Hi David, I teach an online non-majors biology course and have been receiving very positive feedback from the students about how much they learn and their engagement with the material. My main strategies are:
1. Create a few larger assignments that build upon each other and for which the students choose their own research topics. 2. Have the students teach as much as possible (they post 5-min videos & reports on their research, students are assigned to review/comment/contribute in response to their presentations). 3. Focus my own teaching on core concepts that unify the field of biology (scientific method, genetics & evolution for my course) rather than "cover" many topics. 4. Select 8-10 chapters in a non-majors biology textbook to serve as the reference foundation & provide structure to the course (1 quiz/week type structure). For my course, the core assignments result in the students creating an extensive family pedigree and researching human traits with genetic influence (they almost always choose to research topics related to their own family health history, which can be very powerful for them). For an ecology-based course, an equivalent approach might be to revolve the work around them developing a field journal of a particular place. I have done this with non-majors as well, and they always get a lot out of it. Many have never sat quietly in a natural place for 5 minutes, and the experience can be very powerful and meaningful. For example, you could create assignments where the students do various activities, take samples, make observations etc. all at their "research site" and do research on various topics related to their site as you work through the different topics in class. Done well, by the end of course, each student will have an in depth understanding of how all these ecology & biology topics fit together, and hopefully a meaningful relationship with one place on the earth (and certainly a memorable course!). Feel free to contact me off list if you want to chat more about any of these ideas, share resources etc. Erica Marx Department of Biology Ithaca College 607-279-6402 On Tue, May 29, 2012 at 7:57 PM, Cynthia Ross <cyn_r...@sbcglobal.net>wrote: > ---------------------- Information from the mail header > ----------------------- > Sender: "Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news" > <ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU> > Poster: Cynthia Ross <cyn_r...@sbcglobal.net> > Subject: Re: Non-Majors Biology > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > > I am considering teaching science as a career option. I want children = > (and adults) to be as excited about science as I am so this discussion = > interests me greatly. I agree with Ms. Dejaco's approach of covering = > the important basics, filling in with some detail, and illustrating = > relevance. This certainly worked for me as a student, especially in = > cell bio and genetics. An exciting subject can be dry as toast if it is = > presented that way and vice versa. It also makes all the difference = > having the students participate in their lessons through discussion and = > activities rather than just being "taught at". =20 > > Cheers, > Cynthia > > On May 28, 2012, at 9:37 PM, Carrie DeJaco wrote: > > > I have taught my non-majors bio course for the past several years = > covering subjects that they are likely to encounter in life and, in the = > course of that, I manage to cover a little bit of most aspects of = > biology while also showing the students how it is relevant to their life = > and why it is important for them to learn. To understand cancer, for = > example, one must understand cell division, DNA replication and = > mutations, various environmental carcinogens, how things are inherited, = > etc.. They will likely encounter the term 'stem cells', so that leads = > us into cell specialization and differentiation, tissues, organs, = > embryonic and fetal development. Allergies, why and how we are "sick" = > and how our bodies respond to that. Nutrition-- why your body needs = > things like fat, what cholesterol is and how it relates to = > cardiovascular disease. What's an aneurism, and a stroke, and an = > embolism. Climate change and the observed and expected physical and = > phenological changes associated with it, and how those things are going = > to affect people near and far from us. Things like colony collapse = > disorder, pollination, the importance of biodiversity, the impacts of = > invasive species... All of these things intertwine in some way or = > another but if you can relate it back to how it is relevant to the = > students, they can see why even 'boring' concepts like mitosis are = > important to understand. I have gotten a good deal of positive feedback = > on this approach from students over the years, even and especially from = > students who came into my class 'hating' or 'scared of' science. > >=20 > > I know this is the last science class my students will ever take. I = > hope to teach them how science works and a little bit about most things = > they will encounter so they will feel comfortable with science and have = > enough recognition of enough terms that they will be able to ask = > questions and find more information when they need to. =20 > >=20 > >=20 > > Carrie DeJaco > > Associate Professor of Biology > > Queens University of Charlotte > > Charlotte, NC. =20 > >=20 > >=20 > > On May 28, 2012, at 6:57 PM, David L. McNeely wrote: > >=20 > >> June _Scientific American_ has an excellent article that very = > effectively relates microbiology to the lives of students. It considers = > the ecology of human symbiotic microbes. More microbiology of this = > kind, and less memorization of how microbial cells metabolize could be = > quite meaningful in a non-majors (or for that matter, a majors) biology = > course. David McNeely > >>=20 > >> ---- CHELSEA LYNN TEALE <clt...@psu.edu> wrote:=20 > >>> Instead of addressing > >>> actual curriculum > >>> (except to say I > >>> agree cellular/microbiology is a turn-off for the majority of = > non-biologists), > >>> I want to emphasize context through interaction with off-campus = > scientists and > >>> current events. Biology majors already know how the subject relates = > to them > >>> but non-majors may need examples, and my single suggestion is > >>> to take advantage of your local museum. > >>>=20 > >>>=20 > >>> At the New > >>> York State Museum - within a half hour of at least 8 = > colleges/universities - > >>> research scientists are expected to engage in educational > >>> outreach and regularly present their work through lunchtime lectures = > (geared > >>> toward the general public), K-12 teacher workshops (demonstrating = > concepts like > >>> evolution using local/regional examples), and evening programs such = > as "Cooking > >>> the Tree of Life" (to celebrate Darwin's birthday, a local chef = > cooks a single > >>> food item a variety of ways while a museum scientist explains its = > evolutionary > >>> and cultural development). In any given year the NYSM hosts over = > 40,000 > >>> people in its programs, and other museums are likewise mandated to = > engage the > >>> public. Museums also loan material and may have collections > >>> specifically for classroom use; many schools have their own > >>> skulls, etc. for students to measure, but if yours doesn't, ask a = > museum. > >>> Instead of talking about how snowshoe hares change color with the > >>> seasons, get some actual pelts. You may even have luck inviting the > >>> museum mammalogist to your class to give a first-hand account of = > changes in > >>> hare populations in your area. At a minimum, the education experts = > at > >>> some museums will be able to provide you with written material and > >>> local/regional examples. =20 > >>>=20 > >>> Take your lab > >>> sections on a behind-the-scenes tour of > >>> museum research and collections. Not all > >>> museums will be able to accommodate you, but ask to see what = > materials are > >>> collected and why - and hear it from the people who do that = > full-time. > >>> Such a tour could have something for everyone: herbarium, beetling = > tank > >>> for cleaning bones, bird-mounting room, DNA lab, fossils being = > prepared, and so > >>> on. The anthropology collections may offer insights into human > >>> A&P and the media liaisons at larger institutions might talk about = > science > >>> communication. In a single visit you could discuss plant evolution = > from > >>> 19th C. > >>> fossil collection to emerging molecular techniques, and see examples = > of both.=20 > >>> Because so many museums formed as natural history emerged as a topic = > of study, > >>> they can present biology within its historical context and from a = > holistic > >>> perspective with enough "ooh" and "aah" moments to be digestible for > >>> non-majors. Even if the > >>> museum does not have an active research program, their collections = > are still > >>> managed by knowledgeable staff who will at least try to convince the = > most > >>> anti-biology > >>> student that a drawer of pine cones has value. Most museum staff = > are > >>> happy to do this if given sufficient advance notice and a list of = > topics to > >>> touch on. Some are featured in newspapers summarizing a project = > that was > >>> recently published, so you could read the article, discuss the = > publication, > >>> then meet the person and see where the magic > >>> happened! > >>>=20 > >>> The more our state museums (and > >>> the like) are able to demonstrate their utility to current = > administrators and > >>> future voters, the better. Use these resources as they were = > intended: for > >>> the public benefit. > >>>=20 > >>>=20 > >>>=20 > >>>>=20 > >>>>=20 > >>>>=20 > >>>>=20 > >>>>=20 > >>>>=20 > >>>>=20 > >>>>=20 > >>>>=20 > >>>>=20 > >>>=20 > >>>>=20 > >>>=20 > >>> Chelsea Teale > >>> PhD Candidate, Geography > >>> The > >>> Pennsylvania State University > >>> NYS Museum Research & > >>> Collections > >>=20 > >> -- > >> David McNeely > -- Erica Marx Center for Natural Sciences Department of Biology Ithaca College Ithaca, NY 14850 (607) 279-6402 (cell)
