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Even before coverage and updates on COVID-19 became a daily event in mainstream news, mass media was already full of science-focused current events stories. While relevant to our everyday lives, many popular press science articles overstate conclusions, misstate details or, at worst, purposefully spread disinformation. This iterative news analysis and writing intervention was designed to increase the visibility of real-world applications of microbiology in current events (including and beyond the 2019 coronavirus disease [COVID-19] pandemic), thereby engaging students and cultivating motivation through a positive perception of course content in accordance with expectancy-value theory. This intervention can be scaled and has been successfully used in both large- and small-enrollment microbiology classes as an active learning strategy. Students engage in science literacy at multiple levels, starting with identifying credible sources, then summarizing news articles, relating them to course content, conveying the main ideas to lay audiences, identifying in turn misleading or omitted ideas, and finally writing potential exam questions on the topic. This multifaceted analysis allows students to interact with material at many different levels in a self-directed manner as students seek out and choose articles to share with their peers. To date, anecdotal evidence suggests positive gains in student interest and perceived value of studying science.
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Different approaches can be used to impart science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) literacy among undergraduates and thus can be modified to support various scientific concepts and course objectives. In comparable microbiology-related courses, scaffolded assignments to improve STEM literacy through data, information, and communication analysis skills were developed using the ASM Curriculum Guidelines and the Microbiology Course Inventory (MCI) to structure the course and assignments. Examples of such assignments included a meta-analysis using literature and bioinformatics, as well as a public data presentation and an epidemiological model based on current events. To evaluate the effectiveness of such approaches, assignment components were aligned to determine whether the activities reinforced the MCI concepts. Comparison of pre- and postcourse data indicated relative strengths (and weaknesses) addressed by scaffolded STEM literacy pedagogy. These efforts also contribute to a department-wide initiative to enhance career readiness and implementation of course assessments. Future goals are to broaden the integration of assignment components to other microbiology-related courses and have longitudinal assessment.
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BACKGROUND: People with multiple sclerosis (MS) frequently report implementing dietary strategies as part of their personal wellness programs; however, little is known about the perceived themes of healthy behavior change in people with MS. METHODS: Semistructured one-on-one interviews were conducted with 20 women with MS enrolled in 2 different restrictive dietary intervention studies and their 18 self-identified support persons consisting of partners and adult children. Interviews were transcribed, coded, categorized, and then grouped into summative themes. The frequency of issues being mentioned as facilitators of or barriers to diet adherence was evaluated to identify possible differences in perceived experiences between women with MS and their support persons during the studies. RESULTS: Five qualitative themes were identified: (1) personal motivation, (2) diet components, (3) time, (4) support, and (5) resource access. Major facilitators of dietary adherence were positive support from support persons and study staff, access to resources, symptom improvement, and personal motivation. Major barriers included the novelty of the study diet, lack of cooking skills, no change in or worsening of symptoms, lack of diet knowledge, and food preferences and temptations. Symptom severity was more frequently reported as a barrier to study diet adherence among participants with secondary progressive MS. CONCLUSIONS: Methods to enhance personal motivation and ensure positive support from support persons and study staff may improve study diet adherence. Due to the unique challenges faced by people with MS, future studies should tailor interventions to their unique MS cohort to increase diet adherence.
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Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) often occur in a physical lab space, but they can also be offered remotely while maintaining course expectations and providing opportunity for authentic student engagement in research. Using a novel framework, remote Microbial Ecology CURE students used microbes isolated via antimicrobial-challenged Winogradsky columns to investigate phylogeny and metabolism through a hypothesis-driven meta-analysis (MA). Students used 16S rRNA and key metabolic enzymes to compare phylogeny; enzymes were modeled and evaluated for putative conserved domains, culminating in primer design and analysis. Using in silico tools facilitated student development of bioinformatics skills. The MA was subdivided into discrete sections in order to (i) provide a timeline for students to remain on schedule throughout a remote-learning lab experience, (ii) encourage feedback throughout the project, and (iii) facilitate student understanding of the experimental design. MA deliverables were designed to be specific figures with individual titles, legends, and analyses to enable their feedback for subsequent presentations. The six key formative deliverables included a word cloud (used to develop the works cited list and hypothesis), a 16S rRNA phylogenetic tree, an annotated metabolic pathway and three-dimensional model of the key metabolic enzyme, a phylogenetic tree based on the key metabolic enzyme, design and analysis of a primer set for the key metabolic enzyme, and a summative poster and graphical abstract. The MA project yielded poster presentations at virtual conferences, lab presentations, and written reports. Using the hypothesis-based MA model encouraged an authentic research experience, enabling students to develop, discuss, and progress in meaningful experiments.
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Traditional postsecondary education is making progress on embracing the diversity of student backgrounds and experiences while preparing them for the demands of STEM careers. Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) are effective tools to concurrently achieve many student and faculty goals: facilitating training of students, building career competencies, generating publishable research results and enabling research experiences where students apply their knowledge and interest. Georgia State University is not unique with a high student demand for research experiences and mentors that is greater than traditional research faculty labs can accommodate. Georgia State University is, however, unique in that it is a demographically diverse campus which serves minority and non-traditional students (i.e., second career and veterans) and is also rapidly growing. Therefore, to enhance the microbiology curriculum and facilitate authentic research experiences for the growing number of biology majors, a cluster of course-based research experiences in microbial ecology was developed. A former research lab space was converted to a collaborative teaching lab to serve the growth in course offerings, as well as to accommodate multiple microbial ecology research projects occurring in the same space. The courses offered appeal to students, build on the strengths of faculty experiences, and facilitate collaboration amongst students and with the greater Atlanta community. To ensure that our CUREs are accessible to the diverse students in our department, we addressed a variety of logistical and curricular challenges. Solutions to such challenges align with the goals of the university to offer research and signature experiences to ensure students are included and trained in STEM skills.
