Session T-10 - Topics: PBL in Chemistry; Teaching & Learning in Maker Spaces; Incorporating CRISPR into Biology Labs

Problem Based Learning (PBL) can be a powerful alternative to traditional “cooking book” style laboratory experiments. This presentation will describe the implementation of the PBL in a large (>1000 students) General Chemistry Lab class over two consecutive Winter semesters at McGill. The stepwise project design, the need for TA training and for heavy scaffolding will be discussed. The results will be presented from the perspective of all the agents involved in the process, namely students, Teaching Assistants and the instructor.

This paper presents our inquiry into the nature of teaching and learning in makerspaces: What are the forms of interaction that characterize effective learning in a makerspace? What kind of activities are effective for learning? What is learned and how is that learning distinct from more traditional didactic forms of pedagogy? To help a classroom of future teachers collectively explore these questions, we developed a curriculum focused on critical making and reflection around the value and processes of their learning.

This presentation will showcase a new simulator tool developed to allow students to explore the use of cutting-edge lab approaches in authentic and inquiry-based scientific contexts. The specific tool developed and illustrated here focuses on using the CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing approach within the context of a research study published by a lab at Concordia university. Using the simulator, students first design simplified versions of CRISPR gene-editing tools and test these, mimicking a lab which is currently being used in the Cellular Biology course at Vanier college to introduce students to CRISPR technology. After designing the CRISPR tools, students design a basic research study, using these tools to answer a simple research question which happens to be a small subsidiary question addressed using CRISPR from the study published by the Concordia lab. Students are provided with the research paper and supporting context to help scaffold their study design choices, and the simulator also makes direct reference to the study itself, the research lab, and the scientists involved, to help students recognize and appreciate the authenticity of their work. Ultimately, the simulator will export data reflective of student choices and the authentic context of the research question, and teachers can have students analyze these data and write reports. While this simulator is fairly specifically designed for introductory biology courses, this approach can and will eventually be expanded to other tools that are used within other authentic contexts. Thus, while this presentation will walk through the specifics of the simulator and allow participants to play with it, the approach itself will equally be highlighted as a possible solution for how to overcome laboratory constraints and incorporate inquiry into lab curricula, as well as for how to help address needs of diverse learners.