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Pathways to Scientific Teaching, Chapter 5c of 7: Unleashing problem solvers: from assessment to designing research

Can transgenes be kept on a leash?” ask Marvier and Van Acker in the [attached] review article. “No”, they answer, “the movement of transgenes beyond their intended destination is a virtual certainty”, and furthermore “it is unlikely that transgenes can be retracted once they have escaped”. Would these bold statements engage students, revealing the realities and complexities of genetically modified (GM) crops? How can we use the critical analyses presented by these authors to guide our undergraduates towards developing their own analytical skills? Students’ abilities to analyze controversial subjects are often limited by their lack of understanding of basic science fundamental to the issue. In this case, their approach to the debate about GM crops may be driven by common misconceptions about, for example, gene expression, traits, or even the difference between an allele and a mutation. Students may not know that genes flow between non-GM crops, a normal, commonly occurring process. Hence, a common belief is that traditional methods of crop breeding are completely safe, while all transgenic crops are potentially dangerous (Beringer 2000; CSU 2004). Ideally, we want students to understand the body of knowledge surrounding a subject so they can transfer and apply their knowledge to solve novel, complex problems. In this two-step approach to scientific teaching, we use Marvier and Van Acker’s paper as the context for assessing students’ comprehension and problem-solving abilities. We then provide instructors with a framework for thinking about what these assessments mean and how they could form the basis of a researchable question.
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Resource Group "Pathways to Scientific Teaching" is based on a series of two-page articles published in "Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment" from August 2004 to June 2006 that illustrated effective instructional methods to help students gain conceptual understanding in ecology (Diane Ebert-May and Janet Hodder, 2008).

This installment of the Pathways to Scientific Teaching series describes one or more instructional strategies that use scientific papers to teach selected concepts. While specific journal articles are used in demonstrating these strategies, we would like to emphasize that each activity in the Pathways series has been designed for use with any scientific article on a similar topic, and not just the example shown here.

Note that in addition to undergraduate faculty, many high school teachers can use these articles as well in their biology courses.
Resource Group Link http://ecoed.esa.org/index.php?P=AdvancedSearch&Q=Y&FK=%22Pathways+to+...
Primary or BEN resource type
Secondary resource type
Discipline Specific Core Concepts
Life science discipline (subject)
Keywords GMOs, genetically modified crops, transgenes, controversy, problem solving, risk analysis and management
Audience
Intended End User Role
Language
Educational Language
Pedagogical Use Category
Pedagogical Use Description Instructor goals: 1) Probe student understanding of concepts fundamental to GM technology and, based on the student responses, design instruction that addresses student needs. 2) Use data from student assessments to pose a significant question about their learning that can be investigated
empirically.

This installment of the Pathways to Scientific Teaching series describes one or more instructional strategies that use scientific papers to teach selected concepts. While specific journal articles are used in demonstrating these strategies, we would like to emphasize that each activity in the Pathways series has been designed for use with any scientific article on a similar topic, and not just the example shown here.

Note that in addition to undergraduate faculty, many high school teachers can use these articles as well in their biology courses.
Aggregation Level
Structure
Full Name of Primary Author Diane Ebert-May
Primary Author Controlled Name
Primary Author Affiliation Michigan State University
Primary Author email ebertmay@msu.edu
Secondary Author Name(s) Janet Hodder 2, Everett Weber 1, and Douglas Luckie 1
Secondary Author Affiliation(s) 1 Michigan State University, 2 University of Oregon
Added By Id
  • Celia
Rights Copyright 2008, the Ecological Society of America
License
Publisher
Review type
Drought and Water Ecosystem Services Collection Off
Conservation Targets Under Global Change Collection Off
Big Data Collection Off
Editors Choice No
Resource Status
Date Of Record Submission 2011-12-01
I Agree to EcoEdDL's Copyright Policy & Terms of Use No
Date Of Record Release 2012-03-05 11:47:16
Last Modified By Id
  • mcmilla
Date Last Modified 2013-05-23 10:24:18
Release Flag Published

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