Science Case Network

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Science Case Network
RCN-UBE Project 1062049 

• How an RCN-UBE on Case Studies and PBL Can Help
  Address Vision Change
• in Microbiology Education

Margaret Waterman, Ethel Stanley, Deborah Allen,
Pat Marsteller, Karen Klyczek, Mark Bergland,
Michelle Young, and Aditi Pai ASMCUE Englewood,
CO, May 16-17, 2013
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Agenda

• Experience case based learning
• Addressing Vision and Change
• Integrating investigations into case based
  learning
• Case methods for teaching diverse students
• Using cases at 2-year colleges
• Preparing future faculty

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There wasnt a mine runnin a lump of coal
Oral history courtesy of University of Kentucky
Library Oral History Project.
Teamus Bartley It was the saddest lookin time
then that ever you saw in your life. My brother
lived over there in the camps then and I was
working over there and I was dropping cars onto
the tipple. And that, that epidemic broke out
and people went to dyin and there just four and
five dyin every night dyin right there in the
camps, every night. And I began goin over there,
my brother and all his family took down with it,
whatd they call it, the flu? Yeah, 1918 flu.
And, uh, when Id get over there Id ride my
horse and, and go over there in the evening and
Id stay with my brother about three hours and do
what I could to help em. And every one of them
was in the bed and sometimes Doctor Preston would
come while I was there, he was the doctor. And he
said Im a tryin to save their lives but Im
afraid I aint going to. And they were so bad
off. And, and every, nearly every porch, every
porch that Id look at hadwould have a casket
box a sittin on it. And men a diggin graves
just as hard as they could and the mines had to
shut down there wasnt a nary a man, there wasnt
a, there wasnt a mine arunnin a lump of coal or
runnin' no work. Stayed that away for about six
weeks. Source http//www.oercommons.org/librarie
s/there-wasnt-a-mine-runnin-a-lump-o-coal-a-kentuc
ky-coal-miner-remembers-the-influenza-pandemic-of-
1918-1919/view

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Case Analysis
What do you think this case is about?
What do you already know that relates to this
case?
What do you need to know to understand the case?
What might you do next?
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SCN Addresses Vision and Change
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A Vision for Implementing Change

• Integrate core concepts and competencies into
  curriculum
• Focus on student-centered learning
• Authentic research experiences
• Innovative pedagogical practices active
  learning, multiple forms of instruction
• Assessment of student learning outcomes
• 3. Promote a campus wide commitment to change
• Administrative support, faculty development,
  resources and tools for reform
• 4. Engage the biology community

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A Vision for Implementing Change

• Integrate core concepts and competencies into
  curriculum
• Focus on student-centered learning
• Authentic research experiences
• Innovative pedagogical practices active
  learning, multiple forms of instruction
• Assessment of student learning outcomes
• 3. Promote a campus wide commitment to change
• Administrative support, faculty development,
  resources and tools for reform
• 4. Engage the biology community

Case studies and PBL
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Core Concepts for Biological Literacy

• EVOLUTION
• STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION
• INFORMATION FLOW, EXCHANGE, AND STORAGE
• PATHWAYS AND TRANSFORMATIONS OF ENERGY AND MATTER
  
• SYSTEMS

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Core Competencies

• Ability to
• apply the process of science
• use quantitative reasoning
• use modeling and simulation
• communicate and collaborate with other
  disciplines
• understand the relationship between science and
  society

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Core Competencies

• Ability to
• apply the process of science
• use quantitative reasoning
• use modeling and simulation
• communicate and collaborate with other
  disciplines
• understand the relationship between science and
  society

Case studies and PBL!
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SCN and Integrating Investigations
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SCN and Integrating Investigations

• Case It resources www.caseitproject.org
• Human and avian influenza cases
• ELISA and PCR simulation
• Sequence analysis, introduction to bioinformatics
• Open-ended research using sequences from NCBI
  influenza database

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SCN and Integrating Investigations
ELISA results
Sequence analysis drug resistance
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SCN and Integrating Investigations

• Open-ended investigation
• Compare influenza viruses isolated from different
  geographic regions, species, and times.
• Pose a question regarding these parameters, and
  obtain and compare sequences from the NCBI
  influenza database to address the question
• http//www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/genomes/FLU/

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SCN and Teaching Diverse Students
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Diversity What is the problem?
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Diversity What is the solution?

• Customize
• Active learning
• Relevant
• Engaging

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Data-data-data!!!!

• What happened in our new curriculum.

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Did students like case based introductory course
better?
Questions relating to learning experience in the survey Bio112 mean (SD) Bio110 mean (SD) Result of t-test
The course improves my understanding of concepts and principles in this field 3.04(1.36) 4.5(0.65) T 5319.35 P lt0.005
Course activities and assignments assist with learning the course content 3.31(1.49) 4.56(0.70) T 5313.70 P lt0.005
Exams and assignments accurately reflect the course objectives 3.80(0.87) 4.39(1.40) T 535.17 P lt0.005
The course is intellectually challenging 3.68(0.92) 4.54(0.71) T 5317.71 P lt0.005
I can apply information and skills learned in this course 3.5(0.96) 4.21(0.92) T 5310.59 P lt0.005
The course encourages me to think critically 3.86(0.83) 4.48(0.61) T 5316.19 P lt0.005
The course motivates me to do further exploration in this area 3.59(1.05) 4.24(0.54) T 5313.88 P lt0.005
I learned a great deal from this class 3.40(1.05) 4.34(0.65) T 5317.34 P lt0.005
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Did students gain conceptual knowledge over the
semester from the case study based introductory
biology?

• Pre-and post-class test
• 20 questions, very basic concepts
• Yes
• Pre- class test 52.5 and post -class test 63

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Did we retain more students?
P lt0.001
Retention in Bio major has INCREASED with new
curriculum
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Challenges Community Colleges Face

• Students attending community colleges come from
  diverse educational backgrounds, vary widely in
  academic skill levels, and may not be certain of
  their educational goals.
• Community colleges serve students with diverse
  social backgrounds and diverse needs students
  may be torn among roles as student, parent,
  employee, spouse and/or caretaker and may attend
  intermittently.
• Many of the students are low-income and may lack
  the knowledge to navigate the post-secondary
  world.

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• Community colleges educate nearly HALF of all
  undergraduates in the country, yet fewer than
  half of these students who enter the community
  college with the goal of earning a degree or
  certificate have met their goal SIX years later.
  
• Achieving The Dream (2011)

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Case Studies Open the Door to Success

• Students enter community colleges for a single
  course, to upgrade a job skill, to earn a
  promotion, to earn an associates degree or
  certificate, or to transfer to a four-year
  institution.

WHY ARENT STUDENTS MEETING THEIR GOAL??
Case studies engage students by using relevant,
real world learning experiences!
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Teaching Cases with Cases

• Pat Marsteller
• Director, Emory College Center for Science
  Education
• Professor of Practice in Biology

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Using cases to engage faculty and future faculty

• Cases that introduce PBL and Cases
• Cases to guide adopt and adapt
• Cases to guide new case development
• Cases to introduce students to rules and cases

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PRISM

• On the first day of the PRISM summer institute as
  everyone gathered for breakfast, Pat came in
  waving the AJC. Did you see the AJC article
  yesterday? She exclaimed. Check out this
  article on the front page of metro. Atlanta will
  tailor middle and high school to classes to
  gender-specific needs. What do you think? she
  hands the article to Ken.
• Atlanta school plans to accommodate the
  biologically-based gender-specific learning
  styles that are currently unaddressed in the
  co-educational format. Ken reads with
  disbelief. They want to implement these changes
  next year! First at Carson middle and then
  6-12! Not only that but the superintendent plans
  to convert all the high schools into small
  learning communities each with a career or
  academic focus and engaged pedagogy. What do
  you suppose that means?
• I was on the committee that recommended we
  address this problem. In fact, Im consulting
  with a number of the Atlanta area districts.
  Leonard Sax says with pride.

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• later in the case
• Alan interjectedDo we have to change
  everything? PBL seems like it might take a lot
  more class time. Why, I heard a presentation
  last year that said that each PBL unit was 3-7
  class periods long! I think traditional methods
  like lectures can cover a lot more material and
  theyve been working for a long time. I dont
  mind throwing in a few of these case things as
  practicums, but only after Im certain they have
  the basics down. You really have to show me why
  this new approach is better!
• Mary a grad studentAnd besides where would we
  find the time to develop problems and cases? I
  have all I can do to keep my lab running and to
  prep my lectures.

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Rules Cases

• Whos the Boss?
• Well never finish on time just let But I did
  all the work! Thats because you hogged it
  all! Students work as a class and in groups to
  explore group dynamics, drawing on their own
  expertise about what works and what doesnt.
• The Class Rules
• Student groups get together to research group
  dynamics and become experts on what works and
  what doesnt in doing cases.
•  

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How Can SCN Help You?

• What can SCN do to help you as microbiology
  educators?
• What do you need from SCN?
• THINK
• GROUP
• SHARE 3 most important points

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Explore and Join Science Case Net

• at http//sciencecasenet.org
• Sign up for or create groups
• Find case studies and PBL problems
• Find collaborators
• Learn about teaching with cases
• Learn about research on case based learning
• Twitter Facebook
• _at_scicasenetwork Case Study Network

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Thank You!