Using 3D Water Models to Investigate the Fundamental and Powerful Concepts in the Biological Sciences

 

Tested Studies in Laboratory Teaching, 2011, Volume 32

Nora Egan Demers & Joanna Salapska-Gelleri

Abstract

Nosich defines fundamental and powerful concepts as those basic concepts that lie at the heart of a discipline (Nosich, 2005). When challenged to consider what such a concept might be in the natural sciences, water and its chemical properties emerges. I believe that students who demonstrate a strong understanding of the chemical bonding properties of water will perform better and understand more fully other important processes in the natural and biological sciences. To that end, we have incorporated activities using magnetic models of water (available from Milwaukee School of Engineering's (MSOE) Center for BioMolecular modeling) into activities in General Biology I classes at Florida Gulf Coast University. These models contain magnets that are used to help demonstrate the polarity of the molecule, and thereby provide an opportunity to build ice crystals, model cohesion and adhesion, and observe the solubility properties of water. We assessed students' ability to recall these chemical properties at several intervals in that class, and in upper division Biology courses. During this workshop participants will be able to work with the models, be exposed to the worksheet and hear about the assessment and results from our work at FGCU.

Keywords:  water

Dalhousie University (2010)