Science 1: Associate degree in Education - Lecture 10: Evolution

Lecture # 10 SCIENCE 1 ASSOCIATE DEGREE IN EDUCATION EVOLUTION DARWIN THEORY OF EVOLUTION This week we focus on Darwin’s ideas on evolution. The students should also learn how his scientific work was the basis for criticism but also new research. Have them research the following questions and share their findings with the class:  Was Darwin right? Was he wrong? What new discoveries have helped scientists understand better how species evolve?What’s the current thinking? If possible, allow Students access to the Internet or any other resources available.There is no need to go into great detail on evolutionary theory in this session. However, it is important to show how scientific thinking progresses over time. Students should understand that certain facts get questioned and may be revised based on new findings. They need to realize that scientific knowledge is never complete and that the quest of understanding the natural world is ongoing. Learning about Darwin and his concept of evolution illustrates the interacting roles of evidence and theory in scientific inquiry. This information demonstrates how scientists’ work is influenced by their societal and cultural beliefs and how scientific thinking builds on earlier knowledge. DARWIN THEORY OF EVOLUTION Continue.This is also a good time to discuss with Students the difference between science and other ways of knowing.ORDepending on your Students’ background knowledge and ability, you might continue the discussion and progress to genetically modified produce, cloning, and so on.DARWIN THEORY OF EVOLUTION Continue.In this week, the goal is to help Students distinguish between evolution (the historical changes in life forms) and natural selection (the mechanism for these changes). It is strongly suggested that you allow ample time in units 2 and 3 to make sure that they first recognize the diversity and relatedness of species. Then they can move on to study natural selection as an evolution mechanism. This progression may help avoid some misconceptions.EVOLUTION AND SPECIATION EVOLUTION AND SPECIATION continue Some Students might have difficulty understanding that population changes are the result of the survival of a few individuals that preferentially reproduce. They instead might believe that populations change over time because of the gradual change of all individuals in that population. They do not realize that changes are caused by the increase in the proportion of individuals that have advantageous characteristics. To realize how natural selection can account for evolution, Students must understand the important difference between the selection of an individual with a certain trait and a change in the proportions of that trait in populations. EVOLUTION AND SPECIATION continue Students who believe that evolution is the process in which species respond to environmental conditions by changing gradually over time think that the environment (rather than random processes and natural selection) causes traits to change. They believe that acquired traits can be inherited and that variability is not important in evolution. It is very common for children and Student Teachers alike to believe that organisms develop new traits because they need them to survive. They think that adaptation refers to individuals deliberately developing new traits in response to the environment. Confusion about these topics may be due to the everyday usage of the terms adapt, adaptation, and fitness.EVOLUTION AND SPECIATION continue This week, Students learn how similar internal structures and chemical processes in different organisms can infer shared ancestry. They use simulations, data from primary sources, and fossil records to hypothesize how evolutionary paths diverged from a common ancestor. They draw on these understandings as they examine the biochemical evidence for common ancestry in this unit. EVOLUTION AND SPECIATION continue Students study how organisms are grouped based on evolutionary relationships or DNA similarities. They build on their understandings of classification from the previous unit. Recall that in unit 2 they used biological classification systems to interpret degrees of relatedness among species. They should be aware that the selection of naturally occurring variations in a population leads to great species diversity. They should also know that extinction of a species can occur when the environment changes and the adaptive characteristics of a species are insufficient to allow its survival.. EVOLUTION AND SPECIATION continue Students study how organisms are grouped based on evolutionary relationships or DNA similarities. They build on their understandings of classification from the previous unit. Recall that in unit 2 they used biological classification systems to interpret degrees of relatedness among species. They should be aware that the selection of naturally occurring variations in a population leads to great species diversity. They should also know that extinction of a species can occur when the environment changes and the adaptive characteristics of a species are insufficient to allow its survival..