Belief in genetic determinism (BGD) has been associated with increased social stereotyping and prejudicial views and consequently is of significant concern to science educators. The Public Understanding and Attitudes towards Genetics and Genomics (PUGGS) instrument was developed to measure relationships among BGD, genetics knowledge, and…

Exposure to information about genetics is at an all-time high, while a full understanding of the biocultural complexity of human difference is low. This paper demonstrates the value of an "anthropological approach" to enhance genetics education in biology, anthropology, and other related disciplines, when teaching about human differences…

A set of core ideas in the life sciences revolve around genetics, variation, and inheritance. While the "Next Generation Science Standards" (NGSS; NGSS Lead States 2013) emphasize teaching and learning about these concepts across K-12 grades, it is critical for early learners to begin to develop understanding of them. By the end of fifth…

Studies have shown that neonate rodents exhibit high ability to learn a preference for novel odors associated with thermo-tactile stimuli that mimics maternal care. Artificial odors paired with vigorous strokes in rat pups younger than 10 postnatal days (P), but not older, rapidly induce an orientation-approximation behavior toward the conditioned…

The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of making argumentation practices on the conceptual understanding level and decision making styles of pre-service science teachers on socio-scientific subject, genetically modified organisms (GMO). The sample of this study consists of 48 Pre-service science teachers studying in the 2nd grade of…

In a companion article, I discussed recent developments in genetics and the inadequacies of eight common claims made by biology teachers, followed by suggested replacement language for those statements. In the present article, I address nine more claims, about such topics as whether or not most human characteristics are inherited as simple…

This field experiment manipulated the racial framing of a reading on human genetic disease to explore whether racial terminology in the biology curriculum affects how adolescents explain and respond to the racial achievement gap in American education. Carried out in a public high school in the San Francisco Bay Area, students recruited for the…

Rett syndrome (RTT) is a neurogenetic disorder in which a period of typical development is followed by loss of previously acquired skills. Once thought to occur exclusively in females, increasing numbers of male cases of RTT have been reported. This systematic review included 36 articles describing 57 cases of RTT in males. Mutations of the MECP2…

Honeybees are a standard model for the study of appetitive learning and memory. Yet, fewer attempts have been performed to characterize aversive learning and memory in this insect and uncover its molecular underpinnings. Here, we took advantage of the positive phototactic behavior of bees kept away from the hive in a dark environment and…

The laboratory exercise described here aims to provide a relevant context for learning basic DNA techniques in an introductory animal science course at tertiary level. In two 4-hr laboratory sessions, students assess the suitability of bulls for inclusion in a gene-assisted selection program for A2 [beta]-casein by genotyping commercial bull…

It has been reported that approximate number sense (ANS) task performance is impaired in individuals with Williams syndrome (WS) and Down syndrome (DS). Research with infants has suggested this impairment is caused by sticky fixation in WS and sustained attention deficits for those with DS. This study examined looking patterns of older children…

Challenging behaviors involving food are common for individuals with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) and often lead to obesity and other chronic health conditions. Efforts to decrease these behaviors, such as isolation during meals and strict monitoring of food consumption, can be stigmatizing. To decrease the food stealing of a 7 year-old girl with…

When people are exposed to information that leads them to overestimate the actual amount of genetic difference between racial groups, it can augment their racial biases. However, there is apparently no research that explores if the reverse is possible. Does teaching adolescents scientifically accurate information about genetic variation within and…

Current definitions of specific learning disability (SLD) identify a heterogeneous population that includes individuals with weaknesses in reading, math, or writing, and these academic difficulties often co-occur in many of the same individuals. The Colorado Learning Disabilities Research Center (CLDRC) is an interdisciplinary, multisite research…

Social efficiency shaped much of public schooling in the United States during the early twentieth century. Simultaneously, Roman Catholic schools proliferated and became increasingly regulated by state departments of education. This led to increased influence of public education reform movements on Catholic schools. This article examines the…