Development of Research-Based Introductory Biology Course

作为一项战略计划的一部分，Feffis州立大学生物科学系将修改为期一年的生物学入门课程，以允许学生体验科学的方法——制定和测试假设，设计和进行实验，分析和解释数据，以及交流结果。本课程将建立与其他学科的联系，并强调研究。来自各个学科的教授将与学生研究团队讨论基于研究的案例研究，并通过大学WWW主页上的电子邮件BIONETWORK分享对实验室实验的解释。本课程的概念主题是光的生物效应。未来的生物学教师、生物技术和应用生物学专业的学生将参与实验室的开发和试点测试，然后作为每个实验室部门的研究导师。未来的生物教师将被分配到一个特殊的实验室，该实验室由一项教育合作伙伴关系下注册的地区高中生组成。主要目标是开发一系列研究核心——为学生研究团队提供多种选择的系统，以设计和进行实验，分析数据并使用多媒体“海报”展示他们的结果。每学期将有四个为期四周的研究单元，在以下领域各有一个-遗传学/细胞生物学，植物/动物生理学，生态学/行为和进化。一个由生物、化学、物理、数学、地理和教育等学科组成的开发小组，将在生物教育、生物技术和应用生物专业的协助下，开发个案研究和研究核心。

As part of a strategic plan to restructure the biology curriculum to emphasize ways that scientists gain knowledge, the Dept. of Biological Sciences at Feffis State University will revise the one-year introductory biology course to permit students to experience the methods of science-- formulating and testing hypotheses, designing and conducting experiments, analyzing and interpreting data, and communicating results. The course will forge connections to other disciplines and emphasize investigation. Professors from a wide range of disciplines will discuss research-based CASE STUDIES with student research teams and share interpretations of lab experiments via an e-mail BIONETWORK on the University's WWW home page. The conceptual theme of the course will the biological effects of LIGHT. Prospective biology teachers, biotechnology and applied biology majors will be involved in the development and pilot testing of the labs, then as research mentors to each of the lab sections. Prospective biology teachers will be assigned to a special lab section of area high school students enrolled under an educational partnership. A major goal is to develop a series of RESEARCH CORES--systems that offer multiple options for student research teams to design and conduct an experiment, analyze the data and present their results using a multimedia "poster" There will be four 4- week research units per semester, one in each of the following areas--in genetics/cell biology, plant/animal physiology, ecology/behavior, and evolution. A development team representing the disciplines of biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, geography and education will develop the case studies and research cores with the assistance of biology education, biotechnology and applied biology majors.