Genetically modified food in perspective: an inquiry‐based curriculum to help middle school students make sense of tradeoffs |
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| Authors: | Sherry Seethaler Marcia Linn |
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| Institution: | 1. University of California, San Diego, Division of Physical Sciences , 9500 Gilman Drive, M.C. 0352, La Jolla, CA 92093‐0352, USA E-mail: sseethaler@ucsd.edu;2. University of California , Berkeley, USA |
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| Abstract: | To understand how students learn about science controversy, this study examines students' reasoning about tradeoffs in the context of a technology‐enhanced curriculum about genetically modified food. The curriculum was designed and refined based on the Scaffolded Knowledge Integration Framework to help students sort and integrate their initial ideas and those presented in the curriculum. Pre‐test and post‐test scores from 190 students show that students made significant (p?<?0.0001) gains in their understanding of the genetically modified food controversy. Analyses of students' final papers, in which they took and defended a position on what type of agricultural practice should be used in their geographical region, showed that students were able to provide evidence both for and against their positions, but were less explicit about how they weighed these tradeoffs. These results provide important insights into students' thinking and have implications for curricular design. |
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