TEACHING AND LEARNING WITH DIGITAL EVOLUTION: FACTORS INFLUENCING IMPLEMENTATION AND STUDENT OUTCOMES By Amy M Lark A DISSERTATION Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Curriculum, Instruction, and Teacher Education – Doctor of Philosophy 2014 ABSTRACT TEACHING AND LEARNING WITH DIGITAL EVOLUTION: FACTORS INFLUENCING IMPLEMENTATION AND STUDENT OUTCOMES By Amy M Lark Science literacy for all Americans has been the rallying cry of science education in the United States for decades. Regardless, Americans continue to fall short when it comes to keeping pace with other developed nations on international science education assessments. To combat this problem, recent national reforms have reinvigorated the discussion of what and how we should teach science, advocating for the integration of disciplinary core ideas, crosscutting concepts, and science practices. In the biological sciences, teaching the core idea of evolution in ways consistent with reforms is fraught with challenges. Not only is it difficult to observe biological evolution in action, it is nearly impossible to engage students in authentic science practices in the context of evolution. One way to overcome these challenges is through the use of evolving populations of digital organisms. Avida-ED is digital evolution software for education that allows for the integration of science practice and content related to evolution. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Avida-ED on teaching and learning evolution and the nature of science. To accomplish this I conducted a nationwide, multiple-case study, documenting how instructors at various institutions were using Avida-ED in their classrooms, factors influencing implementation decisions, and effects on student outcomes. I found that all of the participating instructors held views on teaching and learning that were well aligned with reform-based pedagogy, and although instructors used Avida-ED in a variety of ways, all adopted learner-centered pedagogical strategies that focused on the use of inquiry. After implementation, all of the instructors indicated that Avida-ED had allowed them to teach evolution and the nature of science in ways consistent with their personal teaching philosophies. In terms of assessment outcomes, students in lower- division courses significantly improved both their understanding and acceptance of evolution after using Avida-ED, and learning of content was positively associated with increased acceptance. Although student learning outcomes and instructor familiarity with Avida-ED were not associated with student affective response to the program, instructor familiarity was highly influential with regard to both how Avida-ED was implemented and student affective response, particularly student interest, enjoyment, and self-efficacy. The results of this dissertation provide strong evidence suggesting that Avida-ED is a promising tool for teaching and learning about evolution in reform-based ways, and suggest that improving instructor pedagogical content knowledge with regard to research-based tools like Avida-ED may be implicated in generating student interest in STEM. I dedicate this work: To my husband, Zachary, For all of your patience, support, Love, and understanding. I could not have come this far Without you. And To my daughter, Máire, Who has been my light and my way. My inspiration. I love you. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank my advisor, Gail Richmond, for her unfailing support and encouragement over the years. Thank you for always believing in me. To Rob Pennock, my dissertation co-chair, you have always been confident in my abilities; thank you for helping me to believe in myself. To Jim Smith and Amelia Gotwals: Thank you for serving on my committee and always offering great advice; you’re the best. To Louise Mead: You are an inspiration. To Wendy Johnson: You are the best darned collaborator and travel buddy ever. Thank you to Emily Weigel, who helped with inter-rater reliability and is an amazing friend. And to my friends who have supported me: Rosa, Zack, Kathy, Linda, Samina, Amal, May, and Kristen. Thank you. v TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................................... ix LIST OF FIGURES ....................................................................................................................... xi Chapter 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................... 1 Research goals and theoretical framing. ................................................................................... 11 Goals of the research ............................................................................................................. 11 Theoretical framework .......................................................................................................... 12 Learning about the nature and practices of science .......................................................... 13 Instructor goals and beliefs about teaching and learning and influences on curricular implementation ................................................................................................................. 16 Affective factors and influence on science learning ......................................................... 19 Research questions. ................................................................................................................... 21 Hypotheses and predictions. ..................................................................................................... 22 Overview of chapters. ............................................................................................................... 22 Chapter 2. Methods ....................................................................................................................... 24 Overview. .................................................................................................................................. 24 Methodology: Justification of the multiple-case approach. ...................................................... 24 Data sources and analyses. ........................................................................................................ 25 Pre-/post-implementation interviews with instructors .......................................................... 25 Pre-/post-assessment of students ........................................................................................... 26 Development of the assessment instrument ...................................................................... 27 Scoring open-ended responses .......................................................................................... 28 Inter-rater reliability .......................................................................................................... 29 Scoring forced-choice responses ....................................................................................... 31 Content vs. acceptance ...................................................................................................... 31 Post-implementation survey of students ............................................................................... 33 Course materials .................................................................................................................... 34 Cross-case analysis ............................................................................................................... 34 Characterization of implementations .................................................................................... 35 Chapter 3. Case and implementation descriptions ........................................................................ 38 Overview of cases. .................................................................................................................... 38 Case descriptions. ..................................................................................................................... 39 Case A_APBio: Advanced Placement Biology .................................................................... 40 Institutional context .......................................................................................................... 40 Course context .................................................................................................................. 40 Instructor context .............................................................................................................. 41 Description of implementation ......................................................................................... 41 Summary ........................................................................................................................... 46 Case B_300Evo: Upper-division Evolution .......................................................................... 46 Institutional context .......................................................................................................... 46 vi Course context .................................................................................................................. 47 Instructor context .............................................................................................................. 47 Description of implementation ........................................................................................