Bio-Sphere: Fostering Deep Learning of Complex Biology for Building Our Next Generation's Scientists

今天的公民面临着深刻的科学问题。如果美国要在以技术为中心的经济中保持竞争力，培养未来几代科学家至关重要。生物科学对于解决当今一些复杂的问题尤其重要，比如可持续性和粮食生产、生物燃料、二氧化碳及其对环境的影响。尽管生命科学方面的知识至关重要，但与物理和化学相比，对学生概念的研究要少得多。该项目的目标是帮助中学生，特别是农村和欠发达地区的中学生，培养深厚的科学知识和科学实践与常规知识。生物圈的一个主要优势是在生物学中包含了动手设计和工程，这是一个很少在中学水平上整合工程设计课程的领域。这些单元将使学生对科学内容有深入、有凝聚力的理解，并且生物圈将通过积极主动地与教师接触以及学术出版物在国内和国际上传播。该项目通过将复杂的社会科学问题引入中学课堂，并为学生提供教学材料，使他们能够像科学家一样实践科学，从而解决了灌输复杂科学深度学习的需求。研究团队将开发、迭代改进和评估一个名为“生物圈”的创新学习环境。生物圈结合了动手设计和工程的优势，让学生参与科学实践，并促进对复杂科学问题的学习，特别是在缺乏服务的人群中。每个生物圈单元都以设计挑战的形式呈现一个复杂的科学问题，学生通过进行实验，使用电子教科书中的可视化，并与社区联系来解决问题。这些单元与下一代科学标准相一致，提供了更大的连贯性、连续性和持续的教学，重点是在很长一段时间内发现和整合关键思想。该项目将遵循基于设计的研究方法。在第一阶段，将开发生物圈材料。第二阶段将包括在威斯康辛州的学校进行研究，以产生存在证明，即，检查与设计目标相关的法规，以了解设计是如何工作的。第三阶段的研究将侧重于实际实施：如何在完全不同的课堂环境中，在没有设计团队日常支持的情况下，将这种创新设计带入生活，并将在阿拉巴马州和北卡罗来纳州的农村学校进行。

Today's citizens face profound questions in science. Preparing future generations of scientists is crucial if the United States is to remain competitive in a technology-focused economy. The biological sciences are of particular importance for addressing some of today's complex problems, such as sustainability and food production, biofuels, and carbon dioxide and its effect on our environment. Although knowledge in the life sciences is of critical importance, this is an area in which there are significantly fewer studies examining students' conceptions than in physics and chemistry. The goal of this project is to help middle school students, particularly in rural and underserved areas, develop deep scientific knowledge and knowledge of the practices and routines of science. A major strength of Bio-Sphere is the inclusion of hands-on design and engineering in biology, a field in which there are fewer instances of curricula that integrate engineering design at the middle school level. The units will enable an in-depth, cohesive understanding of science content, and Bio-Sphere will be disseminated nationally and internationally through proactive outreach to teachers as well as scholarly publications.This project addresses the need to inculcate deep learning of complex science by bringing complex socio-scientific issues into middle school classrooms, and providing students with instructional materials that allow them to practice science as scientists do. Research teams will develop, iteratively refine and evaluate an innovative learning environment called Bio-Sphere. Bio-Sphere combines the strengths of hands-on design and engineering, engages students in the practices of science, and fosters learning of complex science issues, especially among underserved populations. Each Bio-Sphere unit presents a complex science issue in the form of a design challenge that students solve by conducting experiments, using visualizations in an electronic textbook, and connecting with the community. The units, aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards, provide greater coherence, continuity, and sustained instruction focused on uncovering and integrating key ideas over long periods of time. The project will follow a design-based research methodology. In Phase 1, the Bio-Sphere materials will be developed. Phase 2 will consist of studies in Wisconsin schools to generate existence proofs, i.e., examining enactments with respect to the designed objectives to understand how a design works. Phase 3 studies will focus on practical implementation: how to bring this innovative design to life in very different classroom contexts and without the everyday support of the design team, and will be conducted in rural schools in Alabama and North Carolina.