A Vision for Change in Bioscience Education: Building on Knowledge from the Past

rini wahyuni mustika ramdhani;

High-quality undergraduate education is central to the success of all life scientists. Several major bioscience educational issues are the targets of much debate, research, funding, publications, and reports (e.g., Vision and Change). Surprisingly, these issues are considered by modern bioscience instructors as unresolved, despite historical reports that claim the contrary. Here, we illustrate with evidence how, more than 50 years ago, Sam Postlethwait successfully instituted strategies to address several issues in plant biology education with his audio tutorials. These strategies succeeded in individualizing the instruction of students with diverse educational backgrounds in large classes, incorporating authentic and active learning, integrating lab and lectures to teach about research, developing science competencies, and advancing curriculum and faculty change informed by empirical data. We contend that modern educators could greatly benefit by building on the historical advancements of the past, to ensure that they do not waste their efforts reinventing the wheel.