Transformations from Traditional to an Investigative Student-Active

Introductory College Biology

ABSTRACT

The Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Southern Mississippi improved the content, method of instruction, and delivery of two sequential introductory biology courses with a grant from the National Science Foundation Division of Undergraduate Education* from 1999 to 2001. The first activity of the project was an eighty-hour summer workshop in 2000 that brought together faculty members from the University of Southern Mississippi, Jackson State University, and three community colleges, graduate teaching assistants, and preservice biology teachers to learn from instructional experts how to use constructivist-based investigations, cooperative learning techniques, and various forms of educational technologies. During the academic year 2000-2001, investigative laboratory activities, computer simulations, the use of technology in data collection, calculation, analysis, and model building were used in a constructivist teaching and cooperative learning setting to twelve sections of two introductory biology courses. Likewise, the instructors in the participating institutions used teaching innovations they developed from the workshop. A Share-a-thon meeting was held on May 18, 2001 where participants presented their innovations on instructional materials, teaching methods, and the educational technologies used in their classes. Quantitative and qualitative research methods were used in the evaluation of the project. The evaluation revealed that there was a significant difference in the achievement of the experimental group in understanding biology concepts and science process skills. Students revealed that computer simulation, model building, and educational technologies allowed them to conduct experiments on real time which helped them understand the processes and the concepts better.

__________________________________________________

* This project was supported by the National Science Foundation, Division of Undergraduate Education, under the provision of the Course, Curriculum and Laboratory Improvement program. Rosalina V.Hairston, project investigator, presented the report.