The threat of climate change makes it increasingly important for biologists and the public to understand how organisms respond to temperature. The Metabolic Theory of Ecology (MTE) predicts that temperature should affect organism performance, with implications for species interactions and ecosystems that span disciplines including mathematics,…

As college biology educators we want students learning how to conduct their own scientific investigations. This means designing laboratory curricula in which students exercise control and responsibility over the knowledge building actions of an investigation--that is, in which they exercise "epistemic agency." Our current understanding…

Students entering high school often bring misconceptions about the nature of science and experimentation with them from middle school. Many also bring a belief that they are not a "science kid" and, therefore, cannot be a strong student in Biology. This belief can lead to a lack of self-efficacy and of student agency in the classroom.…

The problem addressed by this study was to determine the influence of high school start times on students' academic achievement and precisely how this impacts the scores students received on the Biology I End of Course Exams. It also determined if there was a difference in influence between males and females. This was determined by comparing the…

A growing body of literature focusing on undergraduate biology education calls for students to engage in the ways of thinking, feeling, and doing that reflect those in which biologists engage. Such reform efforts suggest that learning is best fostered when students engage in practices, concepts, and scientific reasoning as they endeavor to explain…

The problem addressed through this study was the absence of a critical examination of laboratory exercises used with first-year nonbiology majors and the deployment of virtual laboratories in the biology department at the project site university without critical analyses associated with the efficacy of virtual labs. Grounded in Mayer's cognitive…

This study addressed the following research questions: 1) What is the effect of differentiated gamified instruction on the cognitive engagement of ninth grade students in the unit of plant and animal systems? 2) What is the effect of differentiated gamified instruction on the behavioral engagement of ninth grade biology students in the unit of…

This dissertation investigates how the numerical representation of women in small collaborative groups influences their learning in a college biology class for non-majors focused on sex, gender, and society. Prior to the start of the semester, the researchers divided students into all-male, all-female, or mixed-gender groups of varying sex ratios.…

Recent trends toward engaging undergraduate biology students in scientific investigations have shifted focus toward helping students understand and use scientific evidence. Instructors must promote students' evidentiary reasoning as they generate, use, and evaluate scientific evidence during the investigations. However, explicit guidance is needed…

Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs) have become more commonly incorporated in laboratory courses in undergraduate education. Because CUREs incorporate research within the context of a course, the benefits of mentored research (self-efficacy, science identity, persistence, and more) are extended to each student enrolled. CUREs…

Up to 78% of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) students experience poor academic achievement as defined by course grades of D, F and W in college. Students entering these fields are often not prepared (Chen & Soldner, 2013) and struggle to succeed in gateway STEM courses, with one-third of them possibly failing (Freeman…

The United States lags behind other countries in science literacy at the 4th, 8th, and 12th grade levels. Subsequently, this is seen at the higher education level, especially with gateway science courses. BIO 103-General Biology I is a gateway course at Lion University. Passing this course is crucial for students to progress in several science…

This dissertation is an invitation into our beloved biology classroom. Weaving hermeneutic phenomenology and critical participatory teacher action research, this study investigated self as teacher and two cohorts of student participants in a high school biology experience utilizing an 'Aina Aloha praxis. Articulating my ongoing 'Aina Aloha praxis,…

The U.S. Education system is founded on a Eurocentric focus of curriculum, and students of color are not achieving as high as white students on the National Assessment for Education Progress in science. This research aims to repay the education debt owed to students of color by decolonizing science curriculum through the implementation of lessons…

This action research study, set in a midwestern high school in the United States, was designed to investigate the impact of implementing equitable grading practices in a first semester ninth-grade biology course. Many grading practices commonly used in classrooms in the United States are subjective, can be used to maintain compliance in the…