Gain in Student Understanding of the Role of Random Variation in Evolution Following Teaching Intervention Based on Luria-Delbruck Experiment

Undergraduate students in introductory biology classes are typically saddled with pre-existing popular beliefs that impede their ability to learn about biological evolution. One of the most common misconceptions about evolution is that the environment causes advantageous mutations, rather than the c...

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Autores principales:	Rachel L. Robson, Susan Burns
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	American Society for Microbiology 2011
Materias:	Special aspects of education LC8-6691 Biology (General) QH301-705.5
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/f5527578050641cc991a44d2714dbeeb
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:f5527578050641cc991a44d2714dbeeb2021-11-15T15:04:10ZGain in Student Understanding of the Role of Random Variation in Evolution Following Teaching Intervention Based on Luria-Delbruck Experiment10.1128/jmbe.v12i1.2721935-78851935-7877https://doaj.org/article/f5527578050641cc991a44d2714dbeeb2011-01-01T00:00:00Zhttps://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/jmbe.v12i1.272https://doaj.org/toc/1935-7877https://doaj.org/toc/1935-7885Undergraduate students in introductory biology classes are typically saddled with pre-existing popular beliefs that impede their ability to learn about biological evolution. One of the most common misconceptions about evolution is that the environment causes advantageous mutations, rather than the correct view that mutations occur randomly and the environment only selects for mutants with advantageous traits. In this study, a significant gain in student understanding of the role of randomness in evolution was observed after students participated in an inquiry-based pedagogical intervention based on the Luria-Delbruck experiment. Questionnaires with isomorphic questions regarding environmental selection among random mutants were administered to study participants (N = 82) in five separate sections of a sophomore-level microbiology class before and after the teaching intervention. Demographic data on each participant was also collected, in a way that preserved anonymity. Repeated measures analysis showed that post-test scores were significantly higher than pre-test scores with regard to the questions about evolution (F(1, 77) = 25.913, p < 0.001). Participants’ pre-existing beliefs about evolution had no significant effect on gain in understanding of this concept. This study indicates that conducting and discussing an experiment about phage resistance in E. coli may improve student understanding of the role of stochastic events in evolution more broadly, as post-test answers showed that students were able to apply the lesson of the Luria-Delbruck experiment to other organisms subjected to other kinds of selection.Rachel L. RobsonSusan BurnsAmerican Society for MicrobiologyarticleSpecial aspects of educationLC8-6691Biology (General)QH301-705.5ENJournal of Microbiology & Biology Education, Vol 12, Iss 1, Pp 3-7 (2011)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Special aspects of education LC8-6691 Biology (General) QH301-705.5
spellingShingle	Special aspects of education LC8-6691 Biology (General) QH301-705.5 Rachel L. Robson Susan Burns Gain in Student Understanding of the Role of Random Variation in Evolution Following Teaching Intervention Based on Luria-Delbruck Experiment
description	Undergraduate students in introductory biology classes are typically saddled with pre-existing popular beliefs that impede their ability to learn about biological evolution. One of the most common misconceptions about evolution is that the environment causes advantageous mutations, rather than the correct view that mutations occur randomly and the environment only selects for mutants with advantageous traits. In this study, a significant gain in student understanding of the role of randomness in evolution was observed after students participated in an inquiry-based pedagogical intervention based on the Luria-Delbruck experiment. Questionnaires with isomorphic questions regarding environmental selection among random mutants were administered to study participants (N = 82) in five separate sections of a sophomore-level microbiology class before and after the teaching intervention. Demographic data on each participant was also collected, in a way that preserved anonymity. Repeated measures analysis showed that post-test scores were significantly higher than pre-test scores with regard to the questions about evolution (F(1, 77) = 25.913, p < 0.001). Participants’ pre-existing beliefs about evolution had no significant effect on gain in understanding of this concept. This study indicates that conducting and discussing an experiment about phage resistance in E. coli may improve student understanding of the role of stochastic events in evolution more broadly, as post-test answers showed that students were able to apply the lesson of the Luria-Delbruck experiment to other organisms subjected to other kinds of selection.
format	article
author	Rachel L. Robson Susan Burns
author_facet	Rachel L. Robson Susan Burns
author_sort	Rachel L. Robson
title	Gain in Student Understanding of the Role of Random Variation in Evolution Following Teaching Intervention Based on Luria-Delbruck Experiment
title_short	Gain in Student Understanding of the Role of Random Variation in Evolution Following Teaching Intervention Based on Luria-Delbruck Experiment
title_full	Gain in Student Understanding of the Role of Random Variation in Evolution Following Teaching Intervention Based on Luria-Delbruck Experiment
title_fullStr	Gain in Student Understanding of the Role of Random Variation in Evolution Following Teaching Intervention Based on Luria-Delbruck Experiment
title_full_unstemmed	Gain in Student Understanding of the Role of Random Variation in Evolution Following Teaching Intervention Based on Luria-Delbruck Experiment
title_sort	gain in student understanding of the role of random variation in evolution following teaching intervention based on luria-delbruck experiment
publisher	American Society for Microbiology
publishDate	2011
url	https://doaj.org/article/f5527578050641cc991a44d2714dbeeb
work_keys_str_mv	AT rachellrobson gaininstudentunderstandingoftheroleofrandomvariationinevolutionfollowingteachinginterventionbasedonluriadelbruckexperiment AT susanburns gaininstudentunderstandingoftheroleofrandomvariationinevolutionfollowingteachinginterventionbasedonluriadelbruckexperiment
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Gain in Student Understanding of the Role of Random Variation in Evolution Following Teaching Intervention Based on Luria-Delbruck Experiment

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