Community College Instructors' Perceptions of Constraints and Affordances Related to Teaching Quantitative Biology Skills and Concepts

Autor/inn/en	Corwin, Lisa A.; Kiser, Stacey; LoRe, Sondra M.; Miller, Jillian M.; Aikens, Melissa L.
Titel	Community College Instructors' Perceptions of Constraints and Affordances Related to Teaching Quantitative Biology Skills and Concepts
Quelle	In: CBE - Life Sciences Education, 18 (2019) 4, Artikel 64 (13 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1931-7913
Schlagwörter	Undergraduate Students; Biology; Statistical Analysis; Skill Development; Two Year College Students; Community Colleges; College Faculty; Mathematics Skills; Self Efficacy; Student Interests; Curriculum; Familiarity; Knowledge Level; Faculty Development; Teacher Collaboration; Social Support Groups; Active Learning; Professional Autonomy; Grants; Educational Finance; Background; Course Content; Knowledge Base for Teaching + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Biologie; Statistische Analyse; Kompetenzentwicklung; Qualifikationsentwicklung; Community college; Community College; Fakultät; Mathmatics achievement; Mathematics ability; Mathematische Kompetenz; Self-efficacy; Selbstwirksamkeit; Studieninteresse; Curricula; Lehrplan; Rahmenplan; Wissensbasis; Lehrerkooperation; Social support; Soziale Unterstützung; Aktives Lernen; Berufsfreiheit; Grant; Finanzielle Beihilfe; Bildungsfonds; Hintergrundinformation; Kursprogramm; Teaching theory; Theory of teaching; Unterrichtstheorie
Abstract	Quantitative skills are an important competency for undergraduate biology students and should be incorporated early and frequently in an undergraduate's career. Community colleges (CCs) are responsible for teaching introductory biology to a large proportion of biology and prehealth students, and quantitative skills are critical for their careers. However, we know little about the challenges and affordances that CC instructors encounter when incorporating quantitative skills into their courses. To explore this, we interviewed CC biology instructors (n = 20) about incorporating quantitative biology (QB) instruction into their classes. We used a purposeful sampling approach to recruit instructors who were likely to have tried evidence-based pedagogies and were likely aware of the importance of QB instruction. We used open coding to identify themes related to the affordances to and constraints on teaching QB. Overall, our study participants met with challenges typical of incorporating new material or techniques into any college-level class, including perceptions of student deficits, tension between time to teach quantitative skills and cover biology content, and gaps in teacher professional knowledge (e.g., content and pedagogical content knowledge). We analyze these challenges and offer potential solutions and recommendations for professional development to support QB instruction at CCs. (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	American Society for Cell Biology. 8120 Woodmont Avenue Suite 750, Bethesda, MD 20814-2762. Tel: 301-347-9300; Fax: 301-347-9310; e-mail: ascbinfo@ascb.org; Website: http://www.ascb.org
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01