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    Teaching Tools and Strategies
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    Walkabout: An Easy to Use, Experiential Learning Activity for Applying Abstract Concepts to the Real-World
    Students can have difficulty recognizing examples of course concepts in the real-world. They particularly struggle with phenomena that are ambiguously defined, have mimics, or are hard to distinguish from other phenomena. Students can better...

    Courses: EcologyEcology Science Process SkillsScience Process Skills

    data gatheringgreen technologyobservations
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    Using Synthetic Biology and pClone Red for Authentic Research on Promoter Function: Introductory Biology (identifying new promoters)
    Students often memorize the definition of a transcriptional promoter but fail to fully understand the critical role promoters play in gene expression. This laboratory lesson allows students to conduct original research by identifying and...

    Courses: GeneticsGenetics Introductory BiologyIntroductory Biology Science Process SkillsScience Process Skills

    bacteriasynthetic biologygene regulationtranscriptionstudent researchcentral dogmacloningpromoterreporter gene/protein
    Teaching Tools and Strategies
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    Sanger Sequencing by Hand: Using Paper Clips to Demonstrate Chain Termination
    Sanger sequencing is commonly taught with a hands-on approach. Sanger sequencing involves chain termination by dideoxynucleotides, because they are missing the oxygen on the 3’ carbon atom, which is required for the addition of subsequent...

    Courses: GeneticsGenetics

    nucleotidessequencingDNAgel electrophoresisChain Termination
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    79

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    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: EcologyEcology Introductory BiologyIntroductory Biology Science Process SkillsScience Process Skills

    urban ecologyPrescribed fireEcosystem Servicesecological restorationwoody encroachmentrangeland ecology
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    702

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    Using Synthetic Biology and pClone Red for Authentic Research on Promoter Function: Genetics (analyzing mutant promoters)
    Students often memorize the definition of a transcriptional promoter but fail to fully understand the critical role promoters play in gene expression.  This laboratory lesson allows students to conduct original research by characterizing...

    Courses: GeneticsGenetics Science Process SkillsScience Process Skills

    bacteriasynthetic biologygene regulationtranscriptionstudent researchcentral dogmacloningpromoterreporter gene/protein
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    68

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    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: EcologyEcology

    landscape ecologyspatial scaleecosystem managementHabitat fragmentation
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    537

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    Developing Data Literacy Skills and Connecting the Student Experience in the Classroom to the Community Through Biodiversity Projects
    Undergraduate education and long-term science literacy are enhanced by integrating data projects with public datasets and creating analysis summaries. Underutilized public datasets are often generated by community-based or citizen science projects...

    Courses: EcologyEcology Plant BiologyPlant Biology

    species richnessBiodiversitydisturbanceHabitat rangePopulation abundance
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    32

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    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: EcologyEcology Introductory BiologyIntroductory Biology Science Process SkillsScience Process Skills ToxicologyToxicology

    human healthenvironmental injusticeEnvironmental PollutionSystemic BiasesIdeological AwarenessUrban Ecology and Development
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    718

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    Green Design: How do Leaf Structures Optimize Photosynthesis and Promote Survival?
    One of the major learning objectives established by the American Society of Plant Biologists and the Botanical Society of America has students answer the question: How do plant structures enable life functions? This lesson helps students answer...

    Courses: Introductory BiologyIntroductory Biology Plant BiologyPlant Biology

    photosynthesisepidermal layerleaf anatomymesophyllpalisade parenchymaplant anatomyplant structure functionspongy parenchymaStomata
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    1965

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    870

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    Exploration of the Human Genome by Investigation of Personalized SNPs
    Students often shy away from tedious bioinformatics approaches to exploring their genomes. However, in our expanding digital world these skills are some of the most relevant and valuable. To increase students' interest in their own genomes, I...

    Courses: BioinformaticsBioinformatics GeneticsGenetics Science Process SkillsScience Process Skills

    UCSC genome browsersingle nucleotide polymorphismGenome wide association studiesGenomic organization
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    Using Immunocytochemistry and Fluorescence Microscopy Imaging to Explore the Mechanism of Action of Anti-Cancer Drugs on the Cell Cycle
    Understanding and visualizing the cell cycle and mitosis is an essential concept of cell biology. This multi-week lab module has students investigate the mechanism of action of anti-cancer drugs that disrupt activities associated with mitosis and...

    Courses: Cell BiologyCell Biology Science Process SkillsScience Process Skills

    fluorescence microscopymitosisCell StructureCell ImagingImmunocytochemistryQuantitative microscopySTEM skills
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    1145

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    CRISPR/Cas9 in yeast: a multi-week laboratory exercise for undergraduate students
    Providing undergraduate life-science students with a course-based research experience that utilizes cutting-edge technology, is tractable for students, and is manageable as an instructor is a challenge. Here, I describe a multi-week lesson plan...

    Courses: Biochemistry and Molecular BiologyBiochemistry and Molecular Biology BioinformaticsBioinformatics GeneticsGenetics MicrobiologyMicrobiology Science Process SkillsScience Process Skills

    bioinformaticsPCRphenotypingCRISPR/Cas9gene editingcloningGenotypingRestriction enzyme
    Teaching Tools and Strategies
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    DNA Detective: Genotype to Phenotype. A Bioinformatics Workshop for Middle School to College.
    Advances in high-throughput techniques have resulted in a rising demand for scientists with basic bioinformatics skills as well as workshops and curricula that teach students bioinformatics concepts. DNA Detective is a workshop we designed to...

    Courses: Biochemistry and Molecular BiologyBiochemistry and Molecular Biology BioinformaticsBioinformatics GeneticsGenetics Plant BiologyPlant Biology

    geneticsbioinformaticsDNAgenotypephenotypegenegene annotation
    Teaching Tools and Strategies
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    SCIENCE/Fiction: Modular Template for Class Design
    We present a modular scaffold for designing an introductory seminar using speculative fiction and science papers to welcome university undergraduates to the biology major. A list of twelve possible topics is included, such as Memory, Parasites,...

    Courses: Anatomy-PhysiologyAnatomy-Physiology Biochemistry and Molecular BiologyBiochemistry and Molecular Biology Cell BiologyCell Biology EvolutionEvolution GeneticsGenetics Introductory BiologyIntroductory Biology NeurobiologyNeurobiology

    geneticscell biologyneurosciencesystems biologyScience Fiction
    Review
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    Workshop Report: Summer 2020 Virtual CRISPR in the Classroom
    As innovations and developments in genome editing technologies using CRISPR-Cas systems progress, the need to disseminate relevant knowledge and build skills among the next generation of young scientists in undergraduate classrooms is vital. Our...

    Courses: Biochemistry and Molecular BiologyBiochemistry and Molecular Biology BioinformaticsBioinformatics GeneticsGenetics Professional Development and Career PlanningProfessional Development and Career Planning

    geneticscrisprGenome Analysisgene editingbacterial immunity
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    391

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    Honoring the Complexity of Genetics: Exploring the Role of Genes and the Environment Using Real World Examples
    Historically, undergraduate genetics courses have disproportionately focused on the impact of genes on phenotypes, rather than multifactorial concepts which consider how a combination of genes, the environment, and gene-by-environment interactions...

    Courses: EvolutionEvolution GeneticsGenetics Introductory BiologyIntroductory Biology

    genesenvironmentMendelQuantitative traitsMultifactorialGene by environment interactions
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    Infectious Chocolate Joy with a Side of Poissonian Statistics: An activity connecting life science students with subtle physics concepts
    Introductory physics courses are required for many programs in the life sciences, yet traditional curricula fail to help students meaningfully connect physical concepts with biological systems.  In this lesson, we describe an activity taught...

    Courses: BioinformaticsBioinformatics MicrobiologyMicrobiology Science Process SkillsScience Process Skills

    quantitative biologyHIVmultiplicity of infectionPoisson DistributionPhysics for biologists
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    606

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    Learning About Protein Localization: A Lesson for Analyzing Figures in a Scientific Publication
    In order to function correctly, proteins must be localized to a specific subcellular location. We have designed this lesson to use data from the primary literature to teach students about the mechanisms cells use to direct proteins to the...

    Courses: Cell BiologyCell Biology Science Process SkillsScience Process Skills

    colocalizationimmunofluorescenceProtein localizationsignal sequencessubcellular fractionationwestern blotting
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    From Cre/LoxP to Fate Maps: Inclusive and Equitable Approaches for Engaging Developmental Biology Students in Experimental Design
    Engaging first generation underrepresented minority students in the process of inquiry in developmental biology is important to increase diversity in future graduate STEM education. One important challenge is how we design curricula to foster...

    Courses: Developmental BiologyDevelopmental Biology

    experimental designC. elegansCre/LoxPFate mapheart developmentheart regenerationmousereporter constructzebrafish
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    434

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    Teaching Advanced Concepts in Regulation of the Lac Operon With Modeling and Simulation
    Success in biochemistry and other life science courses requires that students understand important biological concepts. One of these concepts is how gene regulation ensures that homeostasis is maintained in an organism. The lac operon is a...

    Courses: Biochemistry and Molecular BiologyBiochemistry and Molecular Biology

    gene regulationinducible operonProkaryotic cellPhosphoenolpyruvate transferase system (PTS)