We describe a hands-on, collaborative activity designed to illustrate general properties of evolution, provide practice for quantitative skills, promote creativity and collaboration, and enable student self-assessment of learning. During the activity, teams construct bridges using common office supplies. The best-performing bridge becomes the…

The evolution of complexity remains one of the most challenging topics in biology to teach effectively. We present a novel laboratory activity, modeled on a recent experimental breakthrough, in which students experimentally evolve simple multicellularity using single-celled yeast ("Saccharomyces cerevisiae"). By simply selecting for…

Considerable anecdotal evidence indicates that some of the most difficult concepts that both high school and undergraduate elementary-education students struggle with are those surrounding evolutionary principles, especially speciation. It's no wonder that entry-level biology students are confused, when biologists have multiple definitions of…

The "Next Generation Science Standards" (NGSS Lead States, 2013) recommend that science courses engage communities of students in scientific practices that include building accurate conceptual models of phenomena central to the understanding of scientific disciplines. We offer a set of activities, implemented successfully at both the…

This exercise demonstrates the principle of parsimony in constructing cladograms. Although it is designed using mammalian cranial characters, the activity could be adapted for characters from any group of organisms. Students score categorical traits on skulls and record the data in a spreadsheet. Using the Mesquite software package, students…

Evolutionary theory is the foundation of the biological sciences, yet conveying it to General Biology students often presents a challenge, especially at larger institutions where student numbers in foundation courses can exceed several hundred per lecture section. We present a pedagogically sound exercise that utilizes a series of simple and…

I describe three activities that allow students to explore the ideas of evolution, natural selection, extinction, mass extinction, and rates of evolutionary change by engaging a simple model using paper, pens, chalk, and a chalkboard. As a culminating activity that supports expository writing in the sciences, the students write an essay on mass…

Three approaches to molecular phylogenetics are demonstrated to biology students as they explore molecular data from "Homo sapiens" and four related primates. By analyzing DNA sequences, protein sequences, and chromosomal maps, students are repeatedly challenged to develop hypotheses regarding the ancestry of the five species. Although…

Understanding homology is fundamental to learning about evolution. The present study shows an exercise that can be varied in complexity, for which students compile research illustrating the fate of homologous fish skull elements, and assemble a mural to serve as a learning aid. The skull of the most primitive living Actinopterygian (bony fish),…

Although molecular clock theory is a commonly discussed facet of evolutionary biology, undergraduates are rarely presented with the underlying information of how this theory is examined relative to empirical data. Here a simple contextual exercise is presented that not only provides insight into molecular clocks, but is also a useful exercise for…

Explores various theories for the extinction of the great Ice Age mammals and Homo neanderthalensis. Presents an activity in which students research evidence for and against the various hypotheses, then meet in class to discuss the merits of each. (Author/ASK)

Describes a science activity, using a bacterium and a fungus, to illustrate the effects of competition and barriers on geographical distribution. (Author/PEB)

Presents the results of a survey on evolution given to 392 university students in western Pennsylvania. Concludes that, although nearly three-quarters of the students say they believe in the theory of evolution, most do not understand the mechanism behind it. (PR)

Protozoa inhabiting the rumen of large grazing animals can be used to illustrate symbiotic animal associations. Gives a key to the ciliates most commonly found, several drawings, and a chart relating rumen fauna to the phylogenetic tree of the hosts. (EB)