Are Africans, Europeans, and Asians Different “Races”? A Guided-Inquiry Lab for Introducing Undergraduate Students to Genetic Diversity and Preparing Them to Study Natural Selection

Abstract

Many students do not recognize that individual organisms within populations vary, and this may make it difficult for them to recognize the essential role variation plays in natural selection. Also, many students have weak scientific reasoning skills, and this makes it difficult for them to recognize misconceptions they might have. This paper describes a 2-h laboratory for college students that introduces them to genetic diversity and gives them practice using hypothetico-deductive reasoning. In brief, the lab presents students with DNA sequences from Africans, Europeans, and Asians, and asks students to determine whether people from each continent qualify as distinct “races.” Comparison of the DNA sequences shows that people on each continent are not more similar to one another than to people on other continents, and therefore do not qualify as distinct races. Ninety-four percent of our students reported that the laboratory was interesting, and 79% reported that it was a valuable learning experience. We developed and used a survey to measure the extent to which students recognized variation and its significance within populations and showed that the lab increased student awareness of variation. We also showed that the lab improved the ability of students to construct hypothetico-deductive arguments.

Investigating Issues in the Laboratory

“…An anonymous survey was composed of modified survey questions from assessments of another postsecondary science laboratory module (Kalinowski, 2012) and several questions developed by the authors that reflected the potential gains of teaching an issues-oriented science module (Lenz & Willcox, 2012). Closed-response survey questions used a rating system, as follows: 1 = Strongly Agree, 2 = Agree, 3 = Neither Agree Nor Disagree, 4 = Disagree, and 5 = Strongly Disagree.…”

Deaf, Hard-of-Hearing, and Hearing Signing Undergraduates’ Attitudes toward Science in Inquiry-Based Biology Laboratory Classes

“…Inquiry-based teaching practices place more responsibility for learning with learners; for example, students are responsible for decision making in experimentation ( Gormally et al ., 2011 , 2016), which may increase students’ interest in science ( Partin and Haney, 2012 ). We know that students in inquiry-based laboratory courses improve their skills with the scientific process ( Brickman et al ., 2009 ), science literacy ( Gehring and Eastman, 2008 ; Brickman et al ., 2009 ), conceptual knowledge ( Cox-Paulson et al ., 2012 ), and reasoning ( Beck and Blumer, 2012 ; Beck et al ., 2014 ; Kalinowski et al ., 2012 ). Additionally, a comparative study by Bilgin (2009) showed that students had more favorable attitudes toward inquiry-based learning when working in cooperative groups than when working alone.…”

“Trees Live on Soil and Sunshine!”- Coexistence of Scientific and Alternative Conception of Tree Assimilation

“…Recent studies on biological conceptions predominantly investigate the understanding of evolution and natural selection [ 14 – 19 ]. Conceptual studies on photosynthesis and related issues such as tree assimilation and wood synthesis date back to the 1980s, revealing one prominent alternative concept: Plants absorb nutrients from their environment [ 20 , 21 ].…”