Development of Online Laboratory Preparation and Study Materials for BIO 440 General

Julie Oliver

Development of Online Laboratory Preparation and Study Materials for BIO 440—General Microbiology Students

Type B Leave—Fall 2012

Final Report Submitted March 18, 2013

1 Abstract

For my fall 2012 type B leave I hoped to create a collection of laboratory videos with accompanying review questions and photographic images. The goal behind my sabbatical request was to create a way for students to visually preview the techniques they will need to know for lab sessions prior to the labs. Students are asked to read the lab manual before coming to lab, but for many it is hard to visualize what they will be asked to do in lab. Some review questions posted on D2L or given at the start of lab will allow the instructor to check in with the students' understanding of a technique after viewing the videos. Fourteen videos were completed with a handful of review questions written for each video, and thirty-one microscope slide images were collected to give instructors the ability to create alternative questions. One video that was to be completed on laboratory safety will be completed over the summer once new laboratory safety guidelines are implemented, and one video still needs a voice over which I will learn to do in Camtasia and complete this spring 2013 semester. While completing my type B leave I also expanded my technology skill set to include an understanding of how to use Camtasia for basic editing of videos, the use of Any Media Converter to convert video files from one format to another, and the publishing of videos to YouTube. I am excited about continuing to make more laboratory and lecture videos in the future and about learning more advanced editing techniques available in Camtasia. I believe the use of these videos, review questions, and microscope images will help students gain a better understand of microbiology and be more successful in the laboratory. This type B leave was very worthwhile to me and will hopefully also benefit the other microbiology faculty and all of CRC’s microbiology students in the future. Thank you for the opportunity.

2 During the fall 2012 semester my Type B leave was used to create short laboratory technique videos to aid students in preparing for lab, and continued study after lab. In addition a handful of review questions were created to assess the students’ understanding of the laboratory techniques. When appropriate some of the review questions include photo images.

The review questions may be found from pages 8-15 in this report. A file of additional microscope slide images was created and saved. There are thirty-two images in this file which may be reviewed on page 16 of this report. My objective for this leave was to create videos and review questions for the following topics: lab safety (not completed), aseptic technique

(combined with culture transfers), making a wet mount, using a microscope, making a slide smear, simple staining, gram staining, acid fast staining, endospore staining, lactophenol cotton blue (LPCB) staining (needs voice over), streak plate, spread plate, culture transfers to

3 slants/broths/deeps, spectrophotometer use, micro-pipetting, and disk transfer to plates. Once completed these resources would be shared with other faculty teaching microbiology, and ultimately shared with students in microbiology courses.

The beginning of the fall semester started with the microbiology laboratories having mechanical trouble with our chemical safety hoods. These problems caused us to relocate lab rooms, and once back in our rooms the hoods were quite loud for a period of time until the final repairs were completed. The relocation and loud hoods prevented videotaping to begin on schedule. Once all the mechanical problems were fixed, I began taking short videos each week during the semester. At the same time I was talking with many people on campus about the best way to go about editing and publishing these videos. It took awhile to determine the best method, as everyone had a different idea, but in the end I decided on using Camtasia software to edit and publish the videos. This decision was a little concerning since I had no idea how to use the software.

So, much of my sabbatical time ended up being time spent learning the software and working out some problems encountered along the way. After having some issues converting my video files to a format Camtasia would accept, it was determined that it was my camera and the type of formatting it used when recording. Once that was determined, I needed a file conversion program. I at first tried a free program call Super, which was a nightmare, but after many frustrating hours with that program it was suggested that I try Any Media Converter, another free program. Any Media Converter worked beautifully, and so much faster and smoother than Super. Once my file type problems were figured out I was off and running. The basics of Camtasia turned out to be fairly simple to learn, so things moved along nicely at this point.

4 Then I had to determine how I wanted to publish the videos I was editing in Camtasia.

Again my original idea when applying for this sabbatical, posting videos in the Biology area of the CRC homepage, was changed after many conversations with other faculty members that use videos with their students. I was convinced to use YouTube. After each video was completed I published it to a new YouTube account I created (CRCProfessorOliver) in an unlisted folder. The unlisted folder makes the content not searchable on the internet. The videos may only be viewed if someone is given the link. So, microbiology faculty and students will be provided the links for all the videos on YouTube.

At the end of the semester and over winter break when I was organizing all the videos, and getting them ready to publish to YouTube I realized there were a few that I said I would make in my sabbatical application that during the course of fall semester I forgot to make. So, I made a few of the videos during the beginning of spring 2013 semester. There are fourteen videos that have been made, edited and published to YouTube at this point. One of them that I made this semester will need to be voiced over. The hood where the procedure was done was too loud to pick up my voice. I still need to learn how to do this in Camtasia, so the LPCB

Fungal Staining video still needs a voice over. My plan is to learn how to do add voice over to a video after spring break in order to get the audio on that video completed.

Another video that I did not compete was a general lab safety video. There are currently new laboratory safety guidelines just about to be released in final draft form from the American

Society for Microbiology (ASM). These new guidelines from ASM will require that we alter some of our general safety procedures students follow in the lab. I will be working on determining exactly what these changes will entail over the summer for implementation in fall 2013. After all these changes are determined I will then make the video regarding general laboratory safety, and have it added to YouTube for the start of fall 2013 semester. This video will most likely be a

5 long video with a lot of components, so I decided it made no sense to make it knowing it would have to be redone over the summer anyway.

Aseptic techniques were interspersed throughout many of the videos that were made, and a standalone video on this topic was not needed. Aseptic technique is needed in every laboratory technique in a microbiology lab, so when appropriate it is mentioned in each video.

The most thorough coverage of aseptic technique may be found in the culture transfer video.

In the end the following videos were completed:

TOPIC YOUTUBE LINK

Microscope http://youtu.be/uliPcvlpfi4

Wet Mounts http://youtu.be/WMqn5NhGDVQ

Aseptic Transfer Techniques http://youtu.be/-S4HkU8f2Sk

Air-dried, heat-fixed smears http://youtu.be/1NHQ4SJaWgY

Simple stain http://youtu.be/9FQgol7Nj_0

Gram stain http://youtu.be/My15YdGCe6E

Endospore stain http://youtu.be/QzjBNd9CTEc

Streak plate for isolation http://youtu.be/BgRMQ87cHN4

LPCB stain http://youtu.be/CIvZOCdLgDI

Acid Fast stain http://youtu.be/UGTSRrdgfq0

Spectrophotometer http://youtu.be/r7VBktXlxyM

Micropipette http://youtu.be/KnnJmKZbX5Q

Spread plate http://youtu.be/mxNAoPIEeZk

Adding disks to plates http://youtu.be/r2Ijv3emrz0

6 All of these videos have a handful of questions associated with them with the idea that these questions might be added to D2L in a quiz format to be completed by students prior to lab, or used when students arrive to the lab to assess the students understanding of the video material before starting the lab. In addition to these questions there are thirty-one microscope slide images I saved to a file that will allow faculty more options for visuals to be used with review questions. All of the YouTube links, the questions, and the microscope slide images file will be given to the other microbiology faculty so they may decide if and how to use with their microbiology students.

I believe using these materials with students will help students to have a better understanding of how the procedures will be done once they arrive in lab. Many students are visual learners and seeing the techniques performed in a short video will be more understandable than only reading through procedures in a lab manual. The videos will also help students review the procedures after the lab when they are preparing for exams or trying to remember how to do something from a previous lab that is needed again in an upcoming lab.

My hope is that students find value in these materials, and I plan on asking for feedback after using the videos for the first time in the fall 2013 semester. After receiving student feedback I will be able to make some adjustments if necessary.

Finally, my personal reflections on this sabbatical…I am so excited to have learned how to use the basics of Camtasia, and I see so much potential for using it more in the future. There are so many more things I can learn in Camtasia to make even more advanced videos, and I cannot wait to keep learning new Camtasia tricks. I have ideas for more videos to highlight some areas of lecture content which students typically have a harder time grasping. My idea is to make some more videos for lecture, and slowly over time, creating a library of lecture videos to publish in YouTube. There is also more editing I can do with the laboratory videos I made for this type B leave. Every time I watch one of the lab videos there is something I would like to

7 change or something I think I could say more clearly. I can relate to actors that say they do not watch their work because all they notice are the mistakes or things they would do differently if given another chance. It may be a continual project for me, and I am excited by that thought!

So, thank you for the opportunity to complete my laboratory video project with a type B leave, and for allowing me to develop this new skill of short video editing and publishing that I will continue to use in the future to better support student learning in my classes.

Microbiology Laboratory Video Review Questions

Aseptic Technique and Transfers

1. When removing the loop from incinerator, the loop should be ______.

A. Black

B. Silver

C. Red

2. Successful use of the incinerator achieves which of the following?

8 A. Disinfection

B. Sterilization

C. Decontamination

D. Antisepsis

3. An inoculating loop or needle must be allowed to cool before collecting bacteria. Where should the loop or needle be held while cooling?

A. Over the top of the incinerator

B. Inside the incinerator

C. In front of the incinerator

4. LAB SAFETY—Which of these images shows the correct way to use an incinerator?

Microscope

1. What should be used to control the amount of light reaching the slide?

A. On/off switch

B. Dimmer control knob

9 C. Condenser/diaphragm unit

D. Objectives

2. Which objective should be used with immersion oil?

B. 10X

C. 40X

D. 100X

3. The oculars magnify an object _____ times.

D. 100

4. Which of these scopes is in the correct position to return to its cabinet?

10 Smears

1. What is the last step completed when making a smear?

A. Air-drying

B. Adding water

C. Heat-fixing

D. Adding culture

2. Which type of culture requires water to be added to the slide before making a smear?

A. Slant

B. Broth

3. True or False—Allow the smear to air dry by holding it over the incinerator.

Wet Mounts

1. True or False—Wet mounts are made with a cover slip on top of the specimen.

2. True or False—Wet mounts are prepared with live cultures.

Simple Stains

1. How long should a simple stain be kept on a slide before rinsing with water?

A. 10 seconds

11 B. 15 seconds

C. 30 seconds

D. 60 seconds

2. Where does staining waste (rinse water and stain) go?

A. Stain collection beaker

B. In the sink

C. In the garbage

D. Stain bottles

Gram Stains

1. Correctly order the following steps of the Gram stain: iodine, acetone-alcohol, crystal violet, and safranin.

2. Which step of the Gram stain process is not held on the slide?

A. Iodine

B. Acetone-alcohol

C. Crystal violet

D. Safranin

3. True or False—Crystal violet is rinsed off the slide before the iodine is added.

4. Are the bacteria stained on this slide Gram positive or Gram negative?

12 Endospore Stains

1. Which stain is on the slide while it is over the hot water bath?

A. Malachite green

B. Safranin

C. Crystal violet

D. Methylene blue

2. What is the secondary stain used?

A. Malachite green

B. Safranin

C. Crystal violet

D. Methylene blue

3. What color are the vegetative cells on this slide?

A. Blue

B. Green

C. Pink

13 D. Purple

Acid Fast Stains

1. What decolorizer is used in the acid fast staining process?

A. Acetone alcohol

B. Water

C. Acid alcohol

D. Alcohol

2. What is the primary stain used in the acid fast staining process?

A. Methylene blue

B. Safranin

14 C. Crystal violet

D. Malachite green

3. What do the pink cells in this acid fast stain represent?

A. Acid fast bacteria

B. Non-acid fast bacteria

Lactophenol Cotton Blue Stains

1. What type of organisms are stained using the LPCB method?

A. Bacteria

B. Fungi

C. Protozoa

D. Plants

15 2. What is the maximum total magnification at which LPCB slides may be viewed under the microscope?

A. 40X

B. 100X

C. 400X

D. 1000X

3. What are the three functions of LPCB stain?

A. Attachment of cells to slide

B. Preserves cells

C. Colors cells

D. Kills cells

Spread Plating

1. What is the goal of the spread plate technique?

A. Creation of a lawn of bacteria

B. Creation of isolated colonies

2. What is used to spread the bacteria on the plate?

A. Inoculating needle

B. Inoculating loop

C. Cotton swab

D. Forceps

Streak Plating for Isolation

16 1. What is the goal of the streak plate technique?

C. Creation of a lawn of bacteria

D. Creation of isolated colonies

2. What is used to streak the bacteria on the plate?

1. Inoculating needle

2. Inoculating loop

3. Cotton swab

4. Forceps

3. When making a streak plate, how many times is a culture added to the plate?

A. One time

B. Two times

C. Three times

D. Never

4. Which plate shows a more successful streak plate technique?

17 Micropipette

1. What unit of measurement is dispensed with a micropipette?

A. Milliliters

B. Liters

C. Microliters

D. Meters

2. What amount will be dispensed if a micropipette shows this reading?

A. 5 microliters

B. 50 microliters

C. 50 mililiters

D. 500 mililiters

3. To which stop do you press when taking up liquid in a micropipette?

A. First stop

B. Second stop

C. First and second stops

18 Disks on Plates

1. When should bacteria be inoculated on a plate where disks will be added?

A. Before adding disks

B. After adding disks

C. While adding the disks

D. Never

2. What is the flame of the Bunsen burner used for when placing a disk on a Petri plate?

A. To sterilize the forceps

B. To sterilize the disks

C. To sterilize an inoculating loop

D. To sterilize the well plate

3. Explain what concern there is with a lit Bunsen burner and a beaker of alcohol being in the same hood.

Spectrophotometer

1. What is the correct wavelength for use of the spectrophotometer in the microbiology lab?

19 A. 50

C. 500

D. 600

2. Which tube needs to be added to the spectrophotometer first?

A. The tube that is the most turbid

B. The tube with a sample from the shortest incubation time

C. The tube with inoculated media

D. The empty tube

3. What is wrong about picture A and what is wrong about picture B?

4. What is the absorbance reading for the sample in this spectrophotometer?

20 Microscope Images