Measuring Student Learning Institute
A Week (or More) in the Life of Your Class
Massimelli, Julia
University of California, Irvine
I did my work for a high enrollment (350-400) General Microbiology
course.
The course is split in the following modules:
Cell Structure
Evolution
Metabolic pathways
Information flow and genetics
Microbial communities
Impact of Microorganisms
The goal for the Microbial communities module is:
To gain some insight into the role of microbial communities in human
health
The following table describes my objectives and outcomes for one week
of this Microbial communities module.
Learning
objective
Learning
outcome
By the end of the
module the
students will be
able to….
Taxonomy
Learning activity/
Formative assessment
Summative
assessment
Out of class:
1-Reading guide:
sequencing technology
and diversity
2-Pre-reading quiz:
sequencing technology
(16S sequencing,
metagenomic
sequencing, what is
diversity, what is
richness, evenness, etc).
In Class:
To infer the
relationship
between
human gut
microbiome
diversity,
metabolism
and
environment
To describe how
the gut
microbiome is
profiled and how
diversity is
measured
Understand
Factual
1-Clicker question:
set of populations with
different richness and
evenness, select the one
with the highest
diversity.
2-Think-pair-share:
discuss how we can
determine taxonomic
and functional
“abundance” by
sequencing”. Groups
report thoughts using
board/virtual board.
Multiple choice exam:
a-select the population
with the highest
diversity.
b-research scenario: I
want to determine
“what organisms” are
present in a stool
sample. Select the
technique that most
appropriately helps you
answer this question
3-Practice exam
questions questions
during discussion
sections
To show one
example of how
microorganism
fermentation
promotes food
metabolism and
absorption
Analyze
Conceptual
Out of class:
Multiple choice exam:
1-reading guide:
microorganism
fermentation in the gut
1-“research scenario”:
the two most common
bacteria in the gut and X
and Y. This is a graph
showing you their
functional metabolic
capabilities based on
functional sequencing
data. Based on this data,
you expect (multiple
2-Pre-reading quiz:
microorganism
fermentation in the gut
In class:
1-Group discussion:
outline how digestible
and non-digestible
carbohydrates are
metabolized and
absorbed, showing
cooperation between
human and bacterial
enzymes. Groups report
back via board/virtual
board
choice)
2-Clicker question +
Think-pair-share:
connect sequencing
functional data with
metabolic pathways.
3-Practice exam
questions during
discussion sections.
Multiple choice exam.
To interpret data
describing
taxonomic and
functional
diversity of the
gut microbiome
under different
environmental
conditions (diet,
age, etc)
Before class:
-Reading guide: 2-3
figures from Journal
articles. Answer
questions about
hypothesis, what graph
is showing, results and
conclusion. Bring
answers to class
Evaluate
Procedural
In class:
1-Group discussion:
discuss figures based on
the questions they have
in reading guide.
2- clicker questions
followed by socratic
lecture.
3-Practice exam
questions
1- Your research
indicates that bacteria
that belong to the
phylum Firmicutes
have high capability to
ferment refined sugars
and digest fats.
Bacteroidetes on the
other hand, are better
and degrading complex
plant carbohydrates.
You decide to run an
experiment with
humanized mice similar
to the one we discussed
in class: humanized
mice growing in a Low
fat/High plant
carbohydrate diet are
switched to a Western
diet or kept on a Low
fat/High plant
carbohydrate diet as
control. Based on this,
you predict:
(multiple choice)
2- Which of the
following statements is
NOT true regarding the
paper figure shown on
the right.
a.
Weight loss
over time resulted in an
increased abundance of
Bacteroidetes
b.
The bars
labeled “lean” are used
as control
c.
The bars shown
in the graph indicate
individuals kept on
different diets.
d.
Time zero on
diet also serves as
control
e.
The abundance
of bacteroidetes and
firmicutes was
determined by
sequencing
Describe the connections between your activities and assessments. In other words, how do
your activities prepare students for the assessments, both formative and summative? In
which cases are assessments also your in- or out-of-class learning activities?
The formative assessments and activity I have introduced are similar in terms of format
(multiple choice) and cognitive level (Bloom) to the questions they will find in the exam.
This will allow for appropriated practice before they are tested. Most importantly though,
the assessments will help me reveal miss-conceptions and clarify difficult concepts during
class and not the night before the exam.
Describe how the choices you have made create a more learner-centered environment for
your students.
I have re-designed my lectures to make them more active and including a lot more
formative assessments. This takes away lecture time centered in me doing the
talking and shifts the focus to the students: what they are doing, discussing, asking,
etc.