Title: Improving the Scientific Literacy of All Students: Using TeamTaught Interdisciplinary lab courses
1Improving the Scientific Literacy of All
Students Using Team-Taught Interdisciplinary
lab courses
- Amy Jessen-Marshall, Ph.D.
- Department of Life Science
- Otterbein College,
- Westerville Ohio, USA.
2Goals
- It is increasingly important in todays global
society for all students, including non-science
majors, to become scientifically literate and
understand the processes and limitations of
science. Models of General Education vary, often
including introductory majors courses as options
for non-majors to meet science requirements,
however creative course models designed for all
students with an emphasis on problem solving and
scientific methodology are offered as a
successful alternative.
3Goals
- This breakout session will discuss and share
innovative practices and ideas to improve
scientific literacy through team-taught
interdisciplinary lab-based courses within an
Integrative Studies core curriculum.
4Topics for discussion
- What models for course design are most successful
in developing scientific literacy for non-science
majors?
5Topics for discussion
- How can you organize general education science
courses to meet the needs of majors and
non-majors in science?
6Topics for discussion
- What themes or content areas are most important
to develop scientifically literate citizens?
7Topics for discussion
- What are the pros and cons of team-teaching
interdisciplinary science courses?
8First questions
- Is science literacy important for all students?
- Why?
- Educated society
- Consumer issues
- (quantitative literacy)
- Journalism/news
- (Critical evaluation)
- Voters
- (Support for science in politics)
- (NSF funding)
- Jury of peers
- Science is COOL!
9First questions
- Outcomes of science education different for major
vs non-major? - What are the learning outcomes?
- Basic content knowledge
- Application of scientific method
- Critical evaluation of data
- Appreciation for science as
- a mode of inquiry?
- Others?
10- What models for course design are most successful
in developing scientific literacy for non-science
majors? - Existing models and curriculum
- New?
- Adaptations of existing curriculum?
11Model 1
- Introductory majors courses
- General Distribution requirement
- Biology/ Chemistry/Physics/ Earth science
- Content driven
- One field of exposure
- Message to non-majors?
- Lab component
- Positive!
- Focus on method (hopefully)
12Model 2
- Courses specifically designed for non-majors
- Watered down majors courses?
- Topical courses?
- Majors exempt from these courses?
- Value to majors as well as non-majors?
13Framing
- Otterbein College- Westerville Ohio, Liberal Arts
and Professional Programs- Comprehensive School. - Enrollment 2200 Undergraduates, 1200 Continuing
Studies and Masters students - General Education Program Integrative Studies.
(Core curriculum)
14General Education Models
- General Distribution requirement
- Two Year
- Four Year
- Core curriculum model
- Two year
- Four year
- Often thematic- goal is often more
interdisciplinary - Otterbein Integrative Core Curriculum
15Otterbeins Science Curriculum Pre and Post
revision
- Ten liberal arts courses required through our
- Integrative Studies program.
- This includes two IS courses in the sciences.
- Pre 2004
- Traditionally taken in the junior and senior
years. - Class size has averaged between 60-100 students
- Taught by one professor, in a largely lecture
format - No formal laboratory experience required.
16Otterbeins Science Curriculum Pre and Post
revision
- The Science Division at Otterbein decided to
reform - our non-majors science curriculum within our
- general education program (Integrative studies)
Post 2004 - We noticed a dichotomy in how we taught science.
- Department mission for Life Science
- Focus on scientific method.
- Engage student in the process of science through
active inquiry. - Create a community of scientists.
- Create scientifically literate citizens.
- Why arent we applying this to all students?
- Why just our majors?
- Learning outcomes for majors and non-majors the
same?
17Where we started
- Specific goals for new Integrative Studies
science courses - Shared with Majors courses
- Focus on scientific method.
- Engage student in the process of science through
active inquiry. - Create a community of scientists.
- Create scientifically literate citizens.
- Unique to Integrative Studies courses
- Reduce anxiety
- Focus on science as a way of knowing (Mode of
inquiry) - Team teach courses with an interdisciplinary/multi
disciplinary - focus.
18Is science too hard?
Rosalind Franklin
Watson and Crick Structure of DNA
Not meant to be pedantic statement. (Common
complaint of IS science courses And premise of
Emerti chemistry professor)
19Is science harder than other subjects to learn?
20Where does the perception that science is hard
come from?
21- Studies on science education date back as far as
you care to look. - As a group, you cant deny that scientists like
to gather information - and make comparisons. We generate questions and
test them. - We have a tendency to analyze things.
- As a result, scientists, and science educators
have studied and written - a lot about why people outside of the sciences
think - Science is so hard.
Louis FarianNSF June 2002
22- But is it unlearnable and should we give up?
- What do we know?
- Students have anxiety/avoidance/phobia about
science, - particularly concerning math.
- Sheila Tobias has written since the 1980s about
the impact - of Math anxiety on students perceptions of
science. -
- Tobias, S. (1985) Math anxiety and physics Some
thoughts on learning 'difficult'subjects. - Physics Today, Vol. 38 Issue 6, p60
- Tobias, S., (1990) They're Not Dumb. They're
Different. - Malcom, S. M., Ungar, H., Cross, K. P., Malcom,
S., (eds). Change, Vol. 22 Issue 4, p11-30 - And to make matters worse, Bower in (2001)
reported - that Math fears can actually subtract from
memory and learning.
23- Educators in physics have studied anxiety related
to this discipline - and found math phobia a major indicator.
- Tuminaro, J., Redish, E.F., (2004) Understanding
students poor performance on mathematical
problem - solving in physics. AIP Conference Proceedings,
Vol. 720 Issue 1, p113-116 - Redish, E. F., Steinberg, R. N. (1999) Teaching
Physics Figuring Out What Works. - Physics Today, Vol. 52 Issue 1, p24
- Laukenmann, M., Bleicher, M., Fub, S.,
Gláser-Zikuda, M., Mayoring, P., von Rhöneck,
C., (2003) - An investigation of the influence of emotional
factors on learning in physics instruction. - International Journal of Science Education, Vol.
25 Issue 4, p489 - Anxiety not as profound in Biology, but for
non-majors - certainly still a factor.
- Leonard, W.H., (2000). How do College Students
Best Learn Science?
24- 2. Students bring misperceptions about science
into the classroom. - Students tend to approach science as a fact based
field that needs - to be memorized, and the language is too
foreign. - Content, not process is stressed.
By stressing the process of scientific inquiry,
labs impart the content of science in a manner
that is relevant to students, increasing the
probability that students will come to
understand science as a way of knowing. Carolyn
Haynes, p187, Innovations in Interdisciplinary
Teaching, 2002, American Council on Education,
Oryx Press
25- Students tend to bring information from earlier
experiences into - the classroom, that is very difficult to
unlearn. This sets up - blocks to accepting different information.
- Michael, J. (2002) MisconceptionsWhat students
think they know. - Advances in Physiology Education, Vol. 26 Issue
1, p5-6 - Modell, H., Michael, J., Wenderoth, M.P., (2005)
- Helping the Learner To Learn The Role of
Uncovering Misconceptions. - American Biology Teacher, Jan2005, Vol. 67 Issue
1, p20-26 - Example Evolution is defined as Survival of the
Fittest - The strongest, and fastest survive.
- True or False?
26- False Evolution is gradual change over time.
- The mechanism of evolution is Natural Selection.
- Natural selection shows that those individuals
- most capable of leaving offspring are the most
- reproductively fit. Not necessarily the
strongest - or fastest.
273. Students bring different skills and histories
to the classroom. In Cross and Steadmans
Classroom Research, a discussion about
students prerequisite knowledge and learning
strategies points out that students may be quite
successful in one discipline, yet not have the
skills to cross that divide into a different
discipline. Cross, K.P. and Steadman, M.H.
(1996) Classroom Research, Implementing the
Scholarship of Teaching, San Francisco,
Jossey-Bass.
28- This raises the very important point, that it is
not that general - concepts in Science are Harder than other
subjects, its that - science is Different than other subjects.
- Students may not have the skill set, or the
mindset to see - that difference.
- They get trapped in memorization of unrelated
facts - They fear the use of math.
- They set themselves up for frustration.
29So what can we do?
30- Goals of new science courses
- Introduce science into the Integrative studies
curriculum earlier. - (Move one required course to the sophomore
year.) - Rationale Reduce science anxiety by modeling
that science is not - so Hard that a student cant handle learning
college science until - their upper level years.
- 2. Introduce inquiry based labs into each course.
- Rationale To refocus student learning from fact
based science to the - METHOD of science focusing on the principles of
scientific inquiry
313. Team teach courses with faculty from different
scientific disciplines. Rationale Model how the
scientific disciplines approach related problems
from different perspectives and with different
techniques. We want our students to discover
that science method is universal, and that
scientific theories are even stronger
when evidence is available from several fields of
study.
32- Key point
- Non-majors wont have the opportunity to
experience multiple fields - of science if we are using Introductory Majors
courses as the way to - fulfill science requirements.
-
- Students end up with a small sampling of content
in one - field, where the level of content is designed for
majors. - Interdisciplinary courses-
- Model how the scientific disciplines approach
- related problems from different perspectives and
with different - techniques.
- Science method is universal
- Scientific theories are even stronger when
evidence is available - from several fields of study.
33How can you organize general education science
courses to meet the needs of majors and
non-majors in science?
34Value for Majors to experience this too? We
think so- Integrative Studies science courses
are also required for science majors.
35- Courses offered to date
- Origins (Paleontology/ Molecular Biology)
- The Atom (Chemistry/ Physics)
- Why sex? (Ecology/ Molecular Biology)
- Exobiology (Physics/ Microbiology)
- Water (Ecology/ Chemistry)
- Faculty driven topics-
- Content is not the driving goal!
36What themes or content areas are most important
to develop scientifically literate citizens?
37Overall our goal is to alleviate science anxiety
and increase scientific reasoning skills by
building the courses around topics both students
and faculty will find intriguing and relevant as
well as by designing the courses for a sophomore
level audience and in so doing better prepare our
students for the second upper level science
courses.
38So have we been successful?
39What are the pros and cons of team-teaching
interdisciplinary science courses?
40Impact of team teaching on student learning
The rationale is that students working with
faculty from two different scientific
disciplines will get the opportunity to synthesis
ideas and see how questions in science are
addressed in many different ways. Carolyn
Haynes, 2002, Chapter 2, Enhancing
Interdisciplinary Through Team teaching. Chapter
9, Transforming Undergraduate Science through
Interdisciplinary Inquiry. American Council on
Education, ORYX Press The evidence for this
success so far is qualitative. Students
who participated in the team taught classes
overwhelmingly report a positive experience.
However, teasing apart team teaching
successes and failures is more difficult, due to
the nature of the team, and the specific topic of
the class.
41Team Teaching Experience related to Sex
P value 0.009
42Team Teaching Impact over time
43- One of our main focuses has been impact on
science anxiety. - A series of statistical comparisons were made to
assess levels of - pre-existing Science anxiety in the populations,
and to correlate - variables related to anxiety.
- Of the students who responded,
- 157 reported some level of science anxiety
- 170 reported no significant anxiety
44- Variables considered to determine the underlying
- factors that correlate with anxiety.
- 1. Current GPA
- 2. Year in College
- 3. Major (grouped by Academic Division)
- 4. Previous High School experience in science
courses. - 5. Gender
45Combined effect of sex and High School Experience
on Science Anxiety
P value 0.0003
46But did the students actually learn more about
scientific method by doing lab activities?
47To determine whether students had improved in
their ability to identify the scientific method,
I used a blinded coding scale. This was repeated
by a second Coder and the range of improvement
was averaged. For example. A student response
of Using science to answer questions was
given a score of (1) for limited knowledge. Other
responses were given scores of (2)- (5) based on
using code Words, including hypothesis, data,
repeatability, controls, experiment.
Pre and post test responses were randomized,
scored and resorted to match students response
and calculate the range of improvement. For
example a student who made significant
improvement in their definition would show a
scoring range of 4. A student who showed, no
improvement, or who was strong at the beginning,
would have no range score difference. These
ranges were then summarized for each class and
statistical significance was evaluated.
48Results of course comparison for the ability to
define scientific method.
49- So what do we know?
- Summary
- Gender is a strong predictor of science anxiety,
and is closely - tied to experience in High School science.
- Anxiety is difficult to alleviate, as evidenced
by both versions - of our non-majors science courses.
- 2. The majority of students regardless of
science background, - see the value of learning about science in
todays society, and - understand that participating in labs is a major
part of learning. - 3. Focusing on science method and modeling its
use - through labs and team teaching does result in
- statistically significant improvement in the
ability - to define the process of science method.
- 4. Team teaching is difficult to assess,
although overall it has been - reported as positive. Individual courses are
more or less successful. - small correlation that women are more critical
of team teaching. - All classes are effective at increasing student
awareness and - interest in science related current events.
50Where do we go from here? Focus on upper level
courses! Three years ago- Otterbein selected
by American Association of Colleges and
Universities to be one of sixteen schools in a
joint project Shared Futures General
Education and Global Learning. Piloting courses
throughout our Core curriculum focused on Global
Learning. (Not just science)
51Science Global Learning
Definitions and Learning Objectives
Current Working Definition To foster student
understanding and appreciation of science and its
cultural significance. To empower students to
develop and apply scientific and analytical
skills both in further understanding of
themselves and human nature and in an ethical
context towards solving global, national and
local problems.
52Science
Definitions and Learning Objectives
Two INST Science Courses Developmental
Model Lower level course Fundamentals of
scientific inquiry Upper level course The main
theme of these courses is to show how science and
scientific data are foundational to society,
through the exploration of a current global
issue. The courses will explore how science is
applied to an issue, and how other influences
also impact the issue.
53Science
Definitions and Learning Objectives
- Common Global Objectives for the course
- Understanding of data as the foundation of course
topic - Understanding of the active building of
scientific body of knowledge - new advances, future challenges
- Understanding of how the issue affects parts of
the world differently. - Understanding of how cultures react to the global
issue differently. - Understanding of how student decisions/actions
impact the issue (locally and globally). - Ethics and the possibility of addressing issue in
a sustainable way.
54ScienceExamples of Specific Syllabi objectives
INST350 Being in Nature- Plagues and
Pestilence This course is focused on the global
nature of infectious disease. Discovering how
plagues and pandemics, both historical and
emerging, impact human health and play a role in
how societies are shaped is an important piece of
understanding your role as a global citizen.
Infectious disease does not recognize state or
national boundaries, and the interconnected
relationship between microbiology, virology,
epidemiology, sociology, politics and history
provide a framework for making decisions in
todays world. This course will engage you in
issues that affect your personal health, the
health of your community and the health of people
across the planet, my goal is to help you find
those connections.
55(No Transcript)
56ScienceExamples of Specific Syllabi objectives
Learning Objectives By the time you complete
this course you should be able to 1. identify
and describe what types of microbes are
considered pathogens. 2. describe historical
plagues and pandemics that shaped
civilizations. 3. identify key advances in
medicine and technology that contain or prevent
pandemics. 4. describe the current state of newly
emerging and reemerging infectious agents that
influence current societies. 5. compare
historical events to current events and draw
inferences for future pandemic risks. 6. identify
current challenges in human health care and
treatment of infectious disease that impact
future pandemic risks. 7. consider how society
and culture recognize and respond to pandemic
threat, based on societal practices and resource
availability. 8. reflect on how your major and
other courses integrate into these topics and
what role you play in human health, personally
and as a global citizen.
57What themes or content areas are most
important to develop scientifically literate
citizens?
58Courses offered to date
IS350 Plagues and Pandemics IS400 Earth Science
and Humankind- focus on Coral Reefs IS400
Earth Science and Humankind- focus on
Sustainable energy usage IS360 Energy and
Society (in development) Others-
59Current Otterbein I.S. science curriculum
- Lower level team-taught multidisciplinary course
- Model how the scientific disciplines approach
- related problems from different perspectives and
with different - techniques.
- Science method is universal
- Scientific theories are even stronger when
evidence is available - from several fields of study.
- Upper level course on application of science
- to global issues
60Acknowledgments Otterbein College Science
Division Department of Life Science Mary
Gahbauer, Hal Lescinsky, Simon Lawrance, Sarah
Bouchard, Dean Johnston and Dave Robertson The
Integrative Studies Program Otterbein Center for
Teaching and Learning Leslie Ortquist-Ahrens SoTL
Professional Learning Community The McGregor
Fund National Science Foundation Grant
0536681 AACU Shared Futures FIPSE Grant