Deliberate mistakes Create a text in which you hide 2-3 mistakes The text must contain the words photosynthesis, oxygen, chlorophyl and energy. Number of words: 30-60 Show your text to the person next to you – will she/he be able to find the mistakes you have hidden? Deliberate mistakes

Inquiry based biology teaching Learning through inquiry * Tanner, K. (2010). Approaches to Biology Teaching and Learning: Order matters: using the 5E Model to Align Teaching with How People Learn. CBE – Life sciences Education, 9, 159-164

[Inquiry] Learning through inquiry is an active learning strategy (explore, investigate) Learning through Inquiry is about asking questions, and about trying to find answers to these questions What about this? Why is it like this? What if ….?

Moon rise The Moon appears larger near the horizon than it does higher up in the sky

The first question: Is that true? What du YOU think?

How would you investigate if the moon is larger near the horizon than higher up in the sky?

The Moon Illusion The Moon illusion is an optical illusion which causes the Moon to appear larger near the horizon than it does higher up in the sky

The next question: How can we explain this?

TALKING IN THE CLASSROOM: TEACHER - LEARNERS Authoritative ------------------------- dialogic Interactive -------------------- non-interactive

Teacher summarizes from class discussion TALKING IN THE CLASSROOM: TEACHER - LEARNERS Authoritative ------------------------- dialogic Interactive -------------------- non-interactive Teacher summarizes from class discussion Inquiry (IRF) Traditional lecture IRE

Van Helmonts experiment Van Helmont wanted to find out where the extra weight comes from when plants grow. (1580 – 1644)

5 years Van Helmont placed a plant in an earthen pot containing 90 kg of dried soil, and over a five-year period he added nothing to the pot but rainwater or distilled water.

5 years After 5 years the plant had gained 75 kg and the soil had lost 57 grams in weight

5 years After 5 years the plant had gained 75 kg and the soil had lost 57 grams in weight Van Helmont concluded that «75 kg of wood, barks, and roots arose out of water only”.

What questions would you like to ask him about his experiment if he visited us to day? Why did …? How did you …? Did you …? What if ….? How accurate … ? Could you have …?

Some examples: Did you keep the plant in the dark or in the light? What if some soil got blown away by the wind? Did you stop this happening? How did you get all the soil off the roots to weigh it after 5 years? Did you weigh the water when you watered the plant? Did you weigh the plants with or without leaves?

5 years After 5 years the plant had gained 75 kg and the soil had lost 57 grams in weight Van Helmont concluded that «75 kg of wood, barks, and roots arose out of water only”.

Final discussion – plenary Why do we want to ask these questions? Which answers do we expect to get from Van Helmont? Why should he give such answers? Do scientists always find the the right answers? Are there other examples …? Could this also happen to the ideas that are developed by today’s scientists?

HOW PEOPLE LEARN The learners must be interested and engaged in what they are learning, and find it useful and meaningful Learners must be actively involved in the processes of teaching and learning, and they must, themselves, construct new understanding (constructivistic view of learning, the theory of conceptual change Learners must have opportunities to apply what they have learned to new situations

“… using a Model to Align Teaching with How People Learn.”

The 5E model 1. Engage 2. Explore 3. Explain 4. Elaborate 5. Evaluate Engagement Exploration Explanation Elaboration Evaluation The key elements of an effective learning activity (lesson)

The 5E model (Bybee and colleagues) Bybee, R. W., Taylor, J. A., Gardner, A., Van Scotter, P., Powell, J. C., Westbrook, A., and N. Landes. 2006. The BSCS 5E instructional model: origins, effectiveness, and applications. Colorado Springs: BSCS. www.bscs.org/curriculumdevelopment/features/bscs5es.html

The 5E model The 5E model translates what is known from research about how humans learn – into a tool that can … help teachers to categorize different parts or elements of a lesson or learning activity guide teachers in planning effective learning experiments for learners

The 5E model The 5E model is based on a constructivist view of learning the theory of conceptual change the ideas of multiple learning styles

Engage 1) access the learners’ A question, a concept cartoon, a story, a video, a reference to latest news Engage 1) access the learners’ prior knowledge and 2) help them become engaged in a new biological topic/idea/concept. Short activities that promote curiosity and elicit prior knowledge. The activities should make connections between past and present learning experiences, expose prior conceptions, and organize students’ thinking toward the learning outcomes of current activities.

The autonomy of the learner! Explore Learners grapple with a problem, try to find answers to questions they have formulated themselves. May be a lab or field activity, or may be not. Learners explore a biological problem or a question. A common base of activities and experiences. As a result of exploration/investigation new questions may arise, be articulated, and may need to be answered.

Explain Focuses on particular aspect of the learners’ exploration. Answers the question WHY? Views findings from the exploration in the light of scientific knowledge/theory. Authoritative & interactive Talking in the classroom! May need to introduce new concepts and terms in order to understand. Discussions on various possible explanations, reasoning and argumentation. Discussions

Elaborate Apply new knowledge in novel contexts and situations Viewing the new knowledge in a wider perspective Taking steps to expand. Plan new investigations, new questions to answer Understand the meaning of the new knowledge, it’s implications

Evaluate Meta-cognitive perspective on learning and teaching processes Consider the completeness of new understanding. Learners assess their understanding and abilities – mastery of the concepts and skills that have been explored. Teachers assess the learners’ progress towards achieving the educational objectives.

Using 5E to categorize parts of a lesson/a learning activity Have you ever noticed that …….. Have you ever wondered if …? Is it true that ….? How can we find out …? How can we explain …? Do you know of any other ….? Do we really understand this? engage explore explain elaborate evaluate

Using 5E to find out where we are …. An example: How plants store energy C6H12O6 Disaccharides Fatt/oil Polysaccharides Cellulose Starch

Some warnings 5E is not a template that every lesson plan should fit in. The order of the 5E elements may vary. Not all elements of 5E need to be clearly present in all teaching situations.

STRATEGIES FOR USING 5E TO ALIGN TEACHING WITH LEARNING Use the 5E model to categorize different elements of the teaching you already do. «Where does this activity belong – is it meant to lead to curiosity and engagement – or will it challenge the learners to explore or to explain?» « What should I do as a teacher – how can I challenge my learners to elaborate what they have learned about photosynthesis?»

A 5E analysis of the «van Helmont activity» Where in the 5E model would you place the following elements in the «van Helmont activity»?

A 5E analysis of the «van Helmont activity» In which of the elements in the 5E model would you place the following parts of the «van Helmont activity»? The plenary discussion Deciding about: Which questions to ask if van Helmont would be present here Thinking about the procedure in van Helmonts’ experiment Thinking about van Helmonts explanation of the result of his experiment

Thinking of a plan for a lesson about haploid and diploid cells ….. Thinking of making a plan for a lesson about respiration ….. Focus on Engagement How would you try to stimulate to curiosity and engagement? Which activities would you like to use?