CourseSource: Resources

Lesson

1445

views

393

downloads

0

comments

Data, Distributions, and Hypotheses: Exploring Diversity and Disturbance in the Tallgrass Prairie

Proper hypothesis generation, data handling, graphing, and communication are essential skills that undergraduate majors in biology are expected to master. However, students rarely get hands-on practice that helps them to effectively develop these...

Courses: Ecology Ecology Plant Biology

Quantitative reasoningRestoration EcologyScience process skillstall grass prairie ecosystem

Lesson

528

views

105

downloads

0

comments

An Interrupted Case Study on Urban Prairie Restoration

Engaging students in meaningful discussions can be a challenging task for science instructors, especially in introductory courses. The story-telling approach used in case studies can increase student participation by demonstrating the relevance of...

Courses: Ecology Ecology Introductory Biology Science Process Skills

urban ecologyPrescribed fireEcosystem Servicesecological restorationwoody encroachmentrangeland ecology

Lesson

3371

views

917

downloads

0

comments

Assessing Urban Biodiversity With the eBird Citizen Science Project: A Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) Module

The eBird citizen science module takes advantage of technology tools and online resources developed by the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology (http://ebird.org) to achieve several learning objectives embedded in a semester-long upper-level biology...

Courses: Ecology Ecology Science Process Skills

datacitizen sciencecommunityBiodiversitySpecieshypothesishabitat

Lesson

375

views

60

downloads

0

comments

Environmental Injustice: When the Grass is Greener on the Other Side

Environmental pollution is a global threat that is especially prevalent in heavily industrialized and urbanized areas. Pollution can be found in many forms, such as natural and synthetic pollutants from natural and anthropogenic processes. These...

Courses: Ecology Ecology Introductory Biology Science Process Skills Toxicology

human healthenvironmental injusticeEnvironmental PollutionSystemic BiasesIdeological AwarenessUrban Ecology and Development

Lesson

907

views

101

downloads

0

comments

Learning the Landscape: An Active and Applied Lesson on Landscape Ecology for General Ecology Courses

Landscape ecology is an important subtopic of ecology. As a field, it is inherently interdisciplinary and provides opportunities to teach not only content, but transferable ecological and geographical skills. Given the broad spectrum of topics in...

Courses: Ecology Ecology

landscape ecologyspatial scaleecosystem managementHabitat fragmentation

Lesson

814

views

61

downloads

0

comments

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...

Courses: Ecology Ecology Microbiology Science Process Skills

data analysishypothesis testingdata visualizationdata managementMicrobial RespirationDecompostionAbiotic ConditionsResults Communication

Lesson

1613

views

445

downloads

0

comments

Using Structured Decision Making to Explore Complex Environmental Issues

Environmental issues are inherently complex, often requiring multiple interested parties to come together before agreeing on a solution. Structured decision making is a tool used by federal and state management agencies to find solutions that...

Courses: Ecology Ecology

interdisciplinarysocio-ecological systemsscience policystakeholderstructured decision making

Essay

2880

views

270

downloads

0

comments

An Introduction to the Squirrel-Net Teaching Modules

Although course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) are gaining popularity in biology, most are designed for benchwork-based laboratory courses while few focus on field-based skills. Many barriers to implementing field CUREs exist,...

Courses: Ecology Ecology

ecologybehaviortrade-offsScientific ProcessSquirrel-Net

Lesson

1500

views

128

downloads

0

comments

Starting Conversations About Discrimination Against Women in STEM

Many scientists know about — and experience — discrimination against women. In this professional development lesson, graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, faculty, and other career scientists brainstorm ways to intervene and support...

Courses: Professional Development and Career Planning

identityracismGender discriminationIntersectionalityMicroagressionsSexismSexual assaultSexual harassmentTrolling

Lesson

4068

views

483

downloads

0

comments

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...

Courses: Science Process Skills

biasprocess of sciencemetacognitionConfirmation BiasCognitive Bias

Lesson

2839

views

867

downloads

0

comments

Exploring Species Interactions with "Snapshot Serengeti"

Authentic learning experiences are a valuable way for students to gain an in-depth understanding of the scientific process. However, implementing such experiences in large enrollment courses can be challenging. Here, we present a community ecology...

Courses: Ecology Ecology

ecologyspecies interactionscitizen scienceCommunity Ecologyanimal behaviorScience Communicationmigrationanimal activityspecies distribution

Lesson

422

views

33

downloads

0

comments

Osmosis Through the Lens of Sexual Health

Osmosis contributes to a range of biological phenomena, from functioning of nephrons in animals to stomatal opening and closing in plants; yet, scientifically simple ideas about osmosis are common. These ideas limit learners’ comprehension...

Courses: Anatomy-Physiology Cell Biology Introductory Biology Science Process Skills

OsmosisDiffusionsexual healthsocial and cultural embeddedness of scienceinclusive dialogue

Lesson

4356

views

402

downloads

0

comments

Distances in the Universe: An Inquiry Lab Sequence Taught in West Africa and North America

Astronomy evokes deep curiosity for many people, making it a beautiful topic for supporting students to learn scientific practices and develop as scientists. We present an inquiry-based lab sequence about distances in the Universe, which we have...

Courses: Astronomy

InquiryAstronomy labParallaxInverse-square law for lightCosmic distance ladderAsking investigable questions

Lesson

2620

views

103

downloads

0

comments

Exploring Indigenous Viewpoints in the Undergraduate Biology Classroom: An Environmental Case Study Incorporating Hawaiian Traditional Ecological Knowledge

Changing science education to foster greater equity and inclusion for Indigenous students will require effort from instructors and institutions. Instructors can help by including Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) in their science classrooms....

Courses: Ecology Ecology Introductory Biology Science Process Skills

ecologycase studyenvironmentsystems thinkingTraditional ecological knowledgeindigenous knowledgehawai'idecolonizing scienceNative knowledgeFish ponds

Lesson

1462

views

491

downloads

0

comments

Using Student Perceptions and Cooperative Learning to Unpack Primary Literature on Global Change

This case describes a three-part assignment in which students discuss key processes that regulate the stability and resilience of the Earth system and our increased risk of generating large-scale abrupt or irreversible environmental changes. Here,...

Courses: Ecology Ecology

global changeAnthropoceneEarth-systemplanetary boundary conceptthresholds

Lesson

1778

views

130

downloads

0

comments

Snail Races: An Inquiry-Based Approach to Learn Invasive Species Ecology

Inquiry-based lessons allow learning that is hands-on and student-driven, fostering engagement and retention of knowledge in any discipline. Here, we use this learning framework to engage students in exploring the effects of biotic and abiotic...

Courses: Ecology Ecology

ecologyenvironmentInvasive SpeciesScience CommunicationScientific InquiryDispersal

Lesson

1840

views

241

downloads

0

comments

Bioinformatics is a BLAST: Engaging First-Year Biology Students on Campus Biodiversity Using DNA Barcoding

In order to introduce students to the concept of molecular diversity, we developed a short, engaging online lesson using basic bioinformatics techniques. Students were introduced to basic bioinformatics while learning about local on-campus species...

Courses: Bioinformatics Introductory Biology

geneticsorganismal biologybioinformaticstaxonomyDNA Barcodingspecies concepts

Lesson

1104

views

193

downloads

0

comments

Using Current Events to Teach Written, Visual, and Oral Science Communication

Science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) professionals need the skills to communicate with both technical and public audiences, but formal training in these skills is often lacking. In the nine-hour unit presented here, students...

Courses: Science Process Skills

communicationscientific writingstorytellingaudiencecurrent events

Lesson

2282

views

475

downloads

0

comments

A Lesson on Matter and Energy at the Organismal Scale: Linking Patterns and Processes Across Diverse Taxa

Pathways and transformations of energy and matter (PTEM) are a conceptually challenging but essential component of biological literacy. Curricular gaps about PTEM nevertheless remain; although lessons targeting PTEM at small scales (chemical,...

Courses: Ecology Ecology Introductory Biology

plantsenergyAnimalsfungimatterorganismal scale

LessonPlus

2089

views

174

downloads

0

comments

The Power of Place: A Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience Studying Urban Ecology, Local Apple Trees and Disease Susceptibility

Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs) offered early in an undergraduate student’s career have the potential to include a greater number and diversity of students than one-on-one mentored research. CUREs that use a...

Courses: Ecology Ecology

Disease ecologyurban ecologyUrban food forestsUrban heat islandsGenetic resistance