Charting a new vision: lessons on from a network of biology educators.

The 2011 report outlined several recommendations for transforming undergraduate biology education, sparking multiple pedagogical reform efforts. Among these was the Promoting Active Learning and Mentoring (PALM) network, an NSF-funded program that provided mentorship and training to instructors on implementing active learning in the classroom. Here, we provide a perspective on how members of the biology education community in PALM view the recommendations of , drawing upon our experiences both as members of PALM and as leaders of an associated project funded by another NSF grant that hosted PALM alumni at various conferences.

Probing visual literacy skills reveals unexpected student conceptions of chromosomes.

Molecular biology can be challenging for undergraduate students because it requires visual literacy skills to interpret abstract representations of submicroscopic concepts, structures and processes. The Conceptual-Reasoning-Mode framework suggests that visual literacy relies on applying conceptual knowledge to appropriately reason with the different ways of representing concepts in molecular biology. We used this framework to specifically explore visual literacy related to chromosomes.

An Exploration of Spatial Visualization Skills: Investigating Students' Use of 3D Models in Science Problems during Think-Aloud Interviews.

Effective spatial visualization and reasoning skills are often credited for students' success in science and engineering courses. However, students enrolled in these science courses are not always exposed to or trained properly on the best ways to utilize models to aid in their learning. Improving spatial visualization techniques with 3D models, such as molecular and DNA modeling kits, is often suggested to facilitate students' ability to conceptualize compounds in two and three dimensions.

Constructing analogies: Developing critical thinking through a collaborative task.

Analogies are used to make abstract topics meaningful and more easily comprehensible to learners. Incorporating simple analogies into STEM classrooms is a fairly common practice, but the analogies are typically generated and explained by the instructor for the learners. We hypothesize that challenging learners to create complex, extended analogies themselves can promote integration of content knowledge and development of critical thinking skills, which are essential for deep learning, but are challenging to teach.

Visual Literacy of Molecular Biology Revealed through a Card-Sorting Task.

Visual literacy, which is the ability to effectively identify, interpret, evaluate, use, and create images and visual media, is an important aspect of science literacy. As molecular processes are not directly observable, researchers and educators rely on visual representations (e.g.

The DNA Landscape: Development and Application of a New Framework for Visual Communication about DNA.

Learning molecular biology involves using visual representations to communicate ideas about largely unobservable biological processes and molecules. Genes and gene expression cannot be directly visualized, but students are expected to learn and understand these and related concepts. Theoretically, textbook illustrations should help learners master such concepts, but how are genes and other DNA-linked concepts illustrated for learners? We examined all DNA-related images found in 12 undergraduate biology textbooks to better understand what biology students encounter when learning concepts related to DNA.

Reformed Experimental Activities (REActivities): Gauging the Fidelity of Implementation in a Reformed Undergraduate Organic Chemistry Laboratory.

Reformed Experimental Activities (REActivities) is an innovative approach to the delivery of the traditional material in an undergraduate organic chemistry laboratory. To better understand the fidelity of implementing this pedagogy and what effects the framework of REActivities has on student-instructor interactions, an observational protocol study was employed. This paper also describes the Evaluation of Lab Instructor Time and Engagement (ELITE) observational instrument developed to evaluate instructional behaviors in a lab setting.

Teaching meiosis with the DNA triangle framework: A classroom activity that changes how students think about chromosomes.

Many biology students struggle to learn about the process of meiosis and have particular difficulty understanding the molecular basis of crossing over and the importance of homologous pairing for proper segregation. To help students overcome these challenges, we designed an activity that uses a newly developed Chromosome Connections Kit® from 3-D Molecular Designs to allow learners to explore meiosis at the molecular level. We took a backwards design approach in constructing an effective classroom activity.

Punnett Squares or Protein Production? The Expert-Novice Divide for Conceptions of Genes and Gene Expression.

Concepts of molecular biology and genetics are difficult for many biology undergraduate students to master yet are crucial for deep understanding of how life works. By asking students to draw their ideas, we attempted to uncover the mental models about genes and gene expression held by biology students ( = 23) and experts ( = 18) using semistructured interviews. A large divide was identified between novice and expert conceptions.

An Online Interactive Video Vignette that Helps Students Learn Key Concepts of Fermentation and Respiration.

Topics related to energy transformation and metabolism are important parts of an undergraduate biology curriculum, but these are also topics that students traditionally struggle with. To address this, we have created a short online Interactive Video Vignette (IVV) called . This IVV is designed to help students learn important ideas related to cellular respiration and metabolism.

Physical models can provide superior learning opportunities beyond the benefits of active engagements.

The essence of molecular biology education lies in understanding of gene expression, with subtopics including the central dogma processes, such as transcription and translation. While these concepts are core to the discipline, they are also notoriously difficult for students to learn, probably because they cannot be directly observed. While nearly all active learning strategies have been shown to improve learning compared with passive lectures, little has been done to compare different types of active learning.

A Community-Building Framework for Collaborative Research Coordination across the Education and Biology Research Disciplines.

Since 2009, the U.S. National Science Foundation Directorate for Biological Sciences has funded Research Coordination Networks (RCN) aimed at collaborative efforts to improve participation, learning, and assessment in undergraduate biology education (UBE).

Arrows in Biology: Lack of Clarity and Consistency Points to Confusion for Learners.

In this article, we begin to unpack the phenomenon of representational competence by exploring how arrow symbols are used in introductory biology textbook figures. Out of 1214 figures in an introductory biology textbook, 632 (52%) of them contained arrows that were used to represent many different concepts or processes. Analysis of these figures revealed little correlation between arrow style and meaning.

The DNA Triangle and Its Application to Learning Meiosis.

Although instruction on meiosis is repeated many times during the undergraduate curriculum, many students show poor comprehension even as upper-level biology majors. We propose that the difficulty lies in the complexity of understanding DNA, which we explain through a new model, the The DNA triangle integrates three distinct scales at which one can think about DNA: , , and Through analysis of interview and survey data from biology faculty and students through the lens of the DNA triangle, we illustrate important differences in how novices and experts are able to explain the concepts of , , and Similarly, analysis of passages from 16 different biology textbooks shows a large divide between introductory and advanced material, with introductory books omitting explanations of meiosis-linked concepts at the level of DNA. Finally, backed by textbook findings and feedback from biology experts, we show that the DNA triangle can be applied to teaching and learning meiosis.

Development of the Central Dogma Concept Inventory (CDCI) Assessment Tool.

Scientific teaching requires scientifically constructed, field-tested instruments to accurately evaluate student thinking and gauge teacher effectiveness. We have developed a 23-question, multiple select-format assessment of student understanding of the essential concepts of the central dogma of molecular biology that is appropriate for all levels of undergraduate biology. Questions for the Central Dogma Concept Inventory (CDCI) tool were developed and iteratively revised based on student language and review by experts.

DNA → RNA: What Do Students Think the Arrow Means?

The central dogma of molecular biology, a model that has remained intact for decades, describes the transfer of genetic information from DNA to protein though an RNA intermediate. While recent work has illustrated many exceptions to the central dogma, it is still a common model used to describe and study the relationship between genes and protein products. We investigated understanding of central dogma concepts and found that students are not primed to think about information when presented with the canonical figure of the central dogma.

Using PCR to Target Misconceptions about Gene Expression.

We present a PCR-based laboratory exercise that can be used with first- or second-year biology students to help overcome common misconceptions about gene expression. Biology students typically do not have a clear understanding of the difference between genes (DNA) and gene expression (mRNA/protein) and often believe that genes exist in an organism or cell only when they are expressed. This laboratory exercise allows students to carry out a PCR-based experiment designed to challenge their misunderstanding of the difference between genes and gene expression.

Students fail to transfer knowledge of chromosome structure to topics pertaining to cell division.

Cellular processes that rely on knowledge of molecular behavior are difficult for students to comprehend. For example, thorough understanding of meiosis requires students to integrate several complex concepts related to chromosome structure and function. Using a grounded theory approach, we have unified classroom observations, assessment data, and in-depth interviews under the theory of knowledge transfer to explain student difficulties with concepts related to chromosomal behavior.

GRM7 variants associated with age-related hearing loss based on auditory perception.

Age-related hearing impairment (ARHI), or presbycusis, is a common condition of the elderly that results in significant communication difficulties in daily life. Clinically, it has been defined as a progressive loss of sensitivity to sound, starting at the high frequencies, inability to understand speech, lengthening of the minimum discernable temporal gap in sounds, and a decrease in the ability to filter out background noise. The causes of presbycusis are likely a combination of environmental and genetic factors.

An interactive modeling lesson increases students' understanding of ploidy during meiosis.

Chromosome structure is confusing to students at all levels, and chromosome behavior during meiosis is a notoriously difficult topic. Undergraduate biology majors are exposed to the process of meiosis numerous times during their presecondary and postsecondary education, yet understanding of key concepts, such as the point at which haploidy is established, does not improve substantially with repeated exposure. Based on student's drawings, 96% of intermediate-level biology majors have unclear or incorrect ideas about meiosis.

Genome-wide association study identifies ITGB3 as a QTL for whole blood serotonin.

Serotonin has been implicated in common disorders involving the central nervous, gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, and pulmonary systems. We describe the first genome-wide screen to identify quantitative trait loci (QTLs) influencing whole blood serotonin in 567 members of a single large pedigree, using a novel association-based mapping approach. We identified an association between the beta3 integrin (ITGB3) Leu33Pro polymorphism on 17q21 and whole blood serotonin levels (P-value = 9.

Are common disease susceptibility alleles the same in outbred and founder populations?

Founder populations have been the subjects of complex disease studies because of their decreased genetic heterogeneity, increased linkage disequilibrium and more homogeneous environmental exposures. However, it is possible that disease alleles identified in founder populations may not contribute significantly to susceptibility in outbred populations. In this study we examine the Hutterites, a founder population of European descent, for 103 polymorphisms in 66 genes that are candidates for cardiovascular or inflammatory diseases.

Genetic variation in immunoregulatory pathways and atopic phenotypes in infancy.

Background: Asthma is a chronic respiratory disease that often originates in early childhood. Although candidate gene studies have identified many potential asthma susceptibility genes in adult populations, few have studied associations with immune phenotypes in the first year that might be early clinical markers of asthma.

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the contribution of genetic variation to cytokine response profiles and atopic phenotypes in the first year of life in the Childhood Origin of Asthma cohort.

Major loci influencing serum triglyceride levels on 2q14 and 9p21 localized by homozygosity-by-descent mapping in a large Hutterite pedigree.

Serum triglyceride (TG) level is a well-known risk factor for cardiovascular disease, a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in Western countries. Although genome-wide scans for TG have been conducted in several populations, few loci have shown strong evidence for linkage. The Hutterites are a founder population, which practices a communal lifestyle that includes a uniformly high-fat, high-cholesterol diet.