Biology is where many of science's most exciting and relevant advances are taking place. Yet, many students leave school without having learned basic biology principles, and few are excited enough to continue in the sciences. Why is biology education failing? How can reform be accomplished? This book presents information and expert views from curriculum developers, teachers, and others, offering suggestions about major issues in biology education: what should we teach in biology and how should it be taught? How can we measure results? How should teachers be educated and certified? What obstacles are blocking reform?

Contents

• COMMITTEE ON HIGH-SCHOOL BIOLOGY EDUCATION
• BOARD ON BIOLOGY
• COMMISSION ON LIFE SCIENCES
• [The National Academies]
• PREFACE
• PART I. OPENING ADDRESS AND RESPONSES
  • 1. Opening Address
  • 2. Changing Conceptions of the Learner: Implications for Biology Teaching
  • 3. Literacy, Numeracy, and Global Ecology
  • 4. All Is for the Best in the Best of Possible Worlds."
    • The Content
    • Specifics
    • References
  • 5. The Scientific Revolution in Medicine: Implications for Teachers of High-School Biology
    • One Approach to Teaching Biology
    • Human Diseases as Examples in Biology
    • The Human Genome Mapping Project
    • Conclusion
    • References
  • 6. High-School Biology Training: A Prospective Employer's View
    • Introduction: the Problem
    • Should Biology be Taught in High School?
    • Who Shall be Taught?—and Why?
    • What Should be Taught?
    • Conclusion
• PART II. OBJECTIVES OF BIOLOGY EDUCATION AND MEASUREMENT OF ACHIEVEMENT
  • 7. Issues in Objectives and Evaluation
    • Goals, Objectives, and Outcomes
    • Evaluation Studies
    • Biology Teachers
    • Evaluation in High-School Biology
    • Concluding Remarks
    • References
  • 8. Assessing Student Understanding of Biological Concepts
    • Concealing Students' Ignorance
    • Developing Better Assessments of Biological Knowledge and Learning
    • Conclusion
    • References
  • 9. The Advanced-Placement Biology Examination: Its Rationale, Development, Structure, and Results
    • Development of the AP Biology Course and Examination
    • Course Description
    • Structure of the Examination
    • Results
    • Summary
    • References
  • 10. The Development of Interest in Science
    • Measurement of Interest in Science
    • Some Factors Associated with Attitude Toward Science
    • A Multivariate Model
    • Conclusions and Recommendations
    • References
  • 11. What High-School Juniors Know about Biology: Perspectives from NAEP, the Nation's Report Card
    • Levels of Proficiency
    • Results By Sex and Race-Ethnicity on the Life-Sciences Subscale
    • Selected Item-By-Item Results
    • Summary
    • References
  • 12. The NABT-NSTA High-School Biology Examination: Its Design and Rationale
    • Evolution of the Biology Test
    • Validation by the Membership
    • Test Construction
    • The Results Are in
    • Continued Change through Time
    • A Peek into Students' Minds
    • Other Variables in the Testing Process
    • Future Testing
    • Reference
• PART III. CURRICULUM: PERSPECTIVES AND CONTENT
  • 13. The Evolution of Biology and Adaptation of the Curriculum
  • 14. Human Ecology: Restoring Life to the Biology Curriculum
    • Reform in Science Education
    • Human Ecology
    • Instruction
    • The Loyal Opposition
    • An International Perspective
    • Evolution or Revolution
    • References
  • 15. Developing a Synthesis Between Seventh-Grade Life Science and Tenth-Grade Biology
  • 16. Biology Education: Asking the Right Questions
    • How Much Biology Should Be Taught?
    • What Can We Learn from the Past?
    • What Kind of Biology Should Be Taught?
    • What Is the Social Importance of Biology Education?
    • References
• PART IV. INSTRUCTIONAL PROCEDURES AND MATERIALS
  • 17. To Weed or to Cultivate—Which?
  • 18. Biology Learning Based on Illustrations
    • Importance of Illustrations to Textbooks
    • Increased Complexity of Illustrations
    • Subtleties of Illustration Design
    • Current Direction of Illustrations
    • Importance of Visual Literacy
    • Maximizing Illustration Effectiveness
    • Suggestions for the Future
    • References
  • 19. Teaching High-School Biology: Materials and Strategies
    • Whom Are We Teaching Biology?
    • Characteristics of Students
    • What Should We Teach?
    • Textbooks
    • Technology
    • Teaching
    • References
  • 20. A New Kind of Museum of Natural History as an Instrument of Informal High-School Education in Biology
  • 21. Messing about in Science: Participation, Not Memorization
    • Introduction
    • Research on Student Learning
    • A New Type of Science Curriculum
    • What Might This Curriculum Design Suggest?
    • Conclusion
    • References
• PART V. TEACHER PREPARATION
  • 22. Biology Teacher Education: Panacea or Pitfall
  • 23. Professional Teachers for High-School Biology
    • A Matter of Perspective
    • Certification
    • Teacher Knowledge: Content
    • Teacher Knowledge: Pedagogy
    • The Teaching Profession
    • Acknowledgments
    • References
  • 24. Biology Teacher Training: Preparing Students for Tomorrow
  • 25. Standards for the Preparation and Certification of Biology Teachers
    • Introduction
    • Uses of Teacher Preparation and Certification Standards
    • The Great Debate
    • Implementation of Professional Standards
    • NSTA's Program to Certify Individual Science Teachers
    • Alternative Certification Programs—Good News and Bad News
    • Quo Vadis? Issues to Be Addressed and Resolved
    • References
    • Appendix A NABT Biology Teaching Standards
    • Appendix B Standards for the Preparation and Certification of Secondary School Teachers of Science
  • 26. Current Issues in Biology Education for Teachers
    • The Biology-Content Component of the Teacher-Education Curriculum
    • Potential Effects of the Holmes Group Report on the Recruitment of Teachers from Minority Groups
    • References
• PART VI. ACCOMPLISHING CURRICULAR CHANGES—INSTITUTIONAL BARRIERS
  • 27. Educational Reform? Are We Serious? No, but We Had Better Be.
  • 28. Institutional Barriers to School Change
    • Introduction
    • External Barriers to School Change
    • Centralization
    • Politicization
    • Implications
    • Internal Barriers to School Change
    • Summary
    • Acknowledgment
    • References
  • 29. State Policy Tools for Educational Reform—Barriers or Levers for Change?
    • History of Recent Educational Reform
    • Impact of Recent Reforms
    • The Nature of the Policy Process
    • The New Reform Agenda
    • Developing New Policy Environments
    • Summary
    • References
  • 30. Different Schools: Same Barriers
    • School Tradition
    • Textbooks
    • Monetary Constraints
    • Standardized Testing
    • University Preparation
    • Preservice Education
    • Professional In-Service Education
    • Administration
    • Teacher Attitudes
    • Conclusion
    • Acknowledgments
    • References
• PART VII. ACCOMPLISHING CURRICULAR—IMPLEMENTATION
  • 31. Problems and Issues in Science-Curriculum Reform and Implementation
  • 32. Changing Practice in High Schools: A Process, Not an Event
    • Development vs. Implementation
    • Stereotypes about High Schools
    • Studies of Change From the Teacher's Point of View
    • Adaptations in the Innovation
    • The Principal
    • The Department Head
    • Back to the High School
    • External Facilitators
    • Summary and Recommendations
    • References
  • 33. Change in Schools: A Context for Action
    • A System Perspective of Schools
    • The Ecology of A Learning Environment
    • Change is Systemic
    • Beliefs about Teaching and Learning
    • The High School As a Context for Action
    • References
  • 34. Creating and Nurturing Curriculum Changes: Some Models That Speak to the Future
    • Curricular Change
    • The CRDG Model
    • Conclusions and Recommendations

Support for the publication of these papers was provided by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Bethesda, Maryland.

NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competence and with regard for appropriate balance.

This report has been reviewed by a group other than the authors according to procedures approved by a Report Review Committee consisting of members of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Frank Press is president of the National Academy of Sciences.

The conference High-School Biology: Today and Tomorrow was organized by the Board on Biology of the National Research Council's Commission on Life Sciences. The views in this book are solely those of the individual authors and are not necessarily the views of its sponsors.

Papers from a conference held Oct. 1988, in Washington, D.C.