"This class has helped me in writing argumentative papers and in thinking for
myself - interpreting things in my own way."
"I have learned the most from our issue groups. Reading about one issue from so many standpoints has given me a greater understanding of it. It has taught me to regard science with a critical eye."
-workshop students
Issues Projects at Other Institutions
In our new introductory non-majors biology course known as "Workshop Biology," we have established decision-making as the central goal of the course. We want students to see that biological concepts can, and must, be applied to decisions in their everyday lives, as they make lifestyle choices, consume goods and natural resources, vote, and raise the next generation. However, this goes beyond introducing every lecture with a newspaper article showing the topic's current relevance, beyond even taking time out from regular class activities to discuss current issues. We have found that most students simply cannot use information to make effective decisions without good models, practice, feedback, and explicit instruction in critical thinking. A major portion of our course, the Issues Project, is devoted to giving students the skills and confidence they need to effectively deal with important issues on their own.
The Issues Project requires groups of students to research a particular area in depth, with the aim of making a personal decision about a socially important scientific issue. In biology, many issues of social importance (e.g. whether to ban smoking in public, or how to deal with conflicts between economic development and the protection of biodiversity) rest on issues currently being debated by research scientists (whether second-hand smoke causes cancer, or whether a certain species should be classified endangered). Students dealing with the social aspect of such issues must also be able to deal with the scientific aspect. Some issues contain less scientific controversy, such as problems prompted by new developments in medicine and biotechnology (labeling of genetically engineered vegetables, for example), but these still require a thorough understanding of the biology involved.
We use a variety of activities to help students learn to identify and clarify issues, to locate appropriate information and resources concerning their issue, and to critically evaluate the evidence they find. Students also get feedback on their work at several stages by turning in problem statements, abstracts, and rough drafts. This series of assignments allows the instructors to maintain a continuous dialog with student groups on their progress, to emphasize the importance of revision in all types of writing, and to keep the groups on task.
When we began developing the issues activities, we expected the final product to be an individual paper and a group presentation, but have since found poster sessions to be a more effective means for students to present their work. Groups of three to five students each complete a poster, which is a more enjoyable and meaningful activity for most students than writing a paper or giving a formal presentation, and which gives the instructors only 35-50 posters to grade rather than 180 individual papers. We display the posters in the atrium of our main science building, so that not only can the students in the workshop learn from each others' work, students from other classes and other faculty can see their work, in an event that emulates what scientists actually do at professional meetings. These poster sessions have even been influential in getting other faculty to consider changing the way they teach and evaluate students.
The enclosed set of materials includes:
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materials for issues activities
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