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    Breaking It Down: What Factors Control Microbial Decomposition Rates?
    Demonstrating and modeling changes in ecosystem processes in the laboratory classroom can be logistically difficult and expensive. This complexity often leaves little time for students to generate and test hypotheses. Yet, we must foster student...
    Lesson
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    An Original-Design Board Game to Increase Student Comprehension of Cellular Respiration Pathways
    Cellular respiration is a daunting topic for many students in introductory biology courses. Students are challenged at conceptual and factual levels, since instruction covers multiple metabolic pathways occurring across different cellular...
    Lesson
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    Squirreling Around for Science: Observing Sciurid Rodents to Investigate Animal Behavior
    Hands-on research experiences are important opportunities for students to learn about the nature of inquiry and gain confidence in solving problems. Here, we present an inquiry-based lesson plan that investigates the foraging behavior of sciurid...
    Lesson
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    297

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    Exploring Primary Scientific Literature through the Lens of the 5 Core Concepts of Biology
    Biology students at the undergraduate level usually excel in knowing biological facts; however, they often struggle with connecting these facts to specific biological principles. In parallel, undergraduate students often struggle to read primary...
    Lesson
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    400

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    Teaching the Biological Relevance of Chemical Kinetics Using Cold-Blooded Animal Biology
    This lesson plan was created to support non-chemistry major students in making connections between chemical kinetics and biological systems. Chemical kinetics is often viewed by students as an abstract topic, and one that is limited only to...
    Lesson
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    Follow the Sulfur: Using Yeast Mutants to Study a Metabolic Pathway
    Students are frequently overwhelmed by the complexity of metabolic pathways and they think they have "learned" the pathway when they have memorized the individual reactions.  This laboratory lesson helps students to understand the...
    Lesson
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    Using Pathway Maps to Link Concepts, Peer Review, Primary Literature Searches and Data Assessment in Large Enrollment Classes: An example from teaching ecosystem ecology
    As with many other complex topics, teaching ecosystem ecology can be particularly difficult in terms of helping students understand the relationships between the various component parts. We addressed this challenge in a general ecology course by...
    Lesson
    3243

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    216

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    Bringing Pasteur Back to Life: Studying the Biochemistry of Yeast Fermentation Through Discussion Groups and an At-Home Lab
    This hands-on, student-centered biochemistry lesson introduces beginner biochemistry students to the techniques of effectively reading and discussing primary literature, identifying fundamental biological concepts, and applying that knowledge to...
    Lesson
    2931

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    590

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    Sorry to Eat and Run: A Lesson Plan for Testing Trade-off in Squirrel Behavior Using Giving Up Densities (GUDs)
    All animals need to find and compete for food, shelter, and mates in order to survive and reproduce. They also need to avoid being eaten by predators. Optimal foraging theory provides a framework to examine the trade-offs individuals make while...
    Lesson
    1549

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    587

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    Student-Driven Design-and-Improve Modules to Explore the Effect of Plant Bioactive Compounds in Three Model Organisms
    Engaging and supporting introductory level students in authentic research experiences during required coursework is challenging. Plant bioactive compounds attract students' natural curiosity as they are found in many familiar items such as...
    Lesson
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    402

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    Using Images of Foraging Leaf-Cutter Ants to Teach Linear Regression
    This lesson offers students a realistic, open-inquiry research experience, even when lab or field research is not possible. We first introduce students to leaf-cutter ants and how they forage. Then we provide images and videos of foraging...
    Lesson
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    Teaching students to read, interpret, and write about scientific research: A press release assignment in a large, lower-division class
    A central skill in any science discipline is the ability to read, understand, and discuss the primary literature of the discipline. However, teaching this skill presents unique challenges within large, lower-division courses. To assess our...
    Lesson
    3839

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    592

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    Using Bioinformatics and Molecular Visualization to Develop Student Hypotheses in a Malate Dehydrogenase Oriented CURE
    Developing student creativity and ability to develop a testable hypothesis represents a significant challenge in most laboratory courses. This lesson demonstrates how students use facets of molecular evolution and bioinformatics approaches...
    Lesson
    3644

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    395

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    A Classroom Intervention to Reduce Confirmation Bias
    STEM students are often unable to recognize cognitive bias in their own disciplines, and simply describing cognitive bias to students has shown to be insufficient to improve critical thinking. However, habitual metacognitive techniques show...
    Lesson
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    672

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    Teaching Biodiversity with Museum Specimens in an Inquiry-Based Lab
    In response to the growth of biology datasets and broad efforts to digitize data, an increasingly important skill for science students is the management and analysis of large datasets. We designed an inquiry-based lab module to introduce students...
    Lesson
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    Discovery Poster Project
    Engaging in undergraduate research can be exciting yet intimidating to first-year students at large research universities. For first-generation college students, whose pre-college exposure to research may be limited compared to their continuing...
    Lesson
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    Using the Cell Engineer/Detective Approach to Explore Cell Structure and Function
    As instructors of introductory biology courses for majors and non-majors, we have struggled with teaching the concept of cell structure and function in an engaging way.  However, this is a foundational concept that most biology instructors...
    Lesson
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    282

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    Promoting Climate Change Literacy for Non-majors: Implementation of an atmospheric carbon dioxide modeling activity as an inquiry-based classroom activity
    Students who are directly involved in scientific activities develop a deeper understanding and appreciation of both scientific knowledge and the scientific process. This understanding is critically important in scientific areas like climate change...
    Teaching Tools and Strategies
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    Converting a Face-to-Face Lab to Online: An Example of Process and Outcomes for a CRISPR-Based Molecular Biology Lab
    The COVID-19 pandemic created a need to convert in-person laboratory courses into an online format in a short amount of time. For this reason, we converted our face-to-face molecular biology lab course to an online version in Spring 2020. The lab...
    Lesson
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    Using Yeast to Make Scientists: A Six-Week Student-Driven Research Project for the Cell Biology Laboratory
    Traditionally-trained undergraduate students often lack an understanding of science as an active process that yields the information presented in their textbooks. One result has been a call for more research experiences built into traditional...