Vision and Change in Biology Undergraduate Education: A View for the 21st Century

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Biology has changed radically in the last few decades and so has what we know about how people learn. It is time to reconsider how we approach biology undergraduate education. To this end the American Association for the Advancement of Science sponsored a series of conversations to enable a wide spectrum of the biological sciences community to provide insight into the changes that need to take place and how best to effect those changes. The report from those conversations is being produced and will serve as the basis for this project, a major meeting of faculty, students, administrators, professional societies to address the need for change and exchange information concerning effective efforts to upgrade undergraduate biology so that the biology taught to undergraduates reflects the approaches and concepts current in the discipline and takes advantage of new teaching technologies and findings. The published proceedings and the meeting itself are designed to produce an informed biology community and enhanced undergraduate education in the discipline, resulting in a transformative activity that engages a broad spectrum of the science community.Intellectual Merit: The intellectual merit of this project resides in the opportunity to have a vigorous discussion and exchange of information on ways to upgrade biology undergraduate education so that the content taught, the experiences offered to students and the pedagogy used truly represents the needs and resources of the 21st century. The proceedings will provide a resource for those engaged in biology education but who could not attend the meeting itself. Broader Impact: The broader impact of this project is in the diversity of the people who attend the conference, the diversity of the subdisciplines within biology and the institutions of higher education they represent, and the varied skills and experiences they bring to changes in approach to undergraduate education The dissemination plan includes both a printed and web based publication and is flexible enough to encompass other methods developed at the conference itself. In addition this meeting will include input from the three major funding agencies currently supporting advances in undergraduate education, the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, thus enlarging the scope of its influence.