding of the scientific process. Survey results indicate that the exercise helped improve students' science skills by promoting awareness regarding the role of creativity in scientific inquiry and building their confidence in formulating and assessing scientific questions. Together, the module and survey results confirm the need to include such inquiry-based activities into the higher education classroom, thereby helping students hone their critical thinking and question asking skill set and facilitating their professional development in astrobiology.

Research Experiences for Science Teachers: The Impact On Their Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dubner, J.

2005-12-01

Deficiencies in science preparedness of United States high school students were recognized more than two decades ago, as were some of their underlying causes. Among the primary causes are the remoteness of the language, tools, and concepts of science from the daily experiences of teachers and students, and the long-standing national shortage of appropriately prepared science teachers. Secondary school science teachers are challenged each school year by constantly changing content, new technologies, and increasing demands for standards-based instruction. A major deficiency in the education of science teachers was their lack of experience with the practice of science, and with practicing scientists. Providing teachers with opportunities to gain hands-on experience with the tools and materials of science under the guidance and mentorship of leading scientists in an environment attuned to professional development, would have many beneficial effects. They would improve teachers' understanding of science and their ability to develop and lead inquiry- and standards-based science classes and laboratories. They would enable them to communicate the vitality and dynamism of science to their students and to other teachers. They would enhance their ability to motivate and guide students. From its inception, Columbia University's Summer Research Program for Science Teacher's goal has been to enhance interest and improve performance in science of students in New York City area schools. The program seeks to achieve this goal by increasing the professional competence of teachers. Our ongoing program evaluation shows that following completion of the program, the teachers implement more inquiry-based classroom and laboratory exercises, increase utilization of Internet resources, motivate students to participate in after school science clubs and Intel-type science projects; and create opportunities for students to investigate an area of science in greater depth and for longer periods of time than more conventionally trained teachers. Most importantly, the performance of their students improves; students of participating teachers have a higher pass rate on New York State Science Regents examinations than students in classes of non-participating teachers in the same schools. Student outcomes data will be presented for both Columbia's program and from a multi-site study, which Columbia's program headed up.

Using GPS To Teach More Than Accurate Positions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Marie C.; Guth, Peter L.

2002-01-01

Undergraduate science majors need practice in critical thinking, quantitative analysis, and judging whether their calculated answers are physically reasonable. Develops exercises using handheld Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers. Reinforces students' abilities to think quantitatively, make realistic "back of the envelope"…

Teaching Environmental Ethics from a Theological Perspective.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bratton, Susan P.

1990-01-01

Proposes teaching students skills for integrating theological inquiry with scientific, economic, and political issues concerning the environment. Suggests classroom exercises designed to bridge the gap between theology and environmental science. Discusses classroom texts drawn from theological, philosophical, and biological sources. Elucidates…

Microchip Measuring.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jesberg, Robert O.; Dowden, Edward

1986-01-01

Explains how computer and game port interfacing reduces the time required for data collection and organization and also stimulates student interest in science laboratory exercises. Illustrates this approach through a description of a population-variation lab. Includes diagrams for the construction of the interface box. (ML)

Gaining a Better Understanding of Estuarine Circulation and Improving Data Visualization Skills Through a Hands-on Contouring Exercise

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mailloux, B. J.; Kenna, T. C.

2008-12-01

The creation and accurate interpretation of graphs is becoming a lost art among students. The availability of numerous graphing software programs makes the act of graphing data easy but does not necessarily aide students in interpreting complex visual data. This is especially true for contour maps; which have become a critical skill in the earth sciences and everyday life. In multiple classes, we have incorporated a large-scale, hands-on, contouring exercise of temperature, salinity, and density data collected in the Hudson River Estuary. The exercise allows students to learn first-hand how to plot, analyze, and present three dimensional data. As part of a day-long sampling expedition aboard an 80' research vessel, students deploy a water profiling instrument (Seabird CTD). Data are collected along a transect between the Verrazano and George Washington Bridges. The data are then processed and binned at 0.5 meter intervals. The processed data is then used during a later laboratory period for the contouring exercise. In class, students work in groups of 2 to 4 people and are provided with the data, a set of contouring instructions, a piece of large (3' x 3') graph paper, a ruler, and a set of colored markers. We then let the groups work together to determine the details of the graphs. Important steps along the way are talking to the students about X and Y scales, interpolation, and choices of contour intervals and colors. Frustration and bottlenecks are common at the beginning when students are unsure how to even begin with the raw data. At some point during the exercise, students start to understand the contour concept and each group usually produces a finished contour map in an hour or so. Interestingly, the groups take pride in the coloring portion of the contouring as it indicates successful interpretation of the data. The exercise concludes with each group presenting and discussing their contour plot. In almost every case, the hands-on graphing has improved the "students" visualization skills. Contouring has been incorporated into the River Summer (www.riversumer.org, http://www.riversumer.org/) program and our Environmental Measurements laboratory course. This has resulted in the exercise being utilized with undergraduates, high-school teachers, graduate students, and college faculty. We are in the process of making this curricular module available online to educators.

Learning about Plants and Animals in Nature. Superific Science Book XII. A Good Apple Science Activity Book for Grades 5-8+.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Conway, Lorraine

Based on the idea that active participation stimulates the processes by which learning takes place, this document provides teachers and students with a variety of information and learning activities that deal with plants and animals in nature. Basic concepts are presented through the use of laboratory experiments, worksheet exercises, diagrams,…

Evansville: A City on the Ohio River. An Interdisciplinary Unit for Grade 3: Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Evansville-Vanderburgh School Corp., IN.

This grade 3 interdisciplinary resource unit uses Evansville, Indiana and the Ohio River as its focus for social studies, language arts, mathematics, and science lessons. Text, pictures, and maps are provided to teach social studies lessons in history, geography, and map skills, and the student exercises include tests on vocabulary words and map…

SOLAR ROTATION: A Laboratory Exercise from Project CLEA and the GONG Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marschall, L. A.; Sudol, J. J.; Snyder, G. A.

2002-12-01

Digital images from the GONG Project provide a nearly continuous record of sunspots that are ideal for determining the rate of rotation of the Sun. A new laboratory exercise from Project CLEA provides students with the capability to access an archive of 368 images of the Sun obtained at GONG solar telescopes between January 1, 2002 and April 30, 2002, during a period near solar maximum when large numbers of spots were daily visible on the sun. The resolution of each image is about 2.5 arcsec per pixel (or about 0.25 degree in longitude and latitude at the center of the solar disk). Because these images have such exquisite spatial and temporal resolution, they are the best images to date from which students can determine the solar rotation rate. CLEA software for this exercise allows students to select images by date and time, to overlay a coordinate grid on the image, and to record the latitudes and longitudes of sunspots. This data can be tabulated and analyzed with the software to determine solar rotation rates. The expected precision in the solar rotation rates is +/- 3 hours. Students will also have the ability to combine their chosen images into a digital movie showing the solar rotation. The exercise includes a student workbook and a technical manual, as well as a CD-rom of the data and the software. This exercise was produced with funding from the National Science Foundation and Gettysburg College and with the support of the GONG Project at the National Solar Observatory.

Titrimetric Determination of Carbon Dioxide in a Heterogeneous Sample ("Pop Rocks")

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Davis, Craig M.; Mauck, Matthew C.

2003-05-01

A traditional exercise in quantitative analysis is the titration of mixtures of sodium hydroxide, sodium carbonate, and sodium bicarbonate. Often, consumer products are studied. A procedure to analyze the total volume of carbon dioxide bubbles in the candy "Pop Rocks" is presented. The popularity of the sample and the simplicity of the procedure make this exercise suitable for a wide variety of students: from non-science majors to chemistry majors in a quantitative analysis course.

2009 New England American College of Sports Medicine Conference

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-01-01

Jointly sponsored by: the American college of sports Medicine and the new england chapter of the American college of sports Medicine n e W e n g l...and students interested in the field of sports medicine and exercise science. o B J e c t i V e s At the conclusion of the meeting, participants...and man- agement, health and physical activity promo- tion, physical performance enhancement, exercise, fitness, and sports medicine. e V e

Simulated drug discovery process to conduct a synoptic assessment of pharmacy students.

PubMed

Richardson, Alan; Curtis, Anthony D M; Moss, Gary P; Pearson, Russell J; White, Simon; Rutten, Frank J M; Perumal, Dhaya; Maddock, Katie

2014-03-12

OBJECTIVE. To implement and assess a task-based learning exercise that prompts pharmacy students to integrate their understanding of different disciplines. DESIGN. Master of pharmacy (MPharm degree) students were provided with simulated information from several preclinical science and from clinical trials and asked to synthesize this into a marketing authorization application for a new drug. Students made a link to pharmacy practice by creating an advice leaflet for pharmacists. ASSESSMENT. Students' ability to integrate information from different disciplines was evaluated by oral examination. In 2 successive academic years, 96% and 82% of students demonstrated an integrated understanding of their proposed new drug. Students indicated in a survey that their understanding of the links between different subjects improved. CONCLUSION. Simulated drug discovery provides a learning environment that emphasizes the connectivity of the preclinical sciences with each other and the practice of pharmacy.

Science Alive!: Connecting with Elementary Students through Science Exploration†

PubMed Central

Raja, Aarti; Lavin, Emily Schmitt; Gali, Tamara; Donovan, Kaitlin

2016-01-01

A novel program called Science Alive! was developed by undergraduate faculty members, K–12 school teachers, and undergraduate students to enrich science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) literacy at community schools located near the university. The ultimate goal of the program is to bolster the scientific knowledge and appreciation of local area students and community members and serve as a model for similar programs. Through the program, we observed that elementary school students made gains toward learning their grade-level science curricula after a hands-on learning experience and had fun doing these hands-on activities. Through the program, undergraduate students, working with graduate students and alumni, build scientific learning modules using explanatory handouts and creative activities as classroom exercises. This helps better integrate scientific education through a collaborative, hands-on learning program. Results showed that elementary school students made the highest learning gains in their performance on higher-level questions related to both forces and matter as a result of the hands-on learning modules. Additionally, college students enjoyed the hands-on activities, would consider volunteering their time at such future events, and saw the service learning program as a benefit to their professional development through community building and discipline-specific service. The science modules were developed according to grade-level curricular standards and can be used year after year to teach or explain a scientific topic to elementary school students via a hands-on learning approach. PMID:27158309

The New Web Outreach Program fy the Regional Collaborative for Excellence in Science Teaching at the University of North Texas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Imholt, Timothy; Roberts, Jim

2001-10-01

A new effort is being undertaken by the Regional Collaborative for Excellence in Science Teaching UNT, under the direction of Dr. James A. Roberts is underway. This effort includes the utilization of the multi-media capabilities of the world wide web, and a little ingenuity to attempt to pass on information to students that not only attempts to capture their attention, but perhaps spark an interest in them about the broad realm of science. Science to students is occasionally a frightening subject. This web based approach attempts to remove the fear and anxiety, while still passing on interesting, and useful information. The website will be regularly previewed and requests for contributions of exercises that might be added and shared will be solicited. Area teachers are invited to make contributions to the effort that will enhance the learning of science and mathematics by their students through the use of the web distribution.

The control of ventilation during exercise: a lesson in critical thinking.

PubMed

Bruce, Richard M

2017-12-01

Learning the basic competencies of critical thinking are very important in the education of any young scientist, and teachers must be prepared to help students develop a valuable set of analytic tools. In my experience, this is best achieved by encouraging students to study areas with little scientific consensus, such as the control mechanisms of the exercise ventilatory response, as it can allow greater objectivity when evaluating evidence, while also giving students the freedom to think independently and problem solve. In this article, I discuss teaching strategies by which physiology, biomedical science, and sport science students can simultaneously develop their understanding of respiratory control mechanisms and learn to critically analyze evidence thoroughly. This can be best achieved by utilizing both teacher-led and student-led learning environments, the latter of which encourages the development of learner autonomy and independent problem solving. In this article, I also aim to demonstrate a systematic approach of critical assessment that students can be taught, adapt, and apply independently. Among other things, this strategy involves: 1 ) defining the precise phenomenon in question; 2 ) understanding what investigations must demonstrate to explain the phenomenon and its underlying mechanisms; 3 ) evaluating the explanations/mechanisms of the phenomenon and the evidence for them; and 4 ) forming strategies to produce strong evidence, if none exists. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

Classroom Simulation of United Nations Conference on Climate Change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hastings, D. W.

2009-12-01

Global climate change is widely recognized as the most important environmental problem today that requires complex, global solutions with international cooperation. Teaching the science of climate change is relatively simple compared to the challenges of determining solutions to this problem. It is important for students to learn that solutions do exist and that international negotiations are underway to achieve reductions. What are the (policy) solutions to this vexing problem, which countries should take responsibility, and specifically how can this be done? In the final week of an advanced undergraduate environmental science class: Global Environmental Change, students engage in a week-long classroom simulation of the annual United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties (UNFCCC/COP). Small groups of students represent one nation that has a particular, and important, interest in the negotiations. Each group researches the positions their country has with respect to the negotiations, determines their possible allies, and who might have interests that are in conflict with their country. While NGOs such as environmental organizations and industry groups are not formally represented, I include some of these groups since they are influential and provide interesting insight into different interests. For simplicity, about 8-10 nations and NGOs are included. In preparation for the conference, students produce a background paper and draft resolution. At the end of the conference, they refine these documents to produce an updated position paper and resolution on how to mitigate global warming. Students are asked to focus on: 1. How much to change global greenhouse gas emissions over the next decade and over the next century; 2. How much of these emission reductions their country should be responsible for; 3. How will their country meet these goals? They must focus on whether and how to implement two mechanisms: a) Clean Development Mechanisms (specifically whether forests should be used as a carbon sink); and b) emissions trading. Informal negotiations (often at a local café) are included in an effort to make the process more realistic. Fact or Fiction? This exercise is largely on reality, but some of it will be fictitious. While I encourage students to base arguments and proposals on real, documented information I encourage them to develop creative and innovative proposals. This exercise relies on educational material and resources designed for Model United Nations simulations; numerous on-line resources are available for students. At the end of the exercise both science and non-science students have enjoyed immersing themselves in challenging questions that confronts all practitioners of climate policy. This approach gives traditional science students an opportunity to experience the challenges and problems associated with implementing policy solutions, and allows those with interests in policy to explore their interests in depth. Rather than a static, text-oriented approach, students engage in active learning, which is appropriate for this quickly evolving subject. Details of classroom logistics, assessment tools, and handouts will be provided.

Combining Quality Work-Integrated Learning and Career Development Learning through the Use of the SOAR Model to Enhance Employability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reddan, Gregory; Rauchle, Maja

2017-01-01

This paper presents students' perceptions of the benefits to employability of a suite of courses that incorporate both work-integrated learning (WIL) and career development learning (CDL). Field Project A and Field Project B are elective courses in the Bachelor of Exercise Science at Griffith University. These courses engage students in active and…

Teaching Cardiac Electrophysiology Modeling to Undergraduate Students: Laboratory Exercises and GPU Programming for the Study of Arrhythmias and Spiral Wave Dynamics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bartocci, Ezio; Singh, Rupinder; von Stein, Frederick B.; Amedome, Avessie; Caceres, Alan Joseph J.; Castillo, Juan; Closser, Evan; Deards, Gabriel; Goltsev, Andriy; Ines, Roumwelle Sta.; Isbilir, Cem; Marc, Joan K.; Moore, Diquan; Pardi, Dana; Sadhu, Sandeep; Sanchez, Samuel; Sharma, Pooja; Singh, Anoopa; Rogers, Joshua; Wolinetz, Aron; Grosso-Applewhite, Terri; Zhao, Kai; Filipski, Andrew B.; Gilmour, Robert F., Jr.; Grosu, Radu; Glimm, James; Smolka, Scott A.; Cherry, Elizabeth M.; Clarke, Edmund M.; Griffeth, Nancy; Fenton, Flavio H.

2011-01-01

As part of a 3-wk intersession workshop funded by a National Science Foundation Expeditions in Computing award, 15 undergraduate students from the City University of New York collaborated on a study aimed at characterizing the voltage dynamics and arrhythmogenic behavior of cardiac cells for a broad range of physiologically relevant conditions…

UCLA's outreach program of science education in the Los Angeles schools.

PubMed

Palacio-Cayetano, J; Kanowith-Klein, S; Stevens, R

1999-04-01

The UCLA School of Medicine's Interactive Multi-media Exercises (IMMEX) Project began its outreach into pre-college education in the Los Angeles area in 1993. The project provides a model in which software and technology are effectively intertwined with teaching, learning, and assessment (of both students' and teachers' performances) in the classroom. The project has evolved into a special collaboration between the medical school and Los Angeles teachers. UCLA faculty and staff work with science teachers and administrators from elementary, middle, and high schools. The program benefits ethnically and racially diverse groups of students in schools ranging from the inner city to the suburbs. The project's primary goal is to use technology to increase students' achievement and interest in science, including medicine, and thus move more students into the medical school pipeline. Evaluations from outside project evaluators (West Ed) as well as from teachers and IMMEX staff show that the project has already had a significant effect on teachers' professional development, classroom practice, and students' achievement in the Los Angeles area.

Using Infiniscope Exploratory Activities in an Online Astronomy Lab Course for Non-Science Majors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knierman, Karen; Anbar, Ariel; Tamer, A. Joseph; Hunsley, Diana; Young, Patrick A.; Center for Education Through eXploration

2018-01-01

With the growth of online astronomy courses, it has become necessary to design different strategies for students to engage meaningfully with astronomy content. In contrast to some of the previously designed “cookbook”-style lab exercises, the strategy of these Infiniscope activities is to provide an experience where the students explore and discover the content for themselves. The Infiniscope project was created by ASU’s School of Earth and Space Exploration and NASA’s Science Mission Directorate as part of the NASA Exploration Connection project. As part of this project, online activities on topics such as asteroids and Kuiper Belt objects, eclipses, and Kepler’s Laws were designed and created for middle school (grades 6-8) and informal education settings. This poster discusses adapting these activities to the undergraduate non-science major setting. In fall 2017, the Infiniscope activities, such as Small Worlds and Kepler’s Laws, will be incorporated into an Arizona State University online astronomy course, AST 113, which is the laboratory component for the Introduction to Solar System Astronomy course sequence. This course typically enrolls about 800-900 students per semester with a combination of students who are online only as well as those who also take in person classes. In this type of class, we cannot have any in-person required sessions and all content must be delivered online asynchronously. The use of the Infiniscope exploratory exercises will provide students with the ability to use NASA data in a hands-on manner to discover the solar system for themselves.

Earthquakes in Action: Incorporating Multimedia, Internet Resources, Large-scale Seismic Data, and 3-D Visualizations into Innovative Activities and Research Projects for Today's High School Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith-Konter, B.; Jacobs, A.; Lawrence, K.; Kilb, D.

2006-12-01

The most effective means of communicating science to today's "high-tech" students is through the use of visually attractive and animated lessons, hands-on activities, and interactive Internet-based exercises. To address these needs, we have developed Earthquakes in Action, a summer high school enrichment course offered through the California State Summer School for Mathematics and Science (COSMOS) Program at the University of California, San Diego. The summer course consists of classroom lectures, lab experiments, and a final research project designed to foster geophysical innovations, technological inquiries, and effective scientific communication (http://topex.ucsd.edu/cosmos/earthquakes). Course content includes lessons on plate tectonics, seismic wave behavior, seismometer construction, fault characteristics, California seismicity, global seismic hazards, earthquake stress triggering, tsunami generation, and geodetic measurements of the Earth's crust. Students are introduced to these topics through lectures-made-fun using a range of multimedia, including computer animations, videos, and interactive 3-D visualizations. These lessons are further enforced through both hands-on lab experiments and computer-based exercises. Lab experiments included building hand-held seismometers, simulating the frictional behavior of faults using bricks and sandpaper, simulating tsunami generation in a mini-wave pool, and using the Internet to collect global earthquake data on a daily basis and map earthquake locations using a large classroom map. Students also use Internet resources like Google Earth and UNAVCO/EarthScope's Jules Verne Voyager Jr. interactive mapping tool to study Earth Science on a global scale. All computer-based exercises and experiments developed for Earthquakes in Action have been distributed to teachers participating in the 2006 Earthquake Education Workshop, hosted by the Visualization Center at Scripps Institution of Oceanography (http://siovizcenter.ucsd.edu/workshop). In addition to daily lecture and lab exercises, COSMOS students also conduct a mini-research project of their choice that uses data ranging from the 2004 Parkfield Earthquake, to Southern California seismicity, to global seismicity. Students collect seismic data from the Internet and evaluate earthquake locations, magnitudes, temporal sequence of seismic activity, active fault planes, and plate tectonic boundaries using research quality techniques. Students are given the opportunity to build 3-D visualizations of their research data sets and archive these at the SIO Visualization Center's online library, which is globally accessible to students, teachers, researchers, and the general public (http://www.siovizcenter.ucsd.edu/library.php). These student- generated visualizations have become a practical resource for not only students and teachers, but also geophysical researchers that use the visual objects as research tools to better explore and understand their data. Through Earthquakes in Action, we offer both the tools for scientific exploration and the thrills of scientific discovery, providing students with valuable knowledge, novel research experience, and a unique sense of scientific contribution.

ASTRO 101 Labs and the Invasion of the Cognitive Scientists

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Slater, Stephanie J.

2015-04-01

Since the mid 1800's there has been widespread agreement that we should be about the business of engaging students in the practices of scientific research in order to best teach the methods and practices of science. There has been significantly less agreement on precisely how to teach science by mimicking scientific inquiry in a way that can be empirically supported, even with our ``top students.'' Engaging ``ASTRO 101 students'' in scientific inquiry is a task that has left our astronomy education research community more than a little stymied, to the extent that it is difficult to find non-major science students practicing anything other than confirmation exercises in college labs. Researchers at the CAPER Center for Astronomy & Physics Education Research have struggled with this problem as well, until in our frustration we had to ask: ``Can research tell us anything about how to get students to do research?'' This talk presents an overview of the cognitive science that we've brought to bear in the ASTRO 101 laboratory setting for non-science majoring undergraduates and future teachers, along with the results of early studies that suggest that a ``backwards faded scaffolding'' approach to instruction in Intro Labs can successfully support large numbers of students in enhancing their understanding of the nature of scientific inquiry. Supported by NSF DUE 1312562.

Science Outside the Lab: Helping Graduate Students in Science and Engineering Understand the Complexities of Science Policy.

PubMed

Bernstein, Michael J; Reifschneider, Kiera; Bennett, Ira; Wetmore, Jameson M

2017-06-01

Helping scientists and engineers challenge received assumptions about how science, engineering, and society relate is a critical cornerstone for macroethics education. Scientific and engineering research are frequently framed as first steps of a value-free linear model that inexorably leads to societal benefit. Social studies of science and assessments of scientific and engineering research speak to the need for a more critical approach to the noble intentions underlying these assumptions. "Science Outside the Lab" is a program designed to help early-career scientists and engineers understand the complexities of science and engineering policy. Assessment of the program entailed a pre-, post-, and 1 year follow up survey to gauge student perspectives on relationships between science and society, as well as a pre-post concept map exercise to elicit student conceptualizations of science policy. Students leave Science Outside the Lab with greater humility about the role of scientific expertise in science and engineering policy; greater skepticism toward linear notions of scientific advances benefiting society; a deeper, more nuanced understanding of the actors involved in shaping science policy; and a continued appreciation of the contributions of science and engineering to society. The study presents an efficacious program that helps scientists and engineers make inroads into macroethical debates, reframe the ways in which they think about values of science and engineering in society, and more thoughtfully engage with critical mediators of science and society relationships: policy makers and policy processes.

Selective training-induced thigh muscles hypertrophy in professional road cyclists.

PubMed

Hug, François; Marqueste, Tanguy; Le Fur, Yann; Cozzone, Patrick J; Grélot, Laurent; Bendahan, David

2006-07-01

Muscular adaptations linked to a high volume and intensity of training have been scarcely reported. We aimed at documenting, using MRI, the cross-sectional area changes associated with a high volume and intensity of training in 11 thigh muscles of a population of professional road cyclists as compared with sport science students. We were also interested in determining, whether selective muscle hypertrophy in professional road cyclists, if any, was correlated to selective exercise-induced T (2) changes during a pedaling exercise on a cycloergometer. Cross-sectional area of 11 thigh muscles was quantified in sixteen subjects (i.e. eight professional road cyclists and eight sport science students) using MRI. In addition, transverse relaxation times (T (2)) were measured before and just after a maximal standardized constant-load exercise in order to investigate exercise-related T (2) changes in these muscles. Professional road cyclists had a significantly higher relative amount of muscle (including the whole set of thigh muscles, 90.5+/-3.3%) as compared to controls (81.6+/-7.3%). Regarding relative values expressed with respect to the total thigh muscles CSA, Vastus lateralis and Biceps femoris CSA were significantly larger in cyclists whereas CSA of the Vastus intermedius was smaller. However, this selective hypertrophy was not correlated to the exercise-induced T (2)-increase. We have reported, for the first time, a selective hypertrophy of Vastus lateralis and Biceps femoris in professional road cyclists confirming their involvement in pedaling task and suggesting a possible cause-effect relationship between muscle activation and hypertrophy, associated with a specific pedaling skill.

Effectively using urban landscapes to teach biodiversity and echohydrology for introductory environmental science classes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pondell, C.; van Doorn, A.; MacAvoy, S. E.

2017-12-01

Urban environments offer students interesting opportunities to explore and examine how human modified landscapes influence biodiversity, nutrient cycling, and water quality. Students demanding applied field experiences from their undergraduate environmental science (ENVS) programs can be well served in urban settings. Here, we present strategies for integrating urban areas into the undergraduate field experience. Urban locations provide an opportunity for a different type of local "field-work" than would otherwise be available. In the intro level undergraduate ENVS class, we use our campus, the surrounding neighborhood and city as well as a nearby National Park for field exercises. Here we share lesson plans for field activities that can be completed with incoming undergraduate students, and show how these activities help students gain quantitative and investigative competency.

Simulated Drug Discovery Process to Conduct a Synoptic Assessment of Pharmacy Students

PubMed Central

Curtis, Anthony D.M.; Moss, Gary P.; Pearson, Russell J.; White, Simon; Rutten, Frank J.M.; Perumal, Dhaya; Maddock, Katie

2014-01-01

Objective. To implement and assess a task-based learning exercise that prompts pharmacy students to integrate their understanding of different disciplines. Design. Master of pharmacy (MPharm degree) students were provided with simulated information from several preclinical science and from clinical trials and asked to synthesize this into a marketing authorization application for a new drug. Students made a link to pharmacy practice by creating an advice leaflet for pharmacists. Assessment. Students’ ability to integrate information from different disciplines was evaluated by oral examination. In 2 successive academic years, 96% and 82% of students demonstrated an integrated understanding of their proposed new drug. Students indicated in a survey that their understanding of the links between different subjects improved. Conclusion. Simulated drug discovery provides a learning environment that emphasizes the connectivity of the preclinical sciences with each other and the practice of pharmacy. PMID:24672074

Implementing 'The Math You Need' in an Introductory Physical Geology Course at California State University East Bay

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moran, J. E.

2011-12-01

The wide range of abilities in the student population at California State University East Bay, with a significant fraction of students under-prepared and requiring mathematics remediation, is a challenge to including mathematical concepts and exercises in our introductory geoscience courses. Student expectations that a geoscience course will not include quantitative work may result in math-phobics choosing the course and resisting quantitative work when presented with it. Introductory courses that are required for Geology and Environmental Science majors are also designated as General Education, which gives rise to a student group with a wide range of abilities and expectations. This presentation will focus on implementation of a series of online math tutorials for students in introductory geoscience courses called 'The Math You Need' (TMYN; http://serc.carleton.edu/mathyouneed/index.html). The program is implemented in a Physical Geology course, in which 2/3 of the students are typically non-majors. The Physical Geology course has a three hour lab each week and the lab exercises and lab manual offer several opportunities for application of TMYN. Many of the lab exercises include graphing, profiling, working with map scales, converting units, or using equations to calculate some parameter or solve for an unknown. Six TMYN modules covering topics using density calculations as applied to mineral properties and isostasy, graphing as applied to rock properties, earthquake location, and radiometric dating, and calculation of rates as applied to plate movement, stream discharge, and groundwater flow, are assigned as pre-labs to be completed before lab classes. TMYN skills are reinforced during lectures and lab exercises, as close in time as possible to students' exposure via TMYN. Pre- and post-tests give a measure of the effectiveness of TMYN in improving students' quantitative literacy.

Earth Futures: a General Education Sustainability Course at the Pennsylvania State University

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bralower, T. J.; Bice, D. M.; Barron, E. J.

2012-12-01

Earth in the Future: Predicting Climate Change and Its Impacts Over the Next Century has been taught at The Pennsylvania State University since 2000. The course is a general education course designed to give a broad survey of the science underlying climate change as well as the impacts on natural and human systems. The course has three major goals: (1) to provide an understanding of climate science and of the possible scenarios of how climate may change in the future; (2) to analyze the linkages between climate and major human and natural systems, including agriculture, water, ocean circulation, and coastal ecosystems, necessary to assess the potential impacts of climate change; and (3) to understand the potential responses to climate change, including both adaptation to, and mitigation of change. The general education course is the entry point for a new BS-degree program, Earth System Science and Policy (ESSP). Initially the course was taught face to face on a yearly basis. Recently we have developed an on-line version of the course, and, in Fall semester, 2012, we are teaching a revised version of the course face-to-face and on-line. Both versions of the course are being assessed using survey instruments developed for InTeGrate courses. The simultaneous instruction provides a unique opportunity to compare the strengths and weaknesses of the two different modes of education. From its beginning, the course has included laboratory exercises designed to enhance the student's understanding of climate science. The revised course includes laboratory exercises in every module, including STELLA-based model experiments. These exercises form an essential part of the on-line version of the course, however, the identical exercises are involved in the face-to-face version. In our presentation, we provide preliminary comparison of the two instructional modes as well as their effectiveness in recruiting students to the ESSP major.

Under the Mistletoe

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leege, Lissa M.; Schriver, Martha; Chassereau, Karen D.

2008-01-01

The "Under the Mistletoe" project was developed to capitalize on student curiosity about the American Christmas Mistletoe plant and draw learners into an engaging, inquiry-based exercise that incorporates numerous life science standards and collaborative research. By collecting data on host and nonhost tree size, location, and number of mistletoe…

Psychological determinants of exercise behavior of nursing students.

PubMed

Chan, Joanne Chung-Yan

2014-01-01

Though expected to be role models in health promotion, research has shown that nursing students often have suboptimal exercise behavior. This study explored the psychological factors associated with the exercise behavior of nursing students. A total of 195 first-year undergraduate nursing students completed a cross-sectional quantitative survey questionnaire, which included measures of their exercise behavior, the Physical Exercise Self-efficacy Scale, and the Exercise Barriers/Benefits Scale. The results showed that male students spent more time exercising and had higher exercise self-efficacy compared with female students, but there were no gender differences in the perceived barriers to or benefits of exercise. Fatigue brought on by exercising was the greatest perceived barrier to exercise, whereas increasing physical fitness and mental health were the greatest perceived benefits of exercise. Multiple linear regression showed that gender, exercise self-efficacy, perceived barriers to exercise, and perceived benefits of exercise were independent predictors of exercise behavior. Nurse educators can endeavor to promote exercise behavior among nursing students by highlighting the specific benefits of exercise, empowering students to overcome their perceived barriers to exercise, and enhancing students' exercise self-efficacy.

The development of interactive online learning tools for the study of anatomy.

PubMed

O'Byrne, Patrick J; Patry, Anne; Carnegie, Jacqueline A

2008-01-01

The study of human anatomy is a core component of health science programs. However large student enrolments and the content-packed curricula associated with these programs have made it difficult for students to have regular access to cadaver laboratories. Adobe Flash MXwas used with cadaver digital photographs and textbook-derived illustrations to develop interactive anatomy images that were made available to undergraduate health science students enrolled in first-year combined anatomy and physiology (ANP) courses at the University of Ottawa. Colour coding was used to direct student attention, facilitate name-structure association, improve visualization of structure contours, assist students in the construction of anatomical pathways, and to reinforce functional or anatomical groupings. The ability of two-dimensional media to support the visualization of three-dimensional structure was extended by developing the fade-through image (students use a sliding bar to move through tissues) as well as the rotating image in which entire organs such as the skull were photographed at eight angles of rotation. Finally, students were provided with interactive exercises that they could repeatedly try to obtain immediate feedback regarding their learning progress. Survey data revealed that the learning and self-testing tools were used widely and that students found them relevant and supportive of their self-learning. Interestingly, student summative examination outcomes did not differ between those students who had access to the online tools and a corresponding student group from the previous academic year who did not. Interactive learning tools can be tailored to meet program-specific learning objectives as a cost-effective means of facilitating the study of human anatomy. Virtual interactive anatomy exercises provide learning opportunities for students outside the lecture room that are of especial value to visual and kinesthetic learners.

Integrating writing into an introductory environmental science curriculum: Perspectives from biology and physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Selkin, P. A.; Cline, E. T.; Beaufort, A.

2008-12-01

In the University of Washington, Tacoma's Environmental Science program, we are implementing a curriculum-wide, scaffolded strategy to teach scientific writing. Writing in an introductory science course is a powerful means to make students feel part of the scientific community, an important goal in our environmental science curriculum. Writing is already an important component of the UW Tacoma environmental science program at the upper levels: our approach is designed to prepare students for the writing-intensive junior- and senior-level seminars. The approach is currently being tested in introductory biology and physics before it is incorporated in the rest of the introductory environmental science curriculum. The centerpiece of our approach is a set of research and writing assignments woven throughout the biology and physics course sequences. The assignments progress in their degree of complexity and freedom through the sequence of introductory science courses. Each assignment is supported by a number of worksheets and short written exercises designed to teach writing and critical thought skills. The worksheets are focused on skills identified both by research in science writing and the instructors' experience with student writing. Students see the assignments as a way to personalize their understanding of basic science concepts, and to think critically about ideas that interest them. We find that these assignments provide a good way to assess student comprehension of some of the more difficult ideas in the basic sciences, as well as a means to engage students with the challenging concepts of introductory science courses. Our experience designing these courses can inform efforts to integrate writing throughout a geoscience or environmental science curriculum, as opposed to on a course-by-course basis.

Developing the Critical Thinking Skills of Astrobiology Students through Creative and Scientific Inquiry

PubMed Central

Lemus, Judith D.

2015-01-01

Abstract Scientific inquiry represents a multifaceted approach to explore and understand the natural world. Training students in the principles of scientific inquiry can help promote the scientific learning process as well as help students enhance their understanding of scientific research. Here, we report on the development and implementation of a learning module that introduces astrobiology students to the concepts of creative and scientific inquiry, as well as provide practical exercises to build critical thinking skills. The module contained three distinct components: (1) a creative inquiry activity designed to introduce concepts regarding the role of creativity in scientific inquiry; (2) guidelines to help astrobiology students formulate and self-assess questions regarding various scientific content and imagery; and (3) a practical exercise where students were allowed to watch a scientific presentation and practice their analytical skills. Pre- and post-course surveys were used to assess the students' perceptions regarding creative and scientific inquiry and whether this activity impacted their understanding of the scientific process. Survey results indicate that the exercise helped improve students' science skills by promoting awareness regarding the role of creativity in scientific inquiry and building their confidence in formulating and assessing scientific questions. Together, the module and survey results confirm the need to include such inquiry-based activities into the higher education classroom, thereby helping students hone their critical thinking and question asking skill set and facilitating their professional development in astrobiology. Key Words: Scientific inquiry—Critical thinking—Curriculum development—Astrobiology—Microbialites. Astrobiology 15, 89–99. PMID:25474292

Riding a tsunami in ocean science education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reed, Donald L.

1998-08-01

An experiment began in late 1994 in which the WWW plays a critical role in the instruction of students in an oceanography course for non-majors. The format of the course consists of an equal blend of traditional lectures, tutorial-style exercises delivered from the course WWW site, classroom activities, such as poster presentations and group projects, and field excursions to local marine environments. The driving force behind the technology component of the course is to provide high-quality educational materials that can be accessed at the convenience of the student. These materials include course information and handouts, lecture notes, self-paced exercises, a virtual library of electronic resources, information on newsworthy marine events, and late-breaking oceanographic research that impacts the population of California. The course format was designed to partially meet the demands of today's students, involve students in the learning process, and prepare students for using technology in work following graduation. Students have reacted favorably to the use of the WWW and comments by peers have been equally supportive. Students are more focused in their efforts during the computer-based exercises than while listening to lecture presentations. The implementation of this form of learning, however, has not, as yet, reduced the financial cost of the course or the amount of instructor effort in providing a high quality education. Interactions between the instructor and students have increased significantly as the informality of a computer laboratory promotes individual discussions and electronic communication provides students with easy (and frequent) access to the instructor outside of class.

Desktop Parallax and Proper Motion: A Laboratory Exercise on Astrometry of Asteroids from Project CLEA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marschall, L. A.; Snyder, G. A.; Good, R. F.; Hayden, M. B.; Cooper, P. R.

1998-12-01

Students in introductory and advanced astronomy classes can now experience the process of discovering asteroids, can measure proper motions, and can actually see the parallax of real astronomical objects on the screen, using a new set of computer-based exercises from Project CLEA. The heart of the exercise is a sophisticated astrometry program "Astrometry of Asteroids", which is a restricted version of CLEA's research software "Tools for Astrometry" described elsewhere at this meeting. The program, as used in the teaching lab, allows students to read and display digital images, co-align pairs of images using designated reference stars, blink and identify moving objects on the pairs, compare images with charts produced from the HST Guide Star Catalog (GSC), and fit equatorial coordinates to the images using designated reference stars from the GSC. Complete technical manuals for the exercise are provided for the use of the instructor, and a set of digital images, in FITS format, is included for the exercise. A student manual is provided for an exercise in which students go through the step-by-step process of determining the tangential velocity of an asteroid. Students first examine a series of images of a near-earth asteroid taken over several hours, blinking pairs to identify the moving object. They next measure the equatorial coordinates on a half-dozen images, and from this calculate an angular velocity of the object. Finally, using a pair of images of the asteroid taken simultaneously at the National Undergraduate Research Observatory (NURO) and at Colgate University, they measure the parallax of the asteroid, and thus its distance, which enables them to convert the angular velocity into a tangential velocity. An optional set of 10 pairs of images is provided, some of which contain asteroids, so that students can try to "find the asteroid" for themselves. The software is extremely flexible, and though materials are provided for a self-contained exercise, teachers can adapt the material to a wide variety of uses. The software and manuals are currently available on the Web. Project CLEA is supported by grants from Gettysburg College and the National Science Foundation.

How can plants tell which way is up?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kiss, J. Z.; Weise, S. E.; Kiss, H. G.

2000-01-01

Many people think of plants as essentially sessile organisms that do not actively respond to their environment. What could be further from the truth! In fact, plants are capable of a variety of movements, including the dramatic nastic responses (such as Venus fly trap closure) and the less sensational tropisms. These latter movements are directed growth responses to some type of external stimulus such as gravity (gravitropism, formerly known as geotropism) or light (phototropism). This paper describes some interesting exercises that are derived from recent work, including research that has led to experiments performed on two Space Shuttle missions in 1997 (Kiss et al. 1998). The study of tropisms can be a useful way to introduce students to plant biology in high school and introductory college courses. In our experience, students are fascinated by plant movements when they are presented in lectures and find laboratory experiences on this topic quite engaging. Laboratory work on plant tropisms can also be used to introduce important concepts in science such as hypothesis testing, quantitative analysis, and the use of statistics. The laboratory exercises described in this paper involve the higher plant Arabidopsis thaliana, which has become an important organism in molecular biology research and is the focus of an international plant genome project. Based on the material presented here, a number of plant gravitropism laboratory exercises with Arabidopsis that are simple in terms of equipment/materials and procedures can be developed. These exercises are robust in that they work well even in the hands of introductory students, and they can be expanded according to the individual instructor's needs. This paper describes two exercises that have been performed by beginning college students, and these exercises can easily be performed in biology classes in most high school settings.

The Impact of an Interactive Statistics Module on Novices' Development of Scientific Process Skills and Attitudes in a First-Semester Research Foundations Course.

PubMed

Marsan, Lynnsay A; D'Arcy, Christina E; Olimpo, Jeffrey T

2016-12-01

Evidence suggests that incorporating quantitative reasoning exercises into existent curricular frameworks within the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines is essential for novices' development of conceptual understanding and process skills in these domains. Despite this being the case, such studies acknowledge that students often experience difficulty in applying mathematics in the context of scientific problems. To address this concern, the present study sought to explore the impact of active demonstrations and critical reading exercises on novices' comprehension of basic statistical concepts, including hypothesis testing, experimental design, and interpretation of research findings. Students first engaged in a highly interactive height activity that served to intuitively illustrate normal distribution, mean, standard deviation, and sample selection criteria. To enforce practical applications of standard deviation and p -value, student teams were subsequently assigned a figure from a peer-reviewed primary research article and instructed to evaluate the trustworthiness of the data. At the conclusion of this exercise, students presented their evaluations to the class for open discussion and commentary. Quantitative assessment of pre- and post-module survey data indicated a statistically significant increase both in students' scientific reasoning and process skills and in their self-reported confidence in understanding the statistical concepts presented in the module. Furthermore, data indicated that the majority of students (>85%) found the module both interesting and helpful in nature. Future studies will seek to develop additional, novel exercises within this area and to evaluate the impact of such modules across a variety of STEM and non-STEM contexts.

Using Eight Key Questions as an Inquiry-Based Framework for Ethical Reasoning Issues in a General Education Earth Systems and Climate Change Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, E. A.; Ball, T. C.

2014-12-01

An important objective in general education geoscience courses is to help students evaluate social and ethical issues based upon scientific knowledge. It can be difficult for instructors trained in the physical sciences to design effective ways of including ethical issues in large lecture courses where whole-class discussions are not practical. The Quality Enhancement Plan for James Madison University, "The Madison Collaborative: Ethical Reasoning in Action," (http://www.jmu.edu/mc/index.shtml) has identified eight key questions to be used as a framework for developing ethical reasoning exercises and evaluating student learning. These eight questions are represented by the acronym FOR CLEAR and are represented by the concepts of Fairness, Outcomes, Responsibilities, Character, Liberty, Empathy, Authority, and Rights. In this study, we use the eight key questions as an inquiry-based framework for addressing ethical issues in a 100-student general education Earth systems and climate change course. Ethical reasoning exercises are presented throughout the course and range from questions of personal behavior to issues regarding potential future generations and global natural resources. In the first few exercises, key questions are identified for the students and calibrated responses are provided as examples. By the end of the semester, students are expected to identify key questions themselves and justify their own ethical and scientific reasoning. Evaluation rubrics are customized to this scaffolding approach to the exercises. Student feedback and course data will be presented to encourage discussion of this and other approaches to explicitly incorporating ethical reasoning in general education geoscience courses.

Innovative curriculum: Integrating the bio-behavioral and social science principles across the LifeStages in basic science years.

PubMed

Lele Mookerjee, Anuradha; Fischer, Bradford D; Cavanaugh, Susan; Rajput, Vijay

2018-05-20

Behavioral and social science integration in clinical practice improves health outcomes across the life stages. The medical school curriculum requires an integration of the behavioral and social science principles in early medical education. We developed and delivered a four-week course entitled "LifeStages" to the first year medical students. The learning objectives of the bio-behavioral and social science principles along with the cultural, economic, political, and ethical parameters were integrated across the lifespan in the curriculum matrix. We focused on the following major domains: Growth and Brain Development; Sexuality, Hormones and Gender; Sleep; Cognitive and Emotional Development; Mobility, Exercise, Injury and Safety; Nutrition, Diet and Lifestyle; Stress and coping skills, Domestic Violence; Substance Use Disorders; Pain, Illness and Suffering; End of Life, Ethics and Death along with Intergenerational issues and Family Dynamics. Collaboration from the clinical and biomedical science departments led to the dynamic delivery of the course learning objectives and content. The faculty developed and led a scholarly discussion, using the case of a multi-racial, multi-generational family during Active Learning Group (ALG) sessions. The assessment in the LifeStages course involved multiple assessment tools: including the holistic assessment by the faculty facilitator inside ALGs, a Team-Based Learning (TBL) exercise, multiple choice questions and Team Work Assessment during which the students had to create a clinical case on a LifeStages domain along with the facilitators guide and learning objectives.

Science and thinking: The write connection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Butler, Gene

1991-09-01

The effective use of writing in science instruction may open the way for students to grow in their ability to exercise higher order thinking skills (Bland & Koppel, 1988). Scinto (1986) makes a compelling case for writing as a means of stimulating thinking when he states: The production of written text demands more elaborate strategies of preplanning. Written language demands the conscious organization of ensembles of propositions to achieve its end. The need to manipulate linguistic means in such a conscious and deliberate fashion entails a level of linguistic self-reflection not called forth in oral discourse (p. 101). Science educators may find that the writing process is one technique to help them move away from the teacher-centered, textbook-driven science classroom of today, and move toward the realization of science education which will ensure that students are able to function as scientifically literate citizens in our contemporary society.

The Case for Forensic Toxicology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baker, William P.; DeBeus, Elizabeth; Jones, Carleton

2006-01-01

Understanding natural and human-induced hazards is an important part of the standards-based science curriculum. Experience, however, indicates that the topic is a difficult one for many students. We have developed an exciting investigative laboratory exercise that uses simulated food-based case studies to promote critical thinking and improve…

The Earth's Magnetic Field Fuels Inter-Disciplinary Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abdul-Razzaq, Wathiq; Biller, R. Dale; Wilson, Thomas H.

2015-01-01

There is no doubt that integrated concepts inspire students and take learning to a new level. As we fly, we fly through the magnetic field of the Earth. We used the concepts involved in flying to develop an exercise that bonds geology, physics and life sciences.

Rocket Scientist for a Day: Investigating Alternatives for Chemical Propulsion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Angelin, Marcus; Rahm, Martin; Gabrielsson, Erik; Gumaelius, Lena

2012-01-01

This laboratory experiment introduces rocket science from a chemistry perspective. The focus is set on chemical propulsion, including its environmental impact and future development. By combining lecture-based teaching with practical, theoretical, and computational exercises, the students get to evaluate different propellant alternatives. To…

Attracting Students Into Science: Insights From a Summer Research Internship Program for Community College Students in Colorado

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anderson, S. P.; Smith, L. K.; Gold, A. U.; Batchelor, R. L.; Monday, B.

2014-12-01

Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) programs commonly serve students already committed to careers in science. To spark student interest in the sciences early in their college career, the CIRES diversity initiative teamed with the Boulder Creek Critical Zone Observatory to build an REU for Colorado community college students. A group of 7 students was selected from consideration of diversity, prior training, and personal statements. Each student was paired with a research science mentor. Field excursions and team-building exercises filled the first week of the 8-week program. Students received weekly training in science communication, responsible conduct of research, use of spreadsheet and graphing software, and statistical analysis. Each student presented their research in a poster session, an oral presentation, and a written report. Several aspects of this pilot program worked well. The students formed a very supportive cohort, despite the fact that they were not in residence. Cohesion grew out of the immersion in field trips, and was reinforced with weekly check-ins. The trainings were essential for seeing projects through to written and oral presentations. Teaming students for fieldwork was an effective strategy to build support, and reduce mentor fatigue. Each student produced useful data. In the future, we would include a workshop on personal finances to address a clear need. Transportation support will be provided. A residential program might attract some but could preclude participation of students with families or other life-issues. Personal tutoring tailored to research projects would address low math skills. All 7 students completed the program; several elected to submit to the undergraduate virtual poster session at Fall AGU. Students all reported enormous personal and academic growth. Some are discussing transfer and graduate school opportunities with their mentors. The enthusiasm and appreciation of the students was unparalleled.

Design of a Soil Science practical exercise to understand the soil carbon sequestration after biochar addition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gascó, Gabriel; Cely, Paola; Saa-Requejo, Antonio; Mendez, Ana; Antón, Jose Manuel; Sánchez, Elena; Moratiel, Ruben; Tarquis, Ana M.

2014-05-01

The adaptation of the Universities to European Higher Education Area (EHEA) involves changes in the learning system. Students must obtain specific capabilities in the different degrees or masters. For example, in the degree of Agronomy at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM, Spain), they must command Soil science, Mathematics or English. Sometimes, There is not a good communication between teachers and it causes that students do not understand the importance of the different subjects of a career. For this reason, teachers of the Soil Science and Mathematics Departments of the UPM designed a common practice to teach to the students the role of soil on the carbon sequestration. The objective of this paper is to explain the followed steps to the design of the practice. Acknowledgement to Universidad Politécnica de Madrid for the Projects in Education Innovation IE12_13-02009 and IE12_13-02012.

Cell migration analysis: A low-cost laboratory experiment for cell and developmental biology courses using keratocytes from fish scales.

PubMed

Prieto, Daniel; Aparicio, Gonzalo; Sotelo-Silveira, Jose R

2017-11-01

Cell and developmental processes are complex, and profoundly dependent on spatial relationships that change over time. Innovative educational or teaching strategies are always needed to foster deep comprehension of these processes and their dynamic features. However, laboratory exercises in cell and developmental biology at the undergraduate level do not often take into account the time dimension. In this article, we provide a laboratory exercise focused in cell migration, aiming to stimulate thinking in time and space dimensions through a simplification of more complex processes occurring in cell or developmental biology. The use of open-source tools for the analysis, as well as the whole package of raw results (available at http://github.com/danielprieto/keratocyte) make it suitable for its implementation in courses with very diverse budgets. Aiming to facilitate the student's transition from science-students to science-practitioners we propose an exercise of scientific thinking, and an evaluation method. This in turn is communicated here to facilitate the finding of common caveats and weaknesses in the process of producing simple scientific communications describing the results achieved. © 2017 by The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 45(6):475-482, 2017. © 2017 The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

IAC-11.E1-7.-A1.8.5 The Mission X: Train Like an Astronaut pilot study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lloyd, Charles W.

2012-12-01

Mission X: Train Like an Astronaut is an international educational challenge focusing on fitness and nutrition as we encourage students to "train like an astronaut." Teams of students (aged 8-12) learn principles of healthy eating and exercise, compete for points by finishing training modules, and get excited about their future as "fit explorers." The 18 core exercises (targeting strength, endurance, coordination, balance, spatial awareness, and more) involve the same types of skills that astronauts learn in their training and use in spaceflight. This first-of-its-kind cooperative outreach program has allowed 11 space agencies and various partner institutions to work together to address quality health/fitness education, challenge students to be more physically active, increase awareness of the importance of lifelong health and fitness, teach students how fitness plays a vital role in human performance for exploration, and to inspire and motivate students to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields. The project was initiated in 2009 in response to a request by the International Space Life Sciences Working Group. USA, Netherlands, Italy, France, Germany, Austria, Colombia, Spain, Belgium, Czech Republic and United Kingdom hosted teams for the pilot in the spring of 2010, and Japan held a modified version of the challenge. Several more agencies provided input into the preparations. Competing in 137 teams, more than 4000 students from over 40 cities worldwide participated in the first round of Mission X.

Teaching Medical Students to Communicate With Empathy and Clarity Using Improvisation.

PubMed

Kaplan-Liss, Evonne; Lantz-Gefroh, Valeri; Bass, Elizabeth; Killebrew, Deirdre; Ponzio, Nicholas M; Savi, Christine; O'Connell, Christine

2018-03-01

Medical educators widely accept that health care providers need strong communication skills. The authors sought to develop a course incorporating improvisation to teach health professions students communication skills and build empathy. Teaching health care professionals to communicate more effectively with patients, the public, and each other is a goal of the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science at Stony Brook University. The authors designed an interprofessional elective for medical, nursing, and dental students that differed in several respects from traditional communication training. The Communicating Science elective, which was offered by the Alda Center from 2012 to 2016, used verbal and nonverbal exercises, role-playing, and storytelling, including improvisation exercises, to teach students to communicate with empathy and clarity. In course evaluations completed by 76 students in 2012 and 2013, 100% said they would recommend the course to fellow students, saw the relevance of the course content to their careers, and desired more of the course content in their school's curriculum. As a result of this positive feedback, from 2014 to 2016, 10 hours of instruction pairing empathy and communication training was embedded in the preclinical curriculum at the Stony Brook University School of Medicine. This course could be an effective model, and one that other institutions could employ, for improving communication skills and empathy in the next generation of health care professionals. Next steps include advocating for communication skills training to be embedded throughout the curriculum of a four-year medical school program.

GeoWall use in an Introductory Geology laboratory: Impacts in Student Understanding of Field Mapping Concepts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ross, L. E.; Kelly, M.; Springer, A. E.

2003-12-01

In the Fall semester of 2003, Northern Arizona University will introduce the GeoWall to its introductory geology courses. This presents an opportunity to assess the impact of this new technology on students' understanding of basic topographic concepts and the spatial relationships between geology, topography, and hydrology on a field trip. Introductory Geology fulfills the Lab Science component of the Liberal Studies Program at Northern Arizona University. The class is open to all Northern Arizona University students, and is most commonly taken by non-science majors. In this class students learn to: locate their position using maps, identify common minerals and rocks, recognize the relationship between geology and geomorphology, visualize how rocks exposed at the surface continue into the subsurface, and to draw conclusions about possible geologic hazards in different settings. In this study we will report how a GeoWall 3D visualization technology was used in a field study of a graben south of Flagstaff. The goal of the field exercise is to improve students' ability to synthesize data collected at field stops into a conceptual model of the graben, linking geology, geomorphology and hydrology. We plan to present a quantitative assessment of the GeoWall learning objectives from data collected from a paired test and control group of students. Teaching assistants (TAs) with two or more lab classes have been identified; these TAs will participate in both GeoWall and non-GeoWall lab exercises. The GeoWall use will occur outside of normal lab hours to avoid disrupting the lab schedule during the eighth week of lab. This field preparation exercise includes a 3D visualization of the Lake Mary graben rendered with the ROMA software. The following week, all students attend the graben field trip; immediately following the trip, students will interviewed about their gain in understanding of the geologic features illustrated during the field trip. The results of the post-fieldtrip interviews will also be presented to quantitatively assess how students perceive the use of the GeoWall in this introductory geology setting, and how it affected their understanding.

Astronomy Education through the NSF GK-12 Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jensen, A. G.

2004-05-01

The National Science Foundation's GK-12 program encourages graduate students in science to be active in public education at the middle school and high school levels. As a GK-12 fellow at the University of Colorado-Boulder (CU), I worked with a local 8th-grade science teacher and his students during the 2003-2004 school year. In the Boulder Valley School District, 8th-grade science covers Earth history, meteorology, astronomy, and oceanography. There are many special challenges for this school district and 8th-grade education in Colorado, including a large number of English as a second language (ESL) students and the administration of standardized tests during March, before students have completed much of the relevant material. As a GK-12 Fellow, my responsibilities included work with the Earth history Full Option Science System (FOSS) kit, guest lecturing, aid in hands-on exercises, and the creation of new activities and assignments. Astronomy activities accomplished through this program include sunspot viewing and a field trip to the Colorado Scale Model Solar System on the CU campus. The GK-12 program at CU will continue for at least two more years, possibly placing future GK-12 fellows who are astronomy grad students into classes that are astronomy- or physics-specific.

Using rock art as an alternative science pedagogy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allen, Casey D.

College-level and seventh-grade science students were studied to understand the power of a field index, the Rock Art Stability Index (RASI), for student learning about complex biophysical environmental processes. In order to determine if the studied population was representative, 584 college and seventh-grade students undertook a concept mapping exercise after they had learned basic weathering science via in-class lecture. Of this large group, a subset of 322 college students and 13 seventh-grade students also learned RASI through a field experience involving the analysis of rock weathering associated with petroglyphs. After learning weathering through RASI, students completed another concept map. This was a college population where roughly 46% had never taken a "lab science" course and nearly 22% were from minority (non-white) populations. Analysis of student learning through the lens of actor-network theory revealed that when landscape is viewed as process (i.e. many practices), science education embodies both an alternative science philosophy and an alternative materialistic worldview. When RASI components were analyzed after only lecture, student understanding of weathering displayed little connection between weathering form and weathering process. After using RASI in the field however, nearly all students made illustrative concept maps rich in connections between weathering form and weathering process for all subcomponents of RASI. When taken as an aggregate, and measured by an average concept map score, learning increased by almost 14%, Among college minority students, the average score increase approached 23%. Among female students, the average score increase was 16%. For seventh-grade students, scores increased by nearly 36%. After testing for normalcy with Kolmogorov-Smirnov, t-tests reveal that all of these increases were highly statistically significant at p<0.001. The growth in learning weathering science by minority students, as compared to non-minority students, was also statistically significant at p<0.01. These findings reveal the power of field work through RASI to strengthen cognitive linkages between complex biophysical processes and the corresponding rock weathering forms.

Are health sciences students who sit at the back of the lecture hall not motivated?

PubMed

Uffler, Sébastien; Bartier, Jean-Claude; Pelaccia, Thierry

2017-01-01

Motivation is a crucial determinant in learning and performance. It would therefore be advantageous for teachers to use strategies intended to have a positive effect on their students' motivation. With this in mind, the first thing to do is to identify students with motivation problems, which can be a complex exercise when there are large groups. We wanted to explore whether the place chosen by health sciences students in a classroom or lecture hall showed any correlation with their motivation. We carried out a multicentre, prospective, observational study of 596 health sciences students in 9 training institutes. The students filled in a self-administered questionnaire to measure the different components of their motivation to take part in a mandatory lesson. These components were correlated with the row in which they sat in a classroom or lecture hall, when they had a free choice of where to sit. Apart from extrinsic motivation, all the components of motivation for the health sciences students recruited were significantly correlated with the row. The further the students were from the first row, the less they were motivated. In accordance with teachers' views, the level of motivation of the students was less the further their position in a classroom or lecture hall was from the first row. A student's position in the classroom could provide a useful indicator for teachers looking to target their motivational strategies for students with potential motivation problems in the environment, where identifying student motivation levels is impossible.

Pencil-and-Paper Neural Networks: An Undergraduate Laboratory Exercise in Computational Neuroscience

PubMed Central

Crisp, Kevin M.; Sutter, Ellen N.; Westerberg, Jacob A.

2015-01-01

Although it has been more than 70 years since McCulloch and Pitts published their seminal work on artificial neural networks, such models remain primarily in the domain of computer science departments in undergraduate education. This is unfortunate, as simple network models offer undergraduate students a much-needed bridge between cellular neurobiology and processes governing thought and behavior. Here, we present a very simple laboratory exercise in which students constructed, trained and tested artificial neural networks by hand on paper. They explored a variety of concepts, including pattern recognition, pattern completion, noise elimination and stimulus ambiguity. Learning gains were evident in changes in the use of language when writing about information processing in the brain. PMID:26557791

Understanding diffusion theory and Fick's law through food and cooking.

PubMed

Zhou, Larissa; Nyberg, Kendra; Rowat, Amy C

2015-09-01

Diffusion is critical to physiological processes ranging from gas exchange across alveoli to transport within individual cells. In the classroom, however, it can be challenging to convey the concept of diffusion on the microscopic scale. In this article, we present a series of three exercises that use food and cooking to illustrate diffusion theory and Fick's first law. These exercises are part of a 10-wk undergraduate course that uses food and cooking to teach fundamental concepts in physiology and biophysics to students, including nonscience majors. Consistent demonstration of practical applications in a classroom setting has the potential to fundamentally change how students view the role of science in their lives (15). Copyright © 2015 The American Physiological Society.

The negotiation of meaning and exercise of power in professional learning communities: An investigation of middle school science teachers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mclaughlin, Cheryl Althea

A professional learning community (PLC) typically consists of practitioners who systematically examine and problematize their practice with the intention of development and improvement. The collaborative practices inherent in PLCs mirror the way scientists work together to develop new theories, and are particularly valuable for science teachers who could draw from these experiences to improve the quality of student learning. Gaps in the science education literature support the need for research to determine how interactions within PLCs support science teacher development. Additionally, issues of power that may constrain or encourage meaningful interactions are largely overlooked in PLC studies. This qualitative study examines, from a Foucauldian perspective, interactions within a PLC comprising middle school science teachers preparing to implement reform curriculum. Specifically, the study analyzes interactions within the PLC to determine opportunities created for professional learning and development. Audiotaped transcripts of teacher interactions were analyzed using discourse analysis building tasks designed to identify opportunities for learning and to examine the exercise of power within the PLCs. The discourse analytical tools integrated theories of Gee (2011) and Foucault (1972), and were used to deconstruct and interrogate the data. The events were subsequently reconstructed through the lens of social constructivism and Foucault theories on power. The findings identified several processes emerging from the interactions that contributed to the negotiation of an understanding of the reform curriculum. These include reflection on practice, reorganization of cognitive structures, reinvention of practice, and refinement of instructional strategies. The findings also indicated that the exercise of power by entities both external to, and within the PLCs influenced the process of meaning negotiation among the science teachers. The consensus achieved by the teachers reflected knowledge constructed by science education discourses external to the PLC, which regulated understandings emerging from the interactions. Additionally, some teachers, through their actions, exercised power in ways that hindered rather than enhanced constructive dialogue in PLCs. The exercise of power by external institutions was nevertheless necessary to set the stage for the series of actions, the outcome of which facilitated constructive dialogue among science teachers who were implementing the reform curriculum.

Simulating Issue Networks in Small Classes using the World Wide Web.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Josefson, Jim; Casey, Kelly

2000-01-01

Provides background information on simulations and active learning. Discusses the use of simulations in political science courses. Describes a simulation exercise where students performed specific institutional role playing, simulating the workings of a single congressional issue network, based on the reauthorization of the Endangered Species Act.…

Classroom Model of a Wadati Zone.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shea, James H.

1980-01-01

Describes a plexiglass and aluminum model of a Wadati zone suitable for classroom exercises and demonstrations in earth science to let students test the hypothesis that earthquake hypocenters near oceanic trenches tend to occur along planes that dip away from the trenches, toward associated island arc or continental mountain chain. (Author/JN)

Toward a Conceptual Framework for Measuring the Effectiveness of Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences in Undergraduate Biology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brownell, Sara E.; Kloser, Matthew J.

2015-01-01

Recent calls for reform have advocated for extensive changes to undergraduate science lab experiences, namely providing more authentic research experiences for students. Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs) have attempted to eschew the limitations of traditional "cookbook" laboratory exercises and have received…

The Long Game: Five Years of Simulating the Middle East

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hardy, Mat; Totman, Sally

2017-01-01

Scholarly literature attesting to the benefits of role play in teaching international relations or political science subjects is abundant and universally positive. However, despite many case studies presenting snapshots of single examples, long term data concerning a role play exercise is difficult to find. This study presents student feedback…

Mathematics and Living Things. Student Text. Revised Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Faber, Norman J.; And Others

This document is designed for grade eight to enrich and supplement the usual courses of instruction. Mathematics and Living Things (MALT) utilizes exercises in biological science to derive data through which mathematical concepts and principles may be introduced and expanded. Chapters included are: (1) Leaves and Natural Variation: Measurement of…

The Eight-Step Method to Great Group Work

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Steward, Sally; Swango, Jill

2004-01-01

Many science teachers already understand the importance of cooperative learning in the classroom and during lab exercises. From a theoretical perspective, students working in groups learn teamwork and discussion techniques as well as how to formulate and ask questions amongst themselves. From a practical standpoint, group work saves precious…

Competing Obesity Discourses and Critical Challenges for Health and Physical Educators

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pringle, Richard; Pringle, Dixie

2012-01-01

Health and physical education teachers have become subject to epistemological and ethical tensions associated with competing obesity and physical activity discourses. The dominating obesity discourse, underpinned by truth claims from science, encourages educators to pathologise fatness, treat exercise as a medicine and survey student activity…

Energy Balance Education in Schools: The Role of Student Knowledge

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, Senlin; Nam, Yoon Ho

2017-01-01

Obesity prevention and control have been identified as top public health priorities in modern societies. Sport and exercise science researchers from multiple perspectives (e.g. behavioral, pedagogical, psychological, and physiological) have been active contributors addressing this topic. This paper examines the importance of energy balance (EB)…

Health Instruction Packages: Basic Sciences.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cathey, Barbara; And Others

Text, illustrations, and exercises are utilized in a set of nine learning modules designed to instruct nursing and allied health students in a variety of biological topics. The first module, by Barbara Cathey, discusses cell growth and the proliferation of cells in benign and malignant tumors. The second module, by Eugene Volz, describes the…

Cardiovascular Disease and Cancer: Student Awareness Activities.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meyer, James H., Comp.

Awareness activities pertaining to cancer and cardiovascular disease are presented as a supplement for high school science classes. The exercises can be used to enrich units of study dealing with the circulatory system, the cell, or human diseases. Eight activities deal with the following topics: (1) cardiovascular disease risk factors; (2)…

The Student Assistance Program: Higher Education's Holy Grail

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taylor, Suzan R.; Baker, Sally-Ann

2012-01-01

This paper outlines an exploratory study conducted within the Sport & Exercise Sciences department at a higher education institution in Wales. Prior to the study it was identified that personal tutors were spending an increasing amount of time dealing with pastoral issues. This research sought to investigate the implementation of the Student…

Disaster Medicine Training Through Simulations for Fourth-Year Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cloutier, Marc G.; Cowan, Michael L.

1986-01-01

The use of a six-day multiple-simulation exercise in the military disaster medical services training program of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences is described. It is the second part of a clerkship that includes a classroom/laboratory phase using a disaster problem-solving board game. (MSE)

Values Affirmation Intervention Reduces Achievement Gap between Underrepresented Minority and White Students in Introductory Biology Classes

PubMed Central

Jordt, Hannah; Eddy, Sarah L.; Brazil, Riley; Lau, Ignatius; Mann, Chelsea; Brownell, Sara E.; King, Katherine; Freeman, Scott

2017-01-01

Achievement gaps between underrepresented minority (URM) students and their white peers in college science, technology, engineering, and mathematics classrooms are persistent across many white-majority institutions of higher education. Attempts to reduce this phenomenon of underperformance through increasing classroom structure via active learning have been partially successful. In this study, we address the hypothesis that the achievement gap between white and URM students in an undergraduate biology course has a psychological and emotional component arising from stereotype threat. Specifically, we introduced a values affirmation exercise that counters stereotype threat by reinforcing a student’s feelings of integrity and self-worth in three iterations of an intensive active-learning college biology course. On average, this exercise reduced the achievement gap between URM and white students who entered the course with the same incoming grade point average. This result suggests that achievement gaps resulting from the underperformance of URM students could be mitigated by providing students with a learning environment that removes psychological and emotional impediments of performance through short psychosocial interventions. PMID:28710060

A Solid Earth educational module, co-operatively developed by scientists and high school teachers through the Scripps Classroom Connection GK12 Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ziegler, L. B.; van Dusen, D.; Benedict, R.; Chojnacki, P. R.; Peach, C. L.; Staudigel, H.; Constable, C.; Laske, G.

2010-12-01

The Scripps Classroom Connection, funded through the NSF GK-12 program, pairs local high school teachers with Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) graduate students in the earth and ocean sciences for their mutual professional development. An integral goal of the program is the collaborative production of quality earth science educational modules that are tested in the classroom and subsequently made freely available online for use by other educators. We present a brief overview of the program structure in place to support this goal and illustrate a module that we have developed on the Solid Earth & Plate Tectonics for a 9th grade Earth Science classroom. The unit includes 1) an exercise in constructing a geomagnetic polarity timescale which exposes students to authentic scientific data; 2) activities, labs, lectures and worksheets that support the scientific content; and 3) use of online resources such as Google Earth and interactive animations that help students better understand the concepts. The educational unit is being implemented in two separate local area high schools for Fall 2010 and we will report on our experiences. The co-operative efforts of teachers and scientists lead to educational materials which expose students to the scientific process and current science research, while teaching basic concepts using an engaging inquiry-based approach. In turn, graduate students involved gain experience communicating their science to non-science audiences.

Colour and Optical Properties of Materials: An Exploration of the Relationship Between Light, the Optical Properties of Materials and Colour

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tilley, Richard J. D.

2003-05-01

Colour is an important and integral part of everyday life, and an understanding and knowledge of the scientific principles behind colour, with its many applications and uses, is becoming increasingly important to a wide range of academic disciplines, from physical, medical and biological sciences through to the arts. Colour and the Optical Properties of Materials carefully introduces the science behind the subject, along with many modern and cutting-edge applications, chose to appeal to today's students. For science students, it provides a broad introduction to the subject and the many applications of colour. To more applied students, such as engineering and arts students, it provides the essential scientific background to colour and the many applications. Features: * Introduces the science behind the subject whilst closely connecting it to modern applications, such as colour displays, optical amplifiers and colour centre lasers * Richly illustrated with full-colour plates * Includes many worked examples, along with problems and exercises at the end of each chapter and selected answers at the back of the book * A Web site, including additional problems and full solutions to all the problems, which may be accessed at: www.cardiff.ac.uk/uwcc/engin/staff/rdjt/colour Written for students taking an introductory course in colour in a wide range of disciplines such as physics, chemistry, engineering, materials science, computer science, design, photography, architecture and textiles.

The NASA Space Life Sciences Training Program: Accomplishments Since 2013

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rask, Jon; Gibbs, Kristina; Ray, Hami; Bridges, Desireemoi; Bailey, Brad; Smith, Jeff; Sato, Kevin; Taylor, Elizabeth

2017-01-01

The NASA Space Life Sciences Training Program (SLSTP) provides undergraduate students entering their junior or senior years with professional experience in space life science disciplines. This challenging ten-week summer program is held at NASA Ames Research Center. The primary goal of the program is to train the next generation of scientists and engineers, enabling NASA to meet future research and development challenges in the space life sciences. Students work closely with NASA scientists and engineers on cutting-edge research and technology development. In addition to conducting hands-on research and presenting their findings, SLSTP students attend technical lectures given by experts on a wide range of topics, tour NASA research facilities, participate in leadership and team building exercises, and complete a group project. For this presentation, we will highlight program processes, accomplishments, goals, and feedback from alumni and mentors since 2013. To date, 49 students from 41 different academic institutions, 9 staffers, and 21 mentors have participated in the program. The SLSTP is funded by Space Biology, which is part of the Space Life and Physical Sciences Research and Application division of NASA's Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate. The SLSTP is managed by the Space Biology Project within the Science Directorate at Ames Research Center.

Insights on WWW-based geoscience teaching: Climbing the first year learning cliff

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lamberson, Michelle N.; Johnson, Mark; Bevier, Mary Lou; Russell, J. Kelly

1997-06-01

In early 1995, The University of British Columbia Department of Geological Sciences (now Earth and Ocean Sciences) initiated a project that explored the effectiveness of the World Wide Web as a teaching and learning medium. Four decisions made at the onset of the project have guided the department's educational technology plan: (1) over 90% of funding recieved from educational technology grants was committed towards personnel; (2) materials developed are modular in design; (3) a data-base approach was taken to resource development; and (4) a strong commitment to student involvement in courseware development. The project comprised development of a web site for an existing core course: Geology 202, Introduction to Petrology. The web site is a gateway to course information, content, resources, exercises, and several searchable data-bases (images, petrologic definitions, and minerals in thin section). Material was developed on either an IBM or UNIX machine, ported to a UNIX platform, and is accessed using the Netscape browser. The resources consist primarily of HTML files or CGI scripts with associated text, images, sound, digital movies, and animations. Students access the web site from the departmental student computer facility, from home or a computer station in the petrology laboratory. Results of a survey of the Geol 202 students indicate that they found the majority of the resources useful, and the site is being expanded. The Geology 202 project had a "trickle-up" effect throughout the department: prior to this project, there was minimal use of Internet resources in lower-level geology courses. By the end of the 1996-1997 academic year, we anticipate that at least 17 Earth and Ocean Science courses will have a WWW site for one or all of the following uses: (1) presenting basic information; (2) accessing lecture images; (3) providing a jumping-off point for exploring related WWW sites; (4) conducting on-line exercises; and/or (5) providing a communications forum for students and faculty via a Hypernews group. Url http://www.science.ubc.ca/

Teaching Students How to Study: A Workshop on Information Processing and Self-Testing Helps Students Learn

PubMed Central

Stanger-Hall, Kathrin F.; Shockley, Floyd W.; Wilson, Rachel E.

2011-01-01

We implemented a “how to study” workshop for small groups of students (6–12) for N = 93 consenting students, randomly assigned from a large introductory biology class. The goal of this workshop was to teach students self-regulating techniques with visualization-based exercises as a foundation for learning and critical thinking in two areas: information processing and self-testing. During the workshop, students worked individually or in groups and received immediate feedback on their progress. Here, we describe two individual workshop exercises, report their immediate results, describe students’ reactions (based on the workshop instructors’ experience and student feedback), and report student performance on workshop-related questions on the final exam. Students rated the workshop activities highly and performed significantly better on workshop-related final exam questions than the control groups. This was the case for both lower- and higher-order thinking questions. Student achievement (i.e., grade point average) was significantly correlated with overall final exam performance but not with workshop outcomes. This long-term (10 wk) retention of a self-testing effect across question levels and student achievement is a promising endorsement for future large-scale implementation and further evaluation of this “how to study” workshop as a study support for introductory biology (and other science) students. PMID:21633067

The Impact of an Interactive Statistics Module on Novices’ Development of Scientific Process Skills and Attitudes in a First-Semester Research Foundations Course†

PubMed Central

Marsan, Lynnsay A.; D’Arcy, Christina E.; Olimpo, Jeffrey T.

2016-01-01

Evidence suggests that incorporating quantitative reasoning exercises into existent curricular frameworks within the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines is essential for novices’ development of conceptual understanding and process skills in these domains. Despite this being the case, such studies acknowledge that students often experience difficulty in applying mathematics in the context of scientific problems. To address this concern, the present study sought to explore the impact of active demonstrations and critical reading exercises on novices’ comprehension of basic statistical concepts, including hypothesis testing, experimental design, and interpretation of research findings. Students first engaged in a highly interactive height activity that served to intuitively illustrate normal distribution, mean, standard deviation, and sample selection criteria. To enforce practical applications of standard deviation and p-value, student teams were subsequently assigned a figure from a peer-reviewed primary research article and instructed to evaluate the trustworthiness of the data. At the conclusion of this exercise, students presented their evaluations to the class for open discussion and commentary. Quantitative assessment of pre- and post-module survey data indicated a statistically significant increase both in students’ scientific reasoning and process skills and in their self-reported confidence in understanding the statistical concepts presented in the module. Furthermore, data indicated that the majority of students (>85%) found the module both interesting and helpful in nature. Future studies will seek to develop additional, novel exercises within this area and to evaluate the impact of such modules across a variety of STEM and non-STEM contexts. PMID:28101271

The LEAPS GK-12 Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gwinn, Elisabeth; Goodchild, Fiona; Garza, Marilyn

2005-03-01

The NSF-funded GK-12 program at UCSB, ``Let's Explore Applied Physical Science'' (LEAPS), awards full fellowships to competitively selected graduate students in the physical sciences and engineering, to support their engagement in local 8th and 9th grade science classrooms. The Fellows' responsibilities to LEAPS total 15 hours per week during the school year. They join consistently in the same classes to collaborate with teachers on delivery of discovery-oriented science instruction. Fellows work in 3-member, interdisciplinary teams. They benefit from this team approach through interaction with colleagues in other disciplines, validation from peers who share enthusiasm for science and mentoring, increased leadership and teaching skills, and a research safety net provided by teammates who can pick up the slack when one Fellow's research requires undivided attention. For teachers, the disciplinary breadth of the Fellow teams is an enormous asset in covering the broad physical science curriculum in CA. Students benefit from hands-on labs and small-group problem-solving exercises enabled by the Fellows' presence and from mentoring by these young scientists.

Practice of Physical Activity among Future Doctors: A Cross Sectional Analysis

PubMed Central

Rao, Chythra R; Darshan, BB; Das, Nairita; Rajan, Vinaya; Bhogun, Meemansha; Gupta, Aditya

2012-01-01

Background: Non communicable diseases (NCD) will account for 73% of deaths and 60% of the global disease burden by 2020. Physical activity plays a major role in the prevention of these non-communicable diseases. The stress involved in meeting responsibilities of becoming a physician may adversely affect the exercise habits of students. So, the current study aimed to study the practice of physical activity among undergraduate medical students. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted among 240 undergraduate medical students. Quota sampling method was used to identify 60 students from each of the four even semesters. A pre-tested, semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect the data. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16 was used for data entry and analysis and results are expressed as percentages and proportions. Results: In our study, 55% were 20 to 22 years old. Over half of the students were utilizing the sports facilities provided by the university in the campus. Majority of students 165 (69%) had normal body mass index (BMI), (51) 21% were overweight, while 7 (3%) were obese. Of the 62% who were currently exercising, the practice of physical activity was more among boys as compared to girls (62% v/s 38%). Lack of time 46 (60.5%), laziness (61.8%), and exhaustion from academic activities (42%) were identified as important hindering factors among medical students who did not exercise. Conclusion: A longitudinal study to follow-up student behavior throughout their academic life is needed to identify the factors promoting the practice of physical activity among students. PMID:22708033

‘Building Core Knowledge - Reconstructing Earth History’: Transforming Undergraduate Instruction by Bringing Ocean Drilling Science on Earth History and Global Climate Change into the Classroom (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

St. John, K.; Leckie, R. M.; Jones, M. H.; Pound, K. S.; Pyle, E.; Krissek, L. A.

2009-12-01

This NSF-funded, Phase 1 CCLI project effectively integrates scientific ocean drilling data and research (DSDP-ODP-IODP-ANDRILL) with education. We have developed, and are currently testing, a suite of data-rich inquiry-based classroom learning materials based on sediment core archives. These materials are suitable for use in introductory geoscience courses that serve general education students, early geoscience majors, and pre-service teachers. 'Science made accessible' is the essence of this goal. Our team consists of research and education specialists from institutions ranging from R1 research to public liberal arts to community college. We address relevant and timely ‘Big Ideas’ with foundational geoscience concepts and climate change case studies, as well transferable skills valued in professional settings. The exercises are divided into separate but inter-related modules including: introduction to cores, seafloor sediments, microfossils and biostratigraphy, paleomagnetism and magnetostratigraphy, climate rhythms, oxygen-isotope changes in the Cenozoic, past Arctic and Antarctic climates, drill site selection, interpreting Arctic and Antarctic sediment cores, onset of Northern Hemisphere glaciation, onset of Antarctic glaciation, and the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum. Each module has several parts, and each is designed to be used in the classroom, laboratory, or assigned as homework. All exercises utilize authentic data. Students work with scientific uncertainty, practice quantitative and problem-solving skills, and expand their basic geologic and geographic knowledge. Students have the opportunity to work individually and in groups, evaluate real-world problems, and formulate hypotheses. Initial exercises in each module are useful to introduce a topic, gauge prior knowledge, and flag possible areas of student misconception. Comprehensive instructor guides provide essential background information, detailed answer keys, and alternative implementation strategies, as well as providing links to other supplementary materials and examples for assessment. Preliminary assessment data indicates positive gains in student attitudes towards science, and in their content knowledge and scientific skills. In addition, student outcomes appear to depend somewhat on students’ motivation for taking the course and their institution, but are generally independent of students’ class rank or GPA. Our classroom-tested learning materials are being disseminated through a variety of outlets including instructor workshops and eventually to the web.

Teacher Research Programs: An Effective Form of Professional Development to Increase Student Achievement and Benefit the Economy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dubner, J.

2008-12-01

U.S. high school students perform markedly less well in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) than students in other economically advanced countries. This low level of STEM performance endangers our democracy and economy. The President's Council of Advisors in Science and Technology's 2004 report attributed the shortfall of students attracted to the sciences is a result of the dearth of teachers sufficiently conversant with science and scientists to enable them to communicate to their students the excitement of scientific exploration and discovery, and the opportunities science provides for highly rewarding and remunerative careers. Nonetheless, the United States has made little progress in correcting these deficiencies. Studies have shown that high-quality teaching matters more to student achievement than anything else schools do. This belief is buttressed by evidence from Columbia University's Summer Research Program for Science Teachers (SRP) that highly motivated, in-service science teachers require professional development to enable them and their students to perform up to their potential. Columbia's Summer Research Program is based on the premise that to teach science effectively requires experience in using the tools of contemporary science to answer unsolved questions. From its inception, SRP's goal has been to enhance interest and improve performance in science of students. It seeks to achieve this goal by increasing the professional competence of teachers. The reports of Elmore, Sanders and Rivers, and our own studies, show that professional development is a "key lever for improving student outcomes." While most middle and high school science teachers have taken college science courses that include cookbook laboratory exercises, the vast majority of them have never attempted to answer an unsolved question. Just as student learning depends on the expertise of teachers, the expertise of teachers depends on the quality of their professional development. Columbia University's teacher research program is a very effective form of professional development for pre- college science teachers and has a direct correlation to increased student motivation and achievement in science. The Program is premised on the beliefs that hands-on experience in the practice of science improves the quality and authenticity of science teaching, and that improved science teaching is correlated with increased student interest and achievement in science. The author will present the methodology of the program's evaluation citing statistically significant findings. The author will also show the economic benefits of teacher participation in a well-designed research program.

Space Sciences Education and Outreach Project of Moscow State University

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krasotkin, S.

2006-11-01

sergekras@mail.ru The space sciences education and outreach project was initiated at Moscow State University in order to incorporate modern space research into the curriculum popularize the basics of space physics, and enhance public interest in space exploration. On 20 January 2005 the first Russian University Satellite “Universitetskiy-Tatyana” was launched into circular polar orbit (inclination 83 deg., altitude 940-980 km). The onboard scientific complex “Tatyana“, as well as the mission control and information receiving centre, was designed and developed at Moscow State University. The scientific programme of the mission includes measurements of space radiation in different energy channels and Earth UV luminosity and lightning. The current education programme consists of basic multimedia lectures “Life of the Earth in the Solar Atmosphere” and computerized practice exercises “Space Practice” (based on the quasi-real-time data obtained from “Universitetskiy-Tatyana” satellite and other Internet resources). A multimedia lectures LIFE OF EARTH IN THE SOLAR ATMOSPHERE containing the basic information and demonstrations of heliophysics (including Sun structure and solar activity, heliosphere and geophysics, solar-terrestrial connections and solar influence on the Earth’s life) was created for upper high-school and junior university students. For the upper-university students there a dozen special computerized hands-on exercises were created based on the experimental quasi-real-time data obtained from our satellites. Students specializing in space physics from a few Russian universities are involved in scientific work. Educational materials focus on upper high school, middle university and special level for space physics students. Moscow State University is now extending its space science education programme by creating multimedia lectures on remote sensing, space factors and materials study, satellite design and development, etc. The space sciences educational activity of Moscow State University is a non-profit project and is open for all interested parties. “Space schools” for university teachers and students were held in the autumn of 2004 and 2005. The main objective of those schools was to attract interest in space research. Tutors and students who took part in these schools had never before been involved in the space sciences. The idea behind these schools was to join forces: Moscow State University scientists gave space science lectures, students from different universities (Ulianovsk, Samara, Kostroma and other Russian universities) performed the work (prepared educational material) and their university teachers managed the students. After participating in these schools, both students and teachers started to study space science related topics emphasizing the success of these schools. It is important for the educational community to understand what skills future space scientists and space industry employees must be equipped with. In the next years, emphasis is to be placed on space science education at all educational levels and better communication should be practiced between universities and industry.

Field Studies in Science Teacher Preparation Programs: Examples of Research-Oriented Earth and Environmental Science Field Projects for Pre-service and In-service Teachers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

O'Neal, M. L.

2005-12-01

Science teaching reforms of the past 10 to 20 years have focused on a pedagogical shift from verification-style laboratory exercises, toward hands-on and inquiry-based constructivist teaching methods. Such methods, however, require teachers to be proficient in more than just basic content and teaching strategies. To be effective teachers, these professionals must also be skilled in the design and implementation of research-style investigations. At Loyola College in Maryland, topics in the earth and environmental sciences are used as the basis for field research projects that teach our students science content, along with how to design age-appropriate investigative activities and how to implement them in a stimulating, inquiry-based learning environment. Presented here are examples of three projects, demonstrating how these themes are woven throughout our pre- and in-service teacher preparation programs, at both undergraduate and graduate levels. 1. Watershed Studies - In our undergraduate, pre-service, elementary education teacher preparation program, students design and implement a water quality study in a local watershed. In the classroom, students use topographic maps and aerial photographs to delineate the watersheds' boundaries, to identify current land use patterns, and to select appropriate locations on the trunk stream for testing. Water testing at these sites is conducted during field trips, with data analysis and interpretation performed on-site. On-site work allows students to make connections between stream water quality and adjacent land use practices. Students then relate the content and research results to science teaching standards, in order to develop a unit-plan for use in their future classrooms. 2. Land Use Assessment - In our graduate, in-service, elementary and middle school science program, a local stream valley is used as the basis for an analysis of potential land use changes. Students first construct a topographic base map of the area, and then generate current land use/cover type maps. Soil texture, moisture, and depth data, as well as slope angle and infiltration/runoff potential information are collected throughout the map area, in order to assess the impact of proposed residential or agricultural land use changes. Students create maps delineating suitability and erosion potential, based upon their topographic maps and site data. A proposal for an analogous study, near the students' schools, is developed for use with their own students, as culmination of the project. 3. Climate Change - In our graduate, in-service, middle and high school earth science program, students are exposed to field research methods during a summer research project investigating relict shorelines of the Chesapeake Bay. In this project, students collect subsurface geophysical, sedimentological, and biological data through the use of ground penetrating radar, vibracoring, and hand-augering equipment. By combining the stratigraphy revealed in the radar records, with paleoenvironmental interpretations from sediment analyses and age estimates from fossil material encountered, students are able to construct cross sections of the region, delineating littoral deposits stemming from climate-induced, higher-than-present sea-level incursions. Students then prepare field and laboratory exercises for their own classrooms, relating the design and discoveries of the study to their own students. The students also participate in the preparation and presentation of their study in national and international scientific venues.

Behavior Risk Factors Among Russian University Students Majoring in Medicine, Education, and Exercise Science.

PubMed

Anischenko, Aleksander; Gurevich, Konstantin; Arhangelskaya, Anna; Klenov, Michael; Burdukova, Ekaterina; Ogarev, Valrii; Ignatov, Nikolay; Osadchenko, Irina

2016-09-14

To analyze the prevalence of select behavioral risk factors among Russian university students majoring in medicine, education, and exercise science. A total of 834 students from five Federal universities located in four federal regions of Russia were included in the study. The purposive sample included future doctors, school teachers, and fitness trainers. Students were asked specifically about smoking, level of physical activity, and food preferences. To calculate body mass indices (BMIs), waist, hip, weight, and height were also measured. Smoking rates, level of activity, and nutritional habits were significantly different by age, but BMI was not. Smoking rates and BMI were significantly different by gender, but level of activity and nutritional habits were not. Like the differences found by age, smoking rates, level of activity, and nutritional habits were significantly different by ethnicity, but BMI was not. There were significant difference across all behavioral health risk factors by region. The results show significantly higher levels of physical inactivity, consumption of unhealthy foods, and high BMIs among medical students compared with future teachers and wellness instructors (p < .05). In the same time, the smoking levels are the highest among future teachers. The highest prevalence of smoking was found to be associated with gender (for females living Moscow and for males in rural regions), and Russian ethnic group. Tailored programs to prevent common health behavior risk factors among future medical doctors are urgently needed in the Russian Federation. © The Author(s) 2016.

Indiana Wesleyan University SPS Physics Outreach to Rural Middle School and High School Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ostrander, Joshua; Rose, Heath; Burchell, Robert; Ramos, Roberto

2013-03-01

The Society of Physics Students chapter at Indiana Wesleyan University is unusual in that it has no physics major, only physics minors. Yet while just over a year old, IWU-SPS has been active in performing physics outreach to middle school and high school students, and the rural community of Grant County. Our year-old SPS chapter consists of majors from Chemistry, Nursing, Biology, Exercise Science, Computer Science, Psychology, Pastoral Studies, and Science Education, who share a common interest in physics and service to the community. IWU currently has a physics minor and is currently working to build a physics major program. Despite the intrinsic challenges, our multi-disciplinary group has been successful at using physics demonstration equipment and hands-on activities and their universal appeal to raise the interest in physics in Grant County. We report our experience, challenges, and successes with physics outreach. We describe in detail our two-pronged approach: raising the level of physics appreciation among the IWU student community and among pre-college students in a rural community of Indiana. Acknowledgements: We acknowledge the support of the Society of Physics Students through a Marsh White Outreach Award and a Blake Lilly Prize.

Measuring scientific reasoning through behavioral analysis in a computer-based problem solving exercise

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mead, C.; Horodyskyj, L.; Buxner, S.; Semken, S. C.; Anbar, A. D.

2016-12-01

Developing scientific reasoning skills is a common learning objective for general-education science courses. However, effective assessments for such skills typically involve open-ended questions or tasks, which must be hand-scored and may not be usable online. Using computer-based learning environments, reasoning can be assessed automatically by analyzing student actions within the learning environment. We describe such an assessment under development and present pilot results. In our content-neutral instrument, students solve a problem by collecting and interpreting data in a logical, systematic manner. We then infer reasoning skill automatically based on student actions. Specifically, students investigate why Earth has seasons, a scientifically simple but commonly misunderstood topic. Students are given three possible explanations and asked to select a set of locations on a world map from which to collect temperature data. They then explain how the data support or refute each explanation. The best approaches will use locations in both the Northern and Southern hemispheres to argue that the contrasting seasonality of the hemispheres supports only the correct explanation. We administered a pilot version to students at the beginning of an online, introductory science course (n = 223) as an optional extra credit exercise. We were able to categorize students' data collection decisions as more and less logically sound. Students who choose the most logical measurement locations earned higher course grades, but not significantly higher. This result is encouraging, but not definitive. In the future, we will clarify our results in two ways. First, we plan to incorporate more open-ended interactions into the assessment to improve the resolving power of this tool. Second, to avoid relying on course grades, we will independently measure reasoning skill with one of the existing hand-scored assessments (e.g., Critical Thinking Assessment Test) to cross-validate our new assessment.

Approaches for Promoting Lunar and Planetary Science in Higher Education Curricula

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hurtado, J. M.; CenterLunar Science Education; Higher Education Consortium

2011-12-01

The Center for Lunar Science and Exploration (CLSE) at the Lunar and Planetary Institute has formed a higher-education consortium comprising a group of educators throughout the states of Texas and Oklahoma, all of who are committed to furthering the inclusion of lunar and planetary science in university-level curricula. Members of the Consortium represent the spectrum of higher-educational venues, from research universities to small colleges. They also teach planetary science in a range of settings, from specialized graduate/undergraduate courses to introductory undergraduate courses in general science that incorporate a wide range of other topics. One of the top-level goals of the Consortium is to provide an online forum and a network of educators that can share teaching materials, including: illustrations and animations of scientific concepts; syllabi and lesson plans; and laboratory and other exercises. These materials are being shared with the entire community through the CLSE website (http://www.lpi.usra.edu/nlsi/), and a series of workshops has been held with participating members of the Consortium to continue to develop and solicit content. A specific avenue of bringing lunar and planetary content into the classroom that has been discussed and experimented with over the past two years involves planetary analogs. Participatory exercises developed around the author's work with NASA analog field tests has been used in several classroom lab exercises in a planetary science course, a remote sensing course, and a introductory geologic mapping course. These efforts have proven fruitful in engaging the students in lunar and planetary exploration science.

The Use of a Virtual Online Debating Platform to Facilitate Student Discussion of Potentially Polarising Topics.

PubMed

McGreevy, Paul D; Tzioumis, Vicky; Degeling, Chris; Johnson, Jane; Brown, Robert; Sands, Mike; Starling, Melissa J; Phillips, Clive J C

2017-09-02

The merits of students exchanging views through the so-called human continuum exercise (HCE) are well established. The current article describes the creation of the virtual human continuum (VHC), an online platform that facilitates the same teaching exercise. It also reports feedback on the VHC from veterinary science students ( n = 38). First-year Doctor of Veterinary Medicine students at the University of Sydney, Australia, trialed the platform and provided feedback. Most students agreed or strongly agreed that the VHC offered: a non-threatening environment for discussing emotive and challenging issues; and an opportunity to see how other people form ideas. It also made them think about how to express their ideas and make arguments; and left them feeling more comfortable about expressing their views using it than they would discussing ideas face-to-face (98%, 84%, 79% and 76%, respectively). All respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the VHC encouraged them to consider other opinions. These data suggest that the transition of the HCE to an online platform facilitates dialogue on difficult ethical issues in a supportive environment.

Integrating Place-based Science and Data into Hydrology and Geoscience Education Using the CUAHSI Water Data Center Resources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arrigo, J. S.; Dalbotten, D. M.; Hooper, R. P.; Pollak, J.; Geosling, E.

2014-12-01

"All water is local." For geoscientist researchers and educators, this simple statement underlies potentially powerful ways to engage students around hydrologic and engineering concepts. Education research has given us strong insight into how students learn. Place-based education gives students a personal and geographical context to connect concepts and processes to their everyday lives. Data-driven exercises build inquiry and critical thinking skills. With the ubiquity of water, the critical roles it plays in earth systems, and its influence on ecosystems, climate, geologic processes, economies, and human health, integrating water data and place-based exercises into the classroom is an excellent opportunity to enhance student learning and stimulate interest in the geosciences. THE CUAHSI Water Data Center (WDC), established in 2013, is the culmination of a decade of work to adapt modern web services technology to work on time-series data (such as a gage record or water-quality series), the most common water data type. It provides unprecedented consolidated access to water quantity and quality data across the US (and increasingly across the world). This allows educators to craft learning exercises around key concepts and locations, from rote problem sets to more exploratory investigations. The web services technology used address key limitations - such as difficulty in discovering data, co-locating data, and download options and access- that have been identified as barriers to integrating real data in classroom exercises. This presentation discusses key aspects of the system, provides example exercises, and discusses how we seek to engage the community to effectively chart a path forward for further development of both the technological and education resources.

Young Scientists Explore Butterflies and Moths. Book 4 Primary Level.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Penn, Linda

Designed to present interesting facts about science and to heighten the curiosity of primary age students, this book contains activities about the natural world and numerous black and white illustrations. The activities focus on butterflies and moths and their stages of development. The first section contains exercises on recognizing insect body…

Use of Thermochrons in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Avard, Margaret Marie

2010-01-01

Preservice elementary education students often do not have a good feel for the process of science. Many may be acquainted with the steps of the scientific method but have never been through the scientific process. An exercise was designed using temperature-logging iButtons (Thermochrons) to improve knowledge of and familiarity with the process of…

Biodiversity and Edge Effects: An Activity in Landscape Ecology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hart, Justin L.

2007-01-01

Biodiversity and the conservation of biodiversity have received increased attention during the last few decades and these topics have been implemented into many G7-12 science curricula. This work presents an exercise that may be used in middle and high school classrooms to help students better understand spatial aspects of biodiversity. The…

Multigenerational Learning for Expanding the Educational Involvement of Bilinguals Experiencing Academic Difficulties

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martínez-Álvarez, Patricia

2017-01-01

Focusing on two bilingual children experiencing learning difficulties, I explore the scientific representations these students generate in an afterschool programme where they have opportunities to exercise agency. In the programme, children use a digital camera to document science in their lives and engage in conversations about the products they…

Educational Modules in Tissue Engineering Based on the "How People Learn" Framework

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Birol, Gulnur; Liu, Shu Q.; Smith, H. David; Hirsch, Penny

2006-01-01

This paper describes an educational package for use in tertiary level tissue engineering education. Current learning science principles and theory were employed in the design process of these educational tools. Each module started with a challenge statement designed to motivate students and consisted of laboratory exercises centered on the "How…

Understanding Fatty Acid Metabolism through an Active Learning Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fardilha, M.; Schrader, M.; da Cruz e Silva, O. A. B.; da Cruz e Silva, E. F.

2010-01-01

A multi-method active learning approach (MALA) was implemented in the Medical Biochemistry teaching unit of the Biomedical Sciences degree at the University of Aveiro, using problem-based learning as the main learning approach. In this type of learning strategy, students are involved beyond the mere exercise of being taught by listening. Less…

Chladni Patterns on Drumheads: A "Physics of Music" Experiment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Worland, Randy

2011-01-01

In our "Physics of Music" class for non-science majors, we have developed a laboratory exercise in which students experiment with Chladni sand patterns on drumheads. Chladni patterns provide a kinesthetic, visual, and entertaining way to illustrate standing waves on flat surfaces and are very helpful when making the transition from one-dimensional…

Cricital Thinking Abilities That Support Scientific Skills. Workshop.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pallas, Stella

Science is suggested as an excellent content area for teaching primary students the creative and critical thinking skills that can help them become better problem solvers. J. P. Guilford's Structure of Intellect model and Benjamin Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives serve as the basis for developing exercises which lead to improvement of…

Putting a Human Face on Chemistry: A Project for Liberal Arts Chemistry.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kriz, George; Popejoy, Kate

A collaborative project in liberal arts chemistry, involving faculty in chemistry and science education, is described. The project includes various components: an introductory test (DAST) to examine students' perceptions of scientists, a group library research exercise, oral and written presentation of the results of the library research, a…

A Computer-Assisted Instruction in Teaching Abstract Statistics to Public Affairs Undergraduates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ozturk, Ali Osman

2012-01-01

This article attempts to demonstrate the applicability of a computer-assisted instruction supported with simulated data in teaching abstract statistical concepts to political science and public affairs students in an introductory research methods course. The software is called the Elaboration Model Computer Exercise (EMCE) in that it takes a great…

Cultivating a Critical Classroom for Viewing Gendered Violence in Music Video

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodier, Kristin; Meagher, Michelle; Nixon, Randelle

2012-01-01

Though this exercise was originally designed for a first year course in women's studies that emphasizes representations of girls and women, it is also entirely appropriate to students considering matters of gender and sexuality in the fields of media studies, communications, sociology, political science, and cultural studies. This teaching…

Implementing a Web-Based Introductory Bioinformatics Course for Non-Bioinformaticians That Incorporates Practical Exercises

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vincent, Antony T.; Bourbonnais, Yves; Brouard, Jean-Simon; Deveau, Hélène; Droit, Arnaud; Gagné, Stéphane M.; Guertin, Michel; Lemieux, Claude; Rathier, Louis; Charette, Steve J.; Lagüe, Patrick

2018-01-01

A recent scientific discipline, bioinformatics, defined as using informatics for the study of biological problems, is now a requirement for the study of biological sciences. Bioinformatics has become such a powerful and popular discipline that several academic institutions have created programs in this field, allowing students to become…

Borrowing Money. Science and Technology Education in Philippine Society.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Philippines Univ., Quezon City. Inst. for Science and Mathematics Education Development.

This module discusses several borrowing schemes to help students see more clearly the effects of borrowing money on both the lender and the borrower. They include borrowing from personal lenders, from "5-6" operators, and from credit unions. Three exercise sets with answers (one for each borrowing scheme), a short list of references, and…

How do we interest students in science?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murray, L.

2016-02-01

In today's world science literacy is now, more than ever, critical to society. However, today's technically savvy student tends to be bored by "cook-book" laboratory exercises and dated lecture style, which typifies the way that most science courses are taught. To enhance student interest in and understanding of the sciences, we developed two unique programs, in which teachers were provided with the tools and hands-on experience that enabled them to implement research- and inquiry-based projects with their students. The approach was based a framework that is student driven and enables active participation and innovation in the study of the environment. The framework involved selection of a theme and an activity that captured the interest of the participants, participant development of research or investigative questions based on the theme, experimentation to address the research questions, formulation of conclusions, and communication of these results. The projects consisted of two parts: a professional development institute for teachers and the classroom implementation of student research projects, both of which incorporated the framework process. The institutes focused on modeling the framework process, with teachers actively developing questions, researching the question, formulating results and conclusions. This method empowered teachers to be confident in the implementation of the process with their students. With support from project staff, teachers followed up by incorporating the method of teaching with their students. Evaluation results from the programs concluded that projects such as these can increase student interest in and understanding of the scientific process.

Are health sciences students who sit at the back of the lecture hall not motivated?

PubMed Central

Uffler, Sébastien; Bartier, Jean-Claude

2017-01-01

Objectives Motivation is a crucial determinant in learning and performance. It would therefore be advantageous for teachers to use strategies intended to have a positive effect on their students' motivation. With this in mind, the first thing to do is to identify students with motivation problems, which can be a complex exercise when there are large groups. We wanted to explore whether the place chosen by health sciences students in a classroom or lecture hall showed any correlation with their motivation. Methods We carried out a multicentre, prospective, observational study of 596 health sciences students in 9 training institutes. The students filled in a self-administered questionnaire to measure the different components of their motivation to take part in a mandatory lesson. These components were correlated with the row in which they sat in a classroom or lecture hall, when they had a free choice of where to sit. Results Apart from extrinsic motivation, all the components of motivation for the health sciences students recruited were significantly correlated with the row. The further the students were from the first row, the less they were motivated. Conclusion In accordance with teachers' views, the level of motivation of the students was less the further their position in a classroom or lecture hall was from the first row. A student's position in the classroom could provide a useful indicator for teachers looking to target their motivational strategies for students with potential motivation problems in the environment, where identifying student motivation levels is impossible. PMID:28362833

An Exploration Geophysics Course With an Environmental Focus for an Urban Minority Institution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kenyon, P. M.

2004-12-01

A hands-on exploration geophysics field course with an environmental focus has been developed with NSF support for use at the City College of New York in Manhattan. To maximize access for the students, no prerequisites beyond introductory earth science and physics are required. The course is taught for three hours on Saturday mornings. This has resulted in it attracting not only regular City College students, but also earth science teachers studying for alternate certification or Master's degrees. After a brief introduction to the nature of geophysics and to concepts in data processing, the course is taught in four three-week modules, one each on seismology, resistivity surveying, electromagnetic ground conductivity, and magnetic measurements. Each module contains one week of theory, a field experience, computer data analysis, and a final report. Field exercises are planned to emphasize teamwork and include realistic urban applications of the techniques. Student surveys done in conjunction with this course provide insights into the motivations and needs of the mostly minority students taking it. In general, these students come to the course already comfortable with teamwork and with working in the field. The questionnaires indicate that their greatest need is increased knowledge of the methods of geophysics and of the problems that can be attacked using it. Most of the students gave high ratings to the course, citing the fieldwork as the part that they most enjoyed. The results of these surveys will be presented, along with examples of the field exercises used. The computer analysis assignments written for this course will also be available.

Crime scene investigation involving a large turbidite - a 1h-teaching unit in Limnogeology/Sedimentology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gilli, Adrian; Kremer, Katrina

2017-04-01

In 1996, a dead corpse (named „Brienzi") was found at the banks of the picturesque Lake Brienz in the Bernese Alps/Switzerland. What is the origin of this corpse and which chain of events lead to this crime scene? This is the starting position for a 1h exercise/game for undergraduate students in Earth Sciences/Geosciences.The students are provided with a wealth of evidences like statements from people potentially involved in the case, age data on the human corpse and monitoring data from the lake and its surroundings. The students are guided through the game step by step. After solving a task, the students get a feedback and can check if they were correct with their interpretation. Interestingly for earth science students, a lacustrine mass moment plays an important role in these investigations, but more should not be given at this point. In this exercise, we can also check if the teached content of the previous lessons have been acquired correctly by the students, as it deals with diverse limnogeological and sedimentological aspects. The game is strongly based on a study of Girardclos et al. (2007) and uses their argumentation for the occurrence of a large mass movement in Lake Brienz in 1996. A copy of the game is available by the author upon request. Reference: Girardclos, S., Schmidt, O.T., Sturm, M., Ariztegui, D., Pugin, A. and Anselmetti, F.S., 2007, The 1996 AD delta collapse and large turbidite in Lake Brienz. Marine Geology, 241, pp.137-154. doi:10.1016/j.margeo.2007.03.011

Use of a virtual human performance laboratory to improve integration of mathematics and biology in sports science curricula in Sweden and the United States.

PubMed

Garza, D; Besier, T; Johnston, T; Rolston, B; Schorsch, A; Matheson, G; Annerstedt, C; Lindh, J; Rydmark, M

2007-01-01

New fields such as bioengineering are exploring the role of the physical sciences in traditional biological approaches to problems, with exciting results in device innovation, medicine, and research biology. The integration of mathematics, biomechanics, and material sciences into the undergraduate biology curriculum will better prepare students for these opportunities and enhance cooperation among faculty and students at the university level. We propose the study of sports science as the basis for introduction of this interdisciplinary program. This novel integrated approach will require a virtual human performance laboratory dual-hosted in Sweden and the United States. We have designed a course model that involves cooperative learning between students at Göteborg University and Stanford University, utilizes new technologies, encourages development of original research and will rely on frequent self-assessment and reflective learning. We will compare outcomes between this course and a more traditional didactic format as well as assess the effectiveness of multiple web-hosted virtual environments. We anticipate the grant will result in a network of original faculty and student research in exercise science and pedagogy as well as provide the opportunity for implementation of the model in more advance training levels and K-12 programs.

GLOBE Atmosphere and AMS Diversity Program Content to Foster Weather and Climate Science Awareness at HBCUs: A Curriculum Enhancement Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Padgett, D.

2017-12-01

Tennessee State University (TSU) is a member of the "Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) Mission Earth" project. The World Regional Geography (GEOG 1010/1020) courses are required for Education majors. Pre-service teachers must complete several exercises to be certified in the GLOBE Atmosphere Protocols. The pre-service teachers are required to develop GLOBE-based lessons to high school students. The exercise theme is "Exploring the Impacts of Urban Heat Islands (UHI) using Geospatial Technology." Surface temperature, ambient air temperature, and cloud cover data are collected. Sample point locations are logged using Garmin GPS receivers and then mapped using ArcGIS Online (http://arcg.is/1oiD379). The service learning outreach associated with this experience requires collegians to thoroughly understand the physical, social, and health science content associated with UHIs and then impart the information to younger learners. The precollegiate students are motivated due to their closeness in age and social context to the college students. All of the students have the advantage of engaging in hands-on problem-based learning of complex meteorology, climate science, and geospatial technology concepts. The optimal result is to have pre-service teachers enroll in the Weather and Climate (GEOG 3500) course, which is supported by the American Meteorological Society (AMS) Weather and Climate Studies Curriculum. Tennessee State University faculty have completed training to deliver the curriculum through the AMS Diversity Program. The AMS Weather Studies and Climate Studies programs have been institutionalized at Tennessee State University (TSU) since fall 2005. Approximately 250 undergraduate students have been exposed to the interactive AMS learning materials over the past 10-plus years. Non-STEM, and education majors are stimulated by the real-time course content and are encouraged to think critically about atmospheric systems science, and perhaps pursue further study at the graduate level. The "vertical integration" model being developed herein is designed to be replicated at other HBCUs and MSIs as an effective vehicle for drawing students from underrepresented groups into the STEM education pipeline, particularly those planning careers in teaching.

Tutoring math platform accessible for visually impaired people.

PubMed

Maćkowski, Michał Sebastian; Brzoza, Piotr Franciszek; Spinczyk, Dominik Roland

2018-04-01

There are many problems with teaching and assessing impaired students in higher education, especially in technical science, where the knowledge is represented mostly by structural information like: math formulae, charts, graphs, etc. Developing e-learning platform for distance education solves this problem only partially due to the lack of accessibility for the blind. The proposed method is based on the decomposition of the typical mathematical exercise into a sequence of elementary sub-exercises. This allows for interactive resolving of math exercises and assessment of the correctness of exercise solutions at every stage. The presented methods were prepared and evaluated by visually impaired people and students. The article presents the accessible interactive tutoring platform for math teaching and assessment, and experience in exploring it. The results of conducted research confirm good understanding of math formulae described according to elaborated rules. Regardless of the level of complexity of the math formulae the level of math formulae understanding is higher for alternative structural description. The proposed solution enables alternative descriptions of math formulae. Based on the research results, the tool for computer-aided interactive learning of mathematics adapted to the needs of the blind has been designed, implemented and deployed as a platform for on-site and online and distance learning. The designed solution can be very helpful in overcoming many barriers that occur while teaching impaired students. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Science teaching in science education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Callahan, Brendan E.; Dopico, Eduardo

2016-06-01

Reading the interesting article Discerning selective traditions in science education by Per Sund , which is published in this issue of CSSE, allows us to open the discussion on procedures for teaching science today. Clearly there is overlap between the teaching of science and other areas of knowledge. However, we must constantly develop new methods to teach and differentiate between science education and teaching science in response to the changing needs of our students, and we must analyze what role teachers and teacher educators play in both. We must continually examine the methods and concepts involved in developing pedagogical content knowledge in science teachers. Otherwise, the possibility that these routines, based on subjective traditions, prevent emerging processes of educational innovation. Modern science is an enormous field of knowledge in its own right, which is made more expansive when examined within the context of its place in society. We propose the need to design educative interactions around situations that involve science and society. Science education must provide students with all four dimensions of the cognitive process: factual knowledge, conceptual knowledge, procedural knowledge, and metacognitive knowledge. We can observe in classrooms at all levels of education that students understand the concepts better when they have the opportunity to apply the scientific knowledge in a personally relevant way. When students find value in practical exercises and they are provided opportunities to reinterpret their experiences, greater learning gains are achieved. In this sense, a key aspect of educational innovation is the change in teaching methodology. We need new tools to respond to new problems. A shift in teacher education is needed to realize the rewards of situating science questions in a societal context and opening classroom doors to active methodologies in science education to promote meaningful learning through meaningful teaching.

Science mentor program at Mission Hill Junior High School

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dahlquist, K.

Science graduate students from the University of California at Santa Cruz mentor a class of 7th graders from the Mission Hill Junior High School. The program`s purpose is: (1) to create a scientific learning community where scientists interact at different levels of the educational hierarchy; (2) to have fun in order to spark interest in science; and (3) to support girls and minority students in science. A total of seven mentors met with the students at least once a week after school for one quarter to tutor and assist with science fair projects. Other activities included a field trip tomore » a university earth science lab, judging the science fair, and assisting during laboratory exercises. Graduate students run the program with minimal organization and funding, communicating by electronic mail. An informal evaluation of the program by the mentors has concluded that the most valuable and effective activities have been the field trip and assisting with labs. The actual {open_quotes}mentor meetings{close_quotes} after school did not work effectively because they had a vaguely defined purpose and the kids did not show up regularly to participate. Future directions include redefining ourselves as mentors for the entire school instead of just one class and better coordinating our activities with the teachers` curriculum. We will continue to assist with the labs and organize formal tutoring for students having problems with math and science. Finally, we will arrange more activities and field trips such as an amateur astronomy night. We will especially target girls who attended the {open_quotes}Expanding Your Horizons{trademark} in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering{close_quotes} career day for those activities.« less

Using immersive healthcare simulation for physiology education: initial experience in high school, college, and graduate school curricula.

PubMed

Oriol, Nancy E; Hayden, Emily M; Joyal-Mowschenson, Julie; Muret-Wagstaff, Sharon; Faux, Russell; Gordon, James A

2011-09-01

In the natural world, learning emerges from the joy of play, experimentation, and inquiry as part of everyday life. However, this kind of informal learning is often difficult to integrate within structured educational curricula. This report describes an educational program that embeds naturalistic learning into formal high school, college, and graduate school science class work. Our experience is based on work with hundreds of high school, college, and graduate students enrolled in traditional science classes in which mannequin simulators were used to teach physiological principles. Specific case scenarios were integrated into the curriculum as problem-solving exercises chosen to accentuate the basic science objectives of the course. This report also highlights the historic and theoretical basis for the use of mannequin simulators as an important physiology education tool and outlines how the authors' experience in healthcare education has been effectively translated to nonclinical student populations. Particular areas of focus include critical-thinking and problem-solving behaviors and student reflections on the impact of the teaching approach.

Increased structure and active learning reduce the achievement gap in introductory biology.

PubMed

Haak, David C; HilleRisLambers, Janneke; Pitre, Emile; Freeman, Scott

2011-06-03

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics instructors have been charged with improving the performance and retention of students from diverse backgrounds. To date, programs that close the achievement gap between students from disadvantaged versus nondisadvantaged educational backgrounds have required extensive extramural funding. We show that a highly structured course design, based on daily and weekly practice with problem-solving, data analysis, and other higher-order cognitive skills, improved the performance of all students in a college-level introductory biology class and reduced the achievement gap between disadvantaged and nondisadvantaged students--without increased expenditures. These results support the Carnegie Hall hypothesis: Intensive practice, via active-learning exercises, has a disproportionate benefit for capable but poorly prepared students.

How Things Work, an Enrichment Class for Middle School Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goller, Tamara; Watson, Nancy; Watson, James

1998-05-01

Middle School students are curious about their surroundings. They are always asking questions about how things work. So this semester two middle school science teachers and a physicist combined their strengths and taught HOW THINGS WORK, THE PHYSICS OF EVERYDAY LIFE (a book by Louis A. Bloomfield). The students studied the physics behind everyday objects to see how they worked. They read, discussed the physics, and completed laboratory exercises using lasers, cameras, and other objects. Each student then picked an inventor that interested him/her and used the INTERNET to research the inventor and made a class presentation. For the final project, each students use the physics they learned and became an inventor and made an invention.

Performing international outreach: PhUn Week in an Australian primary school.

PubMed

Halpin, Patricia A

2017-03-01

Physiology Understanding (PhUn) Week is an annual science outreach program sponsored by the American Physiological Society in which K-12 students learn about physiology through meeting a physiologist and performing an experiment. Performing PhUn Week at an Australian private primary school during a family vacation in 2014 enabled me to receive a fellowship to return the following year for further implementation. To set up the outreach, I contacted the assistant principal of a public primary school, and she connected me with the physical education (PE) teacher. Together, the PE teacher and I planned the event. Over the course of 2 days, I taught eight classes, a total of 176 K-12 students. I started each lesson by explaining the role of a physiologist. The scientific method was described and explained. A hypothesis, "Exercise increases heart rate," was designed and tested. The students measured their heart rates, exercised, and measured their heart rates again. After data collection, results were reported, and the students all agreed that their hypothesis was supported. We then discussed heart function and why heart rate increases with exercise. The students then performed a pedometer challenge, where they estimated the number of steps during walking, running, and kangaroo hopping. They enjoyed testing their predictions and repeated these experiments several times. The students then made suggestions of ways they could continue this lesson outside of school. This first report of an international PhUn week confirmed that these events form partnerships among educators and inspire K-12 students to think about becoming scientists. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

Training students in serologic reaction grading increased perceptions of self-efficacy and ability to recognize serologic reactions but decreased grading accuracy.

PubMed

Perry, Holly; Henry, Stephen

2015-06-01

The ability to recognize and grade serologic reactions in manual techniques remains an important skill both for reference laboratories and in disaster-relocated laboratory services. Developing skills in recognizing and grading serologic reactions is limited to some extent by the range of samples available. Twenty-six students studying transfusion science were presented with blinded grading panels consisting of mixes of natural cells and kodecytes (natural cells modified with synthetic blood group antigens) representing a range of serologic grades. Results from 15-minute exercises over 17 contact weeks were assessed to determine if training with grading panels would have an impact on the ability of students to recognize and correctly grade serologic reactions. Twenty-one clinically active practitioners also took part in a single analysis. Grading exercises found that the use of kodecytes and natural negative cells were able to identify deficiencies in both students' and practitioners' ability to recognize negative and grade serologic reactions. The seventeen 15-minute exercises undertaken with students revealed that although there was some improvement in performance in recognizing positive and negative serologic reactions there was also a degradation in ability to accurately grade. Self-assessment showed a major improvement in students' self-efficacy. The use of serologic grading panels created with kodecytes was suitable as a tool to recognize and monitor serologic grading abilities. Evidence suggests that for both students and practitioners to gain and sustain competency in serologic reaction recognition and grading, they will require ongoing training and monitoring of competence. © 2015 AABB.

Pi in the Sky

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

O'Brien, W. P.

2008-12-01

Pi In The Sky (PITS) consists of a loose collection of virtual globe (VG) activities with a slight mathematical twist, wherein students search for interesting circular structures on the surface of Earth (Moon or other planets) and measure the circumference C and diameter D of each structure, using the built-in VG measure tool, in order to determine experimental values of pi from the C/D ratios. Examples of man-made circular structures visible using VG browsers include Fermilab and l"Arc de Triomphe roundabout; quasi-circular natural structures include certain volcano calderas and impact craters. Since a circle is but a special case of an ellipse, a natural extension of the activity involves making similar measurements of perimeter P, semi-major axis a, and semi-minor axis b of a visible elliptical structure (such as one of the thousands of elliptical Carolina bays, enigmatic depressions on the Atlantic Coast of North America) and solving for pi using Ramanujan's first approximation for the dependence of the perimeter of an ellipse on a and b. PITS exercises can be adapted to a wide range of student ages and teaching goals. For instance, K-6 students could measure C and D of the huge irrigation circles near Circle, Texas, to discover pi in the same way they might infer pi from measurements of coffee-can lids in math class. Middle school and high school students could move beyond man-made circles to consider the near-circularity of certain volcano calderas and impact craters in earth science units, make measurements for Olympus Mons on Mars or Crater Kepler on the moon in astronomy units, or search for circularity among Arctic thermokarst lakes as an introduction to climate change in tundra environments in environmental science units; such studies might ignite student curiosity about planetary processes. High school students of analytic geometry could examine several elliptical Carolina bays and calculate not only values of pi (as noted above) but also determine the range of eccentricities exhibited by these structures; through these exercises, ellipses acquire significance beyond conic sections and planetary orbits. At whatever level, PITS exercises function as easy bait, enticing students to learn to operate VG software and make observations and quantitative measurements of interesting Earth features. On a deeper level, these exercises provide a context and tool enabling VG explorers to fly above Earth's surface, to see this surface megascopically as it heretofore has never been seen, and to play in the metaphorical geometric intertidal zone that resides between shallow, eyes-on-the-ground, normal perception and the deep-blue depths of the cosmos.

Planetary boundaries and environmental citizenship: enhancing environmental science through the Princeton University Science and Engineering Education Initiative

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Riihimaki, C. A.; Caylor, K. K.; Wilcove, D. S.

2014-12-01

Introductory courses in environmental science are challenging to teach effectively because instructors need to balance the breadth of content coverage with the depth needed to solve complex, interdisciplinary environmental problems. For three years, the Council on Science and Technology at Princeton University has been collaborating with faculty to enhance the introductory environmental science course as part of the Science and Engineering Education Initiative, which aims to ensure that all students, regardless of discipline, graduate with an appreciation for and literacy in science and engineering. Our primary aim in the course is to foster improved environmental citizenship by helping students develop a mechanistic understanding of our individual, societal, and global role as agents of environmental change; an ability to predict or forecast the potential impact that decisions may have on the future structure and function of Earth systems; and a sense of responsibility that leads to informed action and decision-making related to environmental issues. Toward those ends, we have 1) reframed the course curriculum to focus on the central theme of "planetary boundaries" (Rockstrom et al., 2009), including their scientific evidence and policy implications, 2) developed hands-on laboratory exercises that give students authentic research experiences, and 3) modified the assessment to ensure that the students have consistent and clear indications of their mastery of the material. Student feedback through course surveys has been positive, although challenges remain, including coordination across a large teaching staff (two lead instructors for lecture and three TAs for discussion sections, plus a lead lab instructor and one lab TA), optimizing learning activities across the course structure (lecture, precept, and an optional lab), and engaging students that have diverse academic interests.

Evolution of an information literacy curriculum for third-year medical students.

PubMed

O'Dwyer, Linda; Kerns, Stephanie C

2011-01-01

Information literacy curriculum for third-year medical students at Northwestern University has evolved over several years under the guidance of librarians at the Galter Health Sciences Library. Starting as a series of rotation-specific information resource overviews, initial evaluation and feedback led to the curriculum being developed to include more focused and interactive clinical information sessions with a quiz-based assessment. Future enhancements will include web-based self-directed learning using online tutorials, additional search exercises that mimic the on-the-go clinical environment, and better assessment of the curriculum's impact on students' information literacy and clinical search skills.

The Inspiring Science Education project and the resources for HEP analysis by university students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fassouliotis, Dimitris; Kourkoumelis, Christine; Vourakis, Stylianos

2016-11-01

The Inspiring Science Education outreach project has been running for more than two years, creating a large number of inquiry based educational resources for high-school teachers and students. Its goal is the promotion of science education in schools though new methods built on the inquiry based education techniques, involving large consortia of European partners and implementation of large-scale pilots in schools. Recent hands-on activities, developing and testing the above mentioned innovative applications are reviewed. In general, there is a lack for educational scenaria and laboratory courses earmarked for more advanced, namely university, students. At the University of Athens for the last four years, the HYPATIA on-line event analysis tool has been used as a lab course for fourth year undergraduate physics students, majoring in HEP. Up to now, the course was limited to visual inspection of a few tens of ATLAS events. Recently the course was enriched with additional analysis exercises, which involve large samples of events. The students through a user friendly interface can analyse the samples and optimize the cut selection in order to search for new physics. The implementation of this analysis is described.

Using SDO Data in the Classroom to Do Real Science -- A Community College Laboratory Investigation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dave, T. A.; Hildreth, S.; Lee, S.; Scherrer, D. K.

2013-12-01

The incredible accessibility of extremely high spatial and temporal resolution data from the Solar Dynamics Observatory creates an opportunity for students to do almost real-time investigation in an Astronomy Lab. We are developing a short series of laboratory exercises using SDO data, targeted for Community College students in an introductory lab class, extendable to high school and university students. The labs initially lead students to explore what SDO can do, online, through existing SDO video clips taken on specific dates. Students then investigate solar events using the Heliophysics Events Knowledgebase (HEK), and make their own online movies of events, to discuss and share with classmates. Finally, students can investigate specific events and areas, selecting specific dates, locations, wavelength regions, and time cadences to create and gather their own SDO datasets for more detailed investigation. In exploring the Sun using actual data, students actually do real science. We are in the process of beta testing the sequence of labs, and are seeking interested community college, university, and high school astronomy lab teachers who might consider trying the labs themselves.

Debating Whether Dinosaurs Should Be "Cloned" from Ancient DNA To Promote Cooperative Learning in an Introductory Evolution Course.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Soja, Constance M.; Huerta, Deborah

2001-01-01

Describes an interactive internet exercise that enables students to engage in cooperative library and web research on a controversial topic in science, specifically the cloning of extinct lifeforms. Creates a dynamic learning environment in a large introductory geology course and demonstrates the importance of scientific literacy. (Author/SAH)

Glacial and Intertidal Ecology: A Study Guide for the Third Grade. Alaska Sea Week Curriculum Series. Draft.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hopson, Dan; And Others

Two marine science units comprise this manual for teachers of elementary school students. Unit 1, "Shore Communities," involves mapping exercises and other investigations of the ecology of the intertidal zone. Unit 2, "The Glacier," focuses on glacial geology and the relationship of glaciers to the marine environment. Each unit…

Peer Sharing Facilitates the Effect of Inquiry-Based Projects on Science Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chung, Hui-Min; Behan, Kristina Jackson

2010-01-01

Authentic assessment exercises are similar to real-world tasks that would be expected by a professional. An authentic assessment in combination with an inquiry-based learning activity enhances students' learning and rehearses them for their future roles, whether as scientists or as informed citizens. Over a period of 2 years, we experimented with…

Social Inquiry: Instructional Manual to Accompany MARK.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lipman, Matthew; Sharp, Ann Margaret

This manual contains classroom exercises which can be used to supplement each chapter of the story "Mark," (ED 189 016) designed to help adolescents formulate a philosophy of values. The purpose of both "Mark" and "Social Inquiry" is to identify key social issues in the social sciences and expose students to the conflicting concepts at the heart…

"Physiology in the News": Using Press Releases to Enhance Lay Communication and Introduce Current Physiology Research to Undergraduates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kelly, Kevin L.; Poteracki, James M.; Steury, Michael D.; Wehrwein, Erica A.

2015-01-01

Michigan State University's senior-level undergraduate physiology capstone laboratory uses a simple exercise termed "Physiology in the News," to help students explore the current research within the field of physiology while also learning to communicate science in lay terms. "Physiology in the News" is an activity that charges…

NASA Facts: Voyager

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1977-01-01

A news release on NASA's Voyager project is presented. The spacecraft, science instrumentation, experiments and a mission profile are described. A drawing identifying Voyager's major components and instrumentation was included along with diagrams showing the path of Voyager 1 (JST trajectory) past Jupiter, and the path of Voyager 2 (JXT trajectory) during its encounter with Jupiter. An exercise for student involvement was also provided.

C.P.R.: Promoting Cooperation, Participation and Respect in Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meaney, Karen S.; Kopf, Kelcie

2010-01-01

The Health, Exercise, and Sport Science (HESS) faculty at Texas Tech University, along with many of its graduate and undergraduate students, have been working with overweight youth since the Fun & Fit program launched in 2004. The collaborative effort between Tech and the Lubbock Independent School District, funded by a Carol M. White Physical…

Biomedical Mathematics, Unit I: Measurement, Linear Functions and Dimensional Algebra. Student Text. Revised Version, 1975.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Biomedical Interdisciplinary Curriculum Project, Berkeley, CA.

This text presents lessons relating specific mathematical concepts to the ideas, skills, and tasks pertinent to the health care field. Among other concepts covered are linear functions, vectors, trigonometry, and statistics. Many of the lessons use data acquired during science experiments as the basis for exercises in mathematics. Lessons present…

Scientific Literacy in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brewer, Carol

2008-01-01

In this interview, Brewer discusses the need to foster scientific literacy, knowing enough about science to be able to judge if an article in a newspaper or magazine, or commentary on a newscast or TV is being told in a fair and accurate way. The professor advocates asking questions and observation exercises as a means of empowering students to:…

Tracing "Ethical Subjectivities" in Science Education: How Biology Textbooks Can Frame Ethico-Political Choices for Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bazzul, Jesse

2015-01-01

This article describes how biology textbooks can work to discursively constitute a particular kind of "ethical subjectivity." Not only do textbooks constrain the possibilities for thought and action regarding ethical issues, they also require a certain kind of "subject" to partake in ethical exercises and questions. This study…

Regenerative Medicine: A Vehicle to Infuse Laboratory-Bench Modules into an Exercise Physiology Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Jason M.; Guy, Breonte S.; Henderson, Dawn X.; Ebert, C. Edward; Harp, Jill; Markert, Chad D.

2018-01-01

Regenerative medicine is a novel discipline that both excites undergraduates and may be used as a vehicle to expose students to scientific concepts and opportunities. The goal of this article is to describe the implementation of a National Science Foundation-funded Targeted Infusion Project in which underrepresented minority undergraduates are…

Internet Activities Using Scientific Data. A Self-Guided Exploration.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Froseth, Stan; Poppe, Barbara

This guide is intended for the secondary school teacher (especially math or science) or the student who wants to access and learn about scientific data on the Internet. It is organized as a self-guided exploration. Nine exercises enable the user to access and analyze on-line information from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration…

Enhancing Hispanic Minority Undergraduates' Botany Laboratory Experiences: Implementation of an Inquiry-Based Plant Tissue Culture Module Exercise

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Siritunga, Dimuth; Navas, Vivian; Diffoot, Nanette

2012-01-01

Early involvement of students in hands-on research experiences are known to demystify research and promote the pursuit of careers in science. But in large enrollment departments such opportunities for undergraduates to participate in research are rare. To counteract such lack of opportunities, inquiry-based laboratory module in plant tissue…

The Biology and Chemistry of Brewing: An Interdisciplinary Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hooker, Paul D.; Deutschman, William A.; Avery, Brian J.

2014-01-01

For the past nine years, we have been offering an interdisciplinary course for science majors: The Biology and Chemistry of Brewing. This course is primarily laboratory- and inquiry-based; from a total of 24 h of student/instructor contact time, approximately 6 h are devoted to lecture, and the other 18 h are divided between laboratory exercises,…

Identification of Highly Prized Commercial Fish Using a PCR-Based Methodology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moran, Paloma; Garcia-Vasquez, Eva

2006-01-01

We report a practical class designed for undergraduate students of Marine Sciences as a part of the Genetics course. The class can also be included in undergraduate studies of food technology. The exercise was designed to emphasize the application of molecular biology techniques to fish species authentication and traceability. After a simple and…

Industry and Academic Consortium for Computer Based Subsurface Geology Laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brown, A. L.; Nunn, J. A.; Sears, S. O.

2008-12-01

Twenty two licenses for Petrel Software acquired through a grant from Schlumberger are being used to redesign the laboratory portion of Subsurface Geology at Louisiana State University. The course redesign is a cooperative effort between LSU's Geology and Geophysics and Petroleum Engineering Departments and Schlumberger's Technical Training Division. In spring 2008, two laboratory sections were taught with 22 students in each section. The class contained geology majors, petroleum engineering majors, and geology graduate students. Limited enrollments and 3 hour labs make it possible to incorporate hands-on visualization, animation, manipulation of data and images, and access to geological data available online. 24/7 access to the laboratory and step by step instructions for Petrel exercises strongly promoted peer instruction and individual learning. Goals of the course redesign include: enhancing visualization of earth materials; strengthening student's ability to acquire, manage, and interpret multifaceted geological information; fostering critical thinking, the scientific method; improving student communication skills; providing cross training between geologists and engineers and increasing the quantity, quality, and diversity of students pursuing Earth Science and Petroleum Engineering careers. IT resources available in the laboratory provide students with sophisticated visualization tools, allowing them to switch between 2-D and 3-D reconstructions more seamlessly, and enabling them to manipulate larger integrated data-sets, thus permitting more time for critical thinking and hypothesis testing. IT resources also enable faculty and students to simultaneously work with the software to visually interrogate a 3D data set and immediately test hypothesis formulated in class. Preliminary evaluation of class results indicate that students found MS-Windows based Petrel easy to learn. By the end of the semester, students were able to not only map horizons and faults using seismic and well data but also compute volumetrics. Exam results indicated that while students could complete sophisticated exercises using the software, their understanding of key concepts such as conservation of volume in a palinspastic reconstruction or association of structures with a particular stress regime was limited. Future classes will incorporate more paper and pencil exercises to illustrate basic concepts. The equipment, software, and exercises developed will be used in additional upper level undergraduate and graduate classes.

Incorporating Personality Assessment into Counseling To Help College Students Adopt and Maintain Exercise Behaviors.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buckworth, Janet; Granello, Darcy Haag; Belmore, Jennifer

2002-01-01

The authors investigated the influence of several personality traits on exercise adherence and exercise self-efficacy for 168 undergraduate students. At all levels of exercise adherence, students with different personality traits had different amounts of exercise self-efficacy. Implications for college counselors working with students to improve…

Teaching Planetary Sciences at the Universidad del País Vasco in Spain: The Aula Espazio Gela and its Master in Space Science and Technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hueso, R.; Sanchez-Lavega, A.; Pérez-Hoyos, S.

2011-12-01

Planetary science is a highly multidisciplinary field traditionally associated to Astronomy, Physics or Earth Sciences Departments. Spanish universities do not generally offer planetary sciences courses but some departments give courses associated to studies on Astronomy or Geology. We show a different perspective obtained at the Engeneering School at the Universidad del País Vasco in Bilbao, Spain, which offers a Master in Space Science and Technology to graduates in Engineering or Physics. Here we detail the experience acquired in two years of this master which offers several planetary science courses: Solar System Physics, Astronomy, Planetary Atmospheres & Space Weather together with more technical courses. The university also owns an urban observatory in the Engineering School which is used for practical exercises and student projects. The planetary science courses have also resulted in motivating part of the students to do their master thesis in scientific subjects in planetary sciences. Since the students have very different backgrounds their master theses have been quite different: From writing open software tools to detect bolides in video observations of Jupiter atmosphere to the photometric calibration and scientific use or their own Jupiter and Saturn images or the study of atmospheric motions of the Venus' South Polar Vortex using data from the Venus Express spacecraft. As a result of this interaction with the students some of them have been engaged to initiate Ph.D.s in planetary sciences enlarging a relative small field in Spain. Acknowledgements: The Master in Space Science and Technology is offered by the Aula Espazio Gela at the Universidad del País Vasco Engineer School in Bilbao, Spain and is funded by Diputación Foral de Bizkaia.

The impact of inaccurate Internet health information in a secondary school learning environment.

PubMed

Kortum, Philip; Edwards, Christine; Richards-Kortum, Rebecca

2008-06-30

Patients in the United States commonly use the Internet to acquire health information. While a significant amount of health-related information is available on the Internet, the accuracy of this information is highly variable. The objective of the study was to determine how effectively students can assess the accuracy of Internet-based material when gathering information on a controversial medical topic using simple keyword searches. A group of 34 students from the science magnet high school in Houston, Texas searched for the terms "vaccine safety" and "vaccine danger" using Google and then answered questions regarding the accuracy of the health information on the returned sites. The students were also asked to describe the lessons they learned in the exercise and to answer questions regarding the strength of evidence for seven statements regarding vaccinations. Because of the surprising revelation that the majority of students left the exercise with inaccurate information concerning the safety and efficacy of vaccines, these same students participated in a follow-up study in which a fact-based vaccine video was shown, after which the assessment of student knowledge was repeated. Of the 34 participants, 20 (59%) thought that the Internet sites were accurate on the whole, even though over half of the links (22 out of 40, 55%) that the students viewed were, in fact, inaccurate on the whole. A high percentage of the students left the first exercise with significant misconceptions about vaccines; 18 of the 34 participants (53%) reported inaccurate statements about vaccines in the lessons they learned. Of the 41 verifiable facts about vaccines that were reported by participants in their lessons-learned statement, 24 of those facts (59%) were incorrect. Following presentation of the film, the majority of students left the exercise with correct information about vaccines, based on their lessons-learned statement. In this case, 29 of the 31 participants (94%) reported accurate information about vaccines. Of the 49 verifiable facts about vaccines that were reported by participants, only 2 (4%) were incorrect. Students had higher correct scores in the "strength of evidence" exercise following exposure to the video as well. Allowing students to use the Internet to gain information about medical topics should be approached with care since students may take away predominantly incorrect information. It is important to follow up conflicting information with a solid, unambiguous message that communicates those lessons that the instructor deems most important. This final message should be fact based but may need to contain an anecdotal component to counter the strong emotional message that is often delivered by inaccurate Internet sites.

Recasting a traditional laboratory practical as a "Design-your-own protocol" to teach a universal research skill.

PubMed

Whitworth, David E

2016-07-08

Laboratory-based practical classes are a common feature of life science teaching, during which students learn how to perform experiments and generate/interpret data. Practical classes are typically instructional, concentrating on providing topic- and technique-specific skills, however to produce research-capable graduates it is also important to develop generic practical skills. To provide an opportunity for students to develop the skills needed to create bespoke protocols for experimental benchwork, a traditional practical was repurposed. Students were given a list of available resources and an experimental goal, and directed to create a bench protocol to achieve the aim (measuring the iron in hemoglobin). In a series of teaching events students received feedback from staff, and peers prototyped the protocols, before protocols were finally implemented. Graduates highlighted this exercise as one of the most important of their degrees, primarily because of the clear relevance of the skills acquired to professional practice. The exercise exemplifies a range of pedagogic principles, but arguably its most important innovation is that it repurposed a pre-existing practical. This had the benefits of automatically providing scaffolding to direct the students' thought processes, while retaining the advantages of a "discovery learning" exercise, and allowing facile adoption of the approach across the sector. © 2016 by The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 44(4):377-380, 2016. © 2016 The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

Is Peer Interaction Necessary for Optimal Active Learning?

PubMed

Linton, Debra L; Farmer, Jan Keith; Peterson, Ernie

2014-01-01

Meta-analyses of active-learning research consistently show that active-learning techniques result in greater student performance than traditional lecture-based courses. However, some individual studies show no effect of active-learning interventions. This may be due to inexperienced implementation of active learning. To minimize the effect of inexperience, we should try to provide more explicit implementation recommendations based on research into the key components of effective active learning. We investigated the optimal implementation of active-learning exercises within a "lecture" course. Two sections of nonmajors biology were taught by the same instructor, in the same semester, using the same instructional materials and assessments. Students in one section completed in-class active-learning exercises in cooperative groups, while students in the other section completed the same activities individually. Performance on low-level, multiple-choice assessments was not significantly different between sections. However, students who worked in cooperative groups on the in-class activities significantly outperformed students who completed the activities individually on the higher-level, extended-response questions. Our results provide additional evidence that group processing of activities should be the recommended mode of implementation for in-class active-learning exercises. © 2014 D. L. Linton et al. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2014 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

Atoms in astronomy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Blanchard, P. A.

1976-01-01

Aspects of electromagnetic radiation and atomic physics needed for an understanding of astronomical applications are explored. Although intended primarily for teachers, this brochure is written so that it can be distributed to students if desired. The first section, Basic Topics, is suitable for a ninth-grade general science class; the style is simple and repetitive, and no mathematics or physics background is required. The second section, Intermediate and Advanced Topics, requires a knowledge of the material in the first section and assumes a generally higher level of achievement and motivation on the part of the student. These latter topics might fit well into junior-level physics, chemistry, or earth-science courses. Also included are a glossary, a list of references and teaching aids, class exercises, and a question and answer section.

Explaining variance in self-directed learning readiness of first year students in health professional programs.

PubMed

Slater, Craig E; Cusick, Anne; Louie, Jimmy C Y

2017-11-13

Self-directed learning (SDL) is expected of health science graduates; it is thus a learning outcome in many pre-certification programs. Previous research identified age, gender, discipline and prior education as associated with variations in students' self-directed learning readiness (SDLR). Studies in other fields also propose personality as influential. This study investigated relationships between SDLR and age, gender, discipline, previous education, and personality traits. The Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale and the 50-item 'big five' personality trait inventory were administered to 584 first-year undergraduate students (n = 312 female) enrolled in a first-session undergraduate interprofessional health sciences subject. Students were from health promotion, health services management, therapeutic recreation, sports and exercise science, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, and podiatry. Four hundred and seven responses (n = 230 females) were complete. SDLR was significantly higher in females and students in occupational therapy and physiotherapy. SDLR increased with age and higher levels of previous education. It was also significantly associated with 'big five' personality trait scores. Regression analysis revealed 52.9% of variance was accounted for by personality factors, discipline and prior experience of tertiary education. Demographic, discipline and personality factors are associated with SDLR in the first year of study. Teachers need to be alert to individual student variation in SDLR.

Sunspots Resource--From Ancient Cultures to Modern Research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Craig, N.

2000-10-01

Sunspots is a web-based lesson that was developed by the Science Education Gateway (SEGway) program with participants from the Exploratorium, a well known science Museum in San Francisco, UC Berkeley Space Sciences Laboratory, and teachers from several California schools. This space science resource allows 8-12 grade students to explore the nature of sunspots and the history of solar physics in its effort to understand their nature. Interviews with solar physicists and archeo-astronomers, historic images, cutting-edge NASA images, movies, and research results, as well as a student-centered sunspot research activity using NASA space science data defines this lesson. The sunspot resource is aligned with the NCTM and National Science Education Standards. It emphasizes inquiry-based methods and mathematical exercises through measurement, graphic data representation, analysis of NASA data, lastly, interpreting results and drawing conclusions. These resources have been successfully classroom tested in 4 middle schools in the San Francisco Unified School District as part of the 3-week Summer School Science curricula. Lessons learned from the Summer School 1999 will be explained. This resource includes teacher-friendly lesson plans, space science background material and student worksheets. There will be Sunspots lesson CD-ROM and printed version of the relevant classroom-ready materials and a teacher resource booklet available. Sunspot resource is brought to you by, The Science Education Gateway - SEGway - Project, and the HESSI satellite and NASA's Office of Space Science Sun-Earth Connection Education Forum.

The Delaware Bay Estuary as a Classroom: A Research Experience for Future Elementary Grade-Level Teachers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Madsen, J.; Fifield, S.; Allen, D.; Shipman, H.; Ford, D.; Dagher, Z.; Brickhouse, N.

2004-05-01

With supplemental funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF), students from the University of Delaware's Science Semester course took part in a two-day research cruise in the Delaware Bay Estuary. The Science Semester, an NSF-funded project, is an integrated 15-credit sequence that encompasses the entire course work for the spring semester for approximately 60 sophomore-level elementary education majors. The semester includes the earth, life, and physical science content courses and the education science methods course integrated into one curriculum. In this curriculum, problem-based learning and other inquiry-based approaches are applied to foster integrated understandings of science and pedagogy that future elementary teachers need to effectively use inquiry-based approaches in their classrooms. The research cruise was conducted as part of one of the four major investigations during the course. The investigation focused on Delaware's state marine animal, Limulus polyphemus. It is one of the four remaining species of horseshoe crabs; the largest spawning population of Limulus is found in Delaware Bay. Within the problem- and inquiry-based learning approaches of the Science Semester course, the students became aware that very little data exists on the benthic habitat of Limulus polyphemus. In order to learn more about this habitat, a cohort of seven students from the course was recruited as part of the scientific party to take part in the research cruise to collect data on the floor of Delaware Bay. The data included: multibeam bathymetry/backscatter data, grab samples of bay bottom sediments, and CTD profiles. Prior to the cruise, all students in the course took part in laboratory exercises to learn about topographic maps and navigation charts using the Delaware Bay area as the region of study. While "at-sea", the cruise participants sent the ship's latitude and longitude positions as a function of time. The positions were used by the on-land students to investigate motion and data representation (e.g., distance vs. time, velocity vs. time plots). After the at-sea experience, and using the data collected, all of the students plotted the sampling locations on their navigation charts and examined and quantitatively described the bottom sediments collected with the grab samples. The CTD data were used to investigate solutions, salinity, and conductivity. The ability to participate in, and use the data collected from, the two-day cruise provided an excellent opportunity for these future elementary teachers to experience real-time scientific research. The students onboard the ship were able to observe, and more importantly, engage in the collection of data from an oceanographic research vessel. All of the students in the course through hands-on laboratory exercises were able to see the link between data collection and analysis and its subsequent interpretation within the scope of a real scientific problem, namely the study of the benthic habitat of an important marine animal.

The Use of Group Activities in Introductory Biology Supports Learning Gains and Uniquely Benefits High-Achieving Students.

PubMed

Marbach-Ad, Gili; Rietschel, Carly H; Saluja, Neeti; Carleton, Karen L; Haag, Eric S

2016-12-01

This study describes the implementation and effectiveness of small-group active engagement (GAE) exercises in an introductory biology course (BSCI207) taught in a large auditorium setting. BSCI207 (Principles of Biology III-Organismal Biology) is the third introductory core course for Biological Sciences majors. In fall 2014, the instructors redesigned one section to include GAE activities to supplement lecture content. One section ( n = 198) employed three lectures per week. The other section ( n = 136) replaced one lecture per week with a GAE class. We explored the benefits and challenges associated with implementing GAE exercises and their relative effectiveness for unique student groups (e.g., minority students, high- and low-grade point average [GPA] students). Our findings show that undergraduates in the GAE class exhibited greater improvement in learning outcomes than undergraduates in the traditional class. Findings also indicate that high-achieving students experienced the greatest benefit from GAE activities. Some at-risk student groups (e.g., two-year transfer students) showed comparably low learning gains in the course, despite the additional support that may have been afforded by active learning. Collectively, these findings provide valuable feedback that may assist other instructors who wish to revise their courses and recommendations for institutions regarding prerequisite coursework approval policies.

Integrating local environmental research into K-12 science classrooms and the value of graduate student-educator partnerships

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ward, N. D.; Petrik-Finley, R.

2015-12-01

Collaboration between researchers and K-12 educators enables an invaluable exchange of teaching philosophies and educational tools. Programs that partner graduate students with K-12 educators serve the dual purpose of training future educators and providing K-12 students with unique opportunities and perspectives. The benefits of this type of partnership include providing students with enhanced educational experiences and positive student-mentor relationships, training STEM graduate students in effective teaching strategies, and providing teachers with a firsthand resource for scientific information and novel educational materials. Many high school students have had little exposure to science beyond the classroom. Frequent interactions with "real-life" scientists can help make science more approachable and is an effective strategy for promoting science as a career. Here I describe my experiences and several lessons designed as a NSK GK-12 fellow. For example, a month-long unit on biogeochemical principles was framed as a crime scene investigation of a fish kill event in Hood Canal, Washington, in which students were given additional pieces of evidence to solve the mystery as they satisfied checkpoints in their understanding of key concepts. The evidence pieces included scientific plots, maps, datasets, and laboratory exercises. A clear benefit of this investigation-style unit is that students were able to learn the material at their individual pace. This structure allowed for a streamlined integration of differentiated materials such as simplified background readings or visual learning aids for struggling students or more detailed news articles and primary literature for more advanced students. Although the NSF GK-12 program has been archived, educators and researchers should pursue new partnerships, leveraging local and state-level STEM outreach programs with the goal of increasing national exposure of the societal benefits of such synergistic activities.

Hands across the divide: Finding spaces for student-centered pedagogy in the undergraduate science classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spier-Dance, Lesley

This study explored college science students' and instructors' experiences with student-generated and performed analogies. The objectives of the study were to determine whether the use of student-generated analogies could provide students with opportunities to develop robust understanding of difficult science concepts, and to examine students' and instructors' perspectives on the utilization of these analogies. To address my objectives, I carried out a case study at a university-college in British Columbia. I examined the use of analogies in undergraduate biology and chemistry courses. Working with three instructors, I explored the use of student-generated analogies in five courses. I carried out in-depth analyses for one biology case and one chemistry case. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews, classroom observations, researcher journal logs and students' responses to assessment questions. My findings suggest that involvement in the analogy exercise was associated with gains in students' conceptual understanding. Lower-achieving students who participated in the analogy activity exhibited significant gains in understanding of the science concept, but were unable to transfer their knowledge to novel situations. Higher-achieving students who participated in the activity were better able to transfer their knowledge of the analogy-related science topic to novel situations. This research revealed that students exhibited improved understanding when their analogies clearly represented important features of the target science concept. Students actively involved in the analogy activity exhibited gains in conceptual understanding. They perceived that embodied performative aspects of the activity promoted engagement, which motivated their learning. Participation in the analogy activity led to enhanced social interaction and a heightened sense of community within the classroom. The combination of social and performative elements provided motivational learning experiences valued by students and instructors. Instructors also valued the activity because of insights into students' understanding that were revealed. This research provides an example of how a student-centered, embodied learning approach can be brought into the undergraduate science classroom. This is valuable because, if instructors are to change from a transmission mode of instruction to more student-centered approaches, they must re-examine and re-construct their practices. An important step in this process is provision of evidence that change is warranted and fruitful.

Virtual Simulations as Preparation for Lab Exercises: Assessing Learning of Key Laboratory Skills in Microbiology and Improvement of Essential Non-Cognitive Skills.

PubMed

Makransky, Guido; Thisgaard, Malene Warming; Gadegaard, Helen

2016-01-01

To investigate if a virtual laboratory simulation (vLAB) could be used to replace a face to face tutorial (demonstration) to prepare students for a laboratory exercise in microbiology. A total of 189 students who were participating in an undergraduate biology course were randomly selected into a vLAB or demonstration condition. In the vLAB condition students could use a vLAB at home to 'practice' streaking out bacteria on agar plates in a virtual environment. In the demonstration condition students were given a live demonstration from a lab tutor showing them how to streak out bacteria on agar plates. All students were blindly assessed on their ability to perform the streaking technique in the physical lab, and were administered a pre and post-test to determine their knowledge of microbiology, intrinsic motivation to study microbiology, and self-efficacy in the field of microbiology prior to, and after the experiment. The results showed that there were no significant differences between the two groups on their lab scores, and both groups had similar increases in knowledge of microbiology, intrinsic motivation to study microbiology, as well as self-efficacy in the field of microbiology. Our data show that vLABs function just as well as face to face tutorials in preparing students for a physical lab activity in microbiology. The results imply that vLABs could be used instead of face to face tutorials, and a combination of virtual and physical lab exercises could be the future of science education.

Cyber Shovels in High School: An Online Soil Science Resource for Educators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krzic, M.; Basiliko, N.; Bedard-Haughn, A.; Humphreys, E.; Price, G.; Dampier, L.; Grand, S.; Dynatkar, S.; Crowley, C.

2012-04-01

Declining enrolment in soil science courses at post-secondary institutions in Canada and around the world tells us that fewer high school students are considering a career in this discipline than ever before. This may be due to soil science programs losing visibility as they are incorporated into other, larger programs; a lack of awareness of what opportunities exist for soil science professionals; or a disinclination of high school educators to use soil science scenarios as examples in their science curriculum. In 2010, we initiated a three-year, multi-institutional project aimed at introducing soil science concepts into high school curricula across Canada. The goals of this project are to promote learning about the importance of soil as a natural resource, provide useful tools that high school educators can incorporate into their lesson plans, and encourage students to pursue soil science in their higher education. The tool (http://soilweb.landfood.ubc.ca/youth/) features five main themes: (1) descriptions of soil research projects currently undertaken by faculty at five universities across Canada; (2) links to age-appropriate soil related resources that provide exercises and examples teachers can easily use; (3) profiles of soil scientists "at work" in a diverse range of careers to motivate future soil scientists; (4) examples of recent news stories about soil to highlight its relevance in our day to day lives; and (5) a soil forum for students and teachers to ask questions. This tool will be further refined by incorporating feedback obtained from high school teachers and students.

Through the Lens of TEK - Building GeoScience Pathways for American Indian/Alaska Native Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thomas, W. J.; van Cooten, S.; Wrege, B.; Wildcat, D.

2017-12-01

Native American or American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) students come from diverse communities with indigenous knowledges, perspectives and worldviews. These communities and the students they send into our nation's education systems have cultural connectivity to oral histories, documents, and artwork that details climate cycles and weather events prior to colonization through eras of forced relocation and assimilation. Today, these students are the trailblazers as tribal governments exercise their ownership rights to natural resources and the welfare of their citizens as sovereign nations. In universities, especially tribal colleges, our nation's indigenous students are bridge builders. Through the lens of Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), these students have a unique yet overlooked perspective to merge mainstream research with indigenous knowledge systems to develop practical sustainable solutions for local, regional and international resource management issues. The panel will discuss barriers, such as underdeveloped geophysical science curricula at tribal colleges, that limit the pool of indigenous geoscience graduates and examine possible strategies such as entry point opportunities and partnerships, mentoring, and community relevant research experiences, to eliminate barriers that limit the influx of TEK in resiliency planning.

The perceptions of inquiry held by greater Houston area science supervisors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aoki, Jon Michael

The purpose of this study was to describe the perceptions of inquiry held by responding greater Houston area science supervisors. Leading science organizations proposed that students might be better served if students are mentally and physically engaged in the process of finding out about natural phenomena rather than by didactic modes of teaching and learning. During the past fifty years, inquiry-based instruction has become a significant theme of new science programs. Students are more likely to make connections between classroom exercises and their personal lives through the use of inquiry-based instruction. Learning becomes relevant to students. Conversely, traditional science instruction often has little or no connection to students' everyday lives (Papert, 1980). In short, inquiry-based instruction empowers students to become independent thinkers. The utilization of inquiry-based instruction is essential to a successful reform in science education. However, a reform's success is partly determined by the extent to which science supervisors know and understand inquiry and consequently promote its integration in the district's science curricula. Science supervisors have the role of providing curriculum and instructional support to science teachers and for implementing science programs. There is a fundamental need to assess the perceptions of inquiry held by greater Houston area science supervisors. Science supervisor refers to a class of job titles that include department chairperson, science specialist, science consultant, and science coordinator. The target population was greater Houston area science supervisors in Texas. This study suggests that there are three major implications for educational practice. First, there is the implication that responding greater Houston area science supervisors need an inclusive perception of inquiry. Second, responding greater Houston area science supervisors' perception of inquiry may affect the perceptions and understandings of inquiry held by the science teachers whom they work with. Both of these implications may limit the process of integrating inquiry into the classroom. The third implication is that a rubric can be designed based on the results of this study to help determine which categories or components of inquiry the participant needs assistance with. Implications for further research include increasing the sample size, describing the effects of teaching and/or science supervisor experience on the perceptions of inquiry, determining the effects of advanced degrees on inquiry perceptions, and investigating the effects of research experience on inquiry perceptions. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

Promoting Access, Retention, and Interest in Astronomy Higher Education: Developing the STEM Professionals of Tomorrow in New Mexico

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vogt, N. P.; Muise, A. S.; Cook, S.; Voges, E.

2011-09-01

Economic stability and success are becoming increasingly tied to the successful acquisition of basic academic skills, with the emergence of a computer- and data-oriented society. The recent doubling of the statewide requirement for laboratory science courses at the college level in New Mexico thus represents both an opportunity to further aid in the development of math and science skills in our general population and an added barrier to degree completion. Couple this to a geographically dispersed population of non-traditional students, with workforce and family responsibilities that compete directly for time with academics, and we have a compelling need for alternate methods of teaching science in New Mexico. We present a set of NASA- and NSF-sponsored resources under development to aid in teaching astronomy as a laboratory science at the college level, with usage results for a pilot group of students. Primary components include a self-review database of 10,000+ questions, an instructor review interface, a set of laboratory exercises suitable for students working alone at a distance, and interviews with diverse science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) individuals to help combat stereotype threat. We discuss learning strategies often employed by students without substantial scientific training and ways to incorporate these strategies into a conceptual framework based on the scientific method and basic techniques for data analysis. Interested science educators may request guest user status to access our self-review database and explore the possibility of using the database for a class or cohort of students at their own institutions.

New strategies to strengthen the soil science knowledge of student during field activities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Benito, Marta; Hontoria, Chiquinquirá; Masaguer, Alberto; Diéguez, Carmen; Almorox, Javier; Pérez, Juana; Santano, Jesús; Mariscal, Ignacio; Gutiérrez, Jesús; Moliner, Ana

2013-04-01

Soil Science can be considered a discipline that serves as a fundamental base for other disciplines such as ecology, agronomy, plant production, etc. In order to demonstrate the relevance and connection to real world it is important to develop field and practical activities. Field activities help student to comprehend soil as part of the landscape and the natural ecosystems. These activities also help them to realize the importance of historical soil use on the quality of todaýs soil and landscapes. It is well known that fieldwork practices are essential to strengthen the soil science knowledge of students and their learning process. These fieldwork practices involve doing a physical activity rather than passively attending lectures or watching demonstrations. The simple visual and tactile observations in the field could be used to predict soil behavior and these direct observations are best made in the field. Students who learned in the field using an active work are more motivated, have more positive attitudes, and place more value in their work than those that learn passively. Therefore, when scheduling the coursework an important time is assigned to field work, which sometimes is not sufficiently profited from the standpoint of student learning taking into consideration the economic effort involved. We are aware that part of the students are simple spectators in the field so we encourage their participation by making them responsible for obtaining part of the information about the place and the types of soils that will be visited. On the other hand, we will invite the students to do some game based exercises, which are fun and force them to work in groups and to pay attention to explanations. Our objective is to present the information in a more attractive way, making the learning of soil profile description and easier task. The exercises that we propose are both field and problem-based learning to make sure that the knowledge is more memorable (non-stop learning). Fieldwork is amenable to different strategies for enhancing feedback and for providing assessments and this work presents several of them.

Team Problem Solving Strategies with a Survey of These Methods Used by Faculty Members in Engineering Technology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marcus, Michael L.; Winters, Dixie L.

2004-01-01

Students from science, engineering, and technology programs should be able to work together as members of project teams to find solutions to technical problems. The exercise in this paper describes the methods actually used by a project team from a Biomedical Instrumentation Corporation in which scientists, technicians, and engineers from various…

Quantitative Study on Computer Self-Efficacy and Computer Anxiety Differences in Academic Major and Residential Status

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Binkley, Zachary Wayne McClellan

2017-01-01

This study investigates computer self-efficacy and computer anxiety within 61 students across two academic majors, Aviation and Sports and Exercise Science, while investigating the impact residential status, age, and gender has on those two psychological constructs. The purpose of the study is to find if computer self-efficacy and computer anxiety…

Using Comparative Genomics for Inquiry-Based Learning to Dissect Virulence of "Escherichia coli" O157:H7 and "Yersinia pestis"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baumler, David J.; Banta, Lois M.; Hung, Kai F.; Schwarz, Jodi A.; Cabot, Eric L.; Glasner, Jeremy D.; Perna, Nicole T.

2012-01-01

Genomics and bioinformatics are topics of increasing interest in undergraduate biological science curricula. Many existing exercises focus on gene annotation and analysis of a single genome. In this paper, we present two educational modules designed to enable students to learn and apply fundamental concepts in comparative genomics using examples…

The Impact of Collaborative Groups versus Individuals in Undergraduate Inquiry-Based Astronomy Laboratory Learning Exercises

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sibbernsen, Kendra J.

2010-01-01

One of the long-standing general undergraduate education requirements common to many colleges and universities is a science course with a laboratory experience component. One of the objectives frequently included in the description of most of these courses is that a student will understand the nature and processes of scientific inquiry. However,…

"You Can Exercise Your Way out of HIV" and Other Stories: The Role of Biological Knowledge in Adolescents' Evaluation of Myths

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keselman, Alla; Kaufman, David R.; Patel, Vimla L.

2004-01-01

A primary objective for science education is to impart robust knowledge that has applicability to real-world problems. This article presents research investigating the relationship between adolescents' conceptual understanding of the biological basis of HIV and critical reasoning. Middle and high school students were interviewed about their…

"Anisakis Simplex" Infection in Mackerel: A Reliable Laboratory Exercise to Demonstrate Important Principles in Parasitology to Undergraduates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coombs, I.; Tatner, M.; Paterson, V.

2013-01-01

Practical laboratory work in parasitology can be very limited, due to the difficulty in maintaining multi-host parasite life cycles, especially for a large, once-yearly undergraduate laboratory class for life science students. The use of mackerel, "Scomber scombrus," bought from a local fishmonger, is an ideal model to investigate important…

Using memories to motivate future behaviour: an experimental exercise intervention.

PubMed

Biondolillo, Mathew J; Pillemer, David B

2015-01-01

This study tested a novel memory-based experimental intervention to increase exercise activity. Undergraduate students completed a two-part online survey ostensibly regarding college activity choices. At Time 1, they completed questionnaires that included assessments of exercise-related attitudes, motivation and self-reported behaviours. Next, they described a memory of a positive or negative experience that would increase their motivation to exercise; students in a control condition did not receive a memory prompt. Finally, they rated their intentions to exercise in the future. Eight days following Time 1, students received a Time 2 survey that included an assessment of their self-reported exercise during the prior week. Students in the positive memory condition reported higher levels of subsequent exercise than those in the control condition; students in the negative memory condition reported intermediate levels of exercise. Activating a positive motivational memory had a significant effect on students' self-reported exercise activity even after controlling for prior attitudes, motivation and exercise activity.

GeoPad and GeoPocket: Information Technology for Field Science Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knoop, P. A.; van der Pluijm, B.

2006-12-01

Over the past four years we have successfully incorporated and evaluated the use of field-based Information Technology (IT) in introductory through senior-level field courses offered at the University of Michigan's Camp Davis Geology Field Station, near Jackson, WY. The use of GeoPads (field-durable Tablet PCs) and GeoPockets (field-durable Pocket PCs) -- both equipped with GIS, GPS, wireless networking, electronic notebook and other pertinent software -- have significantly enhanced our field exercises and excursions, for both students and instructors. We have focused on three main applications: (1) Mapping facilitating the development of spatial reasoning skills via powerful, intuitive capabilities for in-the-field data entry, visualization, analysis, and interpretation in both 2-D and 3-D representations; (2) Field-Trips enriching the overall experience by providing in-the-field access to a broad, relevant collection of supplemental materials, such as papers, figures, maps, photos, thin section images, etc.; and, (3) Field-Based Exercises enhancing the learning opportunities afforded by field-based exercises by supporting data analysis and interpretation, while still in the context in which the data was gathered. This IT-based approach to field education utilizes standard, off-the-shelf hardware and software, and provides students with experience using tools that are increasingly relevant to their future academic or professional careers. Furthermore, this approach is generally applicable to education and research in many traditionally non-IT-savvy science domains, in addition to geology, such as archeology, biology, sociology, and natural resources.

Teaching Spatial Thinking in Undergraduate Geology Courses Using Tools and Strategies from Cognitive Science Research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ormand, C. J.; Shipley, T. F.; Dutrow, B. L.; Goodwin, L. B.; Hickson, T. A.; Tikoff, B.; Atit, K.; Gagnier, K. M.; Resnick, I.

2015-12-01

Spatial visualization is an essential skill in the STEM disciplines, including the geological sciences. Undergraduate students, including geoscience majors in upper-level courses, bring a wide range of spatial skill levels to the classroom. Students with weak spatial skills may struggle to understand fundamental concepts and to solve geological problems with a spatial component. However, spatial thinking skills are malleable. Using strategies that have emerged from cognitive science research, we developed a set of curricular materials that improve undergraduate geology majors' abilities to reason about 3D concepts and to solve spatially complex geological problems. Cognitive science research on spatial thinking demonstrates that predictive sketching, making visual comparisons, gesturing, and the use of analogy can be used to develop students' spatial thinking skills. We conducted a three-year study of the efficacy of these strategies in strengthening the spatial skills of students in core geology courses at three universities. Our methodology is a quasi-experimental quantitative design, utilizing pre- and post-tests of spatial thinking skills, assessments of spatial problem-solving skills, and a control group comprised of students not exposed to our new curricular materials. Students taught using the new curricular materials show improvement in spatial thinking skills. Further analysis of our data, to be completed prior to AGU, will answer additional questions about the relationship between spatial skills and academic performance, spatial skills and gender, spatial skills and confidence, and the impact of our curricular materials on students who are struggling academically. Teaching spatial thinking in the context of discipline-based exercises has the potential to transform undergraduate education in the geological sciences by removing one significant barrier to success.

Flexner 2.0-Longitudinal Study of Student Participation in a Campus-Wide General Pathology Course for Graduate Students at The University of Arizona.

PubMed

Briehl, Margaret M; Nelson, Mark A; Krupinski, Elizabeth A; Erps, Kristine A; Holcomb, Michael J; Weinstein, John B; Weinstein, Ronald S

2016-01-01

Faculty members from the Department of Pathology at The University of Arizona College of Medicine-Tucson have offered a 4-credit course on enhanced general pathology for graduate students since 1996. The course is titled, "Mechanisms of Human Disease." Between 1997 and 2016, 270 graduate students completed Mechanisms of Human Disease. The students came from 21 programs of study. Analysis of Variance, using course grade as the dependent and degree, program, gender, and year (1997-2016) as independent variables, indicated that there was no significant difference in final grade (F = 0.112; P = .8856) as a function of degree (doctorate: mean = 89.60, standard deviation = 5.75; master's: mean = 89.34, standard deviation = 6.00; certificate program: mean = 88.64, standard deviation = 8.25), specific type of degree program (F = 2.066, P = .1316; life sciences: mean = 89.95, standard deviation = 6.40; pharmaceutical sciences: mean = 90.71, standard deviation = 4.57; physical sciences: mean = 87.79, standard deviation = 5.17), or as a function of gender (F = 2.96, P = .0865; males: mean = 88.09, standard deviation = 8.36; females: mean = 89.58, standard deviation = 5.82). Students in the physical and life sciences performed equally well. Mechanisms of Human Disease is a popular course that provides students enrolled in a variety of graduate programs with a medical school-based course on mechanisms of diseases. The addition of 2 new medically oriented Master of Science degree programs has nearly tripled enrollment. This graduate level course also potentially expands the interdisciplinary diversity of participants in our interprofessional education and collaborative practice exercises.

Flexner 2.0—Longitudinal Study of Student Participation in a Campus-Wide General Pathology Course for Graduate Students at The University of Arizona

PubMed Central

Briehl, Margaret M.; Nelson, Mark A.; Krupinski, Elizabeth A.; Erps, Kristine A.; Holcomb, Michael J.; Weinstein, John B.

2016-01-01

Faculty members from the Department of Pathology at The University of Arizona College of Medicine-Tucson have offered a 4-credit course on enhanced general pathology for graduate students since 1996. The course is titled, “Mechanisms of Human Disease.” Between 1997 and 2016, 270 graduate students completed Mechanisms of Human Disease. The students came from 21 programs of study. Analysis of Variance, using course grade as the dependent and degree, program, gender, and year (1997-2016) as independent variables, indicated that there was no significant difference in final grade (F = 0.112; P = .8856) as a function of degree (doctorate: mean = 89.60, standard deviation = 5.75; master’s: mean = 89.34, standard deviation = 6.00; certificate program: mean = 88.64, standard deviation = 8.25), specific type of degree program (F = 2.066, P = .1316; life sciences: mean = 89.95, standard deviation = 6.40; pharmaceutical sciences: mean = 90.71, standard deviation = 4.57; physical sciences: mean = 87.79, standard deviation = 5.17), or as a function of gender (F = 2.96, P = .0865; males: mean = 88.09, standard deviation = 8.36; females: mean = 89.58, standard deviation = 5.82). Students in the physical and life sciences performed equally well. Mechanisms of Human Disease is a popular course that provides students enrolled in a variety of graduate programs with a medical school-based course on mechanisms of diseases. The addition of 2 new medically oriented Master of Science degree programs has nearly tripled enrollment. This graduate level course also potentially expands the interdisciplinary diversity of participants in our interprofessional education and collaborative practice exercises. PMID:28725783

Exercise behaviour and attitudes among fourth-year medical students at the University of British Columbia.

PubMed

Holtz, Kaila A; Kokotilo, Kristen J; Fitzgerald, Barbara E; Frank, Erica

2013-01-01

To describe the physical activity (PA) levels and counseling attitudes of Canadian undergraduate medical students. Online or paper survey. The University of British Columbia (UBC). Fourth-year medical students at UBC from 2007 to 2010. Physical activity levels, relationship between exercise behaviour and attitudes toward counseling, and student perception of training in the area of exercise prescription. A total of 546 out of 883 students participated in the survey (62% response rate). Sixty-four percent of students met the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology 2011 recommendations for PA. Attitudes toward healthy living were related to PA levels, but the rate of counseling patients about exercise was not; however, students who engaged in more strenuous PA were more likely to perceive exercise counseling as being highly relevant to future clinical practice (P = .018). Overall, 69% of students perceived exercise counseling to be highly relevant to clinical practice, but 86% thought that their training in this area was less than extensive. Fourth-year UBC medical students engage in more strenuous PA than average age-matched Canadians, which affects their attitudes toward perceived future counseling practices. Encouraging more student participation in strenuous PA and encouraging academic training in the area of exercise counseling might be important next steps in preparing future physicians to effectively prescribe exercise to their patients.

Combining history of medicine and library instruction: an innovative approach to teaching database searching to medical students.

PubMed

Timm, Donna F; Jones, Dee; Woodson, Deidra; Cyrus, John W

2012-01-01

Library faculty members at the Health Sciences Library at the LSU Health Shreveport campus offer a database searching class for third-year medical students during their surgery rotation. For a number of years, students completed "ten-minute clinical challenges," but the instructors decided to replace the clinical challenges with innovative exercises using The Edwin Smith Surgical Papyrus to emphasize concepts learned. The Surgical Papyrus is an online resource that is part of the National Library of Medicine's "Turning the Pages" digital initiative. In addition, vintage surgical instruments and historic books are displayed in the classroom to enhance the learning experience.

Using Solar Dynamics Observatory Data in the Classroom to Do Real Science -- A Community College Astronomy Laboratory Investigation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scherrer, Deborah K.; Hildreth, S.; Lee, S.; Dave, T.; Scherrer, P. H.

2013-07-01

A partnership between Stanford University and Chabot Community College (Hayward, CA) has developed a series of laboratory exercises using SDO (AIA, HMI) data, targeted for community college students in an introductory astronomy lab class. The labs lead students to explore what SDO can do via online resources and videos. Students investigate their chosen solar events, generate their own online videos, prepare their own hypotheses relating to the events, and explore outcomes. Final assessment should be completed by the end of summer 2013. Should the labs prove valuable, they may be adapted for high school use.

Astro Stars Camp features underwater robotics

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-06-29

Ian Tonglet, 13, (left) and Seth Malley, 13, both of Picayune, Miss., and both participants in the 2010 Astro Stars session at Stennis Space Center, work with an underwater robot during a camp activity June 29. NASA joined with the U.S. Navy for the underwater robotics exercise involving Sea Perch robots, which are simple, remotely operated underwater vehicles made from PVC pipe and other inexpensive, easily available materials. During the Stennis exercise, students used robots constructed earlier in the day to maneuver underwater and collect plastic rings, as seen to the left of Tonglet. Astro STARS (Spaceflight, Technology, Astronomy & Robotics @ Stennis) is a science and technology camp for 13-15 year olds.

An Exercise Prescription Course to Improve Pharmacy Students' Confidence in Patient Counseling

PubMed Central

2009-01-01

Objectives To create, implement, and evaluate an elective course on the foundational aspects of exercise prescription to increase pharmacy students' knowledge about exercise and confidence in offering exercise advice in pharmacy practice. Design A course was designed as an elective using the American College of Sports Medicine guidelines for exercise prescription for healthy and clinical populations. Assessment Surveys of students who did and did not take the elective were conducted over 2 years to assess the impact of the course on students' confidence in knowledge and counseling. Students' confidence in counseling patients about exercise increased after taking the course and remained higher after 6 months. Conclusions This course increased pharmacy students' knowledge and confidence in incorporating exercise prescriptions in their advice to various patient populations. PMID:19960077

The Use of Group Activities in Introductory Biology Supports Learning Gains and Uniquely Benefits High-Achieving Students†

PubMed Central

Marbach-Ad, Gili; Rietschel, Carly H.; Saluja, Neeti; Carleton, Karen L.; Haag, Eric S.

2016-01-01

This study describes the implementation and effectiveness of small-group active engagement (GAE) exercises in an introductory biology course (BSCI207) taught in a large auditorium setting. BSCI207 (Principles of Biology III—Organismal Biology) is the third introductory core course for Biological Sciences majors. In fall 2014, the instructors redesigned one section to include GAE activities to supplement lecture content. One section (n = 198) employed three lectures per week. The other section (n = 136) replaced one lecture per week with a GAE class. We explored the benefits and challenges associated with implementing GAE exercises and their relative effectiveness for unique student groups (e.g., minority students, high- and low-grade point average [GPA] students). Our findings show that undergraduates in the GAE class exhibited greater improvement in learning outcomes than undergraduates in the traditional class. Findings also indicate that high-achieving students experienced the greatest benefit from GAE activities. Some at-risk student groups (e.g., two-year transfer students) showed comparably low learning gains in the course, despite the additional support that may have been afforded by active learning. Collectively, these findings provide valuable feedback that may assist other instructors who wish to revise their courses and recommendations for institutions regarding prerequisite coursework approval policies. PMID:28101262

Effects of exercise dependence on psychological health of Chinese college students.

PubMed

Li, Menglong; Nie, Jingsong; Ren, Yujia

2015-12-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of exercise dependence on the psychological health of Chinese college students. A total of 1601 college students from three universities in Hunan, China, were selected as research subjects. Several measurement scales, including the Exercise Addiction Inventory, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, and the Subjective Well-being Scale, were used to survey the psychological health problem of these students and to analyze the effects of exercise dependence on their psychological health. Exercise dependence, based on the structural equation model analysis, can positively influence state anxiety (P<0.05), depression (P<0.05), and subjective well-being (P<0.05) of Chinese students. By contrast, exercise dependence negatively influences students' self-satisfaction (P<0.05), social behavior (P<0.05), and vigor (P<0.05). Exercise dependence adversely affects the psychological health of college students. Further research using multi-dimensional exercise addiction scales should be conducted to identify all the negative effects of exercise addiction factors on psychological health.

Growing Community Roots for the Geosciences in Miami, Florida, A Program Aimed at High School and Middle School Students to Increase Awareness of Career and Educational Opportunities in the Geosciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Whitman, D.; Hickey-Vargas, R.; Gebelein, J.; Draper, G.; Rego, R.

2013-12-01

Growing Community Roots for the Geosciences is a 2-year pilot recruitment project run by the Department of Earth and Environment at Florida International University (FIU) and funded by the NSF OEDG (Opportunities for Enhancing Diversity in the Geosciences) program. FIU, the State University of Florida in Miami is a federally recognized Minority Serving Institution with over 70% of the undergraduate population coming from groups underrepresented in the geoscience workforce. The goal of this project is to inform students enrolled in the local middle and high schools to career opportunities in the geosciences and to promote pathways for underrepresented groups to university geoscience degree programs. The first year's program included a 1-week workshop for middle school teachers and a 2-week summer camp aimed at high school students in the public school system. The teacher workshop was attended by 20 teachers who taught comprehensive and physical science in grades 6-8. It included lectures on geoscience careers, fundamental concepts of solid earth and atmospheric science, hands on exercises with earth materials, fossils and microscopy, interpretation of landform with Google Earth imagery, and a field trip to a local working limestone quarry. On the first day of the workshop, participants were surveyed on their general educational background in science and their familiarity and comfort with teaching basic geoscience concepts. On the final day, the teachers participated in a group discussion where we discussed how to make geoscience topics and careers more visible in the school curriculum. The 2-week summer camp was attended by 21 students entering grades 9-12. The program included hands on exercises on geoscience and GIS concepts, field trips to local barrier islands, the Everglades, a limestone quarry and a waste to energy facility, and tours of the NOAA National Hurricane Center and the FIU SEM lab. Participants were surveyed on their general educational background in math and science as well as their general interest in geoscience careers. In separate focus groups, participants were queried on better ways of interesting high school students in geoscience majors. Suggestions included visits by faculty and college students to high schools and using social media promote events and activities

The relationship between student engagement with online content and achievement in a blended learning anatomy course.

PubMed

Green, Rodney A; Whitburn, Laura Y; Zacharias, Anita; Byrne, Graeme; Hughes, Diane L

2017-12-13

Blended learning has become increasingly common in higher education. Recent findings suggest that blended learning achieves better student outcomes than traditional face-to-face teaching in gross anatomy courses. While face-to-face content is perceived as important to learning there is less evidence for the significance of online content in improving student outcomes. Students enrolled in a second-year anatomy course from the physiotherapy (PT), exercise physiology (EP), and exercise science (ES) programs across two campuses were included (n = 500). A structural equation model was used to evaluate the relationship of prior student ability (represented by grade in prerequisite anatomy course) and final course grade and whether the relationship was mediated by program, campus or engagement with the online elements of the learning management system (LMS; proportion of documents and video segments viewed and number of interactions with discussion forums). PT students obtained higher grades and were more likely to engage with online course materials than EP and ES students. Prerequisite grade made a direct contribution to course final grade (P < 0.001) but was also mediated by engagement with LMS videos and discussion forums (P < 0.001). Student learning outcomes in a blended anatomy course can be predicted the by level of engagement with online content. Anat Sci Educ. © 2017 American Association of Anatomists. © 2017 American Association of Anatomists.

An integrated theoretical and practical approach for teaching hydrogeology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bonomi, Tullia; Fumagalli, Letizia; Cavallin, Angelo

2013-04-01

Hydrogeology as an earth science intersects the broader disciplines of geology, engineering, and environmental studies but it does not overlap fully with any of them. It is focused on its own range of problems and over time has developed a rich variety of methods and approaches. The resolution of many hydrogeological problems requires knowledge of elements of geology, hydraulics, physics and chemistry; moreover in recent years the knowledge of modelling techniques has become a necessary ability. Successful transfer of all this knowledge to the students depends on the breadth of material taught in courses, the natural skills of the students and any practical experience the students can obtain. In the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences of the University of Milano-Bicocca, the teaching of hydrogeology is developed in three inter-related courses: 1) general hydrogeology, 2) applied hydrogeology, 3) groundwater pollution and remediation. The sequence focuses on both groundwater flux and contaminant transport, supplemented by workshops involving case studies and computer labs, which provide the students with practical translation of the theoretical aspects of the science into the world of work. A second key aspect of the program utilizes the students' skill at learning through online approaches, and this is done through three approaches: A) by developing the courses on a University e-learning platform that allows the students to download lectures, articles, and teacher comments, and to participate in online forums; B) by carring out exercises through computer labs where the student analyze and process hydrogeological data by means of different numerical codes, that in turn enable them to manage databases and to perform aquifer test analysis, geostatistical analysis, and flux and transport modelling both in the unsaturated and saturated zone. These exercises are of course preceded by theoretical lectures on codes and software, highlighting their features and their limitations; C) by an evaluation process whose results contribute to the final examination, so that the students are evaluated on the basis of their ability to discuss theoretical subjects and/or projects and to resolving exercises and case studies either by hand calculations or by modelling. The applied hydrogeology examination is an example of the evaluation process. It involves development of a plan to resolve a real hydrogeological issue, such as the design of a hydraulic barrier for a landfill, the design of a well field to meet the supply requirements of a muncipality, or the control of possible seepage from a contaminated site close to to sensitive discharge features such as wells, springs, rivers. The students are allowed to work on computers for three consecutive mornings for a total 15 hours, and in the end are required to produce a technical report and a hydrogeological model. Obviously their solutions are neither unique nor completely optimized (just as in the real world), but the comparisons and debates among the students are important portals to learning and improvement. A second example: the groundwater pollution and remediation examination is based on the discussion of a remediation project elaborated in stages during the course, with the addition of increasing complex types of data and information. The students have one hour a week, during the course, to submit to the teacher their analysis of the problem and possible solutions. In ten years of experience all students have considered this method of examination a challenge, and found it engaging and helpful, even if unusual, at least in Italy. The University of Milano Bicocca has recently drilled a piezometric well both to monitor the flow of groundwater and to allow students to perform aquifer tests and to conduct standard groundwater sampling procedure, without any longer needing to rely on outside private donors for access to a field site. The overall approach, which includes, lectures, exercises, modelling and applied projects, help the students to consider hydrogeology from various points of view and to gain tools to support the management and protection of groundwater resources.

Self-regulated Learning in a Hybrid Science Course at a Community College

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manuelito, Shannon Joy

Community college students are attracted to courses with alternative delivery formats such as hybrid courses because the more flexible delivery associated with such courses provides convenience for busy students. In a hybrid course, face-to-face, structured seat time is exchanged for online components. In such courses, students take more responsibility for their learning because they assume additional responsibility for learning more of the course material on their own. Thus, self-regulated learning (SRL) behaviors have the potential to be useful for students to successfully navigate hybrid courses because the online components require exercise of more personal control over the autonomous learning situations inherent in hybrid courses. Self-regulated learning theory includes three components: metacognition, motivation, and behavioral actions. In the current study, this theoretical framework is used to examine how inducing self-regulated learning activities among students taking a hybrid course influence performance in a community college science course. The intervention for this action research study consisted of a suite of activities that engage students in self-regulated learning behaviors to foster student performance. The specific SRL activities included predicting grades, reflections on coursework and study efforts in course preparation logs, explanation of SRL procedures in response to a vignette, photo ethnography work on their personal use of SRL approaches, and a personalized study plan. A mixed method approach was employed to gather evidence for the study. Results indicate that community college students use a variety of self-regulated learning strategies to support their learning of course material. Further, engaging community college students in learning reflection activities appears to afford some students with opportunities to refine their SRL skills and influence their learning. The discussion focuses on integrating the quantitative and qualitative data and explanation of the findings using the SRL framework. Additionally, lessons learned, limitations, and implications for practice and research are discussed. Specifically, it is suggested that instructors can foster student learning in hybrid courses by teaching students to engage in SRL processes and behaviors rather than merely focusing on delivery of course content. Such SRL behaviors allow students to exercise greater control over the autonomous learning situations inherent in hybrid courses.

Knowledge of students attending a high school in Pretoria, South Africa, on diet, nutrition and exercise.

PubMed

Letlape, S V; Mokwena, K; Oguntibeju, O O

2010-12-01

The objective of this study was to ascertain the knowledge of students on the composition of a healthy diet, daily nutritional requirements and the importance of regular exercise. A cross-sectional survey using a self-administered questionnaire with closed and open-ended questions to assess students 'knowledge on diet, nutrition and exercise was conducted. The study group were students of Tswaing High School in Pretoria, South Africa, who were in attendance on a particular day when the study was conducted and who consented to participate in the study Only 500 students of the school participated in the study Results showed that 77% of the students do not have adequate knowledge on diet, nutrition and exercise while 23% of the students showed satisfactory knowledge. Approximately 26% and 16% of the students reported that they participated in rigorous and moderate exercise respectively The study also showed that the majority of the students were however not engaged in physical activities. Students at Tswaing High School do not have adequate knowledge on nutrition, diet and exercise. Their views on what exercise entails were found not to be satisfactory. Programmes/ information or seminars that could assist to inform students on the importance of diet and exercise are therefore suggested.

Authentic Research Experience and “Big Data” Analysis in the Classroom: Maize Response to Abiotic Stress

PubMed Central

Makarevitch, Irina; Frechette, Cameo; Wiatros, Natalia

2015-01-01

Integration of inquiry-based approaches into curriculum is transforming the way science is taught and studied in undergraduate classrooms. Incorporating quantitative reasoning and mathematical skills into authentic biology undergraduate research projects has been shown to benefit students in developing various skills necessary for future scientists and to attract students to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines. While large-scale data analysis became an essential part of modern biological research, students have few opportunities to engage in analysis of large biological data sets. RNA-seq analysis, a tool that allows precise measurement of the level of gene expression for all genes in a genome, revolutionized molecular biology and provides ample opportunities for engaging students in authentic research. We developed, implemented, and assessed a series of authentic research laboratory exercises incorporating a large data RNA-seq analysis into an introductory undergraduate classroom. Our laboratory series is focused on analyzing gene expression changes in response to abiotic stress in maize seedlings; however, it could be easily adapted to the analysis of any other biological system with available RNA-seq data. Objective and subjective assessment of student learning demonstrated gains in understanding important biological concepts and in skills related to the process of science. PMID:26163561

The Crossroads of Science and Faith

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Benecchi, Susan D.; Kober, Gladys; Gossard, Paula

2015-11-01

We have recently completed a 4-year project to produce a textbook for students that uniquely addresses the needs of the Christian homeschool community. It is also relevant for students of other faith and non-faith backgrounds. Two elements are at work: parents want their kids to become mature adults adhering to the faith of their upbringing, and students are challenged when they don't understand how to rationally discuss their beliefs in relation to many current scientific discoveries. To add to the polarization, a few scientists have spread an atheistic naturalistic worldview together with their teaching of science as if it was part of science itself. As a result many parents avoid materials they consider controversial and students later come to believe they must choose between science and their faith. The key to bridging this gap are professional astronomers who hold to a Christian worldview and who can speak both languages, understanding the complexities of both communities. The role of science educators is to teach science, not to impose worldviews. Science is well received by Christians when it is presented not as a threat to faith, but rather as a complementary way to understand God, leading to a more integrated view of reality. Our textbook boasts four hallmarks, providing students with: 1) An understanding of the relationship between faith and science with the goal of helping students to identify and integrate their own worldview. 2) Scientifically reviewed and accurate astronomical information. 3) Examples of scientists who have wrestled with science/faith issues and come to a coherent relationship between the two. And 4) exercises for the students to interact with the material in both faith and scientific areas. We hope this will be a resource to help parents who hold tightly to particular ideologies to be less closed to current scientific discovery and more excited about how new discoveries can bolster and enable their faith. We will present an overview of our materials, the positive experience we have had so far in testing our materials, and our goals for future training within the homeschool and church communities. For more information about the textbook see, http://www.glimpseofhissplendor.com/

An approach to improving science knowledge about energy balance and nutrition among elementary- and middle-school students.

PubMed

Moreno, Nancy P; Denk, James P; Roberts, J Kyle; Tharp, Barbara Z; Bost, Michelle; Thomson, William A

2004-01-01

Unhealthy diets, lack of fitness, and obesity are serious problems in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control, Surgeon General, and Department of Health and Human Services are calling for action to address these problems. Scientists and educators at Baylor College of Medicine and the National Space Biomedical Research Institute teamed to produce an instructional unit, "Food and Fitness," and evaluated it with students in grades 3-7 in Houston, Texas. A field-test group (447 students) completed all unit activities under the guidance of their teachers. This group and a comparison group (343 students) completed pre and postassessments measuring knowledge of concepts covered in the unit. Outcomes indicate that the unit significantly increased students' knowledge and awareness of science concepts related to energy in living systems, metabolism, nutrients, and diet. Pre-assessment results suggest that most students understand concepts related to calories in food, exercise and energy use, and matching food intake to energy use. Students' prior knowledge was found to be much lower on topics related to healthy portion sizes, foods that supply the most energy, essential nutrients, what "diet" actually means, and the relationship between body size and basal metabolic rate.

Light: A Spectrum of Utility, the 2014-2015 Society of Physics Students Science Outreach Catalyst Kit

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sellers, Mark; Louis-Jean, Kearns; Society of Physics Students Collaboration; National Institute of Standards; Technology Collaboration

2015-03-01

The Science Outreach Catalyst Kit (SOCK) is a set of activities and demonstrations designed to bolster the outreach programs of undergraduate Society of Physics Students (SPS) chapters, creating the framework for a lasting outreach program. Targeted for students ranging from kindergarten to high school, the SOCK allows students to actively engage in hands-on activities that teach them scientific skills and allow them to exercise their natural curiosity. The 2014-2015 SOCK united themes from the 2014 International Year of Crystallography and the 2015 International Year of Light to explore how light is used as a tool every day. This presentation will discuss the contents of the SOCK, which contains a large assortment of materials, such as diffraction glasses, polarizers, ultraviolet flashlights, etc. and describe the research and development of the activities. Each activity explores a different light phenomenon, such as diffraction, polarization, reflection, or fluorescence. These activities will promote critical thinking and analysis of data. This work was supported by the Society of Physics Students summer intern program and by the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

Air Pollution Experiments for Junior and Senior High School Science Classes, Second Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hunter, Donald C., Ed.; Wohlers, Henry C., Ed.

This revised and expanded version of a similar manual first published in 1969 is designed to acquaint students at both junior and senior levels with some of the problems and effects of air pollution and the practical means of overcoming them. The 38 experiments comprise a group of exercises which can be selected according to the interests of the…

The Examination of the Effects of Functional Training Program Applied on Instable Ground on Anaerobic Capacities of Elite Martial Arts Athletes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Caglayan, Atakan; Ozbar, Nurper

2017-01-01

The aim of this study is to measure both dynamic balance of elite martial arts athletes doing functional strength exercises on instable ground and the effects of circuit training program on their anaerobic capacities, and compare them with those following classical training program. Students studying in Faculty of Sport Sciences at Duzce…

Active Learning: A Small Group Histology Laboratory Exercise in a Whole Class Setting Utilizing Virtual Slides and Peer Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bloodgood, Robert A.

2012-01-01

Histology laboratory instruction is moving away from the sole use of the traditional combination of light microscopes and glass slides in favor of virtual microscopy and virtual slides. At the same time, medical curricula are changing so as to reduce scheduled time for basic science instruction as well as focusing on student-centered learning…

Exercise: Benefits for Body and Mind. Student Workbook. Health Promotion for Adult Literacy Students: An Empowering Approach.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hudson River Center for Program Development, Glenmont, NY.

This workbook was developed to help adult literacy students learn about exercise and physical fitness. It contains information sheets and student worksheets, coordinated with an audiotape that is available. Some of the topics covered in the workbook are the following: benefits of exercise; stress; aerobic versus anaerobic exercise; exercise…

Numerical Modeling of Ocean Circulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miller, Robert N.

2007-01-01

The modelling of ocean circulation is important not only for its own sake, but also in terms of the prediction of weather patterns and the effects of climate change. This book introduces the basic computational techniques necessary for all models of the ocean and atmosphere, and the conditions they must satisfy. It describes the workings of ocean models, the problems that must be solved in their construction, and how to evaluate computational results. Major emphasis is placed on examining ocean models critically, and determining what they do well and what they do poorly. Numerical analysis is introduced as needed, and exercises are included to illustrate major points. Developed from notes for a course taught in physical oceanography at the College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences at Oregon State University, this book is ideal for graduate students of oceanography, geophysics, climatology and atmospheric science, and researchers in oceanography and atmospheric science. Features examples and critical examination of ocean modelling and results Demonstrates the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches Includes exercises to illustrate major points and supplement mathematical and physical details

Professor Created On-line Biology Laboratory Course

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bowman, Arthur W.

2010-01-01

This paper will share the creation, implementation, and modification of an online college level general biology laboratory course offered for non-science majors as a part of a General Education Curriculum. The ability of professors to develop quality online laboratories will address a growing need in Higher Education as more institutions combine course sections and look for suitable alternative course delivery formats due to declining departmental budgets requiring reductions in staffing, equipment, and supplies. Also, there is an equal or greater need for more professors to develop the ability to create online laboratory experiences because many of the currently available online laboratory course packages from publishers do not always adequately parallel on-campus laboratory courses, or are not as aligned with the companion lecture sections. From a variety of scientific simulation and animation web sites, professors can easily identify material that closely fit the specific needs of their courses, instructional environment, and students that they serve. All too often, on-campus laboratory courses in the sciences provide what are termed confirmation experiences that do NOT allow students to experience science as would be carried out by scientists. Creatively developed online laboratory experiences can often provide the type of authentic investigative experiences that are not possible on-campus due to the time constraints of a typical two-hour, once-per-week-meeting laboratory course. In addition, online laboratory courses can address issues related to the need for students to more easily complete missing laboratory assignments, and to have opportunities to extend introductory exercises into more advanced undertakings where a greater sense of scientific discovery can be experienced. Professors are strongly encourages to begin creating online laboratory exercises for their courses, and to consider issues regarding assessment, copyrights, and Intellectual Property concerns.

Predictors of physical activity and barriers to exercise in nursing and medical students.

PubMed

Blake, Holly; Stanulewicz, Natalia; Mcgill, Francesca

2017-04-01

To investigate physical activity levels of nursing and medicine students, examine predictors of physical activity level and examine the most influential benefits and barriers to exercise. Healthcare professionals have low levels of physical activity, which increases their health risk and may influence their health promotion practices with patients. We surveyed 361 nursing (n = 193) and medicine (n = 168) students studying at a UK medical school. Questionnaire survey, active over 12 months in 2014-2015. Measures included physical activity level, benefits and barriers to exercise, social support, perceived stress and self-efficacy for exercise. Many nursing and medicine students did not achieve recommended levels of physical activity (nursing 48%; medicine 38%). Perceived benefits of exercise were health related, with medicine students identifying additional benefits for stress relief. Most notable barriers to exercise were as follows: lack of time, facilities having inconvenient schedules and exercise not fitting around study or placement schedules. Nursing students were less active than medicine students; they perceived fewer benefits and more barriers to exercise and reported lower social support for exercise. Physical activity of nursing and medicine students was best predicted by self-efficacy and social support, explaining 35% of the variance. Physical activity should be promoted in nursing and medicine students. Interventions should aim to build self-efficacy for exercise and increase social support. Interventions should be developed that are targeted specifically to shift-working frontline care staff, to reduce schedule-related barriers to exercise and to increase accessibility to workplace health and well-being initiatives. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Development, validation, and factorial comparison of the McGill Self-Efficacy of Learners For Inquiry Engagement (McSELFIE) survey in natural science disciplines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ibrahim, Ahmed; Aulls, Mark W.; Shore, Bruce M.

2016-11-01

Sociocognitive theory [Bandura, A. (1986). Social foundations of thought and action: A social cognitive theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall; Bandura, A. (1989). Human agency in social cognitive theory. American Psychologist, 44, 1175-1184. doi:10.1037/0003-066x.44.9.1175; Bandura, A. (1991). Social cognitive theory of self-regulation. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50, 248-287. doi:10.1016/0749-5978(91)90022-L] accords high importance to the mechanisms of human agency and how they are exercised through self-efficacy. In this paper, we developed and validated the McGill Self-Efficacy For Inquiry Engagement (McSELFIE) instrument with undergraduate students in natural science disciplines. We defined inquiry engagement as carrying out the practices of science (POS) that are supported by students' personality characteristics (SPCs) and that result in achieving inquiry-learning outcomes (ILOs). Based on these theoretical perspectives, the McSELFIE is a 60-item, learner-focused survey that addresses three components that are theoretically important for engaging in scientific inquiry: (a) SPCs, (b) ILOs, and (c) POS. Evidence for construct and content validity were obtained by using experts' judgments and confirmatory factor analysis with a sample of 110 undergraduate students enrolled in science disciplines. Internal consistency of the factors and instrument was also examined. The McSELFIE instrument is a reliable and valid instrument for measuring science undergraduate students' self-efficacy for inquiry engagement. Matched pairs analyses were conducted among the instruments' factors. Students reported the highest self-efficacy for openness, applying knowledge, and carrying out investigations. Students reported the lowest self-efficacy for extraversion, understanding metacognitive knowledge, and planning investigations. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Engaging Middle School Students with Google Earth Technology to Analyze Ocean Cores as Evidence for Sea Floor Spreading

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prouhet, T.; Cook, J.

2006-12-01

Google Earth's ability to captivate students' attention, its ease of use, and its high quality images give it the potential to be an extremely effective tool for earth science educators. The unique properties of Google Earth satisfy a growing demand to incorporate technology in science instruction. Google Earth is free and relatively easy to use unlike some other visualization software. Students often have difficulty conceptualizing and visualizing earth systems, such as deep-ocean basins, because of the complexity and dynamic nature of the processes associated with them (e.g. plate tectonics). Google Earth's combination of aerial photography, satellite images and remote sensing data brings a sense of realism to science concepts. The unobstructed view of the ocean floor provided by this technology illustrates three-dimensional subsurface features such as rift valleys, subduction zones, and sea-mounts enabling students to better understand the seafloor's dynamic nature. Students will use Google Earth to navigate the sea floor, and examine Deep Sea Drilling Project (DSDP) core locations the from the Glomar Challenger Leg 3 expedition. The lesson to be implemented was expanded upon and derived from the Joint Oceanographic Insitute (JOI) Learning exercise, Nannofossils Reveal Seafloor Spreading. In addition, students take on the role of scientists as they graph and analyze paleontological data against the distance from the Mid Ocean Ridge. The integration of ocean core data in this three-dimensional view aids students' ability to draw and communicate valid conclusions about their scientific observations. A pre and post survey will be given to examine attitudes, self-efficacy, achievement and content mastery to a sample of approximately 300 eighth grade science students. The hypothesis is that the integration of Google Earth will significantly improve all areas of focus as mentioned above.

TRIENNIAL REPRODUCTION SYMPOSIUM: American Society of Animal Science L. E. Casida Award for Excellence in Graduate Education: Thoughts on mentoring graduate students in reproductive biology.

PubMed

Smith, M F

2016-07-01

Programs in animal science are particularly well suited for graduate education because students can receive comprehensive training in the laboratory as well as with the whole animal. Furthermore, graduate students in animal science have the opportunity to understand how their research relates to a real world problem. Graduate students need to take ownership of their education by identifying training goals, choosing a mentor who will help them achieve their goals, and becoming engaged in research as soon as possible. In my own graduate program, I emphasize concepts more than techniques and I believe that graduate course work should focus on the basic areas of science that underlie reproductive biology (e.g., endocrinology, biochemistry, physiology, immunology, and statistics). Based on the increase in technology available for scientific investigation and the diversity of expertise required to address important research problems, graduate students need to learn the importance of establishing productive collaborations and begin building a scientific network. Preparation for graduate school frequently begins early with a curiosity and passion for understanding how biology works. Undergraduate courses can facilitate scientific thinking by providing opportunities in lectures and laboratories for students to transition from passive learners to thinking of themselves as animal scientists. There is a profound difference between individuals who view themselves as practitioners of a discipline and those who are simply trying to complete a course requirement. Teachers of undergraduate courses should incorporate experiential learning exercises into their lectures and laboratories to provide undergraduate students the opportunity to function as animal scientists and to embrace their scientific education. Graduate training has been the most enjoyable aspect of my career and it has been a joy to witness the achievements of students following completion of their degree!

C-MORE Science Kits: Putting Technology in the Hands of K-12 Teachers and Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Achilles, K.; Weersing, K.; Daniels, C.; Puniwai, N.; Matsuzaki, J.; Bruno, B. C.

2008-12-01

The Center for Microbial Oceanography: Research and Education (C-MORE) is a NSF Science and Technology Center based at the University of Hawaii. The C-MORE education and outreach program offers a variety of resources and professional development opportunities for science educators, including online resources, participation in oceanography research cruises, teacher-training workshops, mini-grants to incorporate microbial oceanography-related content and activities into their classroom and, most recently, C- MORE science kits. C-MORE science kits provide hands-on classroom, field, and laboratory activities related to microbial oceanography for K-12 students. Each kit comes with complete materials and instructions, and is available free of charge to Hawaii's public school teachers. Several kits are available nationwide. C-MORE science kits cover a range of topics and technologies and are targeted at various grade levels. Here is a sampling of some available kits: 1) Marine Murder Mystery: The Case of the Missing Zooxanthellae. Students learn about the effect of climate change and other environmental threats on coral reef destruction through a murder-mystery experience. Participants also learn how to use DNA to identify a suspect. Grades levels: 3-8. 2) Statistical sampling. Students learn basic statistics through an exercise in random sampling, with applications to microbial oceanography. The laptops provided with this kit enable students to enter, analyze, and graph their data using EXCEL. Grades levels: 6-12. 3) Chlorophyll Lab. A research-quality fluorometer is used to measure the chlorophyll content in marine and freshwater systems. This enables students to compare biomass concentrations in samples collected from various locations. Grades levels: 9-12. 4) Conductivity-Temperature-Depth (CTD). Students predict how certain variables (e.g., temperature, pressure, chlorophyll, oxygen) vary with depth. A CTD, attached to a laptop computer, is deployed into deep water off a dock or a ship to collect real-time data and test their hypotheses. Grades levels: 9-12.

Stem cell education for medical students at Tongji University: Primary cell culture and directional differentiation of rat bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells.

PubMed

Jin, Caixia; Tian, Haibin; Li, Jiao; Jia, Song; Li, Siguang; Xu, Guo-Tong; Xu, Lei; Lu, Lixia

2018-03-01

Stem cells are cells that can self-renew and differentiate into a variety of cell types under certain conditions. Stem cells have great potential in regenerative medicine and cell therapy for the treatment of certain diseases. To deliver knowledge about this frontier in science and technology to medical undergraduate students, we designed an innovative practical experiment for freshmen in their second semester. The lab exercise focused on rat bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell (BMSC) isolation, cell culture and differentiation, and it aimed to help students master the aseptic techniques for cell culture, the basic methods and procedures for the primary culture and passage of BMSCs, the basic procedure for the directional differentiation of BMSCs into adipocytes and their subsequent identification by oil-red-O staining. This lab exercise is a very meaningful and useful introduction to stem cell collection and manipulation and inspires medical students to deepen their understanding of translational medicine and regenerative medicine. © 2017 by The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 46(2):151-154, 2018. © 2017 The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

Work-related musculoskeletal disorders among Brazilian dental students.

PubMed

de Carvalho, Marcus Vitor Diniz; Soriano, Evelyne Pessoa; de França Caldas, Arnaldo; Campello, Reginaldo Inojosa Carneiro; de Miranda, Hênio Ferreira; Cavalcanti, Francisco Ivo Dantas

2009-05-01

The aim of this analytical cross-sectional study was to evaluate the presence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSD) among dental students in two Brazilian dental schools. The sample included 227 randomized subjects from fifth to ninth semesters who were developing clinical activities. Each student signed an informed consent form. A self-reporting questionnaire was used to obtain data on the practice of physical exercise, the presence of pain during or soon after treating patients, and the adoption of preventive measures related to clinical activities. Results were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences 13.0. The chi(2) test was used to identify associations between variables. The presence of pain during or after clinical work was reported by 173 participants (76.2 percent). Statistically significant differences were found between gender and the occurrence of pain. Pain was present during clinical activities (p=0.006) and imposed limitations on the work routine (p=0.011). Among those who practiced physical exercise, eighty-eight (74.6 percent) reported pain. The high percentage of pain reported by dental students suggests the value of reviewing work conditions in dental practices in order to minimize the exposure of all workers to WMSD.

Medical students' perceptions of the importance of exercise and their perceived competence in prescribing exercise to older people.

PubMed

Jadczak, Agathe Daria; Tam, Khai Loon; Yu, Solomon; Visvanathan, Renuka

2017-09-01

To determine the effects of a 4.5-week geriatric medicine course on fifth year medical students' perception of the importance of and their competence in prescribing exercise to older people. The modified Exercise and Physical Activity Competence Questionnaire was administered to 81 students before and after the course. Scores ranged from 0 to 6. One open-ended question about perceived barriers to exercise prescription was asked. Students' perceptions of the importance of designing an exercise prescription (P = 0.038), determining the training heart rate (P = 0.021), determining the body mass index (P > 0.001), referring an older person to an exercise program (P > 0.001) and identifying age-related limitations (P = 0.029) improved significantly after the course. Students' self-perceived competence improved significantly across all items (P > 0.001). Barriers to exercise prescription included lack of: knowledge (57%), patient compliance (39%) and time (33%). A geriatric medicine course contributes to improved senior medical students' perceptions of importance of and their competence in prescribing exercise to older people. © 2017 AJA Inc.

PBL Trigger Design by Medical Students: An Effective Active Learning Strategy Outside the Classroom.

PubMed

Roche, Maya; Adiga, Indira Kakkunje; Nayak, Akshatha G

2016-12-01

Problem Based Learning (PBL) is known world over as an effective, active learning strategy with many benefits for the student. Usually, in medical schools, PBL triggers are designed by a well-trained group of faculty from basic and clinical sciences. The challenge was whether this task could be given to students in the first year of their curriculum and be executed by them effectively. To enhance active learning, comprehension and critical thinking with a view to promote horizontal and vertical integration between subjects. Student volunteers of the first year MBBS course (n=10), who had been exposed to the curriculum for approximately 38 weeks and were familiar with the PBL process were recruited for the study. In addition to a handout on the topic 'gout', they were given the freedom to access any resource in the university library to construct the PBL triggers. The PBL triggers were vetted by two faculties. In addition to a focus group discussion with students, students' and faculty's responses were collected on a Likert scale. Students opined that the exercise helped improve their comprehension (100%), critical thinking abilities (90%) and clinical orientation to the topic (100%). They felt that designing a PBL trigger was a relevant active learning strategy (100%) and would help them answer questions on this topic better in the future (90%). The clinicians who examined the PBL triggers, felt that they were of good quality and that the process was a good tool for vertical integration between basic and clinical sciences. The results prove that students when given a challenge will rise to the occasion. Unfamiliarity with the nuances of a disease did not prevent them from going the extra mile to achieve their target. By taking part in this exercise, students benefitted in many ways and got a holistic understanding of the topic. PBL trigger design can be introduced as an active learning strategy for students in medical schools where PBL is part of the curriculum. It promotes integration across subjects and is very effective in augmenting student motivation.

Effects of a Research-Infused Botanical Curriculum on Undergraduates’ Content Knowledge, STEM Competencies, and Attitudes toward Plant Sciences

PubMed Central

Clarke, H. David; Horton, Jonathan L.

2014-01-01

In response to the American Association for the Advancement of Science's Vision and Change in Undergraduate Biology Education initiative, we infused authentic, plant-based research into majors’ courses at a public liberal arts university. Faculty members designed a financially sustainable pedagogical approach, utilizing vertically integrated curricular modules based on undergraduate researchers’ field and laboratory projects. Our goals were to 1) teach botanical concepts, from cells to ecosystems; 2) strengthen competencies in statistical analysis and scientific writing; 3) pique plant science interest; and 4) allow all undergraduates to contribute to genuine research. Our series of inquiry-centered exercises mitigated potential faculty barriers to adopting research-rich curricula, facilitating teaching/research balance by gathering publishable scholarly data during laboratory class periods. Student competencies were assessed with pre- and postcourse quizzes and rubric-graded papers, and attitudes were evaluated with pre- and postcourse surveys. Our revised curriculum increased students’ knowledge and awareness of plant science topics, improved scientific writing, enhanced statistical knowledge, and boosted interest in conducting research. More than 300 classroom students have participated in our program, and data generated from these modules’ assessment allowed faculty and students to present 28 contributed talks or posters and publish three papers in 4 yr. Future steps include analyzing the effects of repeated module exposure on student learning and creating a regional consortium to increase our project's pedagogical impact. PMID:25185223

Phonetics exercises using the Alvin experiment-control software.

PubMed

Hillenbrand, James M; Gayvert, Robert T; Clark, Michael J

2015-04-01

Exercises are described that were designed to provide practice in phonetic transcription for students taking an introductory phonetics course. The goal was to allow instructors to offload much of the drill that would otherwise need to be covered in class or handled with paper-and-pencil tasks using text rather than speech as input. The exercises were developed using Alvin, a general-purpose software package for experiment design and control. The simplest exercises help students learn sound-symbol associations. For example, a vowel-transcription exercise presents listeners with consonant-vowel-consonant syllables on each trial; students are asked to choose among buttons labeled with phonetic symbols for 12 vowels. Several word-transcription exercises are included in which students hear a word and are asked to enter a phonetic transcription. Immediate feedback is provided for all of the exercises. An explanation of the methods that are used to create exercises is provided. Although no formal evaluation was conducted, comments on course evaluations suggest that most students found the exercises to be useful. Exercises were developed for use in an introductory phonetics course. The exercises can be used in their current form, they can be modified to suit individual needs, or new exercises can be developed.

New Media Learning: Student Podcasting and Blogging in an Intro to Meteorology Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Small, J. D.

2013-12-01

Current weather events and climate change are hot media topics discussed on television, the internet, and through social media. In this world of 'Tweets', 'Texts' and constant multi-media bombardment it is becoming increasingly difficult to engage students in the learning process by simply standing at a podium and lecturing in a darkened classroom. Educational research has found that lectures place students in a passive role, preventing them from actively engaging in the learning process. Through the innovative use of multi-media platforms this study assesses the potential to create active learning opportunities (podcasting and blogging) that connect theoretical 'textbook' atmospheric science with the 'real world.' This work focuses on students enrolled in the Introduction to Meteorology course (MET 101) at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. This study summarizes the impact of the 'course-casting' technique which utilizes podcasts of lectures and supplemental material. Lecture Podcasts are used mainly as a revision tool for students by providing on-demand portable (MP3) course content that supports independent student learning. Students also produced their own podcasts (research projects) to share with classmates throughout the course relating atmospheric science content to personal 'real world' experiences. Along with podcasting, students blogged about designated topics related to weather and climate, making their knowledge and understanding accessible to other students in the course and the general internet community. Student surveys, journals, and final exit interviews are used to assess the impact of the blogging and podcasting exercises on the student learning experience. The number of times each lecture podcast was downloaded is recorded to determine the interest level in using audio lectures as a review tool. Student blogs and podcasts are evaluated based on science content accuracy and student survey evaluations of the learning experience.

Raising environmental awareness through applied biochemistry laboratory experiments.

PubMed

Salman Ashraf, S

2013-01-01

Our environment is under constant pressure and threat from various sources of pollution. Science students, in particular chemistry students, must not only be made aware of these issues, but also be taught that chemistry (and science) can provide solutions to such real-life issues. To this end, a newly developed biochemistry laboratory experiment is described that guides students to learn about the applicability of peroxidase enzymes to degrade organic dyes (as model pollutants) in simulated waste water. In addition to showing how enzymes can potentially be used for waste water remediation, various factors than can affect enzyme-based reactions such as pH, temperature, concentration of substrates/enzymes, and denaturants can also be tested. This "applied biotechnology" experiment was successfully implemented in an undergraduate biochemistry laboratory course to enhance students' learning of environmental issues as well important biochemistry concepts. Student survey confirmed that this laboratory experiment was successful in achieving the objectives of raising environmental awareness in students and illustrating the usefulness of chemistry in solving real-life problems. This experiment can be easily adopted in an introductory biochemistry laboratory course and taught as an inquiry-guided exercise. © 2013 by The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

Personal and Clinical Exercise-Related Attitudes and Behaviors of Freshmen U.S. Medical Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frank, Erica; Galuska, Deborah A.; Elon, Lisa K.; Wright, Elsa H.

2004-01-01

To determine personal and clinical exercise-related attitudes and behaviors of freshmen U.S. medical students, we surveyed 1,906 entering freshman medical students (response rate=87%; average age=24 years) in 17 U.S. medical schools. Students reported a median of 45 min/day of exercise, 80 min/week each of mild and moderate exercise, and 100…

ERESE Professional Development in Science Education: A collaboration of scientists, teachers, and information technologists

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Staudigel, H.; Helly, M.; Massel Symons, C.; Koppers, A.; Helly, J.; Miller, S.

2005-12-01

The Enduring Resources in Earth Science Education (ERESE) project promotes inquiry based teaching of plate tectonics through professional development and distribution of digital library objects in the National Science Digital Library network. The overall ERESE goal is to bridge the gap between the scientists and educators, and our experience has shown that much can be gained by establishing a close collaboration between all parties involved in earth science education, from high school student to teacher -educator, and scientist. These collaborations yield substantial gains in terms of effective educational approaches, contents selection, and to produce an authentic class room research experience. ERESE professional development workshops promote a model of inquiry-based teaching that keeps the educator as far in the background as possible, while empowering the student to carry out a maximally independent inquiry. Key components in this process are: (1) use of a well selected provocative phenomenon to promote student's curiosity and to start the inquiry process, (2) care in the student guidance towards selection and formulation of a researchable question, (3) the involvement of teachers and scientists, in a close collaboration (4) teaching resource development with a strong feed-back from professional development workshops and classroom practice, (5) integration of science inquiry resources on all expert levels providing an environment that allows continuous access to science information from the most basic to the full scale science level. We expanded ERESE resource development into a volcanology field class on Hawaii to produce a website and digital library contents including field reports, exercises and images and field data. We further expanded our resource development through the participation of three high school students in a three-week seagoing expedition to the Samoan Archipelago. The high school seniors maintained a live expedition website and they participated in all science activities. Their work impacted ERESE by the development of digital resources, and introducing peer - mentoring into the inquiry process.

Promoting inquiry-based teaching in laboratory courses: are we meeting the grade?

PubMed

Beck, Christopher; Butler, Amy; da Silva, Karen Burke

2014-01-01

Over the past decade, repeated calls have been made to incorporate more active teaching and learning in undergraduate biology courses. The emphasis on inquiry-based teaching is especially important in laboratory courses, as these are the courses in which students are applying the process of science. To determine the current state of research on inquiry-based teaching in undergraduate biology laboratory courses, we reviewed the recent published literature on inquiry-based exercises. The majority of studies in our data set were in the subdisciplines of biochemistry, cell biology, developmental biology, genetics, and molecular biology. In addition, most exercises were guided inquiry, rather than open ended or research based. Almost 75% of the studies included assessment data, with two-thirds of these studies including multiple types of assessment data. However, few exercises were assessed in multiple courses or at multiple institutions. Furthermore, assessments were rarely based on published instruments. Although the results of the studies in our data set show a positive effect of inquiry-based teaching in biology laboratory courses on student learning gains, research that uses the same instrument across a range of courses and institutions is needed to determine whether these results can be generalized. © 2014 C. Beck et al. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2014 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

Reasons and resources for being explicit about the practices of science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Egger, A. E.

2015-12-01

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) promote a fundamental shift in the way science is taught. The new focus is on three-dimensional learning, which brings science and engineering practices together with disciplinary core ideas and cross-cutting concepts. A key component is performance expectations rather than bullet lists of content that students should know. One of the stated goals is that "all students should have sufficient knowledge of science and engineering to engage in public discussions on related issues." While the NGSS were developed for K-12, college instructors benefit from familiarity with them in two critical ways: first, they provide a research-based and clearly articulated approach to three-dimensional learning that applies across the grade spectrum, and second, future K-12 teachers are sitting in their college-level science courses, and awareness of the skills those future teachers need can help direct course design. More specifically, while most college-level science courses make use of the science and engineering practices described in the NGSS, few offer explicit instruction in them or how they intertwine with disciplinary core ideas and cross-cutting concepts. Yet this explicit instruction is critical to building scientific literacy in future teachers—and all students. Many textbooks and laboratory courses limit a discussion of the process of science to one chapter or exercise, and expect students to be able to apply those concepts. In contrast, new resources from Visionlearning (http://www.visionlearning.com), InTeGrate (http://serc.carleton.edu/integrate), and other projects hosted at the Science Education Resource Center (http://serc.carleton.edu) were developed with explicit and pervasive integration of the nature and practices of science in mind. These freely available, classroom-tested and reviewed resources support instructors in introductory/general education courses as well as teacher preparation and more advanced courses.

Influencing physiotherapy student attitudes toward exercise for adolescents with Down syndrome.

PubMed

Shields, Nora; Bruder, Andrea; Taylor, Nicholas; Angelo, Tom

2011-01-01

Negative attitudes of physiotherapists may prevent them from implementing exercise as an intervention among people with disabilities. The aim of this study was to examine whether physiotherapy student attitudes towards the barriers to exercise for adolescents with Down syndrome changed as a result of participating in a 10-week exercise programme. Data were collected as part of a randomised controlled trial. Twenty physiotherapy students (2 men, 18 women; mean age 19.5±1.3 years) volunteered to act as mentors. Each mentor was matched with an adolescent with Down syndrome from the same metropolitan suburb, who had been randomly allocated to either the intervention or the control group. The 10 adolescents and students in the intervention group all completed a 10-week, twice a week progressive resistance exercise training programme. The 10 adolescents and students in the control group continued with their usual activities. The students completed the 18-item Exercise Barriers Scale at baseline and after 10 weeks. There was a positive change in attitudes, significant at the p <0.05 level, favouring the intervention group on 9 of the 18 items on the Exercise Barriers Scale. After engagement in a 10-week exercise programme with an adolescent with Down syndrome, physiotherapy students identified fewer barriers that would prevent adolescents with Down syndrome from exercising. Results indicate that contact with adolescents with Down syndrome during clinical placement can positively influence attitudes towards exercise for people with Down syndrome among physiotherapy students.

Effects of smoking and aerobic exercise on male college students' metabolic syndrome risk factors.

PubMed

Kim, Jee-Youn; Yang, Yuhao; Sim, Young-Je

2018-04-01

[Purpose] The aim was to investigate the effects of university students' smoking and aerobic exercise on metabolic syndrome risk factors. [Subjects and Methods] Twenty-three male students were randomly assigned to the following groups: exercise smoker (n=6), non-exercise smoker (n=6), exercise non-smoker (n=6), and non-exercise non-smoker (n=5). A basketball exercise program was conducted three times per week (70 minutes per session) for 8 weeks with exercise intensity set at 50-80% of heart rate reserve. After 8 weeks, the variables of risk factors for metabolic syndrome were obtained. [Results] Systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure were significantly decreased in the exercise non-smoker group and significantly increased in the non-exercise smoker group. Waist circumference was significantly reduced in both exercise groups regardless of smoking and significantly increased in the non-exercise smoker group. Triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, and fasting plasma glucose showed no differences between the groups. [Conclusion] Obesity and smoking management should be conducted together for students as well as for those with metabolic syndrome risk factors. It is recommended that more students participate in such programs, and exercise programs should be further developed and diversified to prevent metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular diseases.

Promoting Inquiry-Based Teaching in Laboratory Courses: Are We Meeting the Grade?

PubMed Central

Butler, Amy; Burke da Silva, Karen

2014-01-01

Over the past decade, repeated calls have been made to incorporate more active teaching and learning in undergraduate biology courses. The emphasis on inquiry-based teaching is especially important in laboratory courses, as these are the courses in which students are applying the process of science. To determine the current state of research on inquiry-based teaching in undergraduate biology laboratory courses, we reviewed the recent published literature on inquiry-based exercises. The majority of studies in our data set were in the subdisciplines of biochemistry, cell biology, developmental biology, genetics, and molecular biology. In addition, most exercises were guided inquiry, rather than open ended or research based. Almost 75% of the studies included assessment data, with two-thirds of these studies including multiple types of assessment data. However, few exercises were assessed in multiple courses or at multiple institutions. Furthermore, assessments were rarely based on published instruments. Although the results of the studies in our data set show a positive effect of inquiry-based teaching in biology laboratory courses on student learning gains, research that uses the same instrument across a range of courses and institutions is needed to determine whether these results can be generalized. PMID:25185228

The mass-lifetime relation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

LoPresto, Michael C.

2018-05-01

In a recent "AstroNote," I described a simple exercise on the mass-luminosity relation for main sequence stars as an example of exposing students in a general education science course of lower mathematical level to the use of quantitative skills such as collecting and analyzing data. Here I present another attempt at a meaningful experience for such students that again involves both the gathering and analysis of numerical data and comparison with accepted result, this time on the relationship of the mass and lifetimes of main sequence stars. This experiment can stand alone or be used as an extension of the previous mass-luminosity relationship experiment.

Extragalactic astronomy: The universe beyond our galaxy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jacobs, K. C.

1976-01-01

This single-topic brochure is for high school physical science teachers to use in introducing students to extragalactic astronomy. The material is presented in three parts: the fundamental content of extragalactic astronomy; modern discoveries delineated in greater detail; and a summary of the earlier discussions within the structure of the Big-Bang Theory of evolution. Each of the three sections is followed by student exercises (activities, laboratory projects, and questions-and-answers). The unit close with a glossary which explains unfamilar terms used in the text and a collection of teacher aids (literature references and audiovisual materials for utilization in further study).

Transforming the Online Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Horodyskyj, L.; Ben-Naim, D.; Semken, S. C.; Anbar, A. D.

2013-12-01

Traditional large lecture classes are fundamentally passive and teacher-centered. Most existing online courses are as well, including massive open online courses (MOOCs). Research tells us that this mode of instruction is not ideal for student learning. However, the unique attributes of the online environment have thus far been mostly underutilized. We hypothesize that new tools and the innovative curricula they enable can foster greater student engagement and enhance learning at large scale. To test this hypothesis, over the past three years, Arizona State University developed and offered "Habitable Worlds", an online-only astrobiology lab course. The course curriculum is based on the Drake Equation, which integrates across disciplines. The course pedagogy is organized around a term-long, individualized, game-inspired project in which each student must find and characterize rare habitable planets in a randomized field of hundreds of stars using concepts learned in the course. The curriculum allows us to meaningfully integrate concepts from Earth, physical, life, and social sciences in order to address questions related to the possibility of extraterrestrial life. The pedagogy motivates students to master concepts, which are taught through interactive and adaptive inquiry-driven tutorials, featuring focused feedback and alternative pathways that adjust to student abilities, built using an intelligent tutoring system (Smart Sparrow's Adaptive eLearning Platform - AeLP). Through the combination of the project and tutorials, students construct knowledge from experience, modeling the authentic practice of science. Because the tutorials are self-grading, the teaching staff is free to dedicate time to more intense learner-teacher interactions (such as tutoring weaker students or guiding advanced students towards broader applications of the concepts), using platforms like Piazza and Adobe Connect. The AeLP and Piazza provide robust data and analysis tools that allow us to investigate how students interact with the exercises, both in aggregate and at the individual level. These data have allowed us to identify and fix hidden problems in the exercises that students do not vocalize. More importantly, the AeLP provides the opportunity to construct and evaluate hypotheses in content presentation and evaluation methods that are simply not possible in traditional classroom settings, a task we are currently undertaking to determine the effectiveness of our approach.

PBL Trigger Design by Medical Students: An Effective Active Learning Strategy Outside the Classroom

PubMed Central

Adiga, Indira Kakkunje; Nayak, Akshatha G.

2016-01-01

Introduction Problem Based Learning (PBL) is known world over as an effective, active learning strategy with many benefits for the student. Usually, in medical schools, PBL triggers are designed by a well-trained group of faculty from basic and clinical sciences. The challenge was whether this task could be given to students in the first year of their curriculum and be executed by them effectively. Aim To enhance active learning, comprehension and critical thinking with a view to promote horizontal and vertical integration between subjects. Materials and Methods Student volunteers of the first year MBBS course (n=10), who had been exposed to the curriculum for approximately 38 weeks and were familiar with the PBL process were recruited for the study. In addition to a handout on the topic ‘gout’, they were given the freedom to access any resource in the university library to construct the PBL triggers. The PBL triggers were vetted by two faculties. In addition to a focus group discussion with students, students’ and faculty’s responses were collected on a Likert scale. Results Students opined that the exercise helped improve their comprehension (100%), critical thinking abilities (90%) and clinical orientation to the topic (100%). They felt that designing a PBL trigger was a relevant active learning strategy (100%) and would help them answer questions on this topic better in the future (90%). The clinicians who examined the PBL triggers, felt that they were of good quality and that the process was a good tool for vertical integration between basic and clinical sciences. Discussion The results prove that students when given a challenge will rise to the occasion. Unfamiliarity with the nuances of a disease did not prevent them from going the extra mile to achieve their target. By taking part in this exercise, students benefitted in many ways and got a holistic understanding of the topic. Conclusion PBL trigger design can be introduced as an active learning strategy for students in medical schools where PBL is part of the curriculum. It promotes integration across subjects and is very effective in augmenting student motivation. PMID:28208882

Alternation of Generations and Experimental Design: A Guided-Inquiry Lab Exploring the Nature of the "her1" Developmental Mutant of "Ceratopteris richardii" (C-Fern)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Spiro, Mark D.; Knisely, Karin I.

2008-01-01

Inquiry-based labs have been shown to greatly increase student participation and learning within the biological sciences. One challenge is to develop effective lab exercises within the constraints of large introductory labs. We have designed a lab for first-year biology majors to address two primary goals: to provide effective learning of the…

Introduction to Geostatistics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kitanidis, P. K.

1997-05-01

Introduction to Geostatistics presents practical techniques for engineers and earth scientists who routinely encounter interpolation and estimation problems when analyzing data from field observations. Requiring no background in statistics, and with a unique approach that synthesizes classic and geostatistical methods, this book offers linear estimation methods for practitioners and advanced students. Well illustrated with exercises and worked examples, Introduction to Geostatistics is designed for graduate-level courses in earth sciences and environmental engineering.

Do as I say: contradicting beliefs and attitudes towards sports concussion in Australia.

PubMed

Pearce, Alan J; Young, Janet A; Parrington, Lucy; Aimers, Nicole

2017-10-01

The objective of this study was to explore beliefs and attitudes of students studying exercise science in Australia towards sports concussion. A secondary objective explored differences between gender and previous experience of concussion. A total of 312 participants (m = 217; f = 95) responded to a series of statements ranging across a number of areas including personal attitudes and beliefs towards concussion: if they would risk playing with a concussion; their views on elite/professional athletes who continue to play after a concussion; and attitudes towards rehabilitation. Overall, attitudes revealed that it was not safe to play with a concussion, and it was believed that those who have had repeated concussions would be likely to suffer problems later in life. However, responses also indicated that they would risk playing with a concussion, and admired elite athletes who continued to play. When controlling for gender and previous concussions, males and those who sustained a previous concussion/s were more likely to continue playing. Conversely, females were more likely to complete rehabilitation prior to returning to sport. This study demonstrates in an Australian student cohort studying for a career in exercise and sports science, disparity between beliefs and attitudes regarding sports concussion.

Serratus anterior and lower trapezius muscle activities during multi-joint isotonic scapular exercises and isometric contractions.

PubMed

Tsuruike, Masaaki; Ellenbecker, Todd S

2015-02-01

Proper scapular function during humeral elevation, such as upward rotation, external rotation, and posterior tilting of the scapula, is necessary to prevent shoulder injury. However, the appropriate intensity of rehabilitation exercise for the periscapular muscles has yet to be clarified. To identify the serratus anterior, lower trapezius, infraspinatus, and posterior deltoid muscle activities during 2 free-motion exercises using 3 intensities and to compare these muscle activities with isometric contractions during quadruped shoulder flexion and external rotation and abduction of the glenohumeral joint. Cross-sectional study. Health Science Laboratory. A total of 16 uninjured, healthy, active, male college students (age = 19.5 ± 1.2 years, height = 173.1 ± 6.5 cm, weight = 68.8 ± 6.6 kg). Mean electromyographic activity normalized by the maximal voluntary isometric contraction was analyzed across 3 intensities and 5 exercises. Intraclass correlation coefficients were calculated for electromyographic activity of the 4 muscles in each free-motion exercise. Significant interactions in electromyographic activity were observed between intensities and exercises (P < .05). The quadruped shoulder-flexion exercise activated all 4 muscles compared with other exercises. Also, the modified robbery free-motion exercise activated the serratus anterior, lower trapezius, and infraspinatus compared with the lawn-mower free-motion exercise. However, neither exercise showed a difference in posterior deltoid electromyographic activity. Three intensities exposed the nature of the periscapular muscle activities across the different exercises. The free-motion exercise in periscapular muscle rehabilitation may not modify serratus anterior, lower trapezius, and infraspinatus muscle activities unless knee-joint extension is limited.

The Effects Of An Exercise Physiology Program on Physical Fitness Variables, Body Satisfaction, and Physiology Knowledge.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perry, Arlette C.; Rosenblatt, Evelyn S.; Kempner, Lani; Feldman, Brandon B.; Paolercio, Maria A.; Van Bemden, Angie L.

2002-01-01

Examined the effects of an exercise physiology program on high school students' physical fitness, body satisfaction, and physiology knowledge. Intervention students received exercise physiology theory and active aerobic and resistance exercise within their biology course. Data from student surveys and measurements indicated that the integrated…

State of laboratory manual instruction in California community college introductory (non-majors) biology laboratory instruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Priest, Michelle

College students must complete a life science course prior to graduation for a bachelor's degree. Generally, the course has lecture and laboratory components. It is in the laboratory where there are exceptional opportunities for exploration, challenge and application of the material learned. Optimally, this would utilize the best of inquiry based approaches. Most community colleges are using a home-grown or self written laboratory manual for the direction of work in the laboratory period. Little was known about the motivation, development and adaptation of use. It was also not known about the future of the laboratory manuals in light of the recent learning reform in California Community Colleges, Student Learning Outcomes. Extensive interviews were conducted with laboratory manual authors to determine the motivation, process of development, who was involved and learning framework used in the creation of the manuals. It was further asked of manual authors their ideas about the future of the manual, the development of staff and faculty and finally, the role Student Learning Outcomes would play in the manual. Science faculty currently teaching the non-majors biology laboratories for at least two semesters were surveyed on-line about actual practice of the manual, assessment, manual flexibility, faculty training and incorporation of Student Learning Outcomes. Finally, an evaluation of the laboratory manual was done using an established Laboratory Task Analysis Instrument. Laboratory manuals were evaluated on a variety of categories to determine the level of inquiry instruction done by students in the laboratory section. The results were that the development of homegrown laboratory manuals was done by community colleges in the Los Angeles and Orange Counties in an effort to minimize the cost of the manual to the students, to utilize all the exercises in a particular lab and to effectively utilize the materials already owned by the department. Further, schools wanted to utilize the current faculty research expertise and knowledge. Unfortunately, laboratory manual authors had no real learning framework in the development of the manual. Based on the LAI, most manuals focused on the lowest levels of inquiry based instruction. Most manuals focused exercises on cell and molecular topics. The manuals had little student exploration, creation or design in the laboratory exercise and no option for repeating the exercise. There was a clear desire of faculty and authors to improve the laboratory experience and manual. Authors and faculty wished to include more inquiry and utilize the best of Student Learning Outcome (SLO) methodologies. Authors and the laboratory manuals have a major disconnect in that authors have clear desires inquiry based learning for the manual but do not effectively implement the inquiry based learning for various reasons. The manuals themselves, laboratory manuals themselves are not robust inquiry based learning models to maximize student learning. Authors and faculty are disconnected in that authors know what they want their manuals to do...but do not effectively communicate that to faculty. Finally, schools are in a "wait and see" approach as to when to integrate the latest learning theory mandated by the Chancellors Office -- Student Learning Outcomes.

CSI: Dognapping workshop : an outreach experiment designed to produce students that are hooked on science.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Boyle, Timothy J.; Gorman, Anna K.; Pratt, Harry D., III

The CSI: Dognapping Workshop is a culmination of the more than 65 Sandian staff and intern volunteers dedication to exciting and encouraging the next generation of scientific leaders. This 2 hour workshop used a 'theatrical play' and 'hands on' activities that was fun, exciting and challenging for 3rd-5th graders while meeting science curriculum standards. In addition, new pedagogical methods were developed in order to introduce nanotechnology to the public. Survey analysis indicated that the workshop had an overall improvement and positive impact on helping the students to understand concepts from materials science and chemistry as well as increased our interactionmore » with the K-5 community. Anecdotal analyses showed that this simple exercise will have far reaching impact with the results necessary to maintain the United States as the scientific leader in the world. This experience led to the initiation of over 100 Official Junior Scientists.« less

Training Students’ Science Process Skills through Didactic Design on Work and Energy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramayanti, S.; Utari, S.; Saepuzaman, D.

2017-09-01

Science Process Skills (SPS) has not been optimally trained to the students in the learning activity. The aim of this research is finding the ways to train SPS on the subject of Work and Energy. One shot case study design is utilized in this research that conducted on 32 students in one of the High Schools in Bandung. The students’ SPS responses were analyzed by the development SPS based assessment portfolios. The results of this research showed the didactic design that had been designed to training the identifying variables skills, formulating hypotheses, and the experiment activity shows the development. But the didactic design to improve the students’ predicting skills shows that the development is still not optimal. Therefore, in the future studies need to be developed the didactic design on the subject Work and Energy that exercising these skills.

Probing stereotypes through students' drawings of scientists

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rahm, Jrène; Charbonneau, Paul

1997-08-01

The Draw-A-Scientist Test is an assessment tool devised to explore and measure children's stereotypical views of scientists. We administered this test to a group of 49 undergraduate and postgraduate students enrolled in a teacher certification program. While this was originally intended as a purely pedagogical exercise, we were struck by the degree to which the drawings so produced resembled, in stereotypical content, those usually produced by children. This suggests that stereotypes of science and scientists formed during childhood, presumably via the influence of the media, remain largely unaffected by the subsequent passage through high school and college, despite the fact that numerous real-life figures of science teachers and scientists are presumably encountered throughout those formative years. We argue that this state of affairs has subtle and far reaching consequences, and is worthy of our collective attention.

Characterization of the activity and stability of amylase from saliva and detergent: laboratory practicals for studying the activity and stability of amylase from saliva and various commercial detergents.

PubMed

Valls, Cristina; Rojas, Cristina; Pujadas, Gerard; Garcia-Vallve, Santi; Mulero, Miquel

2012-07-01

This article presents two integrated laboratory exercises intended to show students the role of α-amylases (AAMYs) in saliva and detergents. These laboratory practicals are based on the determination of the enzymatic activity of amylase from saliva and different detergents using the Phadebas test (quantitative) and the Lugol test (qualitative) under different conditions (e.g. variations in temperature and alkalinity). This work also proposes the study of enzyme stability in the presence of several surfactants and oxidizing agents using the same technical approach. The proposed laboratory exercises promote the understanding of the physiological function of this enzyme and the biotechnological applications of AAMYs in the detergent industry. The exercises also promote the understanding that the enzymatic stability and performance are dependent on the organism of origin, and if necessary, these properties could be modified by genetic engineering. In addition, this article reinforces the development of laboratory skills, problem-solving capabilities, and the ability to write a laboratory report. The exercises are proposed primarily as an undergraduate project for advanced students in the biochemical and biotechnological sciences. These laboratory practicals are complementary to the previously published BAMBED article (Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education Vol. 39, No. 4, pp. 280-290, 2011) on detergent proteases. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Implementation of a Parameterization Framework for Cybersecurity Laboratories

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-03-01

designer of laboratory exercises with tools to parameterize labs for each student , and automate some aspects of the grading of laboratory exercises. A...is to provide the designer of laboratory exercises with tools to parameterize labs for each student , and automate some aspects of the grading of...support might assist the designer of laboratory exercises to achieve the following? 1. Verify that students performed lab exercises, with some

Experiential learning in soil science: Use of an augmented reality sandbox

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vaughan, Karen; Vaughan, Robert; Seeley, Janel; Brevik, Eric

2017-04-01

It is known widely that greater learning occurs when students are active participants. Novel technologies allow instructors the opportunity to create interactive activities for undergraduate students to gain comprehension of complex landscape processes. We incorporated the use of an Augmented Reality (AR) Sandbox in the Introductory Soil Science course at the University of Wyoming to facilitate an experiential learning experience in pedology. The AR Sandbox was developed by researchers at the University of California, Davis as part of a project on informal science education in freshwater lakes and watershed science. It is a hands-on display that allows users to create topography models by shaping sand that is augmented in real-time by a colored elevation maps, topographic contour lines, and simulated water. It uses a 3-dimensional motion sensing camera that detects changes to the distance between the sand surface and the camera sensor. A short-throw projector then displays the elevation model and contour lines in real-time. Undergraduate students enrolled in the Introductory Soil Science course were tasked with creating a virtual landscape and then predicting where particular soils would form on the various landforms. All participants reported a greater comprehension of surface water flow, erosion, and soil formation as a result of this exercise. They provided suggestions for future activities using the AR Sandbox including its incorporation into lessons of watershed hydrology, land management, soil water, and soil genesis.

Influence of caffeine ingestion on perceived mood states, concentration, and arousal levels during a 75-min university lecture.

PubMed

Peeling, Peter; Dawson, Brian

2007-12-01

This investigation aimed to assess the effect of a caffeine supplement on perceived mood state, concentration, and arousal during a 75-min university lecture. Methods. This randomized, blind, cross-over design investigation ran over a course of 2 consecutive weeks. During week 1, 10 third-year Human Movement and Exercise Science students were assigned to either a caffeine- or placebo-supplemented group and were subsequently required to attend a 75-min exercise rehabilitation lecture. Seven days later, students were assigned to the opposite supplementation group before attending a second follow-on lecture, equal in duration to that of week 1. At the conclusion of each lecture, students were required to complete a mood perception questionnaire to assess the perceived level of mood state, concentration, and arousal during the lecture. The results showed that after caffeine consumption, students perceived themselves to be significantly more awake, clear minded, energetic, alert, and anxious (P < 0.05). Additionally, students also felt they were better able to concentrate and had a greater level of arousal than when the placebo was consumed (P < 0.05). In conclusion, the results of this investigation show that university students report enhanced perceptual feelings of behavior and mood state when a low dose of caffeine is consumed 60 min prior to a 75-min academic lecture.

Understanding primary school science teachers' pedagogical content knowledge: The case of teaching global warming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chordnork, Boonliang; Yuenyong, Chokchai

2018-01-01

This aim of this research was to investigate primary school science teachers understanding and teaching practice as well as the influence on teaching and learning a topic like global warming. The participants were four primary science teachers, who were not graduated in science education. Methodology was the case study method, which was under the qualitative research regarded from interpretive paradigm. Data were collected by openended questionnaire, semi-structure interview, and document colleting. The questionnaire examined teachers' background, teachers' understanding of problems and threats of science teaching, desiring of development their PCK, sharing the teaching approaches, and their ideas of strength and weakness. a semi-structured interview was conducted based on the approach for capturing PCK of Loughran [23] content representation (CoRe). And, the document was collected to clarify what evidence which was invented to effect on students' learning. These document included lesson plan, students' task, and painting about global warming, science projects, the picture of activities of science learning, the exercise and test. Data analysis employed multiple approach of evidence looking an issue from each primary science teachers and used triangulation method to analyze the data with aiming to make meaning of teachers' representation of teaching practice. These included descriptive statistics, CoRe interpretation, and document analysis. The results show that teachers had misunderstanding of science teaching practice and they has articulated the pedagogical content knowledge in terms of assessment, goal of teaching and linking to the context of socio cultural. In contrast, knowledge and belief of curriculum, students' understanding of content global warming, and strategies of teaching were articulated indistinct by non-graduate science teacher. Constructing opportunities for personal development, the curiosity of the student learning center, and linking context of socio-culture were the creative factor in the teaching global warming. On the other hand, the teachers had an idea that lack of technology and the defect of child's intelligence were hinder factors teaching global warming.

Introducing evidence-based dentistry to dental students using histology.

PubMed

Lallier, Thomas E

2014-03-01

The expansion of evidence-based dentistry (EBD) is essential to the continued growth and development of the dental profession. Expanding EBD requires increased emphasis on critical thinking skills during dental education, as noted in the American Dental Education Association's Competencies for the New General Dentist. In order to achieve this goal, educational exercises must be introduced to increase the use of critical thinking skills early in the dental curriculum, with continued reinforcement as students progress through subsequent years. Described in this article is one approach to increasing student exposure to critical thinking during the early basic science curriculum-specifically, within the confines of a traditional histology course. A method of utilizing the medical and dental research literature to reinforce and enliven the concepts taught in histology is described, along with an approach for using peer-to-peer presentations to demonstrate the tools needed to critically evaluate research studies and their presentation in published articles. This approach, which could be applied to any basic science course, will result in a stronger foundation on which students can build their EBD and critical thinking skills.

Learning to Question: The Roles of Multiple Hypotheses, Successive Approximations, Balloons and Toilet Paper in University Science Programs of Southwestern Amazonia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brown, I. Foster

2008-06-01

Learning to question is essential for determining pathways of conservation and development in southwestern Amazonia during a time of rapid global environmental change. Teaching such an approach in graduate science programs in regional universities can be done using play-acting and simulation exercises. Multiple working hypotheses help students learn to question their own research results and expert witnesses. The method of successive approximations enables students to question the results of complex calculations, such as estimates of forest biomass. Balloons and rolls of toilet paper provide means of questioning two-dimensional representations of a three-dimensional Earth and the value of pi. Generation of systematic errors can illustrate the pitfalls of blind acceptance of data. While learning to question is essential, it is insufficient by itself; students must also learn how to be solutionologists in order to satisfy societal demands for solutions to environmental problems. A little irreverence can be an excellent didactic tool for helping students develop the skills necessary to lead conservation and development efforts in the region.

Strength Through Options: Providing Choices for Undergraduate Education in the Geosciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Furman, T.; Freeman, K. H.; Faculty, D.

2003-12-01

Undergraduate major enrollments in the Department of Geosciences at Penn State have held steady over the past 5 years despite generally declining national trends. We have successfully recruited and retained new students through intensive advising coupled with innovative curricular revision aimed to meet an array of students' educational and career goals. Our focus is on degree programs that reflect emerging interdisciplinary trends in both employment and student interest, and are designed to attract individuals from underrepresented groups. In addition to a traditional Geosciences BS program we offer a rigorous integrated Earth Sciences BS and a Geosciences BA tailored to students with interests in education and environmental law. The Earth Sciences BS incorporates course work from Geosciences, Geography and Meterology, and requires completion of an interdisciplinary minor (e.g., Climatology, Marine Sciences, Global Business Strategies). A new Geobiology BS program will attract majors with interests at the intersection of the earth and life sciences. The curriculum includes both paleontological and biogeochemical coursework, and is also tailored to accommodate pre-medicine students. We are working actively to recruit African-American students. A new minor in Science and Technology in Africa crosses disciplinary boundaries to educate students from the humanities as well as sciences. Longitudinal recruitment programs include summer research group experiences for high school students, summer research mentorships for college students, and dual undergraduate degree programs with HBCUs. Research is a fundamental component of every student's degree program. We require a capstone independent thesis as well as a field program for Geosciences and Geobiology BS students, and we encourage all students to pursue research as early as the freshman year. A new 5-year combined BS-MS program will enable outstanding students to carry their undergraduate research further before pursuing employment or doctoral programs. Enrollments in courses for non-majors have also increased substantially over the past 5 years, while those of other PSU science departments have decreased. We attribute this success to changes in pedagogic approaches, focusing on active learning exercises in large (200+) and small (<75) courses. Innovative use of an electronic personal response system has also improved attendance, enrollment and student learning in our general education courses. This approach was developed by a fixed-term faculty hire in Geoscience Education. As per our departmental strategic plan, we plan to hire again in this area to further these successes and implement new approaches to learning and teaching in our undergraduate educational programs.

The study of medical students' attitudes toward exercise for health promotion in Phramongkutklao College of Medicine.

PubMed

Ing-Arahm, Rungsima; Suppuang, Arunya; Imjaijitt, Worarachanee

2010-11-01

Phramongkutklao College of Medicine is a military medical school and also a health promotion school. As a result, encouraging these medical students to have good attitude toward exercise is considered an important mission for the college. To study the attitudes of medical students at Phramongkutklao College of Medicine about exercise for health promotion. This survey research was carried out in 382 medical students in Academic Year 2008 using questionnaires including personal information, attitude testing and open-ended questions. Statistical analysis was conducted using descriptive analysis: percentage and mean and comparative analysis: t-test and F-test. The overall attitudes of medical students toward exercise were good. The attitudes of the medical cadets were better than those of the civilian medical students. The attitudes and also knowledge about exercise of the higher-year students were generally better than those of the lower-year ones. The attitudes of healthy medical students were higher than those of unhealthy ones. No significant difference in attitude was found between male and female students and between those with different Body Mass Indexes (BMI) and those with different in exercise duration and frequency. The overall medical students' attitudes toward exercise for health promotion in Phramongkutklao College of Medicine were good. The influencial factors were found to be status of medical students, stage of medical study and health status.

A Writing Exercise with the "OED."

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burkle-Young, Francis A.

2001-01-01

Describes a writing exercise with the "Oxford English Dictionary" that teaches students about research and attention to detail. Describes how the exercise, which involves the student in a set of serial tasks, makes students comfortable with the OED, teaches them how to extract full details of any word, and teaches students to take…

Educational gaming in the health sciences: systematic review.

PubMed

Blakely, Gillian; Skirton, Heather; Cooper, Simon; Allum, Peter; Nelmes, Pam

2009-02-01

This paper is a report of a review to investigate the use of games to support classroom learning in the health sciences. One aim of education in the health sciences is to enable learners to develop professional competence. Students have a range of learning styles and innovative teaching strategies assist in creating a dynamic learning environment. New attitudes towards experiential learning methods have contributed to the expansion of gaming as a strategy. A search for studies published between January 1980 and June 2008 was undertaken, using appropriate search terms. The databases searched were: British Education Index, British Nursing Index, The Cochrane Library, CINAHLPlus, Medline, PubMed, ERIC, PsychInfo and Australian Education Index. All publications and theses identified through the search were assessed for relevance. Sixteen papers reporting empirical studies or reviews that involved comparison of gaming with didactic methods were included. The limited research available indicates that, while both traditional didactic methods and gaming have been successful in increasing student knowledge, neither method is clearly more helpful to students. The use of games generally enhances student enjoyment and may improve long-term retention of information. While the use of games can be viewed as a viable teaching strategy, care should be exercised in the use of specific games that have not been assessed objectively. Further research on the use of gaming is needed to enable educators to gaming techniques appropriately for the benefit of students and, ultimately, patients.

Facilitating the transition from physiology to hospital wards through an interdisciplinary case study of septic shock.

PubMed

Li, Albert S; Berger, Kenneth I; Schwartz, David R; Slater, William R; Goldfarb, David S

2014-04-12

In order to develop clinical reasoning, medical students must be able to integrate knowledge across traditional subject boundaries and multiple disciplines. At least two dimensions of integration have been identified: horizontal integration, bringing together different disciplines in considering a topic; and vertical integration, bridging basic science and clinical practice. Much attention has been focused on curriculum overhauls, but our approach is to facilitate horizontal and vertical integration on a smaller scale through an interdisciplinary case study discussion and then to assess its utility. An interdisciplinary case study discussion about a critically ill patient was implemented at the end of an organ system-based, basic sciences module at New York University School of Medicine. Three clinical specialists-a cardiologist, a pulmonologist, and a nephrologist-jointly led a discussion about a complex patient in the intensive care unit with multiple medical problems secondary to septic shock. The discussion emphasized the physiologic underpinnings behind the patient's presentation and the physiologic considerations across the various systems in determining proper treatment. The discussion also highlighted the interdependence between the cardiovascular, respiratory, and renal systems, which were initially presented in separate units. After the session students were given a brief, anonymous three-question free-response questionnaire in which they were asked to evaluate and freely comment on the exercise. Students not only took away physiological principles but also gained an appreciation for various thematic lessons for bringing basic science to the bedside, especially horizontal and vertical integration. The response of the participants was overwhelmingly positive with many indicating that the exercise integrated the material across organ systems, and strengthened their appreciation of the role of physiology in understanding disease presentations and guiding appropriate therapy. Horizontal and vertical integration can be presented effectively through a single-session case study, with complex patient cases involving multiple organ systems providing students opportunities to integrate their knowledge across organ systems while emphasizing the importance of physiology in clinical reasoning. Furthermore, having several clinicians from different specialties discuss the case together can reinforce the matter of integration across multiple organ systems and disciplines in students' minds.

Drama as a pedagogical tool for practicing death notification-experiences from Swedish medical students.

PubMed

Nordström, Anna; Fjellman-Wiklund, Anncristine; Grysell, Tomas

2011-09-28

One of the toughest tasks in any profession is the deliverance of death notification. Marathon Death is an exercise conducted during the fourth year of medical school in northern Sweden to prepare students for this responsibility. The exercise is designed to enable students to gain insight into the emotional and formal procedure of delivering death notifications. The exercise is inspired by Augusto Boal's work around Forum Theatre and is analyzed using video playback. The aim of the study was to explore reflections, attitudes and ideas toward training in delivering death notifications among medical students who participate in the Marathon Death exercise based on forum play. After participation in the Marathon Death exercise, students completed semi-structured interviews. The transcribed interviews were analyzed using the principles of qualitative content analysis including a deductive content analysis approach with a structured matrix based on Bloom's taxonomy domains. The Marathon Death exercise was perceived as emotionally loaded, realistic and valuable for the future professional role as a physician. The deliverance of a death notification to the next of kin that a loved one has died was perceived as difficult. The exercise conjured emotions such as positive expectations and sheer anxiety. Students perceived participation in the exercise as an important learning experience, discovering that they had the capacity to manage such a difficult situation. The feedback from the video playback of the exercise and the feedback from fellow students and teachers enhanced the learning experience. The exercise, Marathon Death, based on forum play with video playback is a useful pedagogical tool that enables students to practice delivering death notification. The ability to practice under realistic conditions contributes to reinforce students in preparation for their future professional role.

Student performance in computing education: an empirical analysis of online learning in programming education environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xia, Belle Selene; Liitiäinen, Elia

2017-11-01

The benefits of using online exercises have been analysed in terms of distance learning, automatic assessment and self-regulated learning. In this study, we have not found a direct proportional relationship between student performance in the course exercises that use online technologies and the exam grades. We see that the average submission rate to these online exercises is not positively correlated with the exercise points. Yet, our results confirm that doing exercises along supports student learning and skill accumulation equipping them with the knowledge of programming. While the student performance in programming courses is affected by factors such as prior background in programming, cognitive skills and the quality of teaching, completing the course exercises via learning-by-doing is an indispensable part of teaching. Based on the student feedback from the course survey, the students are highly satisfied with using online technologies as part of learning.

Possible Link between Medical Students' Motivation for Academic Work and Time Engaged in Physical Exercise

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aung, Myo Nyein; Somboonwong, Juraiporn; Jaroonvanichkul, Vorapol; Wannakrairot, Pongsak

2016-01-01

Physical exercise results in an active well-being. It is likely that students' engagement in physical exercise keeps them motivated to perform academic endeavors. This study aimed to assess the relation of time engaged in physical exercise with medical students' motivation for academic work. Prospectively, 296 second-year medical students…

Learning to Communicate Science: Stony Brook University's Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bass, E.

2012-12-01

Stony Brook University offers an unusual series of short courses to help science graduate students learn to communicate more effectively about science with people outside their disciplines, including the public, public officials, potential funders and employers, students, the press, and colleagues in other fields. The courses include six 1-credit (14-hour) modules in oral and written communication that rely on practice and interactive feedback. More than 120 master's and PhD students, from more than 16 departments, have taken at least one of the courses since spring 2011. Most students who try one module end up taking two or three. An additional course for medical and nursing students was added in fall 2012. The courses are offered in the School of Journalism and were developed by the Center for Communicating Science (CCS). CCS was founded in 2009, with the participation of Alan Alda, the actor, writer, and longtime advocate for science, who is a Visiting Professor at Stony Brook. The Communicating Science courses have received strong institutional support and enthusiastic reviews. They are required by two programs, an MA in Marine Conservation and Policy and an Advanced Certificate in Health Communications. Two successive Provosts have subsidized course costs for PhD students, and Graduate School leaders are working to establish a steady funding stream to allow expansion of the program. Our aspiration at CCS is for every science graduate student to receive some training in communicating about science to the public. Several factors have helped in establishing the program: --CCS' multidisciplinary nature helped build support, with participation by faculty from across the campus, including not only the natural sciences, engineering, and medicine, but journalism, theatre arts, and the Writing Program, as well as nearby Brookhaven National Laboratory and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. --Before offering courses, CCS conducted all-day workshops and high-profile activities that generated interest and allowed students, postdocs, faculty and administrators to sample course material. --CCS structured the courses as "bite-size" modules to make them easier to take. Courses are given in the evening, in successive four- or five-week blocks, so a student can take one to six modules in a single semester. At the heart of the effort are two courses: Distilling Your Message, in which students practice speaking clearly, vividly and conversationally at different levels of complexity to different audiences, and Improvisation for Scientists, in which students use improvisational theater exercises to help connect more responsively with their audiences. This is not about acting. It is about paying dynamic attention to the audience, shifting the focus from what the student is saying to what the other person is receiving. Other modules deal with writing for the public; using social media, and connecting with the community. In addition to the 1-credit courses, science graduate students can take a 3-credit course examining how the media cover science and health issues. This course also is taken by students in the journalism MS program, which focuses on science, health and environmental reporting, part of Stony Brook University's multi-pronged effort to improve communication of science to the public.

Effects of a research-infused botanical curriculum on undergraduates' content knowledge, STEM competencies, and attitudes toward plant sciences.

PubMed

Ward, Jennifer Rhode; Clarke, H David; Horton, Jonathan L

2014-01-01

In response to the American Association for the Advancement of Science's Vision and Change in Undergraduate Biology Education initiative, we infused authentic, plant-based research into majors' courses at a public liberal arts university. Faculty members designed a financially sustainable pedagogical approach, utilizing vertically integrated curricular modules based on undergraduate researchers' field and laboratory projects. Our goals were to 1) teach botanical concepts, from cells to ecosystems; 2) strengthen competencies in statistical analysis and scientific writing; 3) pique plant science interest; and 4) allow all undergraduates to contribute to genuine research. Our series of inquiry-centered exercises mitigated potential faculty barriers to adopting research-rich curricula, facilitating teaching/research balance by gathering publishable scholarly data during laboratory class periods. Student competencies were assessed with pre- and postcourse quizzes and rubric-graded papers, and attitudes were evaluated with pre- and postcourse surveys. Our revised curriculum increased students' knowledge and awareness of plant science topics, improved scientific writing, enhanced statistical knowledge, and boosted interest in conducting research. More than 300 classroom students have participated in our program, and data generated from these modules' assessment allowed faculty and students to present 28 contributed talks or posters and publish three papers in 4 yr. Future steps include analyzing the effects of repeated module exposure on student learning and creating a regional consortium to increase our project's pedagogical impact. © 2014 J. R. Ward et al. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2014 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

Physical health, lifestyle beliefs and behaviors, and mental health of entering graduate health professional students: Evidence to support screening and early intervention.

PubMed

Mazurek Melnyk, Bernadette; Slevin, Caitlin; Militello, Lisa; Hoying, Jacqueline; Teall, Alice; McGovern, Colleen

2016-04-01

Little is known about the physical health, lifestyle beliefs and behaviors, and mental health among first-year health professional graduate students. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to describe these attributes as well as to explore the relationships among them. A descriptive correlational study was conducted on the baseline data from a wellness onboarding intervention study with 93 health sciences students from seven different colleges within a large public land grant university in the Midwest United States. Nearly 40% of the sample was overweight/obese, and 19% of students had elevated total cholesterol levels. Only 44% met the recommended 30 min of exercise 5 days per week. Forty-one percent reported elevated depressive symptoms and 28% had elevated anxiety. Four students reported suicidal ideation. Inverse relationships existed among depression/anxiety and healthy lifestyle beliefs/behaviors. Students entering health professional schools are at high risk for depression, anxiety, and unhealthy behaviors, which could be averted through screening and early evidence-based interventions. Assessing the physical health, lifestyle behaviors, and mental health of first-year health sciences professional students is important to identify health problems and modifiable at-risk behaviors so that early interventions can be implemented to improve outcomes. ©2016 American Association of Nurse Practitioners.

You can exercise your way out of HIV and other stories: The role of biological knowledge in adolescents' evaluation of myths

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keselman, Alla; Kaufman, David R.; Patel, Vimla L.

2004-07-01

A primary objective for science education is to impart robust knowledge that has applicability to real-world problems. This article presents research investigating the relationship between adolescents' conceptual understanding of the biological basis of HIV and critical reasoning. Middle and high school students were interviewed about their understanding of HIV and were subsequently asked to evaluate scenarios that contained myths about HIV. On the basis of their responses to the interview questions, students' understanding of HIV was categorized into three models, naïve, intermediate, and advanced. The results indicate that knowledge mediated students' responses in specific ways. Students at different levels of HIV knowledge reasoned in qualitatively different ways about the myths. A significant relationship was found between students' understanding of HIV biology and the level of biological reasoning. We found that students who employed cellular-level biological reasoning were more likely to reject the myths than students who employed just system-level reasoning or nonspecific biological reasoning. The findings emphasize the importance of conceptual understanding in the critical evaluation of information that may serve as a basis for making decisions about HIV. We conclude with discussing the implications of the findings for science and health education.

An Approach to Improving Science Knowledge About Energy Balance and Nutrition Among Elementary- and Middle-School Students

PubMed Central

Moreno, Nancy P.; Denk, James P.; Roberts, J. Kyle; Tharp, Barbara Z.; Bost, Michelle; Thomson, William A.

2004-01-01

Unhealthy diets, lack of fitness, and obesity are serious problems in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control, Surgeon General, and Department of Health and Human Services are calling for action to address these problems. Scientists and educators at Baylor College of Medicine and the National Space Biomedical Research Institute teamed to produce an instructional unit, “Food and Fitness,” and evaluated it with students in grades 3–7 in Houston, Texas. A field-test group (447 students) completed all unit activities under the guidance of their teachers. This group and a comparison group (343 students) completed pre and postassessments measuring knowledge of concepts covered in the unit. Outcomes indicate that the unit significantly increased students' knowledge and awareness of science concepts related to energy in living systems, metabolism, nutrients, and diet. Pre-assessment results suggest that most students understand concepts related to calories in food, exercise and energy use, and matching food intake to energy use. Students' prior knowledge was found to be much lower on topics related to healthy portion sizes, foods that supply the most energy, essential nutrients, what “diet” actually means, and the relationship between body size and basal metabolic rate. PMID:15257340

Librarians Flip for Students: Teaching Searching Skills to Medical Students Using a Flipped Classroom Approach.

PubMed

Minuti, Aurelia; Sorensen, Karen; Schwartz, Rachel; King, Winifred S; Glassman, Nancy R; Habousha, Racheline G

2018-01-01

This article describes the development of a flipped classroom instructional module designed by librarians to teach first- and second-year medical students how to search the literature and find evidence-based articles. The pre-class module consists of an online component that includes reading, videos, and exercises relating to a clinical case. The in-class sessions, designed to reinforce important concepts, include various interactive activities. The specifics of designing both components are included for other health sciences librarians interested in presenting similar instruction. Challenges encountered, particularly in the live sessions, are detailed, as are the results of evaluations submitted by the students, who largely enjoyed the online component. Future plans are contingent on solving technical problems encountered during the in-class sessions.

The ESO Educational Office Reaches Out towards Europe's Teachers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2001-12-01

ESA/ESO Astronomy Exercises Provide a Taste of Real Astronomy [1] Summary The European Southern Observatory (ESO) has been involved in many Europe-wide educational projects during the past years, in particular within European Science Weeks sponsored by the European Commission (EC). In order to further enhance the significant educational potential inherent in the numerous scientific endeavours now carried out by Europe's astronomers with ESO front-line telescope facilities, it has been decided to set up an Educational Office within the ESO EPR Department. It will from now on work closely with astronomy-oriented teachers, in particular at the high-school level , providing support, inspiration and new materials. Much of this interaction will happen via the European Association for Astronomy Education (EAAE) In this context, and in collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA) , the first instalments of the "ESA/ESO Astronomy Exercise Series" have just been published, on the web ( http://www.astroex.org ) and in print (6 booklets totalling 100 pages; provided free-of-charge to teachers on request). They allow 16-19 year old students to gain exciting hands-on experience in astronomy, making realistic calculations with data obtained from observations by some of the world's best telescopes, the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT) . PR Photo 36/01 : The "ESA/ESO Astronomy Exercise Series" . Educational projects at ESO The European Southern Observatory (ESO) , through its Education and Public Relations Department (EPR) , has long been involved in educational activities, in particular by means of Europe-wide projects during successive European Science Weeks , with support from the European Commission (EC) . A most visible outcome has been the creation of the trailblazing European Association for Astronomy Education (EAAE) - this was first discussed at an international meeting at the ESO Headquarters in November 1994 with the participation of more than one hundred physics teachers from different European countries. Other educational projects include the highly successful "Sea and Space" (in 1998; with ESA), "Physics on Stage" (2000; with CERN and ESA), and "Life in the Universe" (2001; with CERN, ESA, EMBL and ESRF), all in close collaboration with EAAE. Astronomy and Astrophysics at the frontline of education The subject of Astronomy and Astrophysics plays an increasingly important role within education. This is not coincidental - this particular field of basic science is very attractive to young people. Its exploratory nature tickles youthful minds and the vast expanse of the Universe harbours many unknown secrets that are waiting to be discovered. The beautiful and intriguing images brought back by high-tech telescopes and instruments from the enormous terra incognita out there are natural works of art that invite comtemplation as well as interpretation. Astronomy and Astrophysics is a broadly interdisciplinary field, providing ample opportunities for interesting educational angles into many different fields of fundamental science, from physics, chemistry and mathematics, to applied research in opto-mechanics, detectors and data handling, and onwards into the humanities. The ESO Educational Office In order to further enhance the educational potential of the numerous scientific endeavours now carried out by Europe's astronomers with ESO front-line facilities, it has been decided to set up an Educational Office within the ESO EPR Department. It will from now on work closely with astronomy-oriented teachers, in particular at the high-school level , providing support, inspiration and new materials. Beginning next year, it will arrange meetings for teachers to inform about new results and trends in modern astrophysics, while facilitating the efficient exchange of the teachers' educational experience at different levels within the different curricula at Europe's schools. These initiatives will be carried out in close collaboration with the European Association for Astronomy Education (EAAE). During the past months, various preparatory discussions have been held between ESO, EAAE members and other teachers involved in Astronomy teaching from many countries. Provisional information about the ESO Educational Office will be found at its website ( http://www.eso.org/outreach/eduoff/ ). One of the first activities is concerned with a survey of the specific needs for astronomy education in Europe's high-schools by means of a widely distributed questionnaire. Of more immediate use will be the publication of four, comprehensive astronomy exercises, prepared in collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA) and further described below. In the scientists' footsteps ESO PR Photo 36/01 ESO PR Photo 36/01 [Preview - JPEG: 450 x 640 pix - 34k] [Hires - JPEG: 2514 x 3578 pix - 1.4M] Cover of the "General Introduction" to the "ESA/ESO Astronomy Exercise Series" . The first instalments of the "ESA/ESO Astronomy Exercise Series" have just been published, on the web and in print. These exercises allow high-school students to gain exciting hands-on experience in astronomy, by making realistic calculations based on data obtained by some of the world's best telescopes, the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT) . Carefully prepared by astronomers and media experts, these excercises enable the students to measure and calculate fundamental properties like the distances to and the ages of different kinds of astronomical objects. Astronomy is an accessible and visual science, making it ideal for educational purposes. Reacting to the current need for innovative, high-quality educational materials, the European Space Agency (ESA) and the European Southern Observatory (ESO) have together produced this series of astronomical exercises for use in high schools. The prime object of the series is to present various small projects that will transmit some of the excitement and satisfaction of scientific discovery to students . By performing the well-structured projects, the students also gain first-hand experience in the application of scientific methods that only require basic geometrical and physical knowledge. They use ideas and techniques described in recent front-line scientific papers and are able to derive results that compare well with those from the much more sophisticated analyses done by the scientists. Focus on basic astrophysical themes The first four exercises focus on techniques to measuring distances in the Universe, one of the most basics problems in modern astrophysics. The students apply different methods to determine the distance of astronomical objects such as the supernova SN 1987A , the spiral galaxy Messier 100 , the Cat's Eye Planetary Nebula and the globular cluster Messier 12 . With these results, it is possible to make quite accurate estimates of the age of the Universe and its expansion rate , without the use of computers or sophisticated software. Students can also perform "naked-eye photometry" by measuring the brightness of stars on two VLT images (taken through blue and green optical filters, respectively). They can then construct the basic luminosity-temperature relation (the "Hertzsprung-Russell Diagramme") providing a superb way to gain insight into fundamental stellar physics. Six booklets The excercises are now available on the web ( http://www.astroex.org ) and in six booklets (100 pages in total), entitled * "General Introduction" (an overview of the HST and VLT telescopes), * "Toolkits" (explanation of basic astronomical and mathematical techniques), * "Exercise 1: Measuring the Distance to Supernova 1987A", * "Exercise 2: The Distance to Messier 100 as Determined By Cepheid Variable Stars", * "Exercise 3: Measuring the Distance to the Cat's Eye Nebula", and * "Exercise 4: Measuring a Globular Star Cluster's Distance and Age". Each of the four exercises begins with a background text, followed by a series of questions, measurements and calculations. The exercises can be used either as texts in a traditional classroom format or for independent study as part of a project undertaken in smaller groups. The booklets are sent free-of-charge to high- school teachers on request and may be downloaded as PDF-files from the above indicated website. More exercises will follow.

A case study: using social tagging to engage students in learning Medical Subject Headings*

PubMed Central

Bresnahan, Megan; Flynn, David B.; Harzbecker, Joseph; Blanchard, Mary; Ginn, David

2009-01-01

In exploring new ways of teaching students how to use Medical Subject Headings (MeSH), librarians at Boston University's Alumni Medical Library (AML) integrated social tagging into their instruction. These activities were incorporated into the two-credit graduate course, “GMS MS 640: Introduction to Biomedical Information,” required for all students in the graduate medical science program. Hands-on assignments and in-class exercises enabled librarians to present MeSH and the concept of a controlled vocabulary in a familiar and relevant context for the course's Generation Y student population and provided students the opportunity to actively participate in creating their education. At the conclusion of these activities, students were surveyed regarding the clarity of the presentation of the MeSH vocabulary. Analysis of survey responses indicated that 46% found the concept of MeSH to be the clearest concept presented in the in-class intervention. PMID:19404497

Incorporating Student Activities into Climate Change Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Steele, H.; Kelly, K.; Klein, D.; Cadavid, A. C.

2013-12-01

Under a NASA grant, Mathematical and Geospatial Pathways to Climate Change Education, students at California State University, Northridge integrated Geographic Information Systems (GIS), remote sensing, satellite data technologies, and climate modelling into the study of global climate change under a Pathway for studying the Mathematics of Climate Change (PMCC). The PMCC, which is an interdisciplinary option within the BS in Applied Mathematical Sciences, consists of courses offered by the departments of Mathematics, Physics, and Geography and is designed to prepare students for careers and Ph.D. programs in technical fields relevant to global climate change. Under this option students are exposed to the science, mathematics, and applications of climate change science through a variety of methods including hands-on experience with computer modeling and image processing software. In the Geography component of the program, ESRI's ArcGIS and ERDAS Imagine mapping, spatial analysis and image processing software were used to explore NASA satellite data to examine the earth's atmosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere in areas that are affected by climate change or affect climate. These technology tools were incorporated into climate change and remote sensing courses to enhance students' knowledge and understanding of climate change through hands-on application of image processing techniques to NASA data. Several sets of exercises were developed with specific learning objectives in mind. These were (1) to increase student understanding of climate change and climate change processes; (2) to develop student skills in understanding, downloading and processing satellite data; (3) to teach remote sensing technology and GIS through applications to climate change; (4) to expose students to climate data and methods they can apply to solve real world problems and incorporate in future research projects. In the Math and Physics components of the course, students learned about atmospheric circulation with applications of the Lorenz model, explored the land-sea breeze problem with the Dynamics and Thermodynamics Circulation Model (DTDM), and developed simple radiative transfer models. Class projects explored the effects of varying the content of CO2 and CH4 in the atmosphere, as well as the properties of paleoclimates in atmospheric simulations using EdGCM. Initial assessment of student knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors associated with these activities, particularly about climate change, was measured. Pre- and post-course surveys provided student perspectives about the courses and their learning about remote sensing and climate change concepts. Student performance on the tutorials and course projects evaluated students' ability to learn and apply their knowledge about climate change and skills with remote sensing to assigned problems or proposed projects of their choice. Survey and performance data illustrated that the exercises were successful in meeting their intended learning objectives as well as opportunities for further refinement and expansion.

Ripped from the Headlines: Using Current Events and Deliberative Democracy to Improve Student Performance in and Perceptions of Nonmajors Biology Courses†

PubMed Central

Tinsley, Heather N.

2016-01-01

Despite the importance of scientific literacy, many foundational science courses are plagued by low student engagement and performance. In an attempt to improve student outcomes, an introductory biology course for nonscience majors was redesigned to present the course content within the framework of current events and deliberative democratic exercises. During each instructional unit of the redesigned course, students were presented with a highly publicized policy question rooted in biological principles and currently facing lawmakers. Working in diverse groups, students sought out the information that was needed to reach an educated, rationalized decision. This approach models civic engagement and demonstrates the real-life importance of science to nonscience majors. The outcomes from two semesters in which the redesign were taught were compared with sections of the course taught using traditional pedagogies. When compared with other versions of the same course, presenting the course content within a deliberative democratic framework proved to be superior for increasing students’ knowledge gains and improving students’ perceptions of biology and its relevance to their everyday lives. These findings establish deliberative democracy as an effective pedagogical strategy for nonmajors biology. PMID:28101264

Promoting Interactive Learning: A Classroom Exercise to Explore Foraging Strategies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beaumont, Ellen S.; Rowe, Graham; Mikhaylov, Natalie S.

2012-01-01

We describe a classroom exercise to allow students to explore foraging strategies in higher vertebrates. The exercise includes an initial interactive session in which students act as predators and are guided through foraging simulations, and a subsequent student-led session where classmates are employed as experimental subjects. Students rated the…

BCTC for Windows: Abstract of Issue 9903W

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Whisnant, David M.; McCormick, James A.

1999-05-01

BCTC for Windows was originally published by JCE Software in 1992 (1) in Series B for PC-compatible (MS-DOS) computers. JCE Software is now re-releasing BCTC for Windows as issue 9903W to make it more accessible to Windows users-especially those running Windows 95 and Windows 98-while we continue to phase out Series B (DOS) issues. Aside from a new Windows-compatible installation program, BCTC is unchanged. BCTC is an environmental simulation modeled after the dioxin controversy (2). In the simulation, students are involved in the investigation of a suspected carcinogen called BCTC, which has been found in a river below a chemical plant and above the water supply of a nearby city. The students have the options of taking water samples, analyzing the water (for BCTC, oxygen, metals, and pesticides), determining LD50s in an animal lab, visiting a library, making economic analyses, and conferring with colleagues, all using the computer. In the Classroom BCTC gives students experience with science in the context of a larger social and political problem. It can serve as the basis for a scientific report, class discussion, or a role-playing exercise (3). Because it requires no previous laboratory experience, this simulation can be used by students in middle and high school science classes, or in college courses for non-science majors. It also has been used in introductory chemistry courses for science majors. One of the intentions of BCTC is to involve students in an exercise (2) that closely approximates what scientists do. The realistic pictures, many of them captured with a video camera, create an atmosphere that furthers this goal. BCTC also reflects the comments of teachers who have used the program (4) and accounts of dioxin research (5). Screen from BCTC showing location of the entry of the effluent in the river, the city, and the city water supply.

Exercise promotes positive impression formation towards both men and women.

PubMed

Kanarek, Robin B; Mathes, Wendy Foulds; D'Anci, Kristen E

2012-06-01

Exercise is endorsed for its physiological and psychological benefits, and has been proposed to have positive effects on impression formation. To test this proposal, 62 female and 44 male college students read one of three brief descriptions of either a fictitious male or female "target" student. The descriptions varied only in exercise level: no exercise; moderate exercise and intensive exercise. Participants then rated the fictitious student on 38 personality traits. Ratings of characteristics that are associated with exercise (e.g. athletic; energetic) increased, while ratings associated with the lack of exercise (e.g. lazy; weak) decreased as a function of the reported level of exercise. Exercise level also positively influenced ratings of characteristics not related to exercise. These data show that even minimal information about exercise is an important component of first impressions in both men and women. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Engaging a Diverse Group of Students with a Broad Spectrum of Geological Experience: The CSUN Catalyst Approach and a MARGINS Application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marsaglia, K. M.; Vazquez, J.; Yule, J. D.; Simila, G.

2007-12-01

Imagine the challenge of teaching a one-unit Geoscience course composed of a diverse mix of first-year graduate majors, senior to freshman majors, and high school students with little earth science background. With the help of Geodiversity grants from NSF (CSUN Catalyst program), we have developed a successful environment for learning and mentorship via a series of short (2-3 week) inquiry-based exercises that emphasize teamwork. Each exercise is organized around research projects headed by Catalyst Faculty members: Northridge Earthquake, San Andreas Fault System, Yellowstone and Long Valley supervolcanoes, and New Zealand MARGIN geology. After participating in the course, students conduct independent research within one of four research groups as part of their MS or BS theses including summer research experiences. One exercise, constructed as a version of "The Oil Game," is meant to familiarize students with MARGINS Source-to-Sink focus (Waipaoa Sedimentary System, North Island) and alternate focus (Bounty Fan, South Island) sites in New Zealand. Students are divided into rival petroleum companies (Tiger Oil and Flower Petroleum) and asked to evaluate offshore areas for an impending government lease sale and to provide the rationale for competitive sealed bids that they recommend in a final presentation to management (Catalyst Faculty). To accomplish this they are supplied with reference materials on onshore geology and known petroleum production, samples of New Zealand rock units and stream sediments, and a limited budget. In addition to geological parameters (source rocks, seals, reservoir rocks, trapping mechanisms) they must also take into account environmental, economic and infrastructure concerns. Other projects included documenting volcanic hazards around Long Valley caldera and evaluating seismic hazards of local high school sites. The tiered structure of the projects perhaps best serves the undergraduate participants, who benefit from being mentored by graduate students as well as serving as mentors for the high school students.

Social Physique Anxiety, Obligation to Exercise, and Exercise Choices among College Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chu, Hui-Wen; Bushman, Barbara A.; Woodard, Rebecca J.

2008-01-01

Objective: The authors examined relationships among social physique anxiety, obligation to exercise, and exercise choices. Participants and Methods: College students (N = 337; 200 women, 137 men) volunteered to complete 3 questionnaires: the Social Physique Anxiety Scale (SPAS), Obligatory Exercise Questionnaire (OEQ), and Physical Activity…

Exposing college students to exercise: the training interventions and genetics of exercise response (TIGER) study

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The Training Interventions and Genetics of Exercise Response (TIGER) study is an exercise program designed to introduce sedentary college students to regular physical activity and to identify genetic factors that influence response to exercise. A multiracial/ethnic cohort (N = 1,567; 39% male), age ...

Reciprocal Education Experiences In Two GK-12 Programs: Teachers Learning And Students Teaching In Diverse Settings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mayo, M.; Williams, C.; Rodriguez, T.; Greely, T.; Pyrtle, A. J.; Rivera-Rentas, A. L.; Vilches, M.

2004-12-01

The National Science Foundation's Graduate Teaching Fellows in K-12 Education (GK-12) Program has enabled science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) graduate schools across the country to become more active in local area K-12 schools. An overview of a graduate student's experiences, insights gained and lessons learned as a Fellow in the 2003-2004 Universidad Metropolitana's (UMET) environmental science and the 2004-2005 University of South Florida's (USF) ocean science GK-12 Programs is presented. The major goals of the 2003-2004 UMET GK-12 Program were 1) to enrich environmental science teaching and learning via a thematic approach in eight local public schools and 2) to provide UMET graduate students with exposure to teaching methodologies and practical teaching experience. Utilizing examples from local environments in and nearby Carolina, Puerto Rico to teach key science principles at Escuela de la Comunidad Juana Rodriguez Mundo provided numerous opportunities to relate science topics to students' daily life experiences. By 2004, the UMET GK-12 Program had successfully engaged the entire student body (primarily comprised of bilingual minority kindergarten to sixth graders), teachers and school administrators in environment-focused teaching and learning activities. Examples of such activities include tree planting projects to minimize local erosion, conducting a science fair for the first time in many years, and numerous opportunities to experience what "real scientists do" while conducting environmental science investigations. During the 2004-2005 academic year, skills, insights and lessons learned as a UMET GK-12 Fellow are being further enhanced through participation in the USF GK-12 OCEANS Program. The overall objectives of the 2004-2005 USF GK-12 OCEANS assignment at Madeira Beach Elementary School in Saint Petersburg, Florida are to 1) engage students from various ethnic backgrounds and cultures in hands-on science activities, 2) enhance the school's third grade ocean science education curriculum, and 3) foster dialog between students at Madeira Beach Elementary School and Escuela de la Comunidad Juana Rodriguez Mundo, via exchange of pictures, video recordings, letters and emails related to environment-focused learning activities being undertaken at the two schools. In addition to these objectives, during the 2004-2005 academic year several ocean science-focused activities, the majority of which were adapted and/or identified from either the UMET GK-12 or USF OCEAN GK-12 Programs, will be utilized to further stimulate Madeira Beach Elementary School third graders' critical thinking skills. Examples of such activities, including hands-on exercises, case studies, games and field trips are highlighted in this presentation.

RBSPICE in the Classroom: Building a ballistic galvanometer using common household products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Patterson, J. D.; Manweiler, J. W.; Lanzerotti, L. J.; Zwiener, H.

2016-12-01

"RBSPICE in the Classroom: Changing Magnetic Fields and Electrical Currents" is a hands-on exercise for middle school and high school science classrooms. Students build a ballistic galvanometer using inexpensive common items that can be purchased at any craft store, and make qualitative observations of changing magnetic fields and the electrical currents they create. The goal of this work is to provide teachers new materials to use in their classrooms as tools for teaching students about electricity and magnetism. The experiment relates our Earth as a planet to the role the Magnetosphere plays in protecting us from Space Weather. The experiments show the ways in which Van Allen Probes play an important part in exploring those relationships using such instruments as the Radiation Belt Storm Probes Ion Composition Experiment (RBSPICE). The exercise is a vehicle for discussing electromagnetic induction, the behavior of the Earth's magnetosphere coupled with storm-time conditions that produce the Earth's ring current, and the mission objectives of the Van Allen Probes RBSPICE instrument.

Gender Differences in Physics 1: The Impact of a Self-Affirmation Intervention

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kost-Smith, Lauren E.; Pollock, Steven J.; Finkelstein, Noah D.; Cohen, Geoffrey L.; Ito, Tiffany A.; Miyake, Akira

2010-10-01

Prior work at CU-Boulder has shown that a gender gap (difference in male and female performance) exists in both the pre- and post-course conceptual surveys, despite the use of interactive engagement techniques [Kost, et al., PRST-PER 5, 010101]. A potential explanation for this persistent gap is that stereotype threat, the fear of confirming a stereotype about one self, is inhibiting females' performance. Prior research has demonstrated that stereotype threat can be alleviated through the use of self-affirmation, a process of affirming one's overall self-worth and integrity [Cohen, et al., Science 313, 1307]. We report results of a randomized experiment testing the impact of a self-affirmation exercise on the gender gap in Physics 1. The gender gap on a conceptual post-survey is reduced from 19% for students who did not affirm their own values, to 9% for students who completed two 15-minute self-affirmation exercises at the beginning of the semester.

Consideration of learning orientations as an application of achievement goals in evaluating life science majors in introductory physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mason, Andrew J.; Bertram, Charles A.

2018-06-01

When considering performing an Introductory Physics for Life Sciences course transformation for one's own institution, life science majors' achievement goals are a necessary consideration to ensure the pedagogical transformation will be effective. However, achievement goals are rarely an explicit consideration in physics education research topics such as metacognition. We investigate a sample population of 218 students in a first-semester introductory algebra-based physics course, drawn from 14 laboratory sections within six semesters of course sections, to determine the influence of achievement goals on life science majors' attitudes towards physics. Learning orientations that, respectively, pertain to mastery goals and performance goals, in addition to a learning orientation that does not report a performance goal, were recorded from students in the specific context of learning a problem-solving framework during an in-class exercise. Students' learning orientations, defined within the context of students' self-reported statements in the specific context of a problem-solving-related research-based course implementation, are compared to pre-post results on physics problem-solving items in a well-established attitudinal survey instrument, in order to establish the categories' validity. In addition, mastery-related and performance-related orientations appear to extend to overall pre-post attitudinal shifts, but not to force and motion concepts or to overall course grade, within the scope of an introductory physics course. There also appears to be differentiation regarding overall course performance within health science majors, but not within biology majors, in terms of learning orientations; however, health science majors generally appear to fare less well on all measurements in the study than do biology majors, regardless of learning orientations.

Authentic Research Experience and "Big Data" Analysis in the Classroom: Maize Response to Abiotic Stress.

PubMed

Makarevitch, Irina; Frechette, Cameo; Wiatros, Natalia

2015-01-01

Integration of inquiry-based approaches into curriculum is transforming the way science is taught and studied in undergraduate classrooms. Incorporating quantitative reasoning and mathematical skills into authentic biology undergraduate research projects has been shown to benefit students in developing various skills necessary for future scientists and to attract students to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines. While large-scale data analysis became an essential part of modern biological research, students have few opportunities to engage in analysis of large biological data sets. RNA-seq analysis, a tool that allows precise measurement of the level of gene expression for all genes in a genome, revolutionized molecular biology and provides ample opportunities for engaging students in authentic research. We developed, implemented, and assessed a series of authentic research laboratory exercises incorporating a large data RNA-seq analysis into an introductory undergraduate classroom. Our laboratory series is focused on analyzing gene expression changes in response to abiotic stress in maize seedlings; however, it could be easily adapted to the analysis of any other biological system with available RNA-seq data. Objective and subjective assessment of student learning demonstrated gains in understanding important biological concepts and in skills related to the process of science. © 2015 I. Makarevitch et al. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2015 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

Three Simple Hands-On Soil Exercises Extension Professionals Can Incorporate into Natural Sciences Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kleinschmidt, Andy

2011-01-01

The importance of healthy soil and of conveying the importance of soils starts by conveying a few basic concepts of soil science cannot be overstated. This article provides three hands-on exercises Extension professionals can add to natural resources or Master Gardener education curricula. These natural sciences exercises are easy to prepare for…

Measurement in Physical Education and Exercise Science: A Brief Report on 2017

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Myers, Nicholas D.; Lee, Seungmin; Kostelis, Kimberly T.

2018-01-01

The purpose of this annual report is to provide a summary of measurement in physical education and exercise science-related activities in 2017. A recent trend for an annual increase in manuscript submissions to measurement in physical education and exercise science continued in 2017. Twenty-nine countries were represented (i.e., corresponding…

Increasing student success in STEM through geosciences based GIS curriculum, interdisciplinary project based learning, and specialized STEM student services

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheung, W.

2012-12-01

Under the auspices of the National Science Foundation's Advanced Technological Education Grant and the Department of Education's Title V/HSI Grant, Palomar College students from a variety of disciplines have not only been exposed to the high growth field of geospatial technologies, but have also been exposed to the geosciences and regional environmental issues in their GIS courses. By integrating introductory Physical Geography topics such as liquefaction, subsidence, ozone depletion, plate tectonics, and coastal processes in the introductory GIS curriculum, GIS students from fields ranging from Archaeology to Zoology were exposed to basic geosciences theories in a series of hands-on interactive exercises, while gaining competency in geospatial technologies. Additionally, as students undertake interdisciplinary service learning projects under the supervision of experts in the private, governmental, and nonprofit sectors, students were introduced to the STEM workplace, forged invaluable professional connections, applied their classroom knowledge to advance research (e.g. analyzing migration patterns of cephalopod), and analyzed regional environmental issues (e.g. distribution of invasive plants in state natural preserves). In order to further the retention and completion of students in GIS, Earth Science, and other STEM courses, a STEM Student Learning Center was constructed, whereby students can receive services such as supplemental instruction, walk-in tutoring, STEM counseling and transfer advising, as well as faculty and peer mentoring.

Adding an Extra Dimension to What Students See through the Light Microscope: A Lab Exercise Demonstrating Critical Analysis for Microscopy Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garrill, Ashley

2011-01-01

This article describes an undergraduate lab exercise that demonstrates the importance of students thinking critically about what they see through a microscope. The students are given growth data from tip-growing organisms that suggest the cells grow in a pulsatile manner. The students then critique this data in several exercises that incorporate…