Doublespeak Decried Ber 1991) and Cell Energetics (March Not Alive

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Correcting Misconceptions plasm." Then, as if to heap insult on some of it will even filter up to authors injury, the author of the brand new lab of post-secondary texts who should Dear Editor: manual I just adopted speaks of a heat know better. denatured enzyme as being "killed." My congratulations to Richard D. Henry L. Speer, Ph.D. If my students use such a term on an Storey for his excellent series: "Text- University College of the Fraser Valley exam it is marked with a zero and a book Errorsand Misconceptions in Bi- Chilliwack, B.C., Canada V2P 6T4 ology" which focuses on Photosynthe- nasty comment to the effect: "Can you sis (ABT, May 1989), Cell Structure kill a rock? No, you can't kill some- (April 1990), Cell Metabolism(Septem- thing that is not alive and enzymes are Doublespeak Decried ber 1991) and Cell Energetics (March not alive. They can be denatured, but 1992). Errors and misconceptions are not killed." Dear Editor: often the result of misinformation. In reviewing a book several years I greatly appreciated your Novem- They are also the result of a change in ago, I criticized the author for describ- Downloaded from http://online.ucpress.edu/abt/article-pdf/54/4/198/45667/4449453.pdf by guest on 28 September 2021 ber/December editorial on abuse of the our understanding of the life pro- ing the plasma membrane of cells as English language. You proved that not cesses because of the acquisition of being semipermeable. I pointed out even Dan Quayle can claim a monop- new information. It is difficult to keep that the term is archaic and no longer oly on doublespeak. up with the information explosion in in use. The accepted term is selectively It is not necessary to go as far as the biology, but we must teach our stu- permeable. The author was much put medical literature to find examples of dents and their teachers the latest con- out and cited two references where the the inscrutable piled atop the incom- cepts. term was also used. I was disturbed prehensible. Much nearer to home is I have encountered several prob- that this person could not seem to put the jargon of education. lems in my teaching of college classes his ego aside and grasp the point. The The craft of obfuscation seems to that are due to misconceptions or pre- point is that we no longer speak of have been elevated to a high art in staff conceived notions carried over from semipermeable cell membranes be- development activities for teachers. At secondary school. It is in the second- cause our understanding of the molec- the school where I taught biology ary school classes that we need to ular discrimination and regulatory through the end of the 1991 school make an effort to deal with these erro- processes that occur in cell membranes year, my friends and colleagues are neous ideas. There are four words in are better described by the term selec- drowning in acronyms, abstractions regard to cell biology that I forbid my tively permeable. That is what the and ambiguity. The staff development students to use, punishable by death: membrane does; it is selective in what workshops and courses are as much a protoplasm, killed, semipermeable enters and leaves the cell. challenge to translate as Caesar's Wars and food. Students come into my classes with from the original Latin. Here are only The phenomenon that we describe the concept that autotrophic organ- a few of the offerings so far this year: as life is due to the collective interac- isms (photosynthesis to them) are tion of molecules, biochemistry, ener- plants that use light to manufacture O.B.E.: Outcome-based Educa- getics, molecular organization and their own "food." I point out that tion: At first I wondered how one regulatorymechanisms that constitute "food" is a complex mixture of organic could educate with anything but the the basic unit of life, the cell. The cell is and inorganic substances that is con- desired outcome as a goal. Then I the minimum entity that can be de- sumed by what we usually describe as realized the phrase actually meant scribed as living. No part of the cell is "animals" (including the heterotro- determining the outcome ahead of alive; it is the collective processes that phic Protista). I lecture them on the time and declaring it achieved no occur in the cell that constitute the concept that autotrophic and hetero- matter what happens along the phenomenon we describe as life. This trophic simply describe the way in way. is a fundamental concept that all stu- which cells obtain energy. Auto- B.B.F.: Building-based Facilita- dents of biology must comprehend. trophic cells use inorganic energy tion. This struck me as a triumph of The term protoplasm has no place in sources such as inorganic chemicals or matter over mind. Somehow bricks modern biology. What is it? Its literal light energy. Heterotrophic cells use and mortar were going to come to meaning is proto: first, or primary; organic molecules as their energy life to move some human initiative and plasma: form. First form-where sources. However, students persist in along. This turned out to be a series does it exist in the cell? The cell con- their misconceptions and on an exam of seminars. tains cytoplasm, but no protoplasm. will invariably describe autotrophic or- The term has a vitalistic connotation ganisms as "those that make their own T.S.T.: Two years ago this meant that there is some kind of vital life food" and heterotrophs as "those that The Skillful Teacher. I like the sim- force that resides in this stuff called eat other organisms." Hence, the ban plicity of this language until I real- protoplasm. Such thinking has no on the use of the word food. ized that the mere act of signing up place in modern biology. Again, kudos to Dr. Storey for his for a course called the "skillful Imagine my chagrin when, after excellent efforts at dealing with some teacher" is tacit admission you're spending the better part of a lecture on of these problems. We must inform not one. Somebody must have these concepts, I discover that in the the elementary and secondary school started worrying about that, be- brand new edition (1991) of the cell teachers of the updating of the termi- cause now T.S.T. means The Study biology text I just adopted the authors nology and concepts that are currently of Teaching. What a brilliant solu- use the phrase "the living proto- the accepted norm in biology. Perhaps tion to the problem that is! It proves

198 THEAMERICAN BIOLOGY TEACHER, VOLUME 54, NO. 4, APRIL1992 that the more inclusive your lan- "O brave new world, that has such E Horizon: A zone of removal; or- guage, the less you can be pinned people in't!" ganic matter, iron and other col- down on something someone oring agents have been removed doesn't like. Faith Hickman Brynie from this horizon, resulting in a TheCow bleached appearance;the coloring The latest is a new one called "col- BactonNr. Stowmarket agents will have been deposited laborative consultation." I SuffolkIP14 4HJ pondered in the underlying B horizon; that one for a long time and decided it found in acidic soils. is not as redundant as it seem. may A Imagine two people sitting side-by- Significance of Soils Noted B Horizon: zone of accumulation side building a ship in a bottle. As long and development; this horizon as they build and do not may be distinguished by differ- speak, they Dear Editor: are collaborating without consulting. ences in color, texture and struc- Soils have long been overlooked in But once they say one word about ture; water has leached the upper science courses. Ms. what they are doing, they have broken Finley's paper horizons of clay, organic matter, "ExploringSoil Ecosystems"is a through the barrier and are good iron, calcium carbonates,etc. and doing introduction for students of all levels both. Or, conversely, imagine them deposited them in the B horizon; to understand the significance talking about the ship in the bottle but of soils this horizon may be cemented by from never lifting a finger to build it. Then agricultural,zoological and envi- these materialsand appear similar ronmentalperspectives. An important they would be consulting without col- to a bedrock. Downloaded from http://online.ucpress.edu/abt/article-pdf/54/4/198/45667/4449453.pdf by guest on 28 September 2021 concept that be laborating. It is truly a fine line these might missed or cause C Horizon: A horizon showing no confusion to the teacher two must walk. Must teachers do the attempting development (no accumulations same? this exercise, however, is the variabil- or removals); it can be bedrock ity of soils due to At any rate, I was intrigued by the differences in cli- broken up into smallerpieces or a phrase, so I looked to the course de- mate, vegetation, topography, parent glacial deposit. materialand All scription for explanation. First sen- age. soils do not have R Horizon: Bedrock. A, B and C and tence: "Collaborativeconsultation is a horizons, some soils may have additional 0 or E horizons. process-oriented model, with empha- It is a good idea to find an introduc- For example, a student in sis on team based-program develop- Iowa may find an tory soils text or a chapter on soils ment." Never mind the comma that A-B-C horizon sequence but students from other before examining soils in the field. should not be there. What does this parts of the coun- find These often have good pictures of dif- mean? I guess it means that people are try may entirely different ones- perhaps just an 0 or C horizon or an ferent soils and may provide addi- supposed to work together to create tional information on what the class something, but the 300-word descrip- O-E-B-C sequence. Some additional guidelines should be provided for the can expect. They can also give ideas tion never says what. It does say that for other classroom applications, such "curriculum-basedassessment" is in- teacher who intends to make this a class project. as bufferingcapacity or acid-basereac- volved. Does that mean testing what tions. For instance, soils with calcium you teach? Those who attend this 0 Horizon: Composed of undecom- carbonate will effervesce when dilute eight-day course will learn about "cog- posed to very decomposed or- HCI or even vinegar is added drop- nitive strategies." Does that mean ganic matter with very little min- wise to them. ways of thinking about problems?An- eral matter; consists of leaves, Note: Ms. Finley's comment on C other topic is "student self-manage- twigs, etc.; usually but not always horizons as a product of leaching of ment." Does that mean students get to found at the top of the soil profile. upper horizons is incorrect.B horizons school on time? I suspect the perpetra- A Horizon: Darkened mineral mat- are the depositional zones that result tors have something else in mind. ter resulting from relatively high from leaching of upper horizons. Let me defend myself in advance organic matter content; results against all those staff developers who from vegetation-grasses provide Wendy Weitkamp will say I just don't understand. Some- thick, dark A horizons whereas Departmentof Soilsand times I do. One of our staff develop- sparse desert vegetation may give EnvironmentalSciences ment specialists offered a course last rise to an absent or extremelythin Universityof California,Riverside year. She titled it simply "Discipline." A horizon with little darkening. Riverside,CA 92521

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