How to translate text using browser tools
12 February 2021 Using Yeast Fermentation as a Context for Meaningful Learning of Procedural Understanding
Kennedy Kam Ho Chan, Jordan West-Pratt, Richard Chi Keung Ng
Author Affiliations +
Abstract

Students need procedural understanding—that is, knowledge of the procedures that scientists use to establish scientific evidence (also known as “concepts of evidence”), to successfully perform scientific investigations, and to evaluate public and scientific claims. However, concepts of evidence are seldom explicitly targeted in routine practical activities in secondary school science classrooms. We describe how a commonly used practical activity, yeast fermentation, can be modified to provide a meaningful context for developing students' understanding of concepts of evidence associated with measurement, as well as more difficult-to-learn scientific ideas, such as rates of reaction. The modified practical activities give students opportunities to exercise their creativity in assembling setups; brainstorm solutions to design problems in teams; reflect on their decisions related to concepts of evidence associated with measurement when designing their setups; compare the validity and reliability of data produced using different setups; and develop their understanding of difficult-to-learn scientific ideas.

© 2021 by The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved. Please direct all requests for permission to photocopy or reproduce article content through the University of California Press's Reprints and Permissions web page, https://www.ucpress.edu/journals/reprints-permissions.
Kennedy Kam Ho Chan, Jordan West-Pratt, and Richard Chi Keung Ng "Using Yeast Fermentation as a Context for Meaningful Learning of Procedural Understanding," The American Biology Teacher 83(1), 26-32, (12 February 2021). https://doi.org/10.1525/abt.2021.83.1.26
Published: 12 February 2021
JOURNAL ARTICLE
7 PAGES

This article is only available to subscribers.
It is not available for individual sale.
+ SAVE TO MY LIBRARY

KEYWORDS
concepts of evidence
procedural understanding
Yeast fermentation
RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS
Get copyright permission
Back to Top