Biological Literacy Research Articles

Biological education in changing sociocultural conditions

The article discusses the issues facing the biological education of schoolchildren as a unique tool for the development of biological literacy of the individual and society, designed to ensure their preservation, safety and adaptation to various changes. Biological literacy is important for all age and professional categories, especially for socalled nonbiologists, who are responsible for making biosphere - and socially signifcant decisions, but unfortunately do not possess it. It develops mainly in the process of learning at school. According to our ideas, we defne three levels of its formation - academic, functional, and system. The last two levels are aimed at mastering knowledge and developing metacompetencies (cognitive, communicative, activity, value), scientifc outlook and personal qualities in the process of mastering the subject. For its formation, we have developed a conceptual didactic system of training on an integrative basis. The practice of implementation in schools, universities and teachers ‘ professional development in the educational process has shown its efectiveness. It was submitted to the Commission on biological education of the International union of biological sciences at UNESCO, which initiated the development of bioliteracy in the world at the conference in Moscow (1997). The article analyzes the results of its own, as well as international studies (TIMMS, PISA 2015, 2018.; TALIS, 2018) problems of biological education in the formation of bioliteracy in a changing sociocultural and ecological settings in recent years (biology and environmental challenges, digitalization of the educational environment, pandemic 2019-2020, etc.). They indicate the need for an early response from the educational community. Among them: the problem of reducing the educational time of mastering subjects of the biological cycle, which has a systemnetwork nature. That leads to many interrelated consequences; lack of awareness of teachers in the real results of educational achievements of schoolchildren; replacement of biology lessons with other subjects; outdated content of biological subjects, and some others. Despite the unsatisfactory results in the formation of biological literacy and related metacompetencies, the latter are currently perceived by teachers as a secondary need. The article discusses the reasons that lead to such results. The issue of the content of biological education remains unresolved. We believe that training programs should be updated by including knowledge, for example, in virology, microbiology, immunology, epidemiology and other branches of biology, as well as translating the acquired knowledge into the practice of everyday life. Today it will be in demand among all categories of citizens. For the development of biological literacy, the process of mastering digital technologies is important, as a new means of learning and a vector of selfdevelopment, which requires the use of activity control by biology teachers and parents in practice. The results of the study of schoolchildrens’ learning problems can be used in the modernization of biological education at all levels of education, including in improving the skills of teachers.

Bio-repropedia website based on reading, mapping, and sharing (RMS): A way to improve biological literacy

This research aims to determine the effect of the Bio-Repropedia website based on reading, mind mapping, and sharing (RMS) learning model of reproductive system materials to improve student biological literacy. The method used is a quasi-experimental with one group pretest-posttest design. Sample of 61 students were taken random sampling from the class XI IPA SMAN 16 Jakarta, Indonesia student population. The instrument used is biological literacy oriented tests amounted to 30 items. Data were analyzed using descriptive methods, t test and normalized gain. The results showed an increase in biological literacy due to the application of the Bio-Repropedia website based RMS to reproductive system learning. The normalized gain score of 0.69 indicated that the Bio-Repropedia website is effective at improving biological literacy. The Biorepropedia Website based on RMS is best at improving the multidimensional aspects of biological literacy and the concept of menstruation of the reproductive system.

Bio-literacy perspective: A study of the implementation of outdoor learning-based science process skills in plant introduction

The study aims to describe an implementation study of outdoor learning based science process skills based on a bio-literacy perspective. The method used is quantitative analysis to see the influence of implementation of science process skills, while to reveal the effect of each indicator of each predictor used qualitative descriptive analysis. The samples in this study were two groups of biology teacher candidates taken by cluster random sampling techniques. The research instrument is a science process skills test with data analysis techniques using Anacova. The results concluded simultaneously there was an influence on the implementation of the science process-based outdoor learning skills from the perspective of bio-literacy at a level of significance 0.05. To measure the ability of bio-literation, it is not only needed instruments at the level of conceptual understanding but instruments that can assess learning with scientific methods and practices. Practically science process skills can be an effort in mapping the domain of biological literacy.

Teaching Biology in Primary Education

This paper highlights the importance of teaching biological concepts in Primary Education and the need for enhancement in students of scientific literacy in general and biological literacy in particular. The students should be aware of the reality they experience in order to make decisions as active citizens and the teachers should use the best available methods and didactic approaches to enhance students’ scientific literacy and prepare them for their real life. In this regard, it is important to build curricula that utilize multiple learning resources and adopt student-centred methods and practices such as inquiry-based learning, collaborative learning and the use of digital educational content. These approaches boost the 21st-century skills through the active participation of students and improve the learning outcomes. Hence, teachers play a significant role, because they should know those methods and practices to utilize in transmitting the scientific knowledge to the students and teach effectively the biological concepts to them.

Культурно-исторические основания содержания общего биологического образования

The article analyzes the provisions of the cultural-historical psychology that serve as a theoretical and methodological basis for the practice of general education in biology. International monitoring of educational achievements reveals low biological literacy of Russian schoolchildren. The authors see the main reason in the insufficiently thought-out selection of the subject content. In middle school courses, it is mostly empirical, reduced to the study of the structure and functions of organisms and their diversity. In high school courses, it is theoretical, but theoretical concepts are given in a ready-made form, are not sufficiently interconnected and are often reduced to dictionary definitions, which negatively affects the development of cognitive and personal abilities of students. Currently, general biological education is being reformed, and the concentric construction of the subject content is being replaced with a linear one, which completely eliminates theoretical concepts from the middle school courses. The authors see the solution to the problem in updating the content of the school course in biology. As a methodological basis for the selection of content, a system approach is considered, the provisions of which were implemented by L.S. Vygotsky in the construction of the subject area of the cultural-historical psychology. Vygotsky’s ideas about developmental learning and their further elaboration in the general psychological and psychological-pedagogical theory of activity are suggested as a theoretical basis for the organization of the educational process. Special attention is paid to the theory of learning activity developed in the works of D.B. Elkonin, V.V. Davydov, their disciples and followers. The paper presents the concept of the content for the school course in biology and describes the experience of its implementation.

A Lesson on Matter and Energy at the Organismal Scale: Linking Patterns and Processes Across Diverse Taxa

Pathways and transformations of energy and matter (PTEM) are a conceptually challenging but essential component of biological literacy. Curricular gaps about PTEM nevertheless remain; although lessons targeting PTEM at small scales (chemical, molecular, cellular) and large scales (ecological, global) are most common, they do not necessarily address understanding of the intervening organismal scale. Moreover, at the organismal scale, student reasoning about PTEM in one taxonomic category (e.g., animal growth) does not necessarily transfer to others (e.g., fungal growth). Building on prior studies, we developed five organismal-scale activities about animals, plants, and fungi that address misconceptions, promote active learning, and require minimal background knowledge of chemistry. These activities are best suited for large (&gt;200) active-learning courses for non-majors or majors with heterogeneous science concept mastery. The lessons involve answering 17 clicker questions, making predictions, building explanatory models, and correcting common misconceptions. The activities include: (i) introducing matter and energy, (ii) understanding what is (and is not) food, (iii) predicting change in mass across the tree of life, (iv) explaining changes in matter and energy using conceptual models, and (v) correcting misconceptions about matter and energy. Pre-post assessments produced significant (p &lt;.01) and meaningful (Cohen&#39;s <em>d</em> = -1.8) learning gains, as well as widespread improvement (98% of 449 students). Instructors may choose to use the five activities in isolation or together, or independently make use of the clicker question set. For more advanced students, the activities may be used as pre-course assignments in preparation for more complex learning tasks. <em>Primary image:&nbsp;</em>Six examples of plants and animals undergoing changes in mass, used for creating conceptual models about matter and energy in organisms. Plant examples have different light environments, and animal examples have different activity levels.

A Comparative Analysis of the Biological Parts of the National Curricula in Lower Secondary Education in the Czech Republic and Selected Post-Communist Countries

In the Czech Republic, a revision of the national curricular documents for primary and secondary education is being prepared and intensively discussed. The aim of this paper is therefore to contribute to the ongoing professional discussion and to select the key aspects of foreign curricular documents that may be inspiring for the Czech curricular reform.In our study, we compare the concept of the biological part of the valid national curricular documents for lower secondary education (from the 6th to the 9th grades), the second stage of basic school in the Czech Republic, with five selected post-communist European countries, namely Estonia, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia. We focused on the following key aspects: a) the major characteristics of biology as a school subject (or the biological part of the subject “science”); b) specification and arrangement of subject matter; c) biology as a scientific discipline; d) didactic recommendations and requirements; e) the way of treating crucial biological disciplines; f) other criteria, such as emphasis on local regions or public engagement.We consider the Estonian and Slovenian educational programmes to be the most inspiring ones, since they elaborate general educational objectives to the level of particular learning content and standards of knowledge. We also find the links to practical work and ICT and connections between biology and general competences very useful when using the documents in classroom practice. The Slovenian document offers an inspiring holistic approach to teaching of biological issues. The Estonian curriculum is a good example of incorporating local aspects, such as typical local ecosystems. The national curricula of both countries recognise biological knowledge and scientific literacy as being very important for the lives of the individual as well as for society.

KEMAMPUAN LITERASI BIOLOGI BERDASARKAN GENDER PADA SISWA PEMINATAN MIPA DI SMA NEGERI KABUPAEN LOMBOK BARAT

PISA measurement results from 2000-2015 show the fact that students in Indonesia have a low ability in the science literacy. This study aims to determine the ability of biological literacy based on gender in MIPA Specialization students in SMA Negeri in West Lombok regency. This research used descriptive qualitative method. Samples of research were 360 students from 2357 students of class XI and XII MIPA interest in 6 Senior High Schools of West Lombok regency in learning year 2017/2018. The research instrument uses adaptation of PISA Science Literacy test in 2006 and 2009 which consists of two aspects, namely: Knowledge and Competency). The result of this research: Biology literacy ability of MIPA Student by gender in West Lombok regency, male students dominant at level 1, level 2 and level 3 while female student is dominant at level 4, level 5 and level 6.Keywords: Biological literacy, Gender, MIPA Specialization

Wild vertebrates and their representation by urban/rural students in a region of northeast Brazil

BackgroundRecognition of the diversity of living beings, including the classification and naming of species, is a fundamental condition for biological literacy with the aim of developing critical awareness of human relationships with nature, and for which formal education plays an important role. The present study aimed to analyze the representation that urban/rural students have for wild vertebrates and their main sources of knowledge.MethodsData collection took place in three public schools, one urban and two rural, in the municipality of Campina Grande, Paraíba, Brazil. Questionnaires were given to 990 students (528 urban and 462 rural), distributed among all the grades that comprise middle school (Ensino Fundamental II, grades 6–9) and high school (Ensino Médio, grades 10–12) education.ResultsA total of 5877 citations were mentioned by the students, which corresponded to 224 distinct animals with 166 (72.0%) being wild vertebrates, 24 (25.7%) being domestic vertebrates, and 34 (2.3%) being invertebrates. Mammals and reptiles had the greatest observed richness of citations, while mammals (H′ = 3.37), birds (H′ = 2.84), and invertebrates (H′ = 2.94) had the greatest diversity. Positive correlations were found between citations of wild vertebrates and family income (rt = 0.06; P < 0.05) and curricular development (rs = 0.08; P < 0.01); negative correlations were found between curricular development and citations of domestic animals (rs = − 0.22; rs = − 0.11 P < 0.01) and between age group and citations of invertebrates (r = − 0.14; rs = − 0.11 P < 0.01). As for the sources of knowledge regarding the animals indicated by the students, “media,” “daily experiences,” “tradition” (here understood as knowledge resulting from interactions with parents and experienced community members), and “formal education” stood out.ConclusionsComprehension of vertebrate diversity is a fundamental condition for the development of attitudes compatible with its conservation, which emphasizes the importance of biological literacy in achieving this purpose.

Identifying the Predictive Power of Biological Literacy and Attitudes Toward Biology in Academic Achievement in High School Students

Identifying the Predictive Power of Biological Literacy and Attitudes Toward Biology in Academic Achievement in High School Students

Biology instruction using a generic framework of scientific reasoning and argumentation

We investigated biology instruction—using a generic framework of scientific reasoning and argumentation (SRA) with eight epistemic activities—on how to foster student learning in biological literacy which had not been clarified in previous studies. Our analysis of videotaped biology lessons and student achievement showed varying frequencies in using these activities and their effects on achievement. Those students taught with more epistemic activities had higher achievement. We believe that the SRA framework can be a worthwhile methodical tool for teaching biology to foster student learning. Therefore, we draw practically orientated implications for educational research, practitioners, teacher educators, and curriculum developers.

Enhancement of Students’ Biological Literacy and Critical Thinking of Biology through Socio-Biological Case-Based Learning

&lt;p&gt;Biology is a leading science and a foundation in everyday life for all people. Biology student teachers need to be equipped with biological literacy and critical thinking skills in order to teach biology in the future. This research is aimed at determining the effect of socio-biological case-based learning on biological literacy and critical thinking skills of biology student teachers compared with the traditional learning (lecture-based learning). Socio-biological case-based learning is a model of problem-based learning by placing biological cases as a problem to be explained and solved through a series of investigative activities. This research was a quasi-experimental conducted at the Department of Biology, Universitas Negeri Malang. The research samples were the first year students who programmed the General Biology course, consisting of 29 students as a control group and 33 students as experimental group. This research was conducted in September-December 2015. The data of biological literacy and critical thinking were collected from pre-test and post-test. The data were analyzed using ANCOVA test. The research showed that there was a significant difference of biological literacy and critical thinking skills between the students taught by using socio-biological case-based learning and those taught by using lecture-based learning. The research indicated that the socio-biological case-based learning could enhance the biological literacy and critical thinking skills of biology students teachers.&lt;/p&gt;

Supporting upper-level undergraduate students in building a systems perspective in a botany course

Undergraduate biology majors require biological literacy about the critical and dynamic relationships between plants and ecosystems and the effect human-made processes have on these systems. To support students in understanding systems relationships, we redesigned an undergraduate botany course using an ecological framework and embedded systems modelling to support students in understanding the criticality of plant processes to the global carbon cycle. The class meetings included lectures, opportunities to develop systems models identifying the relationships between plant processes and other systems, reflections on their systems understanding and open-floor discussions about assigned primary and secondary readings that explored the relationships between plant systems, abiotic and biotic processes and global carbon cycling in their systems models. We used the systems models students developed at the beginning and end of the course to examine how their systems understanding grew. Our results suggest that at the beginning of term, students’ ideas about plants were egocentric identifying the purpose of plants was to support human life and they did not consider relationships between plants and global carbon systems. By the end of the term, their models and reflections identified elements of a systems perspective and the students considered human impact on this delicate balance.

Exploring Phytoplankton Population Investigation Growth to Enhance Quantitative Literacy

Quantitative literacy is essential to biological literacy (and is one of the core concepts in Vision and Change in Undergraduate Biology Education: A Call to Action;AAAS 2009). Building quantitative literacy is a challenging endeavor for biology instructors. Integrating mathematical skills into biological investigations can help build quantitative literacy. In our plankton population laboratory sequence, students test hypotheses about the influence of abiotic factors on phytoplankton populations by sampling experimental and control flasks over multiple weeks. Students track and predict changes in planktonic populations by incorporating weekly sample estimates into population growth equations. We have refined the laboratory protocols on the basis of student commentary and instructor observations. Students have reviewed the lab positively, and approximately one-quarter of them reported building their math skills by participating in the lab.

Investigating Tree Thinking &amp; Ancestry with Cladograms

Interpreting cladograms is a key skill for biological literacy. In this lesson, students interpret cladograms based on familial relationships and language relationships to build their understanding of tree thinking and to construct a definition of “common ancestor.” These skills can then be applied to a true biological cladogram.

Hormones and Antibiotics in Nature: A Laboratory Module Designed to Broaden Undergraduate Perspectives on Typically Human-Centered Topics

Bringing discovery-based research into undergraduate laboratory courses increases student motivation and learning gains over traditional exercises that merely teach technique or demonstrate well-documented phenomena. Laboratory experiences are further enhanced when they are designed to challenge student perspectives on topics relevant to their lives. To this end, a laboratory module on antibiotics and hormones, which are generally discussed in the context of human health, was developed for students to explore the multifaceted roles of antibiotics and hormones in nature (e.g. interspecies communication) via reading primary scientific literature and performing discovery-based experiments. The main objective of this module was to increase the general biological literacy of students as determined by their ability to connect the Five Core Concepts of Biological Literacy (American Association for the Advancement of Science, Vision and Change in Undergraduate Education: A Call to Action, 2011) to the topics “hormones” and “antibiotics” in pre- and postmodule surveys. After discussing unpublished research findings, cell biology students performed experiments demonstrating that: 1) fungi may promote fern growth via hormone production, 2) novel bacterial isolates in the genus Streptomyces produce antifungal compounds, and 3) subinhibitory antibiotic concentrations may enhance soil bacterial growth. The third finding provided evidence supporting a hypothesis framed in a scientific article that students read and discussed. Student perspectives on premodule surveys focused on roles of hormones and antibiotics in the human body (e.g. development, fighting infection), but their broadened postmodule perspectives encompassed the roles of these molecules in organismal communication and possibly the evolution of multicellularity.

This I believe: we need to understand evolution, adaptation, and phenotype

This I believe: we need to understand evolution, adaptation, and phenotype

Investigating Understandings of Turkish Medical Graduate Students about Nature of Scientific Knowledge, Scientific Method, Characteristics of Scientists and Definition of Science

Background: Making informed decisions in medical research or applications are important for both daily life and professional life of medical researchers. Knowing about nature of science (NOS), as a part of biological literacy, is a component of informed decision making, since knowledge about nature of science is needed to be aware of pseudoscientific, dogmatic and inappropriate situations out of scientific approaches in medical research and applications. For example; making a decision about using an application to cure some diseases requires knowing about multidisciplinary nature of the problem and evaluating the nature of evidence on the application suggested by the literature. There are some studies focusing on NOS understandings of different groups of students, but there is a need to investigate NOS understandings of students by considering higher levels of education (graduate level) including medical graduate education and discipline specify of NOS aspects. Objective : This study purposes to investigate understandings of medical graduate students about the aspects of nature of science. Method: The study was a case study involving four participants studying on their MS research topics in medical sciences. The study was conducted by using questionnaire of definitions and VNOS-C as data collection tools. Data collection took two months, the interview was done after the analysis of answers to questionnaire of definitions. Results: According to the results, medical graduate students showed many misunderstandings about “universally accepted one way to do science”, “objectivity”, “tentativeness”, “social and cultural embeddedness” of scientific knowledge”, “creativeness and imagination in science” and “hierarchical relationship among hypothesis, theory and law and definitional differences of them”. Conclusion: In conclusion, the participants do not have sufficient understandings to overcome problems on which making informed decisions is needed. In this manuscript, the results of the study will be described and limitations of the study and important points for further research will be explained.

Health Literacy and Discharge Instruction Adherence

To The Editor—Despite economic and social growth, low literacy continues to be a significant issue across the developed world. The 1996 OECD International Adult Literacy Survey found 22% of US adults and 23% of UK adults to be performing at the lowest level of a 5-point scale of functional literacy.1,2 We would like to join the emerging debate recently arising from the Journal of General Internal Medicine3 about this topic, giving our personal point of view, as medical or health-related sciences students. As medical and pharmacy students, we feel that the schools of medicine and health-related sciences must redouble their efforts to improve life sciences instruction in order to create true caregivers able to serve as a resource through engagement in health and science promotion. Individuals who are not able to understand the nature of their illnesses may make bad judgments about them. Thus, it is desirable that schools of medicine and health-related sciences address the apparent missing links between biological literacy and evidence-based medicine in medical education program design and curricula development. This will allow medical and health-related sciences students to begin their lifelong journey towards the development of medical culture focusing on science and health promotion and disease prevention.

Models and Strategies for Teaching Evolution to Non-Science Majors in a Seminar Format

A cornerstone of paleontological education is the topic of evolution. While formal evolutionary biology classes made up of lectures and labs are essential for students of biology and paleontology, these classes are closed to most non-science majors because they often require multiple prerequisites. Because of a combination of anti-evolution cultural forces and shortcomings in evolution-based education at the K-12 level, many American college students have not received accurate or effective evolution instruction before entering college. Because a working knowledge of evolution is essential for developing biological scientific literacy, some colleges and universities now offer seminar-style evolution courses designed for non-science majors that can help reverse this trend. Seminars such as these offer students the added opportunity to develop more sophisticated writing, speaking, and critical-thinking skills in the context of evolutionary biology. This chapter highlights two successful course models and two shorter course modules, provides lists of teaching resources, and details a number of different writing and discussion-based pedagogical strategies as they apply to teaching evolution in a seminar setting.