{"title":"A plant mutant screen CURE integrated with core biology concepts showed effectiveness in course design and students' perceived learning gains.","authors":"Jinjie Liu, Christoph Benning","doi":"10.1002/bmb.21865","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) provide students with valuable opportunities to engage in research in a classroom setting, expanding access to research opportunities for undergraduates, fostering inclusive research and learning environments, and bridging the gap between the research and education communities. While scientific practices, integral to the scientific discovery process, have been widely implemented in CUREs, there have been relatively few reports emphasizing the incorporation of core biology concepts into CURE curricula. In this study, we present a CURE that integrates core biology concepts, including genetic information flow, phenotype-genotype relationships, mutations and mutants, and structure-function relationships, within the context of mutant screening and gene loci identification. The design of this laboratory course aligns with key CURE criteria, as demonstrated by data collected through the laboratory course assessment survey (LCAS). The survey of undergraduate research experiences (SURE) demonstrates students' learning gains in both course-directed skills and transferrable skills following their participation in the CURE. Additionally, concept survey data reflect students' self-perceived understanding of the aforementioned core biological concepts. Given that genetic mutant screens are central to the study of gene function in biology, we anticipate that this CURE holds potential value for educators and researchers who are interested in designing and implementing a mutant screen CURE in their classrooms. This can be accomplished through independent research or by establishing partnerships between different units or institutions.</p>","PeriodicalId":8830,"journal":{"name":"Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2000,"publicationDate":"2024-10-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education","FirstCategoryId":"95","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1002/bmb.21865","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q4","JCRName":"BIOCHEMISTRY & MOLECULAR BIOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) provide students with valuable opportunities to engage in research in a classroom setting, expanding access to research opportunities for undergraduates, fostering inclusive research and learning environments, and bridging the gap between the research and education communities. While scientific practices, integral to the scientific discovery process, have been widely implemented in CUREs, there have been relatively few reports emphasizing the incorporation of core biology concepts into CURE curricula. In this study, we present a CURE that integrates core biology concepts, including genetic information flow, phenotype-genotype relationships, mutations and mutants, and structure-function relationships, within the context of mutant screening and gene loci identification. The design of this laboratory course aligns with key CURE criteria, as demonstrated by data collected through the laboratory course assessment survey (LCAS). The survey of undergraduate research experiences (SURE) demonstrates students' learning gains in both course-directed skills and transferrable skills following their participation in the CURE. Additionally, concept survey data reflect students' self-perceived understanding of the aforementioned core biological concepts. Given that genetic mutant screens are central to the study of gene function in biology, we anticipate that this CURE holds potential value for educators and researchers who are interested in designing and implementing a mutant screen CURE in their classrooms. This can be accomplished through independent research or by establishing partnerships between different units or institutions.
期刊介绍:
The aim of BAMBED is to enhance teacher preparation and student learning in Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, and related sciences such as Biophysics and Cell Biology, by promoting the world-wide dissemination of educational materials. BAMBED seeks and communicates articles on many topics, including:
Innovative techniques in teaching and learning.
New pedagogical approaches.
Research in biochemistry and molecular biology education.
Reviews on emerging areas of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology to provide background for the preparation of lectures, seminars, student presentations, dissertations, etc.
Historical Reviews describing "Paths to Discovery".
Novel and proven laboratory experiments that have both skill-building and discovery-based characteristics.
Reviews of relevant textbooks, software, and websites.
Descriptions of software for educational use.
Descriptions of multimedia materials such as tutorials on various aspects of biochemistry and molecular biology.