Week Two: The Great Debate

I am now teaching two courses - Plant Science and Introduction to Agriculture. By chance, this week both my classes were learning similar content - cell organelles and microscope skills. I feel like I could teach this lesson in my sleep now that I repeated it six times face-to-face and on Zoom. This being said, I did notice that I made improvements as a teacher with each repetition. This week I am choosing to focus my blog post on what I am calling "The Great Debate" - the challenge of providing students with opportunities to learn technical skills but also remaining up-to-date with current technologies. 

To provide some background information, my students that were face-to-face watched me model how to prepare a wet mount slide (my upperclassmen in Plant Science did prepare their own slides, but my underclassmen in Introduction to Agriculture did not) and then used the microscope to view the slide while making observations in a Google Docs worksheet. The students were asked to view a video and complete a quiz prior to class to refresh their memory on how to use the microscope. For my students that were on Zoom, I demonstrated how to prepare a wet mount slide, but they used an online microscope simulator to view plant and animal cells. 

I was surprised by how the level of engagement differed between my face-to-face students and my Zoom students. My students that were in-person were very quick to become frustrated when they could not get their slides to focus. Many gave up quickly or were convinced they saw all they needed to see and were done. On the other hand, my students on Zoom were very receptive to the activity, they volunteered their answers to the observation and analysis questions at the end of the period and commented that they enjoyed using the online microscope simulator. 

My experiences have led me to ponder what I am calling "The Great Debate". Should teachers abandon traditional methods - like science labs - for teaching science content for new technology, even if it means also abandoning the soft skills that often accompany technical skills?

The experts say:

• Critical thinking and problem-solving rank in the top 5 skills employers are looking for (The Nth Degree)
• The microscope is becoming outdated. Now computers can develop 3D models for cells and other microscopic organisms (The Scientist) 
• Careers in cellular biology are expected to increase 5% (USBLS)

As an educator, I believe I lean more towards the side that would advocate for teaching hands-on, technical skills - like how to use a microscope or prepare a slide. However, I do see the need for remaining current with technology and industry. On Friday, my Introduction to Agriculture class had a 50-minute period (much longer than my previous 40-minute periods and 30-minute Zoom classes). I took this opportunity to experiment with using both the real microscope and the virtual microscope. I found that this method worked especially well for students who would become frustrated quickly because the online version provided a very quick image of what they should be viewing. In some cases, it motivated them to want to be able to make images the online microscope was showing them using the physical microscope in front of them. This method also worked well when the number of students in my class exceeded the number of microscopes I had available. I was able to have students start by using one or the other and then switch halfway through the period. 

I would not advocate for abandoning teaching technical skills to students - especially ones that teach transferable skills like problem-solving and critical thinking - because even if that student does not go on to be a cellular biologist, they can use the skills they learned in my class to be successful in their career. But, I would jump at the chance to integrate new technologies into my course work where possible!  

#PSUAgEd2021 which side of "The Great Debate" do you fall on?