Comic books employ a complex interplay of text and images that gives them the potential to effectively convey concepts and motivate student engagement. This makes comics an appealing option for educators trying to improve science literacy about pressing societal issues involving science and technology. Here, we report results from the first systematic assessment of how a science comic book can affect student learning and attitudes about biology. We used pre- and postinstruction instruments to measure students’ attitudes about biology, attitudes about comics, and content knowledge about evolution before and after using the science comic book Optical Allusions in their classes. On the preinstruction instrument, nonmajors reported the lowest scores on the content test and attitude surveys relative to the other groups. However, on the postinstruction instrument, nonmajors’ content scores and attitudes showed a statistically significant improvement after using the comic book, particularly among those with lower content knowledge at the start of the semester. The improvement in attitudes about biology was correlated to attitudes about comics, suggesting that the comic may have played a role in engaging and shaping student attitudes in a positive way.
To transform undergraduate biology education, faculty need to provide opportunities for students to engage in the process of science. The rise of research approaches using next-generation (NextGen) sequencing has been impressive, but incorporation of such approaches into the undergraduate curriculum remains a major challenge. In this paper, we report proceedings of a National Science Foundation–funded workshop held July 11–14, 2011, at Juniata College. The purpose of the workshop was to develop a regional research coordination network for undergraduate biology education (RCN/UBE). The network is collaborating with a genome-sequencing core facility located at Pennsylvania State University (University Park) to enable undergraduate students and faculty at small colleges to access state-of-the-art sequencing technology. We aim to create a database of references, protocols, and raw data related to NextGen sequencing, and to find innovative ways to reduce costs related to sequencing and bioinformatics analysis. It was agreed that our regional network for NextGen sequencing could operate more effectively if it were partnered with the Genome Consortium for Active Teaching (GCAT) as a new arm of that consortium, entitled GCAT-SEEK(quence). This step would also permit the approach to be replicated elsewhere.
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Robbing the Bees . A Biography of Honey: The Sweet Liquid Gold That Seduced the World. By Holley Bishop . Free Press, New York, 2005. 334 pp. $24, C$35. ISBN 0-7432-5021-4. Letters from the Hive . An Intimate History of Bees, Honey, and Humankind. By Stephen Buchmann with Banning Repplier . Bantam, New York, 2005. 288 pp. $24. ISBN 0-553- 80375-1. The Hive . The Story of the Honeybee and Us. By Bee Wilson . John Murray, London, 2004. 320 pp. £14.99. ISBN 0-7195-6409-3. An enthusiastic writer who has recently come to beekeeping; a researcher who has long worked on bees, flowers, and their ecosystems; and a historian of ideas (and food writer) offer their diverse perspectives on bees, honey, and humans.
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