SpeciationEVOLUTION #1 (Group 3)

Strawberry Frogs Forever

Participants: Lin Xiang Ingo Schlupp

Tiffany Roberts Anne Grippo

Jerry FarrisFacilitators: Brooke Dubansky,

Joe Siebenaller

Context

• Designed for: Introductory course for Science majors– Biology (mainly)– Chemistry– Historical Geology

• Class size: small or large• Curriculum:– After natural selection, sexual selection– Some genetics background, genetic drift– Prior to prokaryotic/eukaryotic differences

Rationale

• Address misconceptions on speciation• Speciation is key to understanding biodiversity• Topic is scalable (not just class size)• Cross disciplinary

Learning goals

• Students will understand – speciation is a core concept in biology– the process of speciation–different species concepts–how selection pressures impact speciation –how scientists study speciation

Learning outcomes

• Students will be able to – apply their acquired knowledge of the role

of selection pressures in speciation to predict frog color with varied female preferences for male color–evaluate the rates of color change with

varied female color preferences–define species

Active Learning

• Activity outside of class– NetLogo loaded onto computers

(http://ccl.northwestern.edu/netlogo/)• Activity in class– Simulation provided for each student to actively

work with it (students can work alone, in pairs, groups)• Alternative: in-class demonstration

Active Learning

• Assessment– Formative: Pre/Post questions; Clicker questions;

Brainstorming– Summative: Take-home exercise

• Diversity– Different majors– Varied learning styles– Color blind awareness

Tidbit—1

(Pre-assessment, individual question)On a flashcard, write down your thoughts on the following question (instructor can lead a discussion or TPS on this if wanted):

Is it possible for an organism living in a particular area to split into different forms? Why or why not?

Active learning activity• Oophaga pumilio (Strawberry Poison-dart Frog)

Let’s read a histogram

Strawberry Frogs Forever(Simulation module)

What will happen with the male frog coloration distribution in this population?

Condition 1: no selection pressure

a b

c

a. Figure ab. Figure bc. Figure cd. Figure de. Don’t know

d

What will happen with the male frog coloration distribution in this population?

Condition 2: Female preference for bright red males

a b

c

a. Figure ab. Figure bc. Figure cd. Figure de. Don’t know

d

What will happen with the male frog coloration distribution in this population?

Condition 3: New females emerge with preference for bright orange males (On the back of your flashcard: Draw the graph on your own.)

Think back…

(Post assessment: Think-pair-share)Is it possible for an organism living in a particular area to split into different forms? Why or why not?

Brainstorming on given question regarding the definition of species

Summative AssessmentIs color difference sufficient for distinguishing separate species?

What are other selection pressures that could cause the same phenomenon?

What is the phenomenon called?

Tidbit--2

• Design an experiment to explore speciation further

A handout will be made including the following guiding questions:– What organism would you use?– What question would you test?– What are your hypotheses?– How long would the experiment take?– …