Teacher Help

You might feel that you need to make special preparations for teaching evolution—and rightly so. Evolution is a foundational theory that supports the other concepts in the life sciences. To deeply understand evolution, students need to grasp concepts ranging from DNA to the Earth system. When you discuss evolution, you have the opportunity to correct students' misconceptions and help them develop an understanding of the nature of science. What an awesome task! We have compiled the following resources to help you get ready. They were selected because they might answer some of your questions about evolution and how to teach it.

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Essential Science for Teachers: Life Science: Session 5. Variation, Adaptation, and Natural Selection http://www.hsdvl.org/video.php?record_serial=272

Teachers, this is your opportunity to take a peek into another teacher's classroom as she facilitates a discussion about the adaptations in plants. This video shows students working in groups to consider the causes of the height variations in Brassica rapa plants, as well as the advantages to being tall or short. Without saying the terms natural selection, differential reproduction, or adaptation, the students work to figure out a natural situation in which only the tall plants would be left in the population. Viewers can see how the students struggle to differentiate between scenarios in which the variations result from the environment and others in which they result from the genetics. MSP full record

Understanding evolution http://evolution.berkeley.edu/

This site can help answer the questions, What should I teach about evolution? and How should I teach about evolution? It uses a tutorial format to provide basic information about topics ranging from the central ideas of the theory of evolution to the appropriate language to use when talking about evolution. Hyperlinks throughout the site allow you to take your own path through the content. We suggest that new teachers work their way through the entire site and that experienced teachers use the site's straightforward navigation to access areas that would best meet their needs. MSP full record

UCMP Evolution Forum for Teachers http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evosite/Lessons/index.shtml

This section of the Understanding Evolution site (described above) is a good starting point for your preparation to teach evolution. It stresses the importance of focusing on the nature of science and the fundamental evolution concepts that are appropriate for your students' grade levels. Teachers can find lessons aligned to grade-specific concepts through a browse or search. Each lesson summary identifies concepts discussed in the lesson, the grade level, and the time it takes to complete the lesson, as well as links to related background information for the teacher. MSP full record

Statement on teaching evolution http://www.nabt.org/sub/position_statements/evolution.asp

Looking for a respected organization to clarify how you should teach evolution? This statement and supporting materials from the National Association of Biology Teachers can serve as a guide as you consider how to approach evolution in the science classroom. It discusses the nature of science and outlines the central concepts of evolution. MSP full record

Teaching About Evolution and the Nature of Science http://books.nap.edu/books/0309063647/html/index.html

Compared to the other resources described here, this online book gives a more in-depth look at the content and pedagogy related to teaching evolution. It teases apart language issues, such as the differences among facts, laws, hypotheses, and theories. It offers suggestions for ways that teachers can work together to solve problems that they are having teaching evolution. Readers can find answers to frequently asked questions about evolution and see grade specific references to the National Science Education Standards. The book also has eight evolution activities that use the 5Es (engage, explore, explain, elaborate, evaluate) instructional model. The activities identify the standards-based objectives and provide teacher background information. MSP full record

Online Course for Teachers: Teaching Evolution http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/educators/course/index.html

This online course is an excellent way to reflect on the way you teach the nature of science and evolution in your own classroom while you deepen your own understanding of evolution content and pedagogy. As you go through the different sessions, you interact with a variety of media, including your class' textbook, photographs, and video clips about both scientific concepts and teaching situations. You are given the opportunity to record your answers, which can be printed out for future reference. Facilitator notes are sprinkled throughout the lessons. This online course can be taken individually or with a group in a facilitated setting. MSP full record

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Copyright June 2005 — The Ohio State University. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0424671. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.