Pathways to Scientific Teaching

This book presents methods that will facilitate student learning through the process of scientific discovery.Chapter 1 describes how to structure and sustain a learning community that engages students in active learning. Subsequent chapters open with overviews that offer insight into how students learn and provide continuity among chapters.This book is based on a series of Pathways articles, originally published in "Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment", that illustrate effective instructional methods to help students gain conceptual understanding in ecology. It presents a philosophy of scientific teaching based on pedagogical principles designed to improve learning.

Table of Contents:
PART I: THE FIRST DAY OF CLASS - THE MOST IMPORTANT; PART II: FACULTY: ORGANISING THE FLOW OF CLASS; Rising Atmospheric CO2 and Carbon Sequestration in Forests; P. A. Beedlow et al.; Climate Change: Confronting Student Ideas; D. Ebert-May et al.; The Rising Tide of Ocean Diseases: Unsolved Problems and Research Priorities; D. Harvel et al.; Marine Pathology: Revealing the Ocean's Etiology to Earthbound Students; J. Hodder et al.; PART III: STUDENTS: DOING SCIENCE; Generality in Ecology: Testing North American Grassland Rules in South African Savannas; A. K. Knapp et al.; Practicing Scientific Inquiry: What are the Rules? D. Ebert-May et al.; Divided Culture: Integrating Agriculture and Conservation Biology; J. E. Banks; Ecological Controversy: Analysis to Synthesis; K. S. Williams et al.; The Effects of Atrazine and Temperature on Turtle Hatchling Size and Sex Ratios; E. J. Willingham; Determining Confidence: Sex and Statistics; T. L. Derting et al.; A Call to Ecologists: Measuring, Analyzing, and Managing Ecosystem Services; C. Kremen and R. S. Ostfeld; Lyme Disease: A Case about Ecosystem Services; C. Richmond, D. Ebert-May, and J. Hodder; PART IV: STUDENTS: READING SCIENCE; Human-induced Long-term Changes in the Lakes of the Jianghan Plain, Central Yangtze; J. Fang, S. Rao, and S. Zhao; Collaborative Learning - a Jigsaw; C. Finelli, D. Ebert-May, and J. Hodder; Loss of Foundation Species: Consequences for the Structure and Dynamics of Forested; A. M. Ellison et al; Problem Solving: A Foundation for Modeling; J. Hodder, G. Middendorf, and D. Ebert-May; PART V: FACULTY AND STUDENTS: ASSESSING MULTIPLE WAYS; Novel Weapons: Invasive Success and the Evolution of Increased Competitive Ability; R. M. Callaway and W. M. Ridenour; Novel Assessments: Detecting Success in Student Learning; K. S. Williams et al.; Effects of Deposited Wood on Biocomplexity of River Corridors; A. Gurnell et al.; Learning through Peer Assessment; L. M. Nagel et al.; Can Crop Transgenes be kept on a Leash? M. Marvier and R. C. Van Acker; Unleashing Problem Solvers: From Assessment to Designing Research; D. Ebert-May et al.; PART VI: STUDENTS: PREPARING HOMEWORK FOR CLASS; Losing Pieces of the Puzzle: Threats to Marine, Estuarine, and Diadromous Species; C. V. Kappel; Active Homework - Preparation for Active Classes; D. Ebert-May et al.; The Ecological-societal Underpinnings of Everglades Restoration; F. H. Sklar et al.; Unraveling Complexity: Building an Understanding of Everglades Restoration; J. Hodder, D. Ebert-May, and K. S. Williams; How Many Endangered Species are there in the United States?; D. S. Wilcove and L. L. Master; Here Today, Not Gone Tomorrow?; E. Gaiser et al.; PART VII: FACULTY: MOVING FROM ASSESSMENT TO RESEARCH; E-commerce and Caulerpa: Unregulated Dispersal of Invasive Species; L. J. Walters et al.; Bridging the Pathway from Instruction to Research; J. M. Batzli, D. Ebert-May, and J. Hodder; Will Human-induced Changes in Seawater Chemistry Alter the Distribution of Deep-sea Scleractinian Corals? J. M. Guinotte et al.; Coding to Analyze Students' Critical Thinking; J. Hodder, D. Ebert-May, and J. M. Batzli; Environmental Cleanup using Plants: Biotechnological Advances and Ecological Considerations; E. A. H. Pilon-Smits and J. L. Freeman; Designing Research to Investigate Student Learning; D. Ebert-May, J. M. Batzli, and E. P. Weber; Analyzing Results: The Tip of the Iceberg; D. Ebert-May et al.; PART VIII: FACULTY: A COMMUNITY OF RESEARCHERS.

About the Author :
DIANE EBERT-MAY, Michigan State University, USA. JANET HODDER, Oregon Institute of Marine Biology, USA.