Using Biological-Control Research in the Classroom to Promote Scientific Inquiry & Literacy

Abstract

Scientists researching biological control should engage in education because translating research programs into classroom activities is a pathway to increase scientific literacy among students. Classroom activities focused on biological control target all levels of biological organization and can be cross-disciplinary by drawing from subject areas such as ecology, molecular biology, physiology, and chemistry. We evaluate published “how-to” biological-control activities to determine whether they meet National Science Education Standards and use a constructivist pedagogical approach. We also provide an example classroom activity developed from our research that scientists can use as a template to develop their science-education activities.