As part of the Biology curriculum revision, Biology 101L Gateway to Biology: Molecular Biology was first taught in the fall by Nicholas Buchler and Dan Kiehart. Alison Hill designed and implemented the new lab experiences as Lab Coordinator.
What’s new?
- Active learning, with students problem-solving in class
- All new labs, integrated with course topics and learning outcomes. Students used techniques discussed in class to do a genuine research project over the course of the semester.
- Student response system (“clickers”) encouraged active learning and checked student understanding in real time during class
- Instructors wrote learning objectives for the entire course as well as for each class.
- Students could use a handwritten “data sheet” for exams and quizzes, to focus on concepts rather than facts
- Timed reading quizzes were administered online before class once or twice a week, to prepare students for more active participation
- In class quizzes every Friday on the previous week’s content, followed by question and answer review period
- Class quizzes and exams were composed of multiple response type questions
- Most of the course content had not been taught by the instructors in previous years
- Music played before the class started