April Maskiewicz Cordero

Point Loma Nazarene University | PLNU · Biology

Background: Many individuals reject evolutionary theory due to a perceived conflict with their religious beliefs. To bridge this gap, educators have attempted different approaches including approaching evolution rejection as a consequence of deficit thinking and teaching students the nature of science (including the scientific process and peer rev...

Too many students reject the theory of evolution because they view it as incompatible with their religious beliefs. Some have argued that abandoning religious belief is the only way to help religious individuals accept evolution. Conversely, our data support that highlighting faith/evolution compatibility is an effective means to increase student a...

Threshold concepts have been referred to as “jewels in the curriculum”: concepts that are key to competency in a discipline but not taught explicitly. In biology,researchers have proposed the idea of threshold concepts that include such topics as variation,randomness,uncertainty,and scale. In this essay,we explore how the notion of threshold concep...

We used a design-based research approach to develop "data-rich problem" (DRP) tasks intended to support middle and high school students in constructing knowledge about food webs and ecosystem dynamics, specifically the effects of species loss. The marine environment is used for context to promote an understanding of interdependent ecological relati...

Using a design-based research approach, we developed a data-rich problem (DRP) set to improve student understanding of cellular respiration at the ecosystem level. The problem tasks engage students in data analysis to develop biological explanations. Several of the tasks and their implementation are described. Quantitative results suggest that stud...

At the close of the Society for the Advancement of Biology Education Research conference in July 2012, one of the organizers made the comment: "Misconceptions are so yesterday." Within the community of learning sciences, misconceptions are yesterday's news, because the term has been aligned with eradication and/or replacement of conceptions, and ou...

Background/Question/Methods Much of the education research we see conducted by members of ESA is applied research: designing and/or determining if an instructional approach is effective at promoting learning in either formal or informal settings. This type of research sets out to solve practical educational problems rather than to acquire knowled...

Background/Question/Methods We sought to understand why students have a difficult time understanding the flow of matter and energy through ecological systems, as evidenced by their poor performance on Diagnostic Question Clusters. Students who take our ecology courses typically take introductory biology, ecology, chemistry and physics courses dur...

Background/Question/Methods Understanding the importance of preserving our ecosystems cannot be fully realized if students’ explanations of ecological phenomena are not constrained by scientific principles (i.e. conservation of matter and energy). Studies show that college level students have limited understanding that atoms, although rearranged...

Biology majors often take introductory biology, chemistry, and physics courses during their first two years of college. The various and sometimes conflicting discourse about and explanations of matter and energy in these courses may contribute to confusion and alternative conceptions (those that differ from scientific consensus) in biology learners...

We set out to understand how different instantiations of inquiry emerged in two different years of one elementary teacher's classroom. Longitudinal observations from Mrs. Charles' 5th grade science classroom forced us to carefully and deliberately consider who exactly was responsible for the change in the class activities and norms. We provide empi...

In this study, we used targeted active-learning activities to help students improve their ways of reasoning about carbon flow in ecosystems. The results of a validated ecology conceptual inventory (diagnostic question clusters [DQCs]) provided us with information about students' understanding of and reasoning about transformation of inorganic and o...

Teachers know that educational experiences extend far beyond the classroom. With a wide variety of science-related programs on television, there is a need for more research into how these programs can be utilized in a classroom setting. In this mixed-methods study, we asked the question: Can student understanding of human physiology be improved thr...

Background/Question/Methods Education research demonstrates the effectiveness of active learning in increasing academic performance in both large lecture classes and small classes. Active learning (AL) engages students by encouraging application, discussion, and synthesis of material during class meetings. Here we share results of using specific...

In this study we build on the closely related constructs of teacher attention and responsiveness to explore how one fifth-grade teacher facilitates scientific inquiry. We illustrate the dual use of responsiveness and framing through the case study of Mrs. Charles, who skillfully elicits and builds on students' ideas in her science classroom. In our...

Background/Question/Methods Processes that transform carbon (photosynthesis, oxidation, biosynthesis) play a prominent role in college biology and ecology classes. Furthermore, an understanding of the carbon cycle is a critical component of environmental literacy. Our goals were to learn about student reasoning related to carbon-transforming proces...

Background/Question/Methods Diagnostic Question Clusters (DQC’s) are sets of questions that determine students’ common misunderstandings, and give instructors a formative tool to assess students’ progress and modify instruction. Andy Anderson and colleagues at Michigan State University developed Biology DQCs and shared them with invited participan...

Educational studies report that secondary and college level students have developed only limited understandings of the most basic biological processes and their interrelationships from typical classroom experiences. Furthermore, students have developed undesirable reasoning schemes and beliefs that directly affect how they make sense of and account...