yes / Introduction
Combining Contents with Strategy: A Case for Team-Based Learning.
The term "biosecurity‟ has been used in many different contexts for many different purposes.
The present Handbook uses the concept of "biosecurity‟ (or biological security) to mean
successful minimising of the risks that the biological sciences will be deliberately or
accidentally misused in a way which causes harm for humans, animals, plants or the
environment, including through awareness and understanding of the risks. Biosecurity thus
involves a complex and rapidly evolving set of issues that concern a broad range of
stakeholders: policy makers, legislators, industry, academia, the security community, science
educators, life science students and practitioners, and the general public.1 Addressing those
issues requires continuous cooperation among all concerned parties, that is, biosecurity
awareness is a responsibility incumbent upon all.
The need for fostering awareness of biological security among those engaged in the life
sciences has been widely acknowledged in various fora and, as a result, over the past few
years a number of important initiatives have been carried out, designed to further education
about the broader social, ethical, security and legal implications of cutting-edge
biotechnology.2
The chief objective of the present Handbook is to complement those efforts
by combining teaching material in biological security with an active learning training
approach – Team-Based Learning (TBL) – to empower educators, students and practitioners
as they begin to engage with biological security. The Handbook seeks to supplement the
Guide "Preventing Biological Threats: What You Can Do‟ by providing its users with tips
and insights into how to implement its content in different educational settings. Part 5 of the
Guide introduces the reader to the value of active learning in the context of biosecurity
education and training. Chapter 20 in particular details the implementation of the TBL format
at an interactive biosecurity seminar and the results achieved by the seminar participants.
Consequently, the Handbook aims to:
i. Highlight the strengths of the TBL format in teaching biological security.
ii. Provide practical guidance on how to organise, run, and facilitate TBL biosecurity
seminars.
iii. Offer sample sets of exercises based on the individual chapters of the Guide.
iv. Explain how each set of exercises can be used for achieving specific learning
objectives.
Each chapter of the Handbook introduces the reader to a key concept discussed in the
respective chapter of the Guide and elaborates on the specific learning objectives, which the
TBL exercises are aimed at. Each set comprises Individual and Team Readiness Assurance
Test questions, and Application Exercises in the form of multiple-choice problem-solving
tasks and practical scenarios (see below).
A growing body of evidence suggests that the use of active learning approaches to teaching
and training can significantly enhance the effectiveness of education programmes.3
Part of
the reason behind this trend is the fact that active learning strategies aid the learner in
„unlocking‟ their existing knowledge and linking new subject matter to their established
conceptual framework.4
In other words, through case studies, scenarios, problem-solving
games, role plays, and simulations – to name few examples of active learning methods –
learners are prompted to think critically, reflect and develop understanding of unfamiliar
concepts. Active learning approaches allow fostering a learner-centred environment where
the learner rather than the instructor is at the centre of the activities taking place in the
classroom.5
The Handbook focuses on a specific format of active learning instruction – Team Based
Learning (TBL). This is a special form of collaborative learning which uses a specific
sequence of individual work, group work, and immediate feedback to create a motivational
framework, whereby the focus is shifted from conveying concepts by the instructor to the
application of concepts by student teams.6
TBL is an easy-to-replicate, user-friendly
approach, that can be applied in many different educational settings at various stages of
instruction, and for different purposes. It enables the instructor to cover new material in a
way that engages learners as active participants, allowing them to take ownership of their
own learning, and develop reflection and self-evaluation skills.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:BRADFORD/oai:bradscholars.brad.ac.uk:10454/7822 |
| Date | 01 1900 |
| Creators | Novossiolova, Tatyana |
| Source Sets | Bradford Scholars |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Book, published version paper |
| Rights | © 2016 The Author and the University of Bradford. |
| Relation | http://www.brad.ac.uk/social-sciences/peace-studies/research/publications-and-projects/guide-to-biological-security-issues/ |
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