Festival of Learning

Open Session Limited to 50 Participants (First-Come, First-In). This session is held in a large ballroom with two sessions happening at opposite ends of the room. (Area 3B)

Introductory ecology students at the University of the Fraser Valley have been engaging in a long-term field study on the decomposition of leaf litter packs in streams to gain an appreciation of ecological principles and methods of ecological research.  Throughout a semester, students study the decomposition of leaves, measure water quality, and collect aquatic macroinvertebrates at an assigned stream site. Students are then provided with the opportunity to test hypotheses using data collected by the class.  The impact of the stream study on student engagement and learning of ecological principles was assessed in the fall of 2015 using a Student Assessment of Learning Gains survey instrument (SALG) and a subset of questions from the Questions for Biology (Q4B).  The results of the assessment of student learning and the utility of the assessment procedures will be examined.  

Presenters
Alida Janmaat, Assistant Professor, University of the Fraser Valley