Monday, August 6, 2007: 1:30 PM-5:00 PM
Blrm Salon IV, San Jose Marriott
OOS 4 - Diagnostic assessment: Uncovering and responding to how our students are thinking
Major misconceptions, or “alternative” conceptions as they’re sometimes called, and knowledge gaps about basic scientific concepts provide huge barriers to students of all ages as they acquire environmental science knowledge. Identifying and challenging ecological and environmental misconceptions is central to improving environmental literacy in our changing world. Dispelling these scientific misconceptions is essential to producing an environmentally literate society. This is certainly a challenging task, but one we must pursue as science educators. Once we have carefully examined our students' grasp of basic scientific concepts, we can then proceed to either correct their inaccuracies or build upon a scaffold of accurate understanding. This session will demonstrate different methods used to uncover and dispel misconceptions across ecology and related disciplines. Opening speakers will focus on methods used to examine how students think and learn about natural selection. Other speakers will focus on identifying misconceptions about ecology among college students. This will be followed by studies concerning K-12 students and their teachers. All will exemplify ways to discover conceptual problems and remedy them.
Organizer:	Kathy S. Williams, San Diego State University
Co-organizer:	Charlene D'Avanzo, Hampshire College
1:30 PM	OOS 4-1		Developing biology diagnostic surveys to inform our curriculum Kathy S. Williams, San Diego State University, Kathleen M. Fisher, San Diego State University, Dianne Anderson, Point Loma Nazerene University
1:50 PM	OOS 4-2		Developing and evaluating conceptual inventory of natural selection Kathleen Fisher, San Diego State University, Dianne Anderson, Point Loma Nazerene University, Kathy S. Williams, San Diego State University
2:10 PM	OOS 4-3		Visualizing conceptual change using Item Characteristic Curves Bryce Battisti, University of California
2:30 PM	OOS 4-4		Overcoming common ecological misconceptions Nancy Stamp, Binghamton University - SUNY
2:50 PM	OOS 4-5		Methods for describing and fostering diagnostic assessment in middle and high school environmental science classrooms Alan R. Berkowitz, Institute of Ecosystem Studies, Janet Coffey, University of Maryland, Sandra Honda, University of Maryland, Janie Gordon, Institute of Ecosystem Studies
3:10 PM			Break
3:20 PM	OOS 4-6		Diagnostic testing of science concepts K-16 Christopher David Wilson, Michigan State University, Charles W. (Andy) Anderson, Michigan State University
3:40 PM	OOS 4-7		Telling is not enough:  Modeling and the force concept inventory H. Wells Wulsin, Stanford
4:00 PM	OOS 4-8		The effect of site visits on visitors' understanding and attitudes toward natural areas Jim Bouldin, University of California, Davis
4:20 PM	OOS 4-9		Biology and ecology misconceptions diagnostics: Moving forward? Charlene D'Avanzo, Hampshire College

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See more of The ESA/SER Joint Meeting (August 5 -- August 10, 2007)