ASM Biology Scholar
Michael J. Wolyniak
This has been a year of preparation for me. I am planning on implementing a new
introductory biology lab course next fall that will focus on a long-term research question
directly related to the research interests my colleague and I (fungal interactions with local
varieties of hops and the advent of downy mildew and powdery mildew infections on
these plants). The lab will have modules focused on molecular biology, ecology,
evolution, physiology, and experimental biology: in other words, it will be a survey lab
based on an authentic research question. This lab will be run alongside our current
introductory biology lab, a series of 2-week modules that cover all the major concepts of
the lecture course but are not cohesive with respect to each other. The direct side-by-side
running of these labs will allow me to collect data on the importance of original student
research in student achievement and enthusiasm in an introductory biology survey course.
This comparison will be followed in the future by the use of an original semester-long
research project for the introductory survey lab that does not attempt to cover the survey
of introductory biology. This will allow me to measure the importance of laboratory
content coverage to student achievement in an introductory biology survey course.
There have been frustrations with respect to the amount of time needed to get this
project underway. One of the primary motivations behind this delay has been waiting for
a senior departmental colleague to retire since it would have been untenable to launch this
initiative in his final year of teaching in the department. However, I have come to
appreciate the value of the delay as it has allowed me to get a firm perspective of what
this new pilot lab experience will look like and how I can best assess the learning
outcomes I hope to achieve. I look forward to keeping this group informed of my
progress as I get into the main portion of my Biology Scholar project in the months ahead.
Current/Planned Work:
A New Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience for
Hampden-Sydney College Introductory Biology, Fall 2015
Question: What are the factors that contribute to the
spread of powdery mildew and downy mildew on native
and commercial varieties of hops?
-Hops are of significant commercial value and have
potential to act as a model system for the study of
plant/pathogen interactions.
-The work in this project will be conducted primarily
by undergraduates in a classroom setting.
-The results of this work directly inform the research
work of multiple members of the H-SC science
faculty, promoting collaboration and peer-reviewed
publication with undergraduate authors.
Proposed Lab Modules
-How can we design experiments to best address our scientific
goals? (2 weeks)
-P. humuli (downy mildew) and P. macularis (powdery
mildew).
-student-designed experiments to reduce or eliminate
fungal growth.
-What characterizes hops as similar to or distinct from
other plant species? (2 weeks)
-characterization of different structures of the plant.
-cultivation of hops in the laboratory.
-Can fungi and hops varieties be identified through
molecular techniques? (2-3 weeks)
-bioinformatics and PCR components.
-Can we force fungi to evolve? (2-3 weeks)
-development of antibiotic-resistant lines of fungus
through the use of gradient plating.
-What microbes naturally grow on hops? (2-3 weeks)
-take a swab of the surface of hops tissue, grow on
plates, design experiment(s) to characterize what is
found.
-What conditions favor growth of fungus on hops? (3-4
weeks)
-experiments to test fungal ability to grow on hops
under different growth conditions of students’ design.
References:
Brownell, S.E., Kloser, M.J., Fukami, T., and Shavelson, R. (2012). Undergraduate
biology lab courses: Comparing the impact of traditionally-based "cookbook" and
authentic reserach-based courses on student lab experiences. J. Coll. Sci.
Teaching 41(4): 36-45.
Cheesman K., French D., Cheesman I., Swails N., and Thomas J. (2007). Is there
any common curriculum for biology majors in the 21st century? BioScience
57(6):516-522.
Gasper B.J. and Gardner S.M. (2013). Engaging students in authentic
microbiology research in an introductory biology laboratory course is correlated
with gains in student understanding of the nature of authentic research and critical
thinking. J. Microbiol. Biol. Educ. 14(1):25-34.
Robertson, W. (2006-07). Getting past "inquiry versus content". Educational
Leadership 64(4): 67-70.