The value and potential of multisited ethnography for science education research: a review of Jrène Rahm’s Science in the Making at the Margin

Rahm sought to illuminate how children and youth make meaning of science in three out-of-school time programs, and the identity work that is done through the trajectory of their youth toward their young adulthood. Through using multisited ethnography, she asserts that we can learn more about what the youth say about their science learning and science literacy development in these programs. She has revealed through her rich data the potential value of multisited ethnography for science education research. A similar theme of insider/outsider status to science emerged in each of the three sites. The nature of the data collected in Rahm’s multisited ethnography allowed for the unveiling of the similarities in this theme, but also made evident the nuanced ways that this theme presented itself differently across the three sites. The additional potential came through in the varied data Rahm could have delved into and did not. A unique characteristic of ethnographic research, that is not necessarily present in other research methods, is that a wide array of varied data is collected. An analysis of documents, images, and observational field notes, which go beyond interview data, may provide deeper understandings previously untouched in science education.     

Using comparative genomics for inquiry-based learning to dissect virulence of Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Yersinia pestis

Genomics and bioinformatics are topics of increasing interest in undergraduate biological science curricula. Many existing exercises focus on gene annotation and analysis of a single genome. In this paper, we present two educational modules designed to enable students to learn and apply fundamental concepts in comparative genomics using examples related to bacterial pathogenesis. Students first examine alignments of genomes of Escherichia coli O157:H7 strains isolated from three food-poisoning outbreaks using the multiple-genome alignment tool Mauve. Students investigate conservation of virulence factors using the Mauve viewer and by browsing annotations available at the A Systematic Annotation Package for Community Analysis of Genomes database. In the second module, students use an alignment of five Yersinia pestis genomes to analyze single-nucleotide polymorphisms of three genes to classify strains into biovar groups. Students are then given sequences of bacterial DNA amplified from the teeth of corpses from the first and second pandemics of the bubonic plague and asked to classify these new samples. Learning-assessment results reveal student improvement in self-efficacy and content knowledge, as well as students' ability to use BLAST to identify genomic islands and conduct analyses of virulence factors from E. coli O157:H7 or Y. pestis. Each of these educational modules offers educators new ready-to-implement resources for integrating comparative genomic topics into their curricula.     

Using targeted active-learning exercises and diagnostic question clusters to improve students' understanding of carbon cycling in ecosystems

In this study, we used targeted active-learning activities to help students improve their ways of reasoning about carbon flow in ecosystems. The results of a validated ecology conceptual inventory (diagnostic question clusters [DQCs]) provided us with information about students' understanding of and reasoning about transformation of inorganic and organic carbon-containing compounds in biological systems. These results helped us identify specific active-learning exercises that would be responsive to students' existing knowledge. The effects of the active-learning interventions were then examined through analysis of students' pre- and postinstruction responses on the DQCs. The biology and non-biology majors participating in this study attended a range of institutions and the instructors varied in their use of active learning; one lecture-only comparison class was included. Changes in pre- to postinstruction scores on the DQCs showed that an instructor's teaching method had a highly significant effect on student reasoning following course instruction, especially for questions pertaining to cellular-level, carbon-transforming processes. We conclude that using targeted in-class activities had a beneficial effect on student learning regardless of major or class size, and argue that using diagnostic questions to identify effective learning activities is a valuable strategy for promoting learning, as gains from lecture-only classes were minimal.     

ADAPTING A METHODOLOGY FROM MATHEMATICS EDUCATION RESEARCH TO CHEMISTRY EDUCATION RESEARCH: DOCUMENTING COLLECTIVE ACTIVITY

In this report, we adapt and extend a methodology for documenting the collective production of meaning in a classroom community. A cornerstone of the methodological approach that we develop is a close examination of classroom discourse. Our efforts to analyze the collective production of meaning by examining classroom interaction are compatible with the relatively recent emphasis in mathematics and science education research that focuses on how communities of learners establish ideas through discourse and inquiry. The methodological approach we take builds on and extends an approach from mathematics education that uses Toulmin’s argumentation model to document and analyze students’ conceptual progress. Our modification introduces a new criterion for empirically demonstrating when particular ways of reasoning become part of the normative practices of the community. An example from an undergraduate course in physical chemistry is used to illustrate the methodology.     

Magnetic compass orientation in C57BL/6J mice

We report evidence for a robust magnetic compass response in C57BL/6J mice. Mice were trained to build their nests in one of four magnetic directions by creating a light gradient along the long axis of a rectangular cage and positioning a nest box at the opposite (dark) end. The mice were then tested overnight in a circular, visually symmetrical arena in one of four magnetic field alignments. The positions of the nests built in the test arena showed strong unimodal orientation in the magnetic direction coinciding with the dark end of the training cage.     

Classroom contextual effects of race on children's peer nominations

Black children generally receive poorer sociometric nominations compared with Whites. This effect is not fully understood because Black children rarely hold a classroom majority and teachers' race is rarely investigated. Research from a person-environment perspective suggests that the effects of children's race depend on the racial composition of the classroom and society's racial attitudes. Sociometric nominations were obtained from 1,268 5th graders, between 9 and 11 years old (53% Black), across 57 classrooms (3-95% Black students). Half of the teachers were Black. The results indicated that ratings of Black children were more influenced by the racial context of classrooms than were ratings of White children. The implications of this study are discussed in relation to group dynamics and racial discrimination.     

Disclosure and secrecy in adolescent-parent relationships

Beliefs about parents' legitimate authority and adolescents' obligations to disclose to parents and actual disclosure and secrecy in different domains were examined in 276 ethnically diverse, lower middle-class 9th and 12th graders (Ms=14.62 and 17.40 years) and their parents (n=249). Adolescents were seen as more obligated to disclose prudential issues and less obligated to disclose personal than moral, conventional, and multifaceted issues; parents viewed adolescents as more obligated to disclose to parents than adolescents perceived themselves to be. Adolescents disclosed more to mothers than to fathers, particularly regarding personal issues, but mothers overestimated girls' disclosure. Greater trust, perceived obligations to disclose, and, for personal issues, more parental acceptance and psychological control predicted more disclosure and less secrecy.     

The achievement gap: The impact of between-class attainment grouping on pupil attainment and educational equity over time

Despite extensive research on attainment grouping, the impact of attainment grouping on pupil attainment remains poorly understood and contested. This paper presents evidence from a study conducted with 2944 12–13 year olds, from 76 schools in England, who were allocated to between-class attainment groups (‘setting’) in English and mathematics over the first 2 years of secondary schooling. After controlling for prior attainment, pupils in the top set performed significantly better than pupils in the middle and bottom sets in both English and mathematics. The findings indicate a widening gap in attainment, especially in the case of English. Findings, especially in the case of mathematics, provide more evidence of a relative benefit for pupils placed in top sets than a relative detriment for those in bottom sets.     

Teaching One-Way ANOVA with engaging NBA data and R Shiny within a flexdashboard

This paper provides introductory statistics instructors with the capacity to use engaging National Basketball Association (NBA) data within a web application to either strengthen students' understanding or introduce the concept of variance and one-way analysis of variance. Using engaging data within the classroom provides context to data that students deem applicable to their lives. This paper not only provides a lesson plan for teaching these concepts but also provides a web application and the engaging NBA dataset if the instructor decides to use the app or the data in another context. The NBA data selected to focus on the debate “Who is the greatest NBA player of all time?”. By using context students are familiar with and interested in, we can get them interested in and further engaged in statistics.