OCELOTS

Description

Overview of the Module

Plant-microbe interactions are a critical component of soil ecology. Anthropogenic activities can cause changes in soil dynamics, resulting in ecological disturbances such as tree falls in tropical forests. Windthrow occurrences alter the dynamics of the forest ecosystem, causing a breach in the tropical rainforest canopy. Such disruption causes a shift in the gap relative to the understory, both in biotic and abiotic components. The gap also influences microbial interactions with plants, since nutrient availability and other variables such as sunlight, moisture, and temperature may alter, resulting in a shift in microbial composition and colonization. The effects of ecological disturbance on microbial communities are now being investigated. This open educational resource covers a case on "Plant-microbial mutualisms in canopy gap recovery" by L. A. McCulloch and J. Mora Sibaja, that can be implemented in Microbiology or Biochemistry courses with a focus on Microbial Ecology. The module explores disturbance ecology and anthropological activities that influence gap dynamics in tropical forests. The module  also increases students’ understanding of data collection and analysis, development of hypotheses about climate-related changes in plant-microbial interactions, and interpretation of figures from primary scientific literature.

Implementation Plan and Teaching Notes

The module was implemented in an undergraduate B.Sc. (Hons) Microbiology and B.Sc. (Hons) Biochemistry course in alignment with National Education Policy 2020 at Adamas University, India. The module was used as part of the "Microbial Ecology" unit in the course, which includes types of microbe interactions, microbe-plant, and microbe-animal interactions, and differentiates between symbiotic and non-symbiotic interactions. The textbook used for the module includes Prescott's Microbiology 11th edition. The module can be also implemented in a post graduate course in Microbiology or advanced course on Ecology.

The module has been implemented with accessibility in more than one language, which was further improved for students using mobile devices. However, there were some issues, such as the initial plan to implement the module in a single class, which could have been improved. Preparation was required for the successful implementation, and additional classes were taken to prepare students. The module adds value to the course curriculum and can be implemented in future courses. The teacher plans to continue using this module in future courses and would modify his teaching practice accordingly.

Outcome expected out of this implementation

The goal of this implementation was to examine the fundamental concepts of disturbance ecology and understand how human activities might impact the patterns of gap dynamics in tropical forests. Additionally, students should be able to acquire knowledge about the methods used to gather and analyze data on plant-microbial interactions in a laboratory setting. Furthermore, they should be able to formulate hypotheses regarding the impact of alterations in disturbance and climate on the interactions between plants and their microbial soil symbionts. Finally, the students should be able to analyze data presented in the scientific literature.

Implementation

This online teaching resource presents the detailed strategy for carrying out a case study on the interactions between plants and microorganisms in the gala.  The case study can be incorporated into an undergraduate Microbiology course, namely in the section on Microbial Ecology, with a specific emphasis on plant-microbial interactions. Given that the case encompasses multiple studies in this field, it can also enhance data literacy and the analysis of scientific data and graphs. The implementation of the case might be divided into two consecutive classes or extended across multiple classes, depending on the students' existing understanding in the class.

The module can be implemented in a few classes with an initial one or two classes on background on various types of microbial interactions with a focus on ecological disturbance. One or two classes can be also taken to instruct and assess the level of awareness of graphs if the students are from diverse backgrounds.  The actual implementation of the case can be done in two classes, the first class for units 1-5 and the last two units with graph interpretation can be done in a second class.

Summary      

This resource describes the implementation plan and teaching notes for a module on plant-microbial mutualisms in canopy gap recovery. The module is designed for undergraduate students in a Microbiology and Biochemistry course and aims to explore the principles of disturbance ecology, data collection and analysis of plant-microbial interactions, and the effects of changes in disturbance and climate on plant-microbial symbiosis. Pedagogical techniques such as Think Pair Share, large group discussions, and clicker questions are used. The module was implemented over several days and includes assessments and supplemental materials. Feedback from students was positive, and the instructor plans to continue using the module in future courses. Some modifications were made to the implementation plan, such as extending the module to two classes and providing additional background on microbial ecology. Overall, the module was engaging for students and helped them understand scientific literature and data interpretation.

Attachments include:

• Pre-implementation quiz
• Post-implementation quiz
• Powerpoint about implementation
• Screenshot of deployment of the module on Gala

Support was provided by: A grant from the United States National Science Foundation (DBI-RCN-UBE 2120141).

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