How would you measure-up against our students in Biology?

Sample Biology Tests/Quizzes

I'm curious to see what those at home think of the level of science I'm teaching out here, so test yourselves, if you like, with the sample exam below, administered to my 10^th grade students today:

Biology

Form II Winter Term

Unit Test: Cells

February 2011

60 points

1.) In a typical cell placed into fresh water, osmotic pressure produces: (2 points)

a.) active transport

b.) a net movement of water out of the cell

c.) a net movement of water into the cell

d.) protein synthesis

e.) no change

2.) Which of the following is an example of active transport? (2 points)

a.) Facilitated diffusion

b.) diffusion

c.) osmosis

3.) Which of the following is an example of a prokaryote? (2 points)

a.) Plant

b.) Bacteria

c.) Red Blood Cell

Fill in the blank: (3 points)

4.) Osmosis is the diffusion of ________ through a selectively permeable membrane.

The _____________ regulates what enters and leaves the cell and also provides protection and support.

_________________ causes many substances to move across a cell membrane but does not require the cell to use energy.

5.) A substance that moves across a cell membrane without using the cell's energy tends to move (2 points)

a.) away from the area of equilibrium

b.) away from the area where it is less concentrated

c.) away from the area where it is more concentrated

d.) toward the area where it is more concentrated

6.) Proteins are polymers formed from: (2 points)

a.) lipids

b.) carbohydrates

c.) amino acids

d.) nucleic acids

Complete the following analogy:

7.) Amino Acids:Protein :: Fatty Acid Chains::_______?________ (2 points)

a.) lipids

b.) carbohydrates

c.) nucleotides

d.) bases

8.) Support : Cell wall : energy release : ________?_______ (2 points)

a.) cytoskeleton

b.) nucleus

c.) Golgi Apparatus

d.) ribosomes

e.) mitochondria

In an experiment, red blood cells were placed in salt solutions of varying concentrations. The rate at which the cells absorbed salt from the solution was then measured for the different concentrations. The results are summarized in the graph:

Rate of Salt Uptake

(micromol/g/L)

500
	*********	********************	******************
300	*******
*******
0   **

0                                 10                                       20                                     30                                 40

Concentration of Salt (mmol/L)

9.) The graph shows that as the concentration of salt increases from 10 to 30 mmol/L, the cells: (2 points)

a.) take in salt more slowly

b.) take in salt more quickly

c.) fail to take in more salt

d.) lose salt more quickly

10.) Consider the following phrase, “The cell theory revolutionized the way biologists thought about living things.” Using your knowledge of cells and your own analytical skills, write a short essay to support or refute (disagree with) this statement. (10 points)

11.) Fill in the blank: (2 points)

“As a cell gets larger, its volume increases at a faster rate than its surface area.” This is a description of the _________ ______ to _________ ratio.

12.) Cells are small for practical reasons. Explain in a short essay (one paragraph). (10 points)

13.) Next to each organelle name, describe it's function: (9 points)

Nucleus:

Golgi Apparatus:

Endoplasmic Reticulum:

Ribosomes:

Lysosomes:

Mitochondria:

Cell Membrane:

Cytoplasm:

Chromatin:

14.) Short Essay (10 points): Compare a cell to a factory, as in the chapter, or to something else, such as a school. Use that analogy to describe the function of different parts of the cell.

***How would you have done?***

And here's another sample assessment, this one given to my 9^th grade students last week:

Form 1 Week 5 Quiz – 15 points total

1. Four groups of organic compounds found in living things are: (4 points)
2. In polymerization, complex molecules are formed by the joining together of _________ (1pt)
3. Living things use ___________ as their main source of energy. (1 point)
4. Carbohydrates come in two forms: simple sugars, or __________________, like glucose, or more complex polymers, or ______________ like cellulose. (2 points)
5. Though a carbon atom has 6 total electrons, it has 4 ___________ electrons. The __________ electrons are those electrons available for _______________. (2 points)
6. Plants use carbohydrates for “structural purposes.” In other words, what does that mean? (2 points)
7. What are the two parts of a lipid's molecular structure? (2 points)
8. What is the difference between Acids and Bases? How do their numbers on the pH scale differ? (1 pt)

The challenge of starting up all of these classes and programs out here – (we now have 335 students in our programs from the boarding school, elementary-level tutoring, Adult English classes, Finance-University Classes, and Executive MBA classes, all run by a total of less-than 20 teachers) - while working to become completely financially self-sustaining, is the issue of what I guess might be classified as growing pains. The initial allotment of money the founder invested in this place has been stretched as far as it will go; more funding is needed simply to build the buildings we need on the campus – larger boy's dorms, an English-teaching building with a separate women's cafeteria and study space, additional teacher housing as well as funding to complete construction on the mosque, and additional structures for security, just to name a few of these expenses. Of course it seems that in the non-profit world as everywhere, there are always expenses adding up, but it is particularly frustrating for me to see this here, as I have never seen such an example of fiscal responsibility as I witness daily at AT. I am learning more about finance and the time value of money here than anywhere – even at the University of Chicago, with all the heady talk of the Milton Friedman school and the Graduate School of Business, I never saw an eye on money with such relentless persistence, such devotion to putting it to the best possible use, as here. And yet the school meets with resistance from those we thought we could rely on for the most support. Rather than offering up the share of support they could give to the school, many Somalis – from villagers to the wealthier Somalis involved with the school – simply look to take (and take, and take, and take) what they can get from its services. We have been doled out enormous bills, in several instances of late, rather than modicums of financial or social support. This does nothing to aid the school on its path to becoming financially self-sustaining, but behooves us to double down and dig in even deeper.

Teachers here are so motivated and dedicated; each teacher is taking on the role of advisor for 8-10 students, in addition to running clubs, supervising work-times, coaching sports, writing curriculums, coordinating standardized testing (SAT, TOEFL) programs, managing and writing policies, and that's only in the boarding school alone! There are the aforementioned university, MBA, tutoring, and adult English programs as well, all managed by our teaching staff of less-than-twenty. While we are as enthusiastic about these projects and driven-as-can-be to see success take shape here and serve these ever-so-deserving students, it is shocking that others (those in the local community, or whose businesses or families benefit from these services) do not share this same compulsion to invest at least a little bit of energy, effort, time, or money in the project.

As an example of the resistance I'm describing, consider this:

Some of the villagers demand that those we hire from their ranks be paid more and more, for poorly done or even incomplete work. While the other teachers and I put in 80+hours of work/week while making less than $3,000 for the year (we enjoy the work very much, and are proud to do it, but still), it is unnerving to see that those who do so little and yet benefit from the addition of educational and economic stimulus only demand more.

I attended a meeting with a collection of village council members a few weeks ago, with some of our best students serving as translators. The villagers were miffed that AT had fired the staff members we'd hired from the village, because these staff members were not doing their work (at all!) and were in fact causing more harm than good (these staff members were mainly responsible for managing the student kitchen, which was consistently understocked, and routinely left several students without food at the end of each meal! Abominable!)

So we had a meeting in which to negotiate new terms for hiring new workers and try to patch up the relationship of the school with the village. But rather than gratitude for the work we've done to educate their children and help their community, this group of villagers wanted more and more of us. Hire more workers, pay them better, paint all the buildings in the town, begin to run the village elementary school, provide electricity and running water, fix the road, etc etc. There's no end to this! Of course, in time we hope that AT will have the resources to accommodate all these demands, but we can never do it without the willingness of Somalis to work to accept and become part of these programs themselves, and their willingness to support us in these efforts. It was as if the cliches and stereotypes were coming true before my eyes. This group of villagers had come to expect that the white people from the West would do all the work for them, and this is precisely what has led to such a state of disarray in areas serviced by foreign aid – a dependence that leads to malaise and ennui rather than industrialism.

To add insult to the slight psychological pain this meeting caused, the villagers spent the entire meeting chewing qat (the stimulant) and smoking in front of us (this is seen as customary in some ways, though it is not accepted in higher Somali society, and is “haram” according to Islamic practice). The atmosphere was pungent with smoke and the smell of chew as well as the demoralizing attitude and pervasive lack of education, short-sighted, ignorant mentality, and mindlessness induced by a life of qat, poor nutrition, and lack of inspiration. Now this is not a knock on Somali society – every society and culture has its spectrum of struggling to successful individuals, and its own definition of success. But the aspect of this experience that most challenged me was seeing the undeniable truth that these people, after so many years of drug use and isolation, were incapable of sharing a vision for a future life, or a way in which things could be truly different. All they could manage to muster were demands for more money from those they perceived as “Haves.” They could not see that by their agreement, support, friendship, or willingness to work with us, that they could take part in something really great and constructive.

We used this meeting as a “teachable moment” for the students attending with us as translators – here, we explained, were the anti-role models. These people were the reason why we push our students to work so hard; we want our students to see that there is so much more to life than that lifestyle, and to see the difference education can make even in the interpretation of day-to-day activities. I also pointed out that one finds the same malaise and paralysis-of-ignorance in the US too, that it is a human problem, not one of this-culture or that.  
Most of the Somali people I've met working with our school have been more than gracious, very intelligent, and it has been an honor for me to get to know them and work with them, and I feel blessed to know and be entrusted to educate their children.  But I wanted to share this instance in order to foster better understanding of where we are.  

New photos...

...of baby chicks and students...

posted here:

https://picasaweb.google.com/mviola1/ChickensInSomaliland#

Enjoy!

Aviation News in Somaliland

This article just appeared on the credible news outlet, Somalilandpress.com :

http://somalilandpress.com/somaliland-receives-usd-10million-for-airports-upgrade-20146

Although there is no clear timeline for these events mentioned in this article, at least one Somali source expects the benefits of this agreement to come to fruition before the summer begins.  Which would be a good thing as summer here is the time of peak airport traffic, with flights full of returning Somali Diaspora visiting Somaliland on their summer holidays.

On the Joys of Lesson Planning, and other things

February 9, 2011

On The Joys of Lesson Planning, and other things:

Planning lessons with very clear objectives, that offer information presented clearly enough to overcome the language barrier here, and that are also engaging and light-hearted and fun is something toward which I find myself devoting more and more time. I'm teaching 9^th and 10^th grade Biology now, following a list of learning standards that I've pulled together from US A– state education standards, GCSE, and the AP and SAT II-Biology* tests (*Both Ecology and Molecular SAT II-Biology subject tests.) Fortunately I also have a few fairly good textbook resources here, (one edition with enough copies for each student to have his/her own text! What a relief!) and I've found a few helpful online resources too (thank you, Mrs. Dempsey!) But I am still working to find the right equation of lecture-based instruction and interaction in my classes.

I feel a personal pressure to consistently bring an entertaining physical demonstration into each lecture, which requires a bit of resourcefulness and scheming, as our lab equipment has not yet materialized. (More on that later.) But no amount of demonstration and “edu-tainment” can overcome the fact that our students must learn to read, first, and then learn how to read science texts, before they can have any hope of performing well on standardized science tests like the SAT subject tests.

My current teaching formula is this: Assign several readings from the text book each week, requiring students to submit written responses to critical-thinking questions based on the readings. These written responses must be presented with grammatical polish up to my (subjective!) standards, or will lose points. (The grading-time required to enforce this is always longer than I would like, but is probably worthwhile?) Then in class we will re-read certain important and difficult sections together, pulling out the information by defining each new word, and drawing relevant sketches and diagrams. I include walking-fieldtrips to places around campus, or demonstrations when I can think of them, and pull in readings from other sources, worksheets, or hands-on group activities as I find them. I hold vocabulary quizzes weekly – for words clearly biology-based, yes, but often general words too.

From student assessment so far it seems my kids have learned a few things. Maybe even a lot of things. The 9^th graders, only into their 4^th week of science, never having had a science class before – can explain what an atom is with its 3 subatomic parts, they will tell you how atoms are aggregate into elements, how combining atoms chemically creates molecules, and will explain the types of chemical bonds that hold these molecules together. They will explain how the periodic table is arranged, and can recite 8 of its elements with their symbols and atomic numbers. They know about isotopes and ions, they know the fundamental chemical properties of water, and how that relates to the pH scale. Next we are moving on to the chemistry of carbon – so that we will understand why biologists say that all life on earth is carbon-based.

The 10^th grade students have already had a full year of physics, and a semester of chemistry, so I introduced them to biology with a unit on environmental ecology. Having progressed through the standard topics under that umbrella – everything from ecosystems to nutrient cycles to population growth, in sufficient detail as to cover SAT II standards, I think – we are now zooming in for a close-up unit on cells, the biochemistry of carbon-based macromolecules, cell membranes and the associated concepts of diffusion, osmosis, active transport, and will soon move into the idea of energy synthesis.

As I keep pushing through this, creating a curriculum as I go, I would appreciate input and ideas from anyone out there – hardcore scientists, intrepid educators, and anyone with a random idea about how to convey Bio concepts in a meaningful way – please write!

Lab Equipment: I'm finalizing the orders! But putting together a list of basic lab needs was both easier and more difficult than I had expected. On the one hand, there are many resources online from the world's premier sources of technical equipment as to the basic stock lists of any lab. On the other hand, how do I anticipate the quantities of specific chemicals to order for our purposes? How regularly will we be able to expect re-stocking shipments? And another question – do I trust the whole-saler/general distributor in Dubai who offers equipment from India at an unbelievably cheap rate, or do stick with another highly-trusted but much more expensive Western-based company? The western-based company has a branch specifically for Africa, but they have been a bit more difficult to work with – in terms of email responses and arranging shipping logistics – than the Dubai firm.

So I'm going to work with both sides: chemicals from the western-based corporation, and nearly everything else from Dubai/India. Buying from the distributor in Dubai means that each item costs literally 1/10 – or less – than it would from the Western supplier. The reasons behind that cost difference merit a discussion all their own – in the style of the MBA classes I'm auditing as part of Abaarso Tech's Executive MBA program.

*Brief Chicken-Coop update: Now 10 baby chicks. Have assigned students the jobs of chicken-coop care. Investigating ways to keep jealous and aggressive hens from pecking at each-other's young, would value suggestions on that.

*New project on my horizon: Organizing a Spring Open House for AT. My students need an audience for their science fair, and have so much more to showcase in the way of academic skills – Quran-recitation, Debate, Academic Quiz Bowl, and athletic talent – that I think we need a day in which to allow them to share all of these skills they've been developing with such verve. I think we also need every opportunity we can get to invite the Somaliland public into our school, to see what we do, and get to know our staff as well as our students. So in short, the idea of a science-fair has grown into a vision for a full Open House, an afternoon for families and students.

The main logistical hurdle I foresee: communicating this vision effectively between the school's parent committee/Board of Directors, staff, and students to organize the event. Even without a language barrier, and even while living in such close-quarters with one's coworkers here, we find that open communication isn't always a natural step. Every day it seems I am sensitized to more ways in which the slightest nuance in communication can lead to either great synergy or alienation that requires much work to undo. 

 So I hope that in each step of organizing this event I can keep all parties communicating openly, eyes focused on our common goal.  Which is really the challenge of our whole mission out here: looking beyond the many obstacles of living in this developing place to stay focused on what really matters – the students, the people we are working for, and building an educational establishment here.