The Teaching Pentagon

A quantitative, integrative approach to teaching Ecology

Bryan DewsburyFlorida International University, Miami, Florida

A call for change

New ways to integrate disciplines and quantify Biology

Integration issues

• Integrative biology lecture classes sometimes light on content

• Adding literature component to lecture class time consuming

• Instructor training needed for the addition of other disciplines as well as quantitative techniques

• Integration strategies typically integrate topics not learning mechanisms

Explicit Aims

• Contextualization• Reinforcement• Integration

Lecture

The Teaching Pentagon

General Biology

PLTLStatistics I/II

Lab Journal Club

General Biology Lecture

Peer-Led Team-Learning

Journal Club

General Biology Lab

Statistics I (sophomore)

UNIT IV: ALLIGATOR TALES – Population ecology, community ecology and the American Alligator

LECTURE JOURNAL CLUB (readings class) PLTL LAB

24-Oct Exam IIIHornbach and Childers 1986 PLTL

Let every man, woman and child be counted - The

population demographics of mosquitofish (Data analysis

HW)26-Oct

The Census - Population Ecology (Ch. 56)

28-Oct EDCs and Ecotoxicology

31-OctThe American Alligator - niches and interactions

Milnes and Gillette Jr. 2008 PLTL

It takes a village - Nutrient and energy dynamics in a contained community (Lab Report II due;

HW- Data analysis)2-Nov

It takes a village - Community Ecology (Ch.

57)

4-NovEcosystems Dynamics (Ch.

58)

7-Nov Food Inc.VETERAN'S DAY PLTL

May the best plant win - Competition and adaptation in

plants 9-Nov Food Inc. II

11-Nov VETERAN'S DAY

LECTURE JC PLTL LAB

Lecture

The Teaching Pentagon

General Biology

PLTLStatistics I/II

Lab Journal Club

Alligator tales lecture

• General discussion about niche effects and interspecies interactions

• Community effects of changes in species abundance

• Role of alligators as keystone species in Everglades ecosystem

Lecture

The Teaching Pentagon

General Biology

PLTLStatistics I/II

Lab Journal Club

PLTL session

• Guided discussion of tricky concepts

• Led by a biology major upperclassman

• Relaxed, pressure-free environment

Lecture

The Teaching Pentagon

General Biology

PLTLStatistics I/II

Lab Journal Club

Journal Club

Lecture

The Teaching Pentagon

General Biology

PLTLStatistics I/II

Lab Journal Club

Community Ecology Lab

• Guided-inquiry• Focus on experimental design and data interpretation

Lecture

The Teaching Pentagon

General Biology

PLTLStatistics I/II

Lab Journal Club

Calculus/Statistics

• Creation of modules in calculus that combines biological and mathematical solutions

• Use of data set to teach statistical analysis in Statistics 1

• Data has both statistical and biological meaning

Benefits

• Allows lecture to focus on concepts• Lab can focus on experimental design and not

have to “re-lecture”• Students who learn differently can benefit

from multi-pronged approach• Training tool for graduate student TAs

Future

• Assessment scheme has just been fully implemented

• Upscaling philosophy to high-enrollment classes