Despite critical thinking supporting a deeper understanding of the scientific process, university activities prioritize lower cognitive processes, such as remembering skills. Also, it is unclear whether gender biases in interest toward science exist in university science degrees. These hinder students from achieving their goals effectively since…

This article reports on the implementation of a CURE project in an upper-level analytical chemistry course to engage a larger number of students in research at a primarily undergraduate institution (PUI). The lab course syllabus was modified to provide students with an opportunity to experience the process of conducting research through a project…

Inquiry- and context-based learning (IBL and CBL, respectively) can lead to improved student outcomes, including increased motivation and interest, the development of critical thinking skills, and improved assessment results. This study outlines the application of IBL research projects in third-year university Environmental Chemistry and…

In this information era, there is an urgent need for tighter integration of bioinformatics and experimental biology. The enormous amount of data generated by biological experiments calls for extensive computational analysis. Many bioinformatics textbooks at present mainly focus on theories, which hinders the vigorous development of scientific…

Immersive research opportunities allow students to take ownership of their learning, explore based on curiosity, and engage in the scientific process while developing confidence and skills. However, research positions for biology undergraduates are limited, and conventional teaching labs are often restricted to pre-designed experiments without…

Anticipated learning outcomes (LOs) were defined and used for the backward design of a Course-based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE). These LOs reflect the inquiry-based nature of CUREs and capture key knowledge and skills inherent to scientific practice and essential in research. The LOs were used to plan a formative and summative…

This paper describes an inquiry-based integrated laboratory project for green synthesis, characterization, and applications of silver and gold nanoparticles. In this project, students were able to choose their choice of plant extract as reducing and stabilizing agents, and the students also designed their own experiments. This course gave the…

Active teaching methodologies have been placed as a hope for changing education at different levels, transiting from passive lecture-centered to student-centered learning. With the health measures of social distance, the COVID-19 pandemic forced a strong shift to remote education. With the challenge of delivering quality education through a…

Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) have been shown to lead to multiple student benefits, but much is unknown about how CUREs lead to specific student outcomes. In this study, we examined the extent to which students making "broadly relevant novel discoveries" impacted student project ownership by comparing the…

This article describes the development and assessment of a Nutritional Genomics course, designed to be held in a regular classroom during normal class periods, with few extra costs to the students or the department. The course was run as an upper-level undergraduate and lower-level graduate student course. Student taking the course spent 11 weeks…

Participating in undergraduate research yields positive outcomes for undergraduate students, and universities are seeking ways to engage more students in undergraduate research earlier in their academic careers. Typically, undergraduate students perform research either as part of an apprenticeship where a student receives individual mentorship in…

The laboratory course is an excellent venue to apply content, practice inquiry, improve critical thinking, practice key clinical skills, and work with data. The use of inquiry-based course projects allows for students to propose open ended questions, form a hypothesis, design an experiment, collect data, analyze data, draw conclusion, and present…

Enzyme purification, characterization, and identification are some of the best ways to introduce undergraduate students to many aspects of biochemistry, particularly as part of project-based learning (PBL). These kinds of multi-step laboratory experiments not only help students to better understand basic biochemistry concepts but also serve to…

The Research PackTrack (RP) Program provides authentic research experiences to biology undergraduates in a modified studio environment. In semester 1, students are introduced to the process of scientific inquiry and discourse in a student-centered active learning environment with upside-down pedagogies. In semester 2, students work in a dedicated…

Students in introductory college science courses often have a simplified understanding of the scientific method. To introduce students to the complexity of the scientific process and the value of empirical observations, I implemented a semester-long assignment that required introductory-level college science students to build and calibrate weather…