Special Speciation

Considerable anecdotal evidence indicates that some of the most difficult concepts that both high school and undergraduate elementary-education students struggle with are those surrounding evolutionary principles, especially speciation. It’s no wonder that entry-level biology students are confused, when biologists have multiple definitions of “species.” We developed this speciation activity to provide clarity and allow students a hands-on experience with a speciation model

Order matters: pre-assessments and student generated representations

Background: People have preconceived notions about how the world works from personal experiences. When these notions are scientifically inaccurate they can encourage unintended learning outcomes. Thus assessing students’ prior knowledge is important, allowing instructors to target misconceptions and optimize learning. However, the structure/administration of pre-assessments can influence students’ achievement and potentially mask errors in understanding. Methods: We investigated the influence of pre-assessment task order on students’ tree thinking responses. We investigated student responses on a two-tiered pretest and an associated tree building task from 133 participants. Results: Differences in the styles of student generated representations were significantly related to task order. Conclusion: This influence creates the challenge of diagnosing student ideas and facilitating conceptual change, while not accidentally provoking misconceptions in the process