Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Infrastructure for Inquiry Julia McArthur Division of Teaching and Learning and Charlene M. Waggoner Department of Biological Sciences Funded by Project NOVA (NASA Opportunities for Visionary Academics) and the National Science Foundation (DUE)

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Infrastructure for Inquiry Creating an environment where students and instructors can successfully do science.

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Outline  Inquiry-based science  Goals and realities of implementation  Assessment solution  Summary and Conclusions

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Inquiry-based labs  Activities are readily available.  Simple materials.  Readily adapted to content, goals, and available equipment.

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Doing Inquiry  Often a new format for undergraduates. Causes anxiety. “What am I supposed to do?” “What is the right answer?” “What do I need to know for the exam?”

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Teaching Inquiry  Often a new format for Instructors and graduate teaching assistants. Causes anxiety. Lab can be unpredictable. Need to know material and resources in greater depth to anticipate questions and problems. Uncomfortable as facilitator.

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Assessing Inquiry  Standard laboratory assessments do not assess the types of student learning encouraged.  Require memorization and not application.  Often segregate inquiry and process from “learning”. Costa and Kallick, 1995

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Issues with Inquiry  Students need instructional support.  Instructors need pedagogical development.  Assessment needs to be aligned with goals.

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Outline  Inquiry-based science  Goals and realities of implementation  Assessment solution  Summary and Conclusions

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Realignment  FIRST Align Assessment to Goals,  Then decide what support students need to meet goals,  Then find mechanisms for development of effective instructors.

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Goals  Provide students, particularly preservice teachers, with an authentic research-based experience.

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Real Goals  Have students do science.  Allow students to develop skills necessary to do science. Asking questions, designing experiments, manipulating materials, collecting data, evaluating evidence, communicating findings.  Transfer content and process knowledge to new situations.

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Realities  Many students  Multiple sections 26 consecutive labs 2 hours  Graduate teaching assistants 3 sections of 30 students each Little or no preparation for teaching

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Outline  Inquiry-based science  Goals and realities of implementation  Assessment solution  Summary and Conclusions

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Any Solutions  Must reward students for doing inquiry.  Must model all processes for students and instructors.  Must provide sufficient support for everyone to succeed.

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Students Doing Science  Every activity is constructed as a research question.  Students keep a detailed journal entry for every research question.  Each activity emphasizes different aspects of the process of doing science.

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Types of Laboratories  Understanding survivorship using model systems  Evaluating human survivorship  Population growth using Duckweed

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Portfolio Assessment  Linked directly to the laboratory journal.  Special pages that include space for instructions, student response, and a grading rubric.  Require students to reflect on the process.  Require students to set goals and then document their own progress.

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Reflection Page

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Student Portfolios  Midterm “This is my best collection because the graph shows exactly what tests were collected and they are all dated and initialed. Also they tell where all were sampled from and the outcome of the experiment.”

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Student Portfolios  Final “I now understand that the data collection is the raw data, not just what we added like my other. Plus I learned that the raw data is the experimental outcome before being analyzed.”

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Student Portfolios I will be able to ask better questions in the future if I…“Change my way of thinking. I am not very scientifically minded. I, as a person, don’t question. If I begin to do so, my questions will improve and be more frequent. I plan to work on this in the laboratory. I think the few questions I do have are focused and can be scientifically answered. There is just a lack of them. Questions about experiments should come from discrepancies in experiments or from knowledge unknown.”

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Student Portfolios “I now have a better understanding of how to set up an experiment so it can be more successful. It helps to have previous knowledge and to brainstorm different ideas for the experiment & to think out your controls so you know how to make sure they are carried out well enough for your experiment. I am also able to come up with many ways to limit mistakes made from previous experiments.”

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Other Assessments  Skills points  Journal Checks  Written assignments  Mini posters  Written exams

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Instructor support  MODELLING Master teacher Hands on  STRUCTURE Detailed grading rubrics Detailed script

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Progress  Versions of the portfolio are being used in all sections of Introductory Biology and Environment of Life.  Instructor’s manual is under development as are modifications of rubrics, and prelab activities.  Evaluation of program is ongoing.

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Outline  Inquiry-based science  Goals and realities of implementation  Assessment solution  Summary and Conclusions

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Summary  Reward what you value. If you want students to do science then reward them for doing it.  MODEL. MODEL. MODEL.  Support and structure are essential.

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Conclusions  The structured portfolio shows promise as a mechanism for assessing student understanding of the process of science.  In combination with other assessment tools it provides a picture of student progress toward course goals.

Waggoner and McArthur Bowling Green State University Acknowledgements  Dr. Mark Gromko, Vice Provost for Academic Affairs.  Dr. Eileen Underwood, Associate Professor, Biology  Graduate Students Kim Keller Amy Kireta Lyscelle Welcome And many others  Undergraduates Jacob Melrose Kristine Welling