This study investigates the role of plants and animals in a sample of 814 secondary school students (395 female, 371 male and 15 diverse, aged 10–18 years) who portrayed a nature experience of their own choice through drawing and writing. More specifically, we tested the hypotheses from the plant awareness disparity (PAD) literature, that school students find nature experiences of plants less memorable and less personally relevant than nature experiences of animals. Therefore, we asked students to indicate how personally relevant they perceive the nature experience which they portrayed. Furthermore, we used a short nature connectedness scale by Richardson and colleagues. Although nature experiences of plants were only slightly less memorable than nature experiences of animals – judged by the similar numbers of both types of nature experiences – nature experiences of plants were less personally relevant than experiences of animals and experiences without plants and animals. Furthermore, secondary school students who reported nature experiences of plants exhibited lower nature connectedness than students reporting nature experiences of animals. As a main educational implication, we suggest to focus on increasing the personal relevance of experiences of plants.

Cherry rain-cracking is a popular way of teaching osmosis in biology. For a long time, scientists and educators have explained this phenomenon by referring to the 'critical turgor pressure model', according to which fruit flesh volume and internal pressure increase, causing the fruit's skin to burst. Recently, this explanation has been revised and replaced by the 'zipper model', which explains crack formation as a series of events in which the skin ruptures similar to a zipper. Using qualitative methods, we investigated the conceptions of 43 students aged 16-18 years regarding cherry rain-cracking, and evaluated teaching materials aimed at conceptual reconstruction. In the pre-test, students predominantly used the 'critical turgor pressure' to explain the phenomenon and compared the cherry to a balloon whose skin bursts because of the increased pressure. In the post-test, most students favoured the zipper model and referred to more levels of organisation to explain the phenomenon. Our results have two main teaching implications. First, the modelling process supports students in reconstructing their conceptions. Second, the zoom map helps students move back and forth between different levels of organisation and construct explanations that are more scientific.

ZusammenfassungDieser Beitrag thematisiert die Vielfalt biologischer Erklärungstypen, kontrastiert die Erklärungstypen gegeneinander und verdeutlicht das Entwickeln und Finden von Erklärungen als abduzierendes Schließen. Dies geschieht in der Annahme, dass das fachspezifische Wissenschaftsverständnis von Lehrenden und Lernenden entwickelt werden kann, indem sie Metawissen über die Entstehung und Vielfalt biologischer Erklärungstypen erwerben. Dabei sollen Fragestellungen, Vorgehensweisen bei der Beantwortung der Fragestellungen und korrespondierende Erklärungstypen im Zusammenhang miteinander unterrichtet werden. Drei Erklärungstypen werden in diesem Beitrag charakterisiert und der Mehrwert einer Differenzierung dieser Typen für den Biologieunterricht wird analysiert. Speziell wird argumentiert, dass fehlendes Metawissen über die Vielfalt biologischer Erklärungstypen bei Lernenden eine mögliche Ursache dafür darstellen kann, dass die Funktion eines Merkmals als die alleinige Ursache für die Entstehung des Merkmals im Laufe der Evolution angeführt wird. Hierbei handelt es sich um eine unangemessene teleologische Erklärung. Eine weitere aus fehlendem Metawissen resultierende Verwechslungsmöglichkeit besteht zwischen funktionalen und mechanistischen Erklärungen.

Evolutionary theory is considered the unifying theory of modern biosciences, but the public continues to misperceive the prevailing scientific consensus. Science communication studies emphasise the influence of perceived scientific and social consensus on personal beliefs, which can be manipulated through communication strategies. This study investigates the impact of consensus messaging on (1) perceptions of scientific and social consensus, (2) students' feelings of certainty about these perceptions, and (3) acceptance of evolutionary theory. Employing a 2 x 2 factorial design (Factor 1: scientific consensus messaging versus consensus uncertainty; Factor 2: social consensus messaging), we randomly assigned 218 German upper secondary school students to one of four text variants to complete a close-ended pre - post questionnaire. We found positive correlations of evolutionary theory acceptance with perceived scientific and social consensus, and with feeling of certainty regarding perceived scientific consensus. Scientific consensus messaging positively affected perceived scientific consensus and feeling of certainty. Assessed with all items of MATE 2.0, acceptance decreased in the consensus uncertainty condition. When measured with two items, acceptance increased with scientific consensus messaging. The role of consensus messaging in teaching evolution and its use as a component of teaching strategies in evolutionary education and other fields are discussed.

AbstractThis study examines secondary school students’ out-of-school, free choice nature experiences from the perspective of perceived personal relevance. We asked secondary school students (n = 70; aged 10–18 years) to portray a particularly memorable moment in nature. Furthermore, we asked the students to rate the perceived personal relevance of that moment, as well as the frequency of such moments. Perception of personal relevance was associated with age, gender, inner aspects (explicit positive evaluations) and outer aspects (type of setting) of the nature experience. Furthermore, perception of personal relevance was positively correlated with the frequency of the nature experience. This finding supports the hypothesis that secondary school students who perceive their own nature experiences as personally relevant are likely to re-engage in them. Most secondary school students attached considerable importance to personal experiences with nature and advocated opportunities for nature experiences in biology instruction. Future research should examine the role of personal relevance as a motivator to re-engage with one’s own nature experiences to counteract the extinction of experience. For promoting personally relevant nature experiences, educators need to acknowledge the diversity of nature experiences because the construction of perceived personal relevance is individual and subjective.

This study provides insights into high school students’ (n = 47, age: 16–17 years) molecular mechanistic reasoning about gene-environment interplay. Analyses distinguished between causal and mechanistic reasoning and focused on three interrelated molecular mechanisms of gene-environment interplay. As a main finding, few high school students showed molecular mechanistic reasoning about the environment (13%) and gene-environment interplay (13%) because the genetic and environmental mechanisms had to be inferred from the materials. In contrast, most students focused on information presented in the materials, which they reproduced for causal reasoning about food (21%), mechanistic reasoning about the biochemical pathway (11%), and an unintegrated (23%) or integrated combination (17%) of both types of reasoning. Furthermore, we interviewed a subgroup of seven students about the gene-environment interplay model of trait formation to validate our interpretations. The model visualizes relationships between gene, gene product, trait and environment. Students’ fragmented knowledge of gene-environment interplay rendered use of the model difficult for mechanistic reasoning because students rarely acknowledged enzymes as mediators between genes and traits and the role of proteins in trait formation. We discuss “tracing trait formation” as a teaching learning strategy and recommend using the gene-environment interplay model of trait formation for implementing this strategy in the classroom.

Scientific phenomena often result from complex interrelations of various factors. Cognitive processes, however, favour the genesis of simplistic, linear causal assumptions. For example, students tend to emphasize either genetic or environmental causes when asked to explain variation in a trait, but struggle to recognize the complex interplay of these factors. Helping learners to reflect on causal relations is a promising strategy to facilitate the comprehension of complex issues. Here, we report on a trait-specific approach to promote an understanding of relational causality in the context of trait development. In a pilot study, 54 high school students worked with materials focussing on the genesis of depression, being overweight or phenylketonuria (PKU). All materials were designed to engage students in reflecting upon underlying causal patterns and revealed gene-by-environment interaction (GxE) as the “best fitting” causal model. Before and after intervention, all students completed a four-parted GxE questionnaire and we report evaluation results.

Assessment literacy is a crucial aspect of teachers’ professional knowledge and relevant to fostering students’ learning. Concerning experimentation, teachers have to be able to assess student achievement when students form hypotheses, design experiments, and analyze data. Therefore, teachers need to be familiar with criteria for experimentation as well as student conceptions of experimentation. The present study modeled and measured 495 German pre-service teachers’ knowledge of what to assess regarding experimentation competences in biology. We applied an open-answer format for the measurement instrument. For modeling we used item response theory (IRT). We argue that knowledge of what to assess regarding experimentation competences is a one-dimensional construct and we provide evidence for the validity of the measurement. Furthermore, we describe qualitative findings of pre-service teachers’ knowledge of what to assess, in particular difficulties concerning the assessment of student conceptions as well as the use of scientific terms in the assessments. We discuss the findings in terms of implications for science teacher education and further research perspectives.

Student interest in plants is lacking. Therefore, we investigated potential drivers of situational interest in cultivated plants and interactions between different dimensions of interest, i.e. topic, context and learning activity. A total of 462 high school students (14-17 years of age) rated two sets of questionnaire items combining eight plants (representing topics) either with different contexts or with different activities. We used Rasch analyses and multivariate analyses of variance to investigate which dimension of interest drove the students' interest. Contexts were the dominant dimension of plant-context combinations. Students were most interested in plants in reference to the contexts 'risks and the assessment of risks' and 'impacts on the environment'. Plants were the dominant dimension of plant-activity combinations. Students were most interested in activities in reference to cannabis (psychoactive plant), cocoa (stimulant plant) and arnica (medicinal plant). For these three plants, the least interesting activity ('working with scientific texts') was more interesting than the most interesting activity ('completing a computer simulation') for the other five plants. Plants, thus, moderated the general level of interest students expressed in plant-activity combinations. We discuss the findings in terms of the choices educators can make for contextualizing plants and for selecting plants for classroom activities.

This paper explicates the relationship between biological function and teleology by focusing not only on difference but also on conceptual overlap. By doing so, this paper is meant to increase awareness of the misleading potential of biological function and the educational necessity to explicate the meaning of biological function to biology students to prevent them from drawing inadequate teleological conclusions about biological phenomena. The conceptual overlap between teleology and biological function lies in the notion of telos (end, goal). Biologically inadequate teleology assumes that teloi (ends, goals) exist in nature and that natural mechanisms are directed towards teloi . Such inadequate teleological assumptions have been documented in students’ reasoning about biological phenomena. Biological function, however, does not involve the assumption that teloi exist in nature. Rather, biologists use the notion of telos as an epistemological tool whenever they consider a structure or mechanism functional because they view this structure or mechanism as a means to an end ( telos ). Whereas for biologists such means-ends conceptualizations represent a productive tool for identifying biological phenomena functionally, for students, such means-ends considerations can be misleading. Therefore, this paper explicates how far the concept of biological function involves reference to ends ( teloi ) and how it relates to biological mechanisms. The paper draws implications on how to prevent students from slipping from functional reasoning into inadequate teleological reasoning.

This study investigated factors influencing teachers' intention and willingness to teach about cancer in the context of the theory of planned behaviour. Because teaching about cancer is mandatory in Germany, we compared n=355 teachers' intention to teach about cancer under mandatory conditions and their willingness to teach about cancer if they had free choice. Teachers signalled strong intention and a strong willingness to teach about cancer. Teachers did not perceive teaching about cancer to be a burden and strongly considered it to be necessary. Structural equation modelling showed that perceived autonomy was the only significant predictor of teachers' intention, whereas attitude towards the perceived necessity to teach about cancer, attitude towards the perceived burden of teaching about cancer and social norm were significant predictors of willingness. We attributed these differences to the observation of a ceiling effect for intention but not for willingness. There were systematic differences among the variables predicting teachers' intention and willingness depending on whether the teachers had personal experience with cancer. Indirect measures yielded insights into which teacher beliefs affected the direct measures. We discuss implications for professional development, such as reducing the burden of teaching about cancer by adequately addressing emotionally-charged classroom situations.

ABSTRACT Students often have misconceptions about terrestrial carbon flows and there is a lack of coherence in students’ explanations regarding the different levels of biological organisation at which these processes occur. In this study, problem-based teaching materials on the topic of terrestrial carbon flows were developed and tested with 15 students 18–19 years old (grade 12) using a pre/post-test design. Students focused on specific carbon flows in an ecosystem at the macro level (e.g. CO2 fixation and heterotrophic respiration) including specific related concepts at the micro level (e.g. photosynthesis and cellular respiration). The findings indicate that the teaching materials improved the students’ understanding of terrestrial carbon flows and their ability to reason across the different levels of biological organisation. On the basis of these findings, implications for teaching terrestrial carbon flows in biological education are discussed.

This paper reports on findings from an analysis of trait-formation tasks in the genetic sections of high school biology textbooks. Drawing on studies exploring a range of problems in students' explanations of trait formation, we investigated trait-formation tasks and analysed their potential for knowledge integration and multi-level mechanistic reasoning. Among the 216 trait-formation tasks, 39 tasks (18%) were classified as integrative tasks addressing the relationships between genes, proteins and traits. The remaining 177 tasks (82%) were non-integrative tasks addressing selected aspects of the relationship between genes and proteins alone, respectively the relationship between proteins and traits alone. Among the non-integrative tasks, 64% addressed the molecular level alone and thus did not encourage students to address the higher levels of biological organisation. 13% of the non-integrative tasks (n = 23) and 5% of the integrative tasks (n = 2) addressed the role of the environment in trait formation. The findings are related to three main arguments from the genetics literature, concerning knowledge integration and multi-level mechanistic reasoning. As educational implications, we recommend that biology educators make use of integrative tasks to foster students' understanding of trait formation from an integrated model connecting genes, proteins, environmental factors and traits to overcome gene-centred and gene-deterministic beliefs.

We investigated potential drivers of interest in topic–context and topic–activity combinations, as well as interactions between the different elements of situational interest in evolutionary biology. High school students (n = 982, age 17 years) were asked to rate their interest in two sets of items consisting of topic–context and topic–activity combinations. Rasch modeling, analyses of variance, and descriptive statistics revealed that topics are the dominant dimension and moderate the general level of interest that students express in both topic–context and topic–activity combinations. Qualitative findings from interviews with high school students (n = 6, age 16 years) support this finding. Thus, choice of a particular context, as well as choice of a particular activity, may be less important than previously assumed, since topics are the bottleneck and drive situational interest in topic–context combinations and topic–activity combinations. Implications for evolution education are discussed.

This study investigates students' conceptions of the carbon cycle with regard to the components they believe to be relevant to the carbon cycle, how they interrelate these components, the ways in which they trace carbon atoms, and the different levels of biological organisation they consider when doing so. A total of 142 students aged 13-16 years (grades 8-10) participated in the study. A total of 130 students completed the diagnostic task, and an additional 12 students completed both the diagnostic task and were interviewed. The primary results show that the students identified few components of the carbon cycle, tended to trace carbon atoms exclusively at the level of the organism, and had difficulties identifying organic carbon compounds, especially during processes in which carbon compounds are transformed. Considering the main educational implications, we recommend using an instructional strategy that traces carbon atoms across the different levels of biological organisation whilst connecting fragmented knowledge by integrating knowledge from physiology, biochemistry and ecology when teaching the carbon cycle.

The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between high school students' understanding of carbon compounds, including their transformations, and their ability to trace matter in the carbon cycle. The rationale of this study is based on the hypothesis that the students' lack of knowledge about carbon compounds and their transformations limits the students' ability to trace carbon in the carbon cycle. A total of 16 students aged 14-16 years (grade 9) from two different secondary schools were interviewed about carbon compounds, and they were asked to trace matter in the carbon cycle in response to a written diagnostic task. We argue that students' lack of knowledge about carbon compounds and their transformations is responsible for their construction of the carbon cycle as either a gas-gas or solid-solid cycle. Educational implications are discussed.