Eco-literacy (knowledge of natural history, and direct observation of the natural world and the organisms it contains) is critical to a holistic understanding of biology. Many undergraduate biology students lack this knowledge and experience, often because of a lack of engagement with the environmental science curriculum. The effectiveness of service learning is well established, but few examples of service-learning projects in the context of natural history education have been published. We describe how we used best practices for the development of a field-based service-learning project in a college-level natural history course. The project was built around established learning goals and was conducted through a partnership with a local state park. Students worked in groups to conduct bird biodiversity surveys and prepared a printed birdwatching guide, which was presented to park staff. The project was linked to a series of assignments intended to maximize academic and personal growth, including a project plan, progress report, and reflection paper. Students reported increased engagement in the course curriculum and an increased sense of the relevance of the course content.

In organismic biology, the formation of ecological and evolutionary hypotheses on the basis of observable morphologies is a central element of research, and by extension of teaching and learning. Often it is necessary to take account of complex combinations of factors, some of which may be far from obvious. In the work described here, hypothesis formation and testing was exercised and studied in a learner-centered and object-based manner using an anachronistic, seemingly “nonsensical” plant, Maclura pomifera (Moraceae), in which the link between structure and function only becomes clear when considering past faunistic environments. The element of the unexpected and the allure of the large animals is thought to add to epistemic curiosity and student motivation to engage in the study of plants.

Students learning the skills of science benefit from opportunities to move between the scientific problems and questions they confront and the mathematical tools available to answer the questions and solve the problems. Indeed, students learn science best when they are actively engaged in pursuing answers to authentic and relevant questions. We present an activity teachers can use in the classroom to introduce the concepts of species richness and diversity. We break down the history and logic behind the two primary statistical tools ecologists use to quantify species diversity: Simpson's and Shannon's diversity indices. With hypothetical data, we show how students can learn about and practice the calculations. We then describe an activity where students collect authentic ecological data with pitfall traps while learning some arthropod systematics and practicing their newly acquired quantitative reasoning skills, all within the context of edge effect ecology and habitat conservation. The entire activity reinforces for students how interesting and helpful mathematical models and quantitative reasoning in science can be for understanding biological phenomena, but also for generating more questions, and for designing additional data-collection techniques and experiments.

Biological experiments involving animals in K–12 classrooms can be time consuming or logistically difficult. Insects are small and easy to obtain, making them suitable for classroom use. We provide an experiment using insects that will teach students how to use the scientific method to formulate and test a hypothesis. The experiment is based on a case study involving an insect used as a biological control agent that targets an invasive weed, and the rigor of the experiment can easily be tailored to different grade levels. Using ∼1 m² arenas set up in the classroom, students measure insect jumping or walking distances as a proxy for dispersal capabilities in the field, and more advanced classes can investigate variables that affect jumping or walking distance and direction.

Students often struggle to connect concepts with evidence, sometimes because development of research skills has not been emphasized in their science courses. We developed a strategy and protocol to train high school students in research and experimental investigation of questions related to course material on legume biology. The richness of this subject matter allows for adaptations of our framework to address diverse areas of science, including principles in ecology, environmental science, agriculture, microbiology, and evolution. Our framework includes a hands-on classroom inquiry that investigates the symbiotic relationship between nitrogen-fixing rhizobial bacteria and legumes. This student-led, inquiry-based project employs an intellectually demanding, hands-on method of education to build critical research skills using an adaptable model and inexpensive materials. We also report positive student feedback from a post hoc survey to gauge student attitudes toward the activity and the effectiveness of this framework.

We designed two NGSS-aligned middle school classroom experiments to investigate the effects of biochar on plant growth and soil respiration. Biochar is a carbon-rich material, produced by heating organic matter under limited oxygen, that is added to soils to improve fertility, to promote plant growth, and as one possible strategy to help mitigate climate change. The experiments offer an ideal case study for students learning fundamentals of soil and plant interactions. Soils and biochar are accessible, are connected to global issues such as agriculture and climate change, and are the focus of ongoing research in soil science. These classroom experiments promote authentic science because students design replicated experiments, collect and analyze data, discuss variability in the data, and interpret their results in the context of recent research.

Exposing students to carnivorous plants within course-based undergraduate research can heighten student interest in plants and create a foundation on which to build future student projects. Carnivorous plants derive nutrients by trapping animals, but unlike most other predators, they lack mobility and are thought to attract prey through a combination of visual and olfactory cues. As part of a semester-long undergraduate research project for a junior/senior-level plant ecology class, students used carnivorous plants and artificial traps to test the importance of visual cues in the capture of wild-type and visually impaired (w¹¹¹⁸) Drosophila melanogaster. Over the 13-week semester, students worked in groups to generate questions, design experiments, analyze data, and present results both orally and in a written manuscript. A major focus was developing students' ability to compare their results with the literature. Upon completion, manuscripts were uploaded to a digital archive for use by future students in designing projects. This database of readily accessible past projects provides students with an accessible literature base that enables them to build upon previous work in a way that more accurately reflects real-world research.

Commensalism is the association of two organisms, one of which derives benefit while the other is unaffected. These relationships are common in nature and in unexpected environments. A good example of commensalism is the survival of nematodes in the intestine of millipedes. The diversity of life capable of living in such an environment is remarkable, sometimes with as many as eight species of nematodes living in the same region of the intestine. The primary goal of this work is to inspire students to gain the requisite skills to discover new life in host organisms that are readily available, accessible, and, in most cases, inexpensive or free. We have created a laboratory protocol to study the diversity of nematode life living inside the millipede intestine. This exercise is designed to teach students to test hypotheses, use taxonomic keys, dissect a millipede, recover nematodes, record data, and formulate a written conclusion. There is a high likelihood that students will discover new species of nematodes during this exercise. The suggested experimental design will catalyze students to investigate the potential of discovering new life in a backyard organism, and simultaneously ignite curiosity and promote a hands-on approach to the application of the scientific method.

Interactions are at the core of many ecological and evolutionary forces in nature. Plant–soil interactions provide a rich example of the interconnectedness of living systems, but they are hidden from everyday view and overshadowed in the classroom by more popular teaching examples involving animals, reptiles, or invertebrates. To highlight the importance and relevance of plant–soil relationships, we devised a simple role-playing activity suitable for college students. Specifically, the activity simulates how feedbacks between plants and soil environments influence plant species abundance and community richness. With this activity, students will gain a better understanding of these prolific, but overlooked, forms of biological interactions that impact the diversity and functioning of ecosystems.

Why preserve wilderness? How is such a value justified? Many people – including many biology teachers, I think – regard ecological facts as the ultimate foundation. But does this mean that scientific inquiry can yield ethics, as well as knowledge? Here, I explore this important question about the nature and limits of science by focusing on Aldo Leopold's popular idea of a land ethic.