The field of epigenetics is progressing rapidly and becoming indispensable to the study of fundamental gene regulation. Recent advances are redefining our understanding of core components that regulate gene expression during development and in human diseases. Scientific knowledge on the importance of epigenetic regulation is now well known and…

Understanding natural selection and adaptation are important precursors to learning evolution (NGSS Lead States 2013), the central unifying principle of biology. This lesson sequence, guided by the Five Practices Model (Cartier et al. 2013), incorporates data described by Andersson (1982) that details female choice in a population that eventually…

Inquiry methods have been successful in improving science literacy in students of all ages. Model-Based Inquiry (MBI) is an instructional model that engages students in the practices of science through the collaborative development of scientific models to explain an anchoring phenomenon. Student ideas are tested through engagement in content-rich…

This article describes the development of a model for an optional, research-based course that bridges two existing, traditionally separate, introductory science courses. This research course provided freedom for students to design and implement new experiments on the basis of technical foundations built from enrollment in separate introductory…

Genetic drift is a concept of population genetics that is central to understanding evolutionary processes and aspects of conservation biology. It is frequently taught using rather abstract representations. I introduce three real-life zoological examples, based on historical and recent color morphs of tigers, tapirs, and ravens, that can complement…

The purpose of this article is to describe a model for teaching introductory biology coursework within the Vision and Change framework (American Association for the Advancement of Science, 2011). The intent of the new model is to transform instruction by adopting an active, student-centered, and inquiry-based pedagogy consistent with Vision and…

"The Brain-Targeted Teaching Model for 21st-Century Schools" serves as a bridge between research and practice by providing a cohesive, proven, and usable model of effective instruction. Compatible with other professional development programs, this model shows how to apply relevant research from educational and cognitive neuroscience to classroom…

Understanding biological structures and functions is often difficult because of their complexity and micro-structure. For example, the vascular system is a complex and only partly visible system. Constructing models to better understand biological functions is seen as a suitable learning method. Models function as simplified versions of real…

Allowing a student to "see" through touch what other students see through a microscope can be a challenging task. Therefore, author Joan Bradley created three-dimensional (3-D) models with one student's visual impairment in mind. They are meant to benefit all students and can be used to teach common high school biology topics, including the…

In the project presented in this article, high school students create and observe miniecosystems in an ecology unit designed around a 5E (engagement, exploration, explanation, elaboration, and evaluation) instructional model. Students choose a wide variety of organisms and use creativity to design miniecosystems. (Contains 1 table and 3 figures.)

This paper has arisen as a result of teaching Models in Biology to undergraduates of Bioengineering at the Gediminas Technical University of Vilnius. The aim is to teach the students to use a fresh approach to the problems they are familiar with, to come up with an articulate verbal model after a mental effort, to express it in rigorous…

In April 2003 the first European Science Olympiad took place in Dublin City University in Ireland. In this competition second level students were asked to carry out a number of tasks involving biology, physics and chemistry. Students had qualified initially in competitions in one of these subjects and were organised into integrated teams which…

We describe a simple, yet intellectually challenging model of grazing systems that introduces basic concepts in ecology and systems analysis. The practical is suitable for high-school and university curricula with a quantitative orientation, and requires only basic skills in mathematics and spreadsheet use. The model is based on Noy-Meir's (1975)…

Experienced undergraduate students served as Peer Learning Assistants (PLAs) to facilitate group process and dynamics in cooperative learning groups. Use of this model in large classes (150 students) resulted in significant improvement in group performance and satisfaction with group experience. PLAs defused conflict within groups, and faculty…

Resource-based learning is described in this document as a pupil-centered approach to teaching science in which a wide variety of resources are used. Students are given some freedom of pace and choice of activity while teachers provide resources to the student when they are needed. The learning is then based on the resources and the pupil can make…