Considering Grand Challenges in Undergraduate General Biology Education: Integration, Big History, and Scientific Literacy

Abstract

Higher education finds itself at a crossroads in regard to providing students of all majors with curricula that addresses a higher level of critical thinking skills along with evidenced based decision making. Within the walls of academia, educators and administrators alike are facing grand challenges in developing biology programs, which encapsulate the complex and interconnectedness of the biological sciences, while at the same time embedding the scientific literacy skills found within the field of biology. Here I argue for the integration of Big History content within general biology education courses.