Bugs, Bugs, Bugs!

What's Bugging You? - Research Article Review

The research article that I chose was called, "What's Bugging You?" by Sherri Brown. I thought that this would be an interesting topic to read about because I haven’t learned much about bugs. This article is based on the 5 E's in the inquiry process: Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, and Evaluate. In this article, the author describes how she created an authentic and engaging approach for students to learn about bugs. Before introducing the inquiry process she created a pre-assessment to identify what students know about insects. After the pre-assessment the inquiry process was then introduced. Through the inquiry students were able to observe bugs and construct their knowledge from their drawings and classification sheet.

The author felt it was important to conduct this study so that students could observe and begin to differentiate the common word bug from the specific characteristics of an insect. Another reason she felt it was important was so that she could change the misconceptions that students have on bugs. To conduct this study the teacher allowed the students to go outside and collect bugs using a leaf-litter sifter. The students recorded all their data on a classification sheet where they were able to make connections between different organisms and their habitats. After they finished collecting their data students were then asked to draw pictures of their bugs. At the end of the inquiry students made models of their insects using their drawings and data. They also had to write an explanation as to why their insects use its designated features.

The main purpose of this study was to teach students how to observe and classify and to encourage students to believe that insects are harmless. The author states that her preservice students scream whenever they see a bug or say things such as “Ooh those things give me the willies, and I am not going near them.” This shows the common misconceptions that students have on bugs because they believe that all insects are bad and could harm them. The key question the author is addressing is “What is an insect?” Students were able to answer this question by going outside and observing real life insects. This made the experiment a real life experience for students which is very important.

The most important information in this article is that this experiment has been proven to help students learn the concept of classification and continues to help them. “This activity has continuously provided successful measurable content outcomes in which students move toward a greater knowledge of scientific classification, specifically the classification characteristics for the phylum Arthropoda and class Insectae” (Brown, 2006). This quote expresses how effective this experiment has been when teaching students how to classify the characteristics of insects.

This article concludes two things one of them I stated before about how it increases students knowledge of scientific classification. The second thing is that this experience has helped students grow out of their fear of bugs and learn how to appreciate living things. “Students have shown an appreciation of bugs as they observe, draw, and classify these animals; some have stated that this experience has lessened their fear of bugs” (Brown, 2006). If people take the information in this article seriously, students will no longer struggle with the ability to classify and they will also learn how to appreciate all things in life both living and nonliving. This inquiry lesson on bugs is a fantastic way to teach students how to classify and appreciate things such as bugs, animals and plants.

Although I am not a fan of bugs I really enjoyed this article. Not only was I was able to learn about bugs, but I was also able to get a better understanding of how to conduct an inquiry lesson using the 5 E’s. This article also helped me learn how to teach classification which is extremely important in teaching science. Through this inquiry process I was also able to learn how to help students overcome any misconceptions that they might have prior to the lesson. It is crucial for teachers to acknowledge students misconceptions because if they are ignored it is possible that they will never go away. This article was very informative and was a great inquiry lesson that I would consider including in my future classroom.

Reference

Brown, S. (2006). Books & Resources. Retrieved from https://www.nsta.org/publications/news/story.aspx?id=51814