Research shows that there are multiple benefits to giving college students oral rather than written exams. However, studies that examine, describe, and differentiate how students view their oral exams were never found in a literature search. The purpose of this study was to use Q methodology [Q] to describe the divergent student views about taking…

Over the past decade, researchers have developed several teaching observation protocols for use in higher education, such as the Teaching Dimensions Observation Protocol (TDOP), Classroom Observation Protocol for Undergraduate STEM (COPUS), Practical Observation Rubric to Assess Active Learning (PORTAAL), and Decibel Analysis for Research in…

We propose cross-disciplinary learning as a construct that can guide instruction and assessment in programs that feature sequential learning across multiple science disciplines. Crossdisciplinary learning combines insights from interdisciplinary learning, transfer, and resources frameworks and highlights the processes of resource activation,…

Although making errors in the learning process is common, it is usually perceived by students as something negative and a potential threat to self-esteem. Such perception often prevents students from considering errors as learning opportunities. By using errors as integral elements of the learning process within the science classrooms, and…

At the authors' public liberal arts institution, biology masters students are required to enroll in BIOL 5050: Teaching Techniques. Course topics include designing effective lectures, assessment, classroom management, diversity in the classroom, and active learning strategies. The impact of this type of training on graduate students' attitudes and…

This column provides original articles on innovations in case study teaching, assessment of the method, as well as case studies with teaching notes. This month's issue describes incorporating a journal article into the classroom by first converting it into a case study.

College instructors faced a rapid transition to remote instruction in spring 2020, and with it a host of new teaching challenges. This qualitative study investigates what 26 college biology instructors learned about students and teaching during this time. We used semi-structured interviews and content analysis to identify instructor learning that…

One common notion is that all classrooms using Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL) are the same. Though POGIL has essential components, this research found that students' conceptual achievement, a classroom outcome, can be differentially affected by professors' style of POGIL implementation. Audio/ video recordings of student groups…

Digital badging is an innovative method of valid, evidence-based assessment that may be used to assess hands-on skills in undergraduate science laboratories, in research laboratories, and in fieldwork. A digital badge contains information about who was awarded the badge, the criteria used, the evidence submitted, the issuer, the date issued, and…

The learning goals of a lower division honors course, Science as a Way of Knowing, include critical thinking, scientific literacy, quantitative reasoning, communication, and teamwork. To help students develop skills and competencies for the course learning outcomes, we used a case study and developed scaffolded activities and assignments that…

Three alternative approaches to assessment of exam responses were applied in an undergraduate biochemistry course. First, phenomenography was used to categorize written exam responses into an inclusive hierarchy. Second, responses to the same question were similarly categorized according to the Structure of Observed Learning Outcome (SOLO)…

This study evaluated a strategy using "clickers," POGIL (process oriented guided inquiry learning), and a focused science literacy orientation in an applied science course for non-STEM undergraduates taught in large classes. The effectiveness of these interventions in improving the science literacy of students was evaluated using a…

Case study teaching had a long tradition in law and business before it made the jump to medical school education in the form of Problem-Based Learning (PBL) in the 1970s. Today, both the University of Delaware's Clearinghouse and the University of Buffalo's National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science (NCCSTS) have hundreds of cases and…

Mastery learning is an instructional method based on the idea that students learn best if they fully understand, or master, one concept before moving on to the next and has been shown to be extremely effective in math and science curricula. Competency-based grading is an evaluative tool that allows the faculty member to determine the level of…

The authors describe a collaborative group-testing strategy implemented and studied in undergraduate science classes. This project investigated how the assessment strategy relates to student performance and perceptions about collaboration and focused on two sections of an undergraduate biotechnology course taught in separate semesters.