Effective ecology pedogogy through GC/MS analysis of EDCs and PPCPs in a local river

Background/Question/Methods

Connections are made with students in the classroom, but a desire to learn is also fostered through novel discovery and fun.  I will present a recent scientific study that was developed through discussion, brainstorming and research with undergraduate students in an ecology class.  This presentation will present a unique pedogogical experience where students learned essential skills such as how to gather the information necessary to conduct a seminal study that is of value to the field of ecology.  The process by which the study was developed and conducted will be discussed, as well as the process by which the research was conducted to provide key strategies for others developing effective pedagogy through research. 

Results/Conclusions

This investigation represents the results of a novel, productive, and inquiry-based learning activity in an undergraduate ecology class.  A single inquiry-based laboratory activity designed to have Ecology students think critically about contaminants in the environment resulted in a semester-long scientific study of contaminants in a local river.  Students postulated that the Des Plaines River located near Concordia University Chicago was an urban river and therefore must be monitored for endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs).  I worked with students to develop a sampling strategy, and analytical techniques utilizing gas chromatography and mass spectrometry (GC/MS) technology in Ecology class.  Sampling took place biweekly from January through April.  Not only did students find the existence of EDCs and PPCPs in the Des Plaines River they discovered that melt and flooding events drastically increased the EDC and PPCP loads in the river.  Flooding events also resulted in the deposition of EDCs and PPCPs in forest soil even after flood waters abated.

I will present both quantitative and qualitative results to demonstrate the effectiveness of using advanced technology in an undergraduate Ecology courses. Results from end-of-semester assessments will be compared to data from previous years. We will also present results from a pre-post survey which we used to examine our students’ changing understanding of Ecological concepts over the course of the semester. This study contributes revised approaches for teaching concepts and skills related to Ecology.