Foundational concepts and underlying theories for majors in “biochemistry and molecular biology”

Abstract

Over the past two years, through an NSF RCN UBE grant, the ASBMB has held regional workshops for faculty members and science educators from around the country that focused on identifying: 1) core principles of biochemistry and molecular biology, 2) essential concepts and underlying theories from physics, chemistry, and mathematics, and 3) foundational skills that undergraduate majors in biochemistry and molecular biology must understand to complete their major coursework. Using information gained from these workshops, as well as from the ASBMB accreditation working group and the NSF Vision and Change report, the Core Concepts working group has developed a consensus list of learning outcomes and objectives based on five foundational concepts (evolution, matter and energy transformation, homeostasis, information flow, and macromolecular structure and function) that represent the expected conceptual knowledge base for undergraduate degrees in biochemistry and molecular biology. This consensus will aid biochemistry and molecular biology educators in the development of assessment tools for the new ASBMB recommended curriculum.

Enhancing student retention of prerequisite knowledge through pre‐class activities and in‐class reinforcement

“…Indeed, the concepts of equilibrium, thermodynamics, bonding, and molecular charge are foundational to understanding biochemistry [4,5] and are necessary for understanding the threshold concepts of biochemistry, including steady state, intermolecular interactions, thermodynamics of macromolecular structure formation and population dynamics [6]. Biochemistry is a prerequisite heavy discipline; it is built on the fundamentals of chemistry and biology.…”

Identification of Threshold Concepts for Biochemistry

“…For example, the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB) has recently completed the first phase of an effort to identify foundational concepts and skills for majors in biochemistry and molecular biology (Mattos et al ., 2013; Tansey et al ., 2013; White et al ., 2013; Wright et al ., 2013). Another group of biochemists has undertaken an effort to identify “big ideas” in the molecular life sciences as part of the development of the Molecular Life Science Concept Inventory (MLSCI; Howitt et al ., 2008; Wright and Hamilton, 2008; see Table 1 for a complete list).…”

BioCore Guide: A Tool for Interpreting the Core Concepts of Vision and Change for Biology Majors

“…Taking the next step, the Society for Microbiology (Merkel, 2012), the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (Tansey et al. , 2013), and the American Society of Plant Biologists and Botanical Society of America (American Society of Plant Biologists, 2012) have outlined how the core concepts of Vision and Change could be interpreted in each of their subdisciplines.…”