WORKSHOP ON QUANTITATIVE SCIENCES CURRICULUM FOR LIFE SCIENCE STUDENTS
May 19 - 21, 1994
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
General Information:
This Workshop is designed to bring together a group of life science,
mathematics, and statistical researchers and educators to focus on the
inclusion of more quantitative concepts directly in life science
undergraduate courses. It is a follow-up to a previous workshop which
focused mostly on entry-level and advanced quantitative courses for
undergraduates in biology, health science (e.g. nursing, pre-medicine,
etc.), and agricultural science. The prior workshop developed guidelines for
content of an entry-level course sequence but additionally emphasized that
it is not sufficient to isolate quantitative components of the curriculum
in a few courses on such topics, rather, quantitative methods should be
a component of courses throughout the undergraduate life science curriculum.
The objective of the upcoming Workshop is to act upon this suggestion. The
Workshop is supported by NSF Grant USE-9150354 to the University of
Tennessee. A brief Viewpoint article on the topic of this Workshop appears
in the February 1994 issue of Bioscience. This Workshop will be complemented
by a Symposium to be held at the annual meeting of the AIBS in Knoxville
with an afternoon session on August 8 and a computer lab to be open from
August 9-11.
The Workshop will deal in detail with the implementation of curricular reform
in this area - bringing together life science and math faculty and covering
success stories for fruitful collaborative learning development across fields.
The key topics to be addressed at the Workshop are:
1. How can we reinforce the quantitative skills life science undergraduates
obtain through their entry-level quantitative courses (e.g. calculus,
statistics, etc.)?
2. What additional quantitative concepts might best be included in various
biological science courses?
3. How can we emphasize the importance of quantitative methods within the
framework of typical General Biology course sequences?
4. How can we foster the development of appropriate educational materials,
including texts and software, which emphasize the importance of
quantitative methods in modern biology?
5. What is the role of software in the above, and are there particular
software packages/programs which will be most useful in developing the
quantitative understanding of students in conjunction with key life science
concepts?
Workshop Format:
The Workshop format will include presentations by various faculty who have
been developing courses and software to deal with the above issues. The
Workshop will include small-group discussion sections on various
sub-disciplinary topics that often correspond to specialized topics
within the undergraduate curricula (e.g. molecular biology, cell biology,
organismal biology, ecology, evolution, etc.) as well as those associated
with applications areas such as forestry, crop science, and fisheries.
Exact areas to be included will depend upon the interests of participants.
A major focus will however be on the General Biology sequence, and the
development of appropriate modules to couple with this. In addition to
demonstrations of software, there will be an open computer lab (for MS-DOS,
Windows, and Macintosh) to allow participants to evaluate a wide variety of
software.
Travel Grants and other Financial Matters:
The Workshop is supported by a grant from the National Science
Foundation, which will cover most local expenses, including hotel and meals,
for participants from colleges and non-profit organizations.
There will not be a registration fee, though attendees from private
industry will be expected to pay a fee to cover meals at the Workshop.
Additionally, travel grants are available for those who cannot obtain
travel funds from other sources. Preference for these grants will be
given to those who can obtain some support from their home institution,
but grants of full travel support are also available. A special airfare
discount is available through Delta airlines, including a discount off
the supersaver fares. All those requesting travel grants will be expected
to make travel arrangements at the lowest possible fare through our
local travel agent (Yvonne Gordon of All-Ways Travel, 1-800-289-3030,
or 615-974-0471, 615-974-3933 (FAX)).
Time and Location:
The Workshop will begin at 9:00AM on Thursday, May 19 and continue until
noon on Saturday, May 21. Most participants will be expected to arrive
on Wednesday, May 18 and depart on Sunday, May 22 in order to save on
airfares. A field trip to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will
be held on Saturday afternoon for interested participants. Participants
will be staying at the Holiday Inn, World's Fair Park, and the Workshop
will be held at the University of Tennessee Conference Center, located
across the street from the hotel. Housing arrangements for participants,
as well as pick-ups at the McGee-Tyson airport, will be made by the
organizer.
Further information:
All information about this workshop is being posted in the life sciences
section of the Matharchives. Included at this site are copies of the
Summary of the previous workshop, reviews of various life science
software, various articles and software of interest to the life science
community, as well as a wide variety of software and curricular material
in mathematical areas. To access this gopher, use
archives.math.utk.edu (port 70)
or by anonymous ftp to
archives.math.utk.edu (128.169.202.163).
Participant Application:
Those wishing to participate in the Workshop should complete the attached
registration form and send it to the organizer by March 1. Please register
as soon as possible as the Workshop will be limited to no more than 50
participants. Those wishing to participate can register for the
Workshop in several different ways: 1) via e-mail to the organizer
at gross@math.utk.edu or gross@utkvx (BITNET), 2) via FAX to the
organizer at 615-974-6576, or 3) via regular surface mail to the below
address. Please register using one method only. Receipt of all
registration forms will be acknowledged.
1) To register by e-mail, simply fill in the attached registration
form and email it to: gross@math.utk.edu or gross@utkvx (BITNET)
2) To register by FAX or surface mail, please print out the attached
registration form and send to:
Dr. Louis J. Gross
Department of Mathematics
University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN 37996-1300
615-974-4295
615-974-2461 (Secretary)
615-974-6576 (FAX)
*****************************************
REGISTRATION FORM
WORKSHOP ON QUANTITATIVE SCIENCES CURRICULUM FOR LIFE SCIENCE STUDENTS
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
May 19 - 21, 1994
*****************************************
Name :
Title :
Organization :
Address :
City : State : Zip : Country :
Telephone : email address :
FAX:
Do you wish to make a presentation at the Workshop? If so please give
a title and 2 sentence description. ( ) Yes ( ) No
Title :
Description:
Do you wish to demonstrate any software at the Workshop?
( ) Yes ( ) No
If so, please give a title, description, and hardware requirements.
Title :
Description:
Hardware requirements:
Do you wish to a make this available in the computer workshop sessions
(e.g. on several machines for participants to try out) or just in a
presentation to the group?
( ) Presentation only ( ) Computer workshop only ( ) Both
What are your areas of special interest and/or expertise?
What particular small group discussion topics would you like to
participate in?
Do you have special dietary preferences or restrictions (e.g. diabetic, low
sodium, kosher, vegetarian, etc.) or anything else we should know to
aid your attendance at the Workshop? If so, please note:
Grants to cover travel expenses are available. Preference will be given to
individuals who can obtain at least partial support from their home
institutions. Do you wish to apply for a grant ? ( ) Yes ( ) No
If so, can you cover half of the travel from other sources or do
you request full travel support?
( ) Request half support ( ) Request full support
For further information, contact the organizer: Dr. Louis J. Gross,
Professor of Mathematics and Ecology, Department of Mathematics,
University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996-1300, 615-974-4295,
615-974-2461 (Secretary), 615-974-6576 (FAX).
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