Instruction that increases acceptance of evolution is essential to effective biology instruction, but instruction about evolution is not consistently correlated with increased levels of acceptance. Does the pedagogical approach utilized make the difference? Using a curriculum that demonstrably increases evolution acceptance, we compare multiple…

This study examines what prior knowledge and misconceptions about evolutionary theory students bring with them into an introductory biological anthropology course. One hundred and fifty-three students completed short, anonymous surveys about evolution on the first day of class before any content was discussed. Of a possible seven points, the…

Acceptance of human evolution seems to be the majority position for the U.S. population; however, acceptance of evolution among conservative Christian groups is low, sometimes below 50%. There are many different reasons for this low acceptance, leading to a significant disconnect between scientific specialists and the general population. This…

The main objective of this study was to characterize the acceptance of evolution among biology majors. Semi-structured interviews were carried out to track the opinions of students in relation to two aspects of evolution: (1) attitudes toward evolution in general; and (2) attitudes toward human evolution. The participants characterized their…

Understanding of evolution is foundational to be a scientifically literate citizen because it allows analysis of socioscientific issues, such as biodiversity conservation, biotechnology applications, and human-induced climate change. Unfortunately, students who weakly understand evolution fail to understand its importance in everyday life and…

We describe a hands-on, collaborative activity designed to illustrate general properties of evolution, provide practice for quantitative skills, promote creativity and collaboration, and enable student self-assessment of learning. During the activity, teams construct bridges using common office supplies. The best-performing bridge becomes the…

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…

The authors wanted to improve student learning of evolutionary concepts by integrating content across the biology major. In this article they describe the process used to develop support among members of the department and administration to implement and measure the outcomes of curricular reforms.

Evolutionary theory is a central tenet of biological science, and it is essential for all science teachers, early childhood through secondary, to have a clear understanding of not only the science behind evolution, but also the legal precedents for teaching evolution in the classroom. This study examines the effectiveness of a curriculum on…

For biologists, a proper understanding of evolutionary processes is fundamentally important. However, undergraduate biology students often struggle to understand evolutionary processes, replacing factual knowledge with misconceptions on the subject. Classroom discussions can be effective active learning tools used to address these misconceptions…

Certain scientific conclusions are controversial, in that they are rejected by a substantial proportion of nonscientists despite an overwhelming scientific consensus. Science educators are motivated to help students understand the evidence behind the scientific consensus on these matters and to move students' views into alignment with those held…

Journal writing was introduced as a means to assess student learning and acceptance of evolutionary science in a nonmajors' biology course taught at a community college. Fourteen weeks of instruction were performed, each initiated by student-centered, in-class activities and culminated by a discussion, to elucidate tentative conclusions based on…

Population genetics is fundamental to understanding evolutionary theory, and is taught in most introductory biology/evolution courses. Many students are unaware that understanding this topic requires pertinent knowledge of mathematics and consequently struggle with the subject. As a response to this problem, a virtual tool (Pop!World) was…

In this inquiry-based activity, students catalog external and internal characteristics of four different classes of animals during dissection exercises. On the basis of their accumulated data, students compare and contrast the animals, devise a phylogenetic tree, and provide reasonable characteristics for extinct transitional organisms. (Contains…

Graduate-level reading groups serve as a primary forum for students to learn current and complex concepts in their field. Because graduate students lament that reading "abnormally long" articles discourage them from attending particular reading group sessions, we tested the hypothesis that attendance will decrease proportionally with…