Current Scholars

Twenty biologists have been selected for the NSF funded Biology Scholars Program to transform undergraduate biology education through the leadership of life science professional societies.  Established in 2007, the Program seeks to enhance biologists’ understanding and practice of evidenced-based teaching and learning.  "I expect from this program to learn how to conduct the same caliber of research in the classroom using my students as my subjects as the bench-side research I have been conducting for the past 15 years to ask worthwhile questions to explore their learning," reports one Scholar in her application to participate.  

The first cohort was selected from a highly competitive pool of biologists seeking a community.  One applicant describes her situation, “There are very few science academics who are involved in educational research and thus it is nearly impossible to find advice on campus about how to proceed when we have a problem."  Another says, “I view the BSP as a way to use the best aspects of a sabbatical-like experience to create a community committed to devise and implement the best practices for assessing student learning in higher education.  I want to gather regularly with a community of peers to discuss research methods, data analysis, recent journal articles and more.” 

The Program is a national laboratory for biologists from all sectors of higher education and all subdisciplines of the biological sciences.  Four participants come from community colleges, seven from undergraduate colleges, and nine from doctoral institutions.  One participant from Australia will join the 2008 cohort.  Each participant will commit up to two years conducting research; some examples of the 2008 projects are understanding students’ ability to 1) overcome misconceptions in cell biology and genetics, 2) grasp difficult topics in physiology with writing assignments requiring different levels of understanding, 3) acquire critical skills for a nursing profession from a virtual laboratory course in biology, 4) internalize complex relationships in microbiology through role playing and concept maps, and 5) understand and apply their own learning preferences to benefit from group discussions, simulations, and independent research in general and plant biology.  

The Biology Scholars Program under the leadership of the American Society for Microbiology supports three residency programs: research, writing and leadership.  The Research Residency begins with the annual Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Institute July 16-19, 2008.  The program is a collaborative project of the American Society for Microbiology, Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning, and American Association for Advancement of Science.  Professional society affiliates are the American Institute of Biological Sciences, American Physiological Society, American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, American Society for Cell Biology, Ecological Society of America, and Genetics Society of America.

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