Integrating scientific literacy skills into a biochemistry course for nonscience majors

Bridging the biochemistry lecture and laboratory courses: Construction and application of the "Innovative Experimental Design" module

Both lecture and laboratory courses of biochemistry are important professional courses for undergraduates with biology related majors. Course optimization and update is crucial but challenging, especially for the laboratory course. Although taught separately, here we showed a strategy to bridge the two courses and promote the improvement of both. In addition to knowledge teaching, we implanted the "Innovative Experimental Design" module in the lecture course in which students were required to design and present their own experimental ideas. After evaluation by the faculty group, the best idea was supported for further experimental test. Here we described the preliminary experiments and optimization procedures about the idea of microbial fuel cells. This experiment is ready to be included into the laboratory course program in spring 2023.

A low-cost cure for CUREs: An undergraduate microbiology course engaging students in authentic research using publicly available datasets

Undergraduate research experiences are key to preparing STEM students for a range of careers and graduate programs, and to impacting retention in STEM. Providing undergraduate research experiences can be challenging for institutions due to the high cost associated with equipment and reagents, lab space, and research mentors. In this study, we present an upper-level microbiology seminar course that does not require these resources, as each student chooses and performs their own research project using data obtained from publicly available datasets. The faculty member provides hands-on instruction and regular feedback to mentor the cohort of students through all stages of their research projects, from honing a research question, to choosing a dataset, to data analysis and visualization. Students build science communication skills through each writing a scientific paper, and creating and presenting a scientific poster. These papers and presentations, along with results from student pre- and post-surveys, demonstrate that students built research and communication skills, while also building their confidence and interest in science careers. To access this research experience, students only need to register for this course; no application or selection is required, and no prior research experience is expected. The use of publicly available data makes this course a low-cost way to integrate authentic research projects into the college curriculum, and can be adapted to courses in any discipline. Such "low-cost CUREs" (course-based undergraduate research experiences) can be used to build capacity for undergraduate research experiences that are so crucial to preparing students for opportunities in and beyond college.

Effect of science virtual laboratory combination with demonstration methods on lower-secondary school students' scientific literacy ability in a science course

Virtual laboratory is computer software that has the ability to perform mathematical modeling of computer equipment presented in the form of simulations. Virtual laboratory is not a substitute for real laboratory, but are used to complement and improve the weaknesses of real laboratory. This study aims to determine the effect of virtual laboratory combination with demonstration methods on lower-secondary school students' scientific literacy ability in a science course. The design of this research is quasi-experimental. The sample in this study was 102 students (12-14 years old) in a lower-secondary school in the city of Yogyakarta, Indonesia, used as experiment 1 group 1 (n = 34), experiment 2 group (n = 34), and control group (n = 34). The three groups (experiment 1, experiment 2, and control) were tested with pretest and posttest. Experiment 1 group used virtual laboratory combination with demonstration methods, experiment 2 group used only virtual laboratory, and the control group used only a demonstration method. Scientific literacy ability was measured using multiple-choice tests before and after treatment. Statistical tests on mixed methods ANOVA were used to determine how effective the use of virtual laboratory combination with demonstration methods was in improving scientific literacy ability. The research result based tests of Within-Subjects Effects showed that there is a difference between the pretest-posttest scores of scientific literacy ability (F = 10.50; p < 0.05) in each group. The results based pairwaise comparison show that the significance value is <0.05, and there is a significant increase in the pretest-posttest scores of scientific literacy ability in every group. The result of effect size (partial eta squared) shows that the experiment 1 group to increase scientific literacy ability is 84.5%; experiment 2 group is 78.5%; control group is 74.3%. So, it can be concluded that experiment 1 group (virtual laboratory combination with demonstration methods) provides the most effective contribution to improving scientific literacy ability when compared to experiment 2 group virtual laboratory only) and control group (demonstration methods only).

An outreach activity to enhance biochemistry pedagogy

Students are self-motivated to learn when provided opportunities that connect theory and real-world applications. Here, we describe for biochemistry majors a newborn screening-focused outreach activity that seeks to develop students' mastery of disciplinary content and soft skills (e.g., critical thinking, teamwork, effective communication, community engagement) and to enhance student engagement.

Incorporating MOOC and COVID-19-Related Scientific Papers into Veterinary Microbiology Teaching to Enhance Students' Learning Performance and Professional Recognition

The COVID-19 pandemic has exerted a huge adverse influence on global teaching activities and students' psychological status. Veterinary microbiology is mainly concerned with bacterial and viral diseases, including coronavirus diseases. An innovative online-to-offline teaching approach for this course was established to stimulate students' learning initiative and mitigate their anxiety about COVID-19. A well-established massive open online course (MOOC) was first adopted as preview material before class, followed by in-person teaching. Additionally, COVID-19-related scientific papers were also used as pre-class reading material in veterinary microbiology and were further explained in class. The effect of this innovative teaching mode was systematically evaluated by final examination scores and questionnaires. The average score (81.75) and excellence score rating (> 85 scores, 37.3%) resulting from this blended teaching mode were not statistically higher than those of the online-only (79.19, p = .115; 28.6%, p = .317) or offline-only (79.47, p = .151; 27.9%, p = .269) teaching modes. This may be due to the sample size investigated; however, the results indicate that the innovative teaching mode did not decrease teaching quality. Additionally, most subjects (72.9%) were satisfied with the blended mode and supported its future use. Intriguingly, the introduction of COVID-19-related scientific papers helped students understand virology, relieve their anxiety, and increase their professional identity. Collectively, the innovative approach to teaching veterinary microbiology in this study provides a beneficial reference for other teachers to maintain and improve teaching quality.

Activities and assessment solutions for students in advanced molecular genetics and biochemistry to direct and engage with public communication in an online environment

Apart from classroom presentations to their instructors and peer groups, STEM students have limited opportunities or encouragement to engage in guided communication of scientific concepts to others (family, friends, or the general public). A critical need exists for accurate, comprehensible science to be disseminated to these groups. To develop student proficiency in communication of complex biomolecular concepts impacting diverse audiences, I introduce learning approaches and assessments easily adapted to fit the needs of individual instructors and any molecular biology or biochemistry laboratory or lecture course in a remote/online environment. To help students develop an appreciation of the needs of different audiences and the nuanced drivers of clear communication, I provided them the choice of projects of similar length: Option (1) Create a scientific news release and short podcast or video clip newscast describing a recent advancement in understanding the molecular/biochemical basis of a disease; or Option (2) Create a lesson plan and mini-video designed to teach a simple biochemical or molecular mechanism of disease with learning objectives, a brief activity, and appropriate assessment mechanisms. Students who chose the scientific news release/newscast activity distilled complex biomolecular concepts using the 5 W's of journalism-who, what, where, why, when-and learned to accurately communicate the relevance of advanced scientific discoveries and recent events for a broader audience. Students who chose the lesson plan designed activities centered on biomolecular science concepts that build upon what their audience already knows, revealing possibilities for undergraduates to contribute to educational outreach to secondary school teachers and classes.