Biology & Behavior - Student Led Inquiry
Author: Dan Sullivan-Catlin
School District: Norwood-Norfolk Central School
Intended Audience:
Content Area: Social Studies
Course Title: Psychology
Grade Level: 11-12
Technology Integration:
Technology Hardware: Computer/Multimedia projector/Smartboard
Technology Software: PowerPoint
Internet Resources: Varied
Other Content Areas for STEM Integration:
Content Area: Science
New York State Social Studies Standards
Given that psychology is not directly referenced in the New York State learning standards for Social Studies, I have adapted the following from Standard 2 – World History:
* identify historical [psychological] problems, pose analytical questions or hypotheses, research analytical questions or test hypotheses, formulate conclusions or generalizations, raise new questions or issues for further investigation
* interpret and analyze documents and artifacts related to
significant developments and events in world history [psychology]
Performance Standards
complete historical/social science research projects focusing on
topics and issues drawn from world history [psychology];
examine different kinds of maps to identify and define their
components, including key, title, legend, cardinal and
intermediate directions, scale, and grid [modified from Geography performance standards]
Problem Statement:
This should be posed as a problem that students will be addressing. This will be the focus of the learning experience.
Biological systems influence human behavior in many ways. Students will be charged with discovering the connections between the brain, the central nervous system, the endocrine system and genetics and how these systems influence human behavior, and what psychological research has discovered about these systems and their influence on behavior.
Essential Question:
This is one focus question that promotes inquiry based learning and allows for multiple solutions and processes.
How has research conducted into biological systems helped psychologists understand human behavior?
Learning Objectives:
By the end of this learning experience students will be able to:
Name and describe the components and functions of the Central Nervous System, the Endocrine System, the brain and heredity
Describe diseases that impact these systems and the disease’s effect on behavior
Find and describe research that has been done in the field of psychology which sheds light on the impact these systems have on behavior
Necessary Resources:
List all materials that the teacher or students need to complete this learning experience.
Textbook(s), Workbook(s): Rathus, Spencer. Psychology: Principles in Practice. Austin, TX: Holt Reinhart and Winston, 2003.
Reference Book(s):
Handout(s): Assignment description and rubrics
Other: Internet access for researching diseases and research
Steps for Implementing Learning Experience:
List the actions that take place during this learning experience.
Students will lead discussion on what they already know about these biological systems
Teacher will lead discussion on how these systems impact human behavior
Students will be assigned groups and the system they are responsible for researching
Teacher discusses the expectations of the assignment and hands out description
Students use textbook to gain preliminary understanding of how psychologists see these systems and identify topics that need more information
Instructional Modifications:
List all modifications to the classroom setting as well as those used to enhance learning for all students.
I spent one hour creating the assignment, one hour devising the rubrics and two hours preparing the materials for the peer review.
Time used for Planning:
Time spent without students to prepare.
I spent one hour creating the assignment, one hour devising the rubrics.
Time for Implementation & Assessment:
List each day that the learning experience occurs along with the timeframe of the day in minutes.
42 minute periods
Day One - Student led discussion (What I already know) and discussion of assignment expectations
Day Two - Students use textbooks to understand how psychologists view their assigned system
Day 3-7 Students use library and Internet resources to find additional information and prepare PowerPoint presentations; teacher guides and directs student research
Day 8,9 Student presentations to class
Day 10 Teacher leads discussion to correct erroneous information, or provide missing essential details
Assessment Tools:
List all forms of assessment for the learning experience.
Teacher will monitor and guide student research into these systems.
Students will be informally asked the meaning of information gathered, and misunderstanding will be corrected or clarification provided to improve student understanding of the material.
Students will identify the information they believe to be most significant by creating quizzes based on the material researched and presented to the class.
Students will make 10-15 minute presentations to the class where they will discuss the components and functions of each biological system, as well as research done by psychologists that shows the connections between the biological system and human behavior. They will present information on diseases that effect each system.
Students will conduct self-evaluations of the effort each put into the group presentation, as well as an evaluation of the work done by their peers in the group.
Teacher will evaluate the presentations based on a rubric which measures the degree to which the presentation guidelines were followed.
Reflection:
Share the pros and cons of the learning experience. State any modifications that you would make next time this lesson is implemented.
Students did an excellent job in describing each biological system and its components. They successfully described ways in which each biological system impacts behavior. The group that presented on heredity was most successful in describing research conducted into their biological system, explaining how twin studies have revealed the influence of environment on behavior. Other groups were less successful in presenting information on research conducted into their assigned system. I could have provided a list of research studies for students to choose from. I chose not to do this in favor of students having their own direction and initiative. I was disappointed with how easily students would give up in their searches. I worked directly with two groups, assisting them in refining their searches until we found information on research conducted on the group’s biological system, however the information did not make its way into either groups’ presentation.
I was very pleased with the self and peer evaluation rubric that I put together for this assignment. I have struggled in the past to come up with a rubric that allows students to show how their effort contributed to the group’s project, while at the same time allowing them to point out a group member that did not carry their own weight. What pleased me the most was that students that did not carry their own weight did not try to claim they did as much as or more than their peers. They were hard on themselves. They acknowledged that others had put together most of the work. I am aware of these discrepancies as I observe student behaviors, but students would get into an argument about their contributions in the past. These self-evaluations go a long way in minimizing these conflicts.
My technology goals were fairly limited in this assignment, use of the Internet and PowerPoint. I was able to show students a few tricks with the software, including hyperlinks to on-line resources and embedding video into the presentation, however these tricks did not show up in the presentations. I gave students guidance as to how to customize animation, which was followed. What disappointed me about their use of the technology was the problem many speakers have when presenting with PowerPoint. As they were preparing their slide shows, I encouraged students to boil their slides down to a handful of key words or phrases, so as to not have too many words/ideas fill the screen. I encouraged them to have notes handy to work from, elaborating on the information included in the slides. Instead, wordy slides got reduced, but student presenters tended to read only what was on the slide, and present no additional information. When I could recall information they had researched and we had discussed, I drew out more during their presentations. But for most students, if it wasn’t on the screen, it wasn’t in their presentation. This is instructive in illustrating the limitations of use of this technology.
While I stressed the importance of documenting the sources used for gathering information, I received Works Cited pages from only two of the groups.
STUDENT WORK:
Attached in electronic form are two PowerPoint Slide Show and scans of student self- and peer-evaluations. The group that presented genetics(members B1, B2, B3)was approaching the mastery level. They had the ability to talk about the topics in their slide show with added depth and detail. The students who prepared the endocrine system (members A1,A2,A3,A4) had mastery in some areas, lack of information in others, and group members who would be considered “below-average.” Two group members had no ability to communicate the meaning of the information in their slideshow, only able to read what was on the screen. This also becomes clear from the groups peer evaluations.
Student Work:
Attach one sample of student work that demonstrates a mastery, average, or below average level.
Rigor and Relevance Target:
The Rigor/Relevance Framework has four quadrants. Each is labeled with a term that characterizes the learning performance of the student at that level. Select the quadrant that is most appropriate regarding this learning experience.
Provide Supporting Information to Validate the Quadrant in Which This Learning Experience is Located.
This experience is high in the B quadrant, approaching D. On the application axis, the presentations asks students to apply knowledge to a real-world predictable situation. Presentations of data and information is something students must be prepared to do. Experience and guidance in public speaking are needed to prepare students for life outside of school. The dangers and limitations of presenting using a tool such as PowerPoint need to be pointed out to students. I state high in the B quardrant because I think students went as far as application on the knowledge axis. There is potential for additional steps up the axis if students are able to compare and contrast competing research hypothesis. which would get us firmly into the adaptation quadrant.
