Little is known about how biology instructors incorporate quantitative modeling opportunities in the classroom. This afternoon, Lyrica Lucas and Anum Khushal will discuss the development of a research instrument (QMOP) that measures the degree of implementation of quantitative modeling.
Title:
Development of the Quantitative Modeling Observation Protocol (QMOP) for Undergraduate Biology Courses: Validity Evidence for Score Interpretation and Uses
Abstract:
Educational reform priorities such as emphasis on quantitative modeling (QM) have positioned undergraduate biology instructors as designers of QM experiences to engage students in authentic science practices that support the development of data-driven and evidence-based reasoning. Yet, little is known about how biology instructors incorporate QM opportunities for students in the courses they teach. Moreover, research instruments that measure the degree of implementation of QM in biology need to be developed to set the groundwork for studying how QM is integrated in biology courses. In this seminar, we will discuss the development of the Quantitative Modeling Observation Protocol (QMOP), a classroom observation instrument designed to support the need for research to characterize the current landscape of QM instruction in undergraduate biology. QMOP provides information about the breadth and depth of QM implementation across three hypothesized dimensions – authentic instruction, teaching for understanding, and quantitative approach to teaching biology. We will also present an interpretive argument in relation to the intended use of the instrument and provide evidence to assess the validity of our assumptions and inferences about observation scores generated using the instrument. Strengths and weaknesses of evidence pertaining to assumptions about scoring, generalizability, extrapolation, and implications will be discussed to build a validity argument for observations and demonstrate how the instrument can be used for investigating QM instruction in undergraduate biology.
Date: Thursday, 12/1, from 2-3 pm
Place: 109 Bessey Hall or via Zoom at
https://unl.zoom.us/j/212107342