Table of Contents Introduction to Biology and Writing Ch. 1 Literary Review Ch. 2 Genre Investigation Ch. 3 Biology Major: An Interview Ch. 4 Proposing a Change Conclusion to Biology and Writing
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Introduction to Biology and Writing Imagine yourself graduating from high school. You have learned all the necessary basic academic skills, from formatting a paper to acing a test. In your mind, you know it all, and college will be a breeze. You walk to the podium in your elegant cap and gown, receive your diploma, and carry on as a proud high school graduate, future college student, and a decided biology major. Suddenly, you wake up from that peaceful dream, and you’re in your 8 A.M. College Introductory Biology course. You look around, sleepy and confused; students are staring at you, and your professor is, too. You aren’t a future college student; you are a college student-a college student who overestimated the “college prep” skills taught in high school. In addition, that 10 page research paper on cell mitosis is due tomorrow, and you haven’t started. The last four years didn’t prepare you for this. Of course, high school wasn’t completely useless. Skills taught in high school are applicable to every college course, even a biology course. However, a 500 word essay from high school English class will not parallel with a ten page biology research paper. This book, written specifically for students majoring in biology, will provide a pathway to successful writing skills that were never taught in high school. From reviewing examples of “genre,” to a personal interview with upperclassman biology major, Ava Jurden, the book’s purpose is to make biology specific writing seem enjoyable and useful, rather than scary and misunderstood. One of the most alien aspects of college is focusing on a specific topic--in this case, biology--and adapting previously learned general skills to that topic. The word “biology” does not sprout thoughts of writing, so it’s easy for students to pass it off as unimportant. Surprisingly, the biology major requires just as much writing as most other majors. Writing can either become a student’s best friend or worst enemy, depending on how familiar it becomes. For this reason, it’s best that biology students welcome writing with open arms. To help students familiarize themselves with writing, each of the five chapters in this book investigates an important idea in the world of biology-specific writing. Chapter one reviews multiple literature sources specific to science-based writing etiquette. Because most literature pieces on scientific writing emphasize the same ideas and skills, it should serve as a sciencebased literary review, as well as helpful guideline. The following chapter discusses those important ideas in the form of “genre investigation.” That may sound strange now, but it’s much simpler than it appears. Through examples and analysis, this chapter takes important writing genres and explains what is necessary to produce them for the future. After reading about “genre investigation,” 10 page research papers should seem much less intimidating. The following three chapters dig deeper on why writing is important for biology majors, but also why it seems so difficult. Chapter three introduces Ava Jurden, a biology student at the University of Denver, who dealt with early writing struggles, but improved by seeking out helpful resources. In the interview, Ava claimed to have many of the same difficulties as other biology students, which introduced an important question: Why does it take so long to feel comfortable writing as a biology major? Writing shouldn’t scare students, which is why chapter
four proposes a new idea that could have professors and students work together to make writing an interesting, and informative topic discussed in class. High school may not have prepared biology students nearly enough for their future in the major, but there is hope. Fear of writing assignments slowly fades as students develop a clear understanding of what is necessary to be a good writer. This book is geared to help you reach that point sooner rather than later.
Chapter 1: Review of Existing Literature Have you ever thought about how many things are written down? A better question is this: what isn’t written down? Generally, the word “biology” does not register thoughts of forming sentences or creating strongly formatted papers. Instead, words like experimentation, research, cells, and DNA seem to be more prevalent. So why should we worry about writing for biology? Topics in biology could not be understood or improved upon if there were no written explanations. In every subject, a piece of written information starts out as a thought, but the human brain is subject to forgetting those thoughts. That is why writing plays a major role in every subject. In the field of biology, explanations, experimentation, and new ideas are all provided through some form of writing, and “the communication of scientific findings is the final critical step in the process of science” (Morgan). For every college major, massive amounts of research and writing will be necessary until the day the student graduates and beyond. As previously mentioned, writing for any subject is meant to provide a means for understanding an idea. For topics like biology, writing can be complicated, making it an exceptionally important skill to learn. The art of writing and the art of biology are different spectrums of education, but they must come together in order to fully explain complex ideas and details. The problem is figuring out ways to combine those spectrums effectively. There are many formats, or “genres” to writing in the field of biology, and each provides a different useful template for new information. Most scientific writing will require loads of research and detailed reporting. Some scientific writing will consist of “four key components: (1) writing a protocol, (2) performing experiments, (3) tabulating and analyzing data, and (4) writing a thesis for publication.” (Balakumar et al. 131) Interestingly, these key components were discussed at a pharmaceutical conference specifically for science professionals. This shows that biology-specific writing never really changes. In fact, these guidelines are similar, if not identical to what biology majors see almost everyday in their lab study. The point is that writing for biology is not miscellaneous. It always has some sort of very general guideline, and they are meant to help us, not terrorize us. The “four components of research-based writing” is one common set of guidelines that students come across. The first component (protocol) is a means of providing structural support for research. It is essentially a guideline within the guidelines: a step-by-step and systematic approach necessary to retrieve a conclusive answer (Balakumar et al. 131). “Performing experiments” is not always necessary in a science-based paper. Papers can be based off topics that involve multiple studies already produced. In that case, using finished experiments as sources to prove the thesis is an acceptable alternative. However, don’t expect to never conduct experiments. Experimentation is a huge part of biology, and there are rules for recording the data collected. It results in a form of biology writing referred to as a “lab report,” which will be further explained in chapter 2 (Knisely). Students find, as they read through their biology textbook, that there are figures, tables, and charts everywhere. “Tabulating,” or creating a visual to display research, is another important component mentioned above. It’s purpose is to display large amounts of research
quickly, clearly, and effectively for readers. When writing in biology, tabulating can be extremely useful to students, as well as their audience. Results of research are organized neatly and understood immediately, when students implement this format. Numerical data, reactions, comparisons, and many other types of information are best conveyed in tabulations simply because it would be difficult to explain effectively with words (Knisely). It’s aesthetically pleasing for the reader as well to look to charts for information. “Writing a thesis,” the fourth key component, essentially means writing your paper. The paper should involve all important findings from the research on both sides of the argument, thus providing a strong conclusion for the topic written. This component is simple due to its familiarity, and used for other forms of writing in multiple subjects, such as art or history. The only difference, is a biology major’s thesis involves a little bit more science--science that may be hard to conceptualize. Building a thesis for biology based writing is always hard for new students (Morgan). They are not used to creating new ideas through personal writing, but it will get easier as their critical thinking skills improve over the next four years. Unfortunately, many teachers fail to realize “critical thinking” is just a pair of words students often pretend to understand. Here is an informative definition: “critical thinking is analytical, judgmental, and involves evaluating choices before making a decision” (Balakumar et al. 131). That means that critical thinking is important for narrowing your ideas down to a more specific topic. Because of critical thinking, there are works introducing thousands of topics in the field of biology, as well as every other subject. Ultimately, “Writing is the primary means through which we communicate our work” (DeLyser). Unfortunately, young college students are still writing mediocre papers based on little research and unreliable sources. We could get away with being lazy writers in high school, but that is far from true in college. Classes of all majors will require students to undergo intense research and critical thinking. Thankfully, “writing has long been perceived as a way to improve critical thinking,” so the more effort you put into writing, the better your critical thinking skills will get (Quitadamo). Writing can stretch students’ minds to understand topics in biology, and to introduce new and innovative topic ideas through critical thinking. A relevant topic in the field of biology right now is “genetic modification.” There are numerous written reports on plant, animal, and even human genetic modification to some extent. More recently, plant modification has stirred up some strong feelings among young environmentalist minds. Despite the controversy in plant modification, this is a great subject to further explain the benefits and importance of scientific writing. Plant modification has been among the most controversial topics in science for the past decade. Unbeknownst to a large portion of the population, almost every food we eat has been genetically modified to some extent (Rauch). So, what would be a good research topic within the realm of plant genetic modification? Again, the primary objective is always to produce some new sort of knowledge, but “the first and foremost difficult task in research is to identify a topic or investigation” (Balakumar et al. 131). One of the best ways to narrow down an idea in this field of study is simply to create a thought-provoking question, and provide an excellent answer. A favorite question has been asked and reported on in multiple ways: Is plant modification good or bad? There are articles that argue both ways (Patel). It is also an incredibly broad question, but also allows for categorization, which is another important research component. “A research question is broken down into more precise objectives,” so it will most likely lead to a more precise understanding of the question as a whole (Balakumar et al. 132).
Usually after reviewing loads of research, a thesis is established, and authors’ writing works only to prove that thesis. It’s quite similar to writing for other majors; all papers have some sort of thesis, and those theses must be supported. So, let’s say the question a student chooses to report on happens to involve the components of human health, and plant modification. There are a number of subtopics that this student can choose to involve in his writing--both qualitative and quantitative. A subtopic that could prove beneficial is that of metabolic engineering of plants. Metabolic engineering is a type of genetic modification that allows plant varieties to have increased amounts of essential vitamins and minerals, which would be beneficial to human health (Davies). Another subtopic, on the opposite side, is widespread crop failure: something that occurs in genetic modification due to plants of that specific variety having the same exact DNA (Hilder). This is a negative component to genetic modification and human health because there would be no real benefit in any situation it presents itself in. These two subtopics introduce yet another point about scientific research: there are always possible sides to the same argument, just like there are sometimes multiple outcomes to the same question. Is genetic modification good, bad, or neither? With research and writing, there is almost always some sort of counterargument for the question an author presents. A counterargument is “a claim that contradicts or is in tension with your thesis or with part of your argument” (Herron). Unless the research being conducted is a single experiment, a counterargument should be included. Counterarguments are a helpful strategy for any argument-based writing assignment. If a student only argues for the benefits of genetically modified plants, and someone familiar with negative aspects of genetic modification reads their research, they often feel that the author is close-minded. By counter-arguing and later providing a rebuttal, the paper will provide two sides of the argument, and present which side has the stronger standing. It’s a mature method that proves the thesis. Just make sure that there is more informative knowledge on one side of the argument, because if there wasn’t, the question being proven would remain inconclusive. Writing for biology doesn’t sound as bad anymore, does it? Some forms of writing may still seem complicated, but it is nice to know that some forms of biology-specific writing have similar characteristics to writing in alternative subjects. Counterarguments, theses, and conducting research are all common factors, but there’s a lot to learn beyond that. Lab reports, tabulations, syllabi, and even resumes are just a few genres students run into, and they aren’t going anywhere soon.
Chapter 2: Importance of Genre As biology majors, we know that there are many learning objectives we must understand to succeed. Every one of those objectives is communicated through some form of writing. As mentioned in my last chapter, providing new and helpful written communication is an author’s ultimate goal. The difficult part is understanding how that is done. Science is not something easily understood if you can’t comprehend or find meaning to what you’re reading. This goal--to provide clear, comprehensive, and helpful communication, we do through something called
“genre.” When the word “genre” is tossed around, many people’s minds go to art or music, but there are actually multiple genres in every subject--science included. The literal definition for a genre is not exactly the same as what is discussed, but its idea still applies. Kathy Kieva says it best. Scientific discourse has its own rhetorical genres, even though we may not recognize them as such. Rather than fitting into a particular category in a literary way, scientific discourse has to fit a particular model or style of writing, each of which is intended to accomplish a particular persuasive purpose (Kieva). There are multiple genres for the sciences, and this chapter will go through five genres that are important in scientific writing. This is a narrow selection considering there are so many different genres used in science, but in undergraduate school, some are more common than others. This chapter of the book tends to focus strongly on the pieces of information relevant to biology majors’ writing, rather than the entire subject of biology. In other words, these five genres will definitely be part of collegiate life, and some even exist in a professional environment. They are all rhetorical, but what does that really mean? Teachers and professors say “rhetorical” everyday and students nod their head in response when really, they have no idea what the teacher is saying. Even though students aren’t learning a different language, sometimes it’s relieving to see definitions of words heard a million times but never really learned--including “critical thinking,” so here is the written definition of rhetoric: rhe·tor·i·cal: adjective: of, relating to, or concerned with the art of speaking or writing formally and effectively especially as a way to persuade or influence people (Merriam-Webster). Does the phrase, “That was a rhetorical question,” sound familiar? People understand that when someone says this, they don’t need to provide an answer to the question just asked. Rhetorical questions usually already provide the answer in the way it is spoken. Similarly, rhetorical genres of science are meant to do that as well: provide the answer to something by answering their own question, but through effective writing. This is why genres are such an important part of all majors. In order to be recognized as a topic, there needs to be some forms of rhetorical communication (genres) to provide answers in the right way for the reader. One of the most popular genres for students is the syllabus. It’s also one of the most important and beneficial. Syllabi are considered an “in-class genre” because they are given by the professor to the student as a guideline for the course. At the University of Denver, an entire week is dedicated to the syllabus so teachers can review it with their students in detail. As stated earlier, genres provide answers, and a syllabus is essentially a page full of answers geared towards a student’s success. Another wonderful characteristic is that it clearly displays every other genre the student will see in the class. It’s the genre that establishes the genres, so to speak. Each professor usually has their own unique syllabus format, whether it be bullet pointed, blocked by grade, etc, to outline the course effectively. A word of advice: don’t lose it. A syllabus contains the professor’s contact information, due dates, extra credit opportunities, and sometimes a brief summary of what the professor looks for in students. Also, professors hate questions like “When is the test?” They kindly remind students that dates are clearly written out on that handydandy syllabus that their roommate may have accidentally thrown out. It’s the most helpful piece
of paper students receive from their professor, so keeping track of it is a great way to pave the road to college success. A “rubric” is another popular in-class genre that goes hand in hand with the syllabus. The syllabus names everything required to complete the course, while rubrics give further explanation for certain assignments mentioned in the syllabus. The professor provides rubrics to communicate expectations for assignments in the class, as well as their grading scale. It outlines the quality of work being sought by the professor, as well as lists criteria to help achieve that high quality work the professor wants. Assignments that benefit from rubrics range from research papers to lab reports, which leads into the next important genre. Everyone has some familiarity with a research paper, but as a biology major, students shouldn’t be surprised when those research papers start getting a whole lot longer, and much more specific. Research papers are one of the more science-driven genres mentioned in this chapter, and are written by professionals as well as students. Reading and writing research papers is great for authors to present new information on paper, and for readers to absorb this information. That being said, the greatest and most difficult part of writing a research paper is coming up with a new and unique question, and then using research to answer it. The direction research paper takes is up to its writer. A research paper is similar to a research article, in that it is “an actual report of new work intended to introduce new knowledge into a specific field” (Kieva). That is a terrifying thought for most incoming students. Research articles, in some cases, can be 50 pages long. Thankfully, research papers are usually around the 10 to 20 page range, depending on the course. Still, that thought may make many recent high school graduates want to hide behind their desk chairs in terror. When conducting a recent interview, Ava, a biology major at the University of Denver, stated “research papers were so scary when I was a freshman just because they were bigger than in high school. I actually had to try.” Don’t stress: 20 page research papers won’t be required from you in introductory biology courses, but they will happen in your coming years of college. When that dreaded 20 page paper does arrive, you might find that, with quality research, 20 pages may feel necessary to appropriately and specifically support the thesis. To pack a new idea with new knowledge into less than 20 pages of information may seem easy now, but you might find that page number just right when junior and senior year roll around. For a scientific research paper, the most influential audience member is the professor, at least while in college. To make the writing appealing to him or her, go through every important detail of your research and apply it in an effective manner to prove your thesis. Don’t add in useless information that the audience should already be familiar with, and that goes for all types of writing. Let’s say that Joe, a freshman biology major, writes a research paper on a new drug that wipes out certain flu viruses. Joe decides to write two pages solely on the history of the flu virus. As interesting as that may be, it’s not necessary for the paper. Joe should instead focus on describing the specific strands of flu that comply to this new drug and how the drug works. Yes, scientific research articles are detail specific, informative, and attention-grabbing, but make sure to evaluate what information is truly necessary to prove your thesis. If you’re still having trouble with writing a research paper, you can think about it in simpler terms. Research papers are quite similar to a sixth grader’s science fair paper--maybe not in quality, but in construction. Scientific research papers have all the same parts that science fair paper has: title, introduction (scientifically referred to as an abstract), supporting paragraphs, conclusion, etc. If a sixth grader can do it, college students sure can, too. Something a sixth grader probably hasn’t seen, however, is our fourth genre: a fully constructed lab report.
A lab report is a student-produced genre particularly unique and important for science majors, just like historical research is important to history majors. According to D. Mowshowitz, a biochemistry professor at Columbia College, “Scientific work of any sort is useless unless its results can be communicated to others” which is why these reports are so important (1). Almost all information scientists have gathered was attained through some sort of experimentation. There are millions of ways to conduct an experiment. Naturalistic observation, correlational research, and statistical evidence, are just a few forms, but the written proof of the experiment is always the same, and referred to as the lab report. Whether it was conducted in a lab or not, the experiment is always recorded in this special format. Thankfully, a universal lab report guideline has been enforced over the years, which makes it easier for scientists, students, and professors to know where to find the information they are looking for in the report. Similar to formatting a research paper, lab reports are divided into specific parts. Five main parts are necessary to write a successful report: 1) and introduction, 2) methods and materials, 3) results, 4) discussions and conclusions, and 5) references. Within each of those five parts is yet another guideline that should be followed to maintain authenticity of the report. The guidelines for writing these reports can be found almost anywhere online, so there is no need to go into detail about all five parts. In fact, Mowshowitz and D. Blackman created an excellent review of a lab report that is very useful as a basic template (1). Two of the five parts mentioned above are explained in the following paragraphs, but are based off of Mowshowitz’s and Blackman’s article. Introductions, also known as abstracts, “provide a statement of the problem to be investigated, why the work was carried out, history and theoretical background of the problem, a brief statement of the general method of approach to the problem, and expected results” (Mowshowitz). This sounds like a mouthful, but by following this introduction outline, the lab report will be in its most informative state. However, that does not mean the introduction has to be complicated. North Carolina University’s example lab report provided an excellent and simple abstract in a study called “Determination of Specific Nutrients in Various Foods.” It reads: Humans need to consume food compounds such as carbohydrates, proteins, fats, and vitamins to meet their energy requirements. In this lab, reagents were used as indicators to test common food substances for the presence of specific food substances for the presence of specific nutrients. Meat and eggs tested positively for protein, while fruit, cereal, bread and potatoes tested positively for starch and glucose. Meats and oils had a high fat content, and potato chips and pizza had a high sodium content. None of the foods tested in this lab would individually be able to meet all of our body’s requirements for essential food compounds. Therefore, it is important to eat a variety of foods that provide just the right balance between carbohydrates, proteins and fat (“Determination Nutrition”). This is the first half of their abstract, and it is incredibly simple. We clearly understand the problem being investigated and its general approach. The second half of the abstract, which is left out, continued to follow the introduction outline exactly as stated above, and in plain English. Biology majors have lab reports throughout their time as students, so writing them eventually becomes second nature. Another part of the lab report worth mentioning is the “results” section. This is what some science teachers would consider the “meat and potatoes” of the report. Qualitative and
quantitative research become your best friends in experiments, and this is your chance to put it all down for everyone to see, but there are multiple ways to show your results, the most effective way being tabulations. In many scientific genres, readers refer to figures, tables, and charts to explain what they are reading. This is common in lab reports, and useful as well. It is important to include graphs and tables with data to visibly provide information that, when written, would be difficult to comprehend. Tabulations are a sub-genre of sorts in the field of biology. By providing a detailed graph, not only are the results more clear to the reader, but they are more clear to the experimenter. Can students imagine trying to explain pH levels of water around fracking sites in Colorado vs. non-fracking sites without graphs or tables? It is doable, but not pleasing to read, considering that the study involves complicated numerical data. that By displaying all of your information in a table, the results are effectively laid out and automatically easier to comprehend for readers and the author. It is also important to know that lab reports are often written by hand in a notebook before final draft. In experiments, it is perfectly acceptable and actually preferred that data be recorded this way. Those handwritten results can be transcribed into a document later for convenience, but when conducting laboratory work, written notebook data is most effective because it shows authenticity of the experiment (Mowshowitz). Another pro to notebook recording is that sometimes the results are physical, and may be more accurate if drawn on paper rather than described. Picture taking is also an effective way to relay results, and can be put into a lab report as well. These lab reports could very well be students’ most frequently produced genre, so by following the guidelines, this genre should be less frustrating. The last genre in this chapter is most beneficial to students entering the professional world, whether they be biology majors, or philosophy majors. All soon-to-be college graduates have “apply for a job” on their to-do list--a job that will require their skill, hard work and something else: their resume. Resumes are a type of professional genre, meaning they are given to a possible future employer, rather than a professor. Most students became familiar with this genre when applying for colleges. One of the requirements on college applications is to submit a resume. At that first stage, the resume was most likely filled up with high school achievements and maybe a job or two. Hopefully, by the time college graduation comes around, new awards, clubs, and internships have replaced all high school achievements, to ultimately build an impressive resume. Resumes, like lab reports, have a format so future readers (employers) have an easy time browsing through them. This genre is meant to organize important pieces of a person’s life right up to the point it is handed off to an employer, along with the job application. There are multiple categories of a resume, and each one contains “points” that should make a person stand out in a positive way. This format is effective because it displays the diversity of a person’s activities and achievements, as well as emphasizing dedication to certain areas of interest. They are necessary to have when searching for a job, especially one that may become a standing profession. They should include the job seeker’s name and contact information at the top, and the list of activities should follow. When working on building a resume, make sure that it has just enough information provided, but not too much. For example, would employers prefer to know that a student won a baking contest their senior year, or that they were class president their senior year? Sometimes it is necessary to sacrifice the little stuff when a resume is bordering on 4 pages long. As a college student or even a recent college graduate, a resume longer than two pages is probably too long. One page is actually considered enough at this point. As your experience
grows, resumes can as well, but right now, employers want to see the most impressive pieces, not every little piece. There are many more rhetorical genres used by biology majors, as well as professionals, but these five will help you a lot these next four years. The genre most specific to science based courses mentioned was the lab report, but the other four genres rank just as important in the sciences. Keep in mind that scientific rhetorical genres are pretty limitless; journal articles, power points, and even homework responses are all considered genres. If this chapter were to define every single one, it would be longer than that dreaded 20 page research paper. The syllabus, rubric, research paper, lab report, and resume, were specifically chosen to show both the diversity of rhetorical genres, as well as their similarities and widespread use among majors. At least one in-class, student produced, and professional genre was mentioned, and even though they have different categories, they are all comparable. Genres all have some sort of simple guideline, and they all work provide accurate written communication in the most effective way possible. This is why writing in biology, and in every other subject, is a very important and useful skill.
Ch. 3: Writing in Biology: An Interview I want you to imagine that you are trying to write a report for a freshmen biology elective. After reading the last two chapters of this book, you feel better about writing this report, but you’re still having difficulty. Chapters one and two mentioned that biology-specific writing would become easier, but for you, it’s not. You know your topic, yet all you have written in your document is your name and the day’s date. Those chapters were meant to help students just like you with successful writing, so why are you still struggling? As said in the last chapter, writing in biology is a very important and effective skill to learn, and there are many rhetorical genres necessary in biology, but those genres are not always pieces of cake. Surprisingly, many students have difficulty putting their ideas on paper. One such student, Ava Jurden, a biology major at the University of Denver, struggled with this issue. I conducted an interview with the undergraduate, and she was more than happy to report on her first years of biology-specific writing, and the stress it brought her, along with the knowledge she gained from it. The first question I asked was very simple: What types of writing do you do most often for Biology? As previously stated in the genre chapter, there are multiple types of writing necessary, and Ava named the two student-produced genres mentioned in chapter two: “Usually I just have lab reports and research papers.” I asked her after if she had difficulty with them at first. She said yes, immediately, but then mentioned that it will get easier: “It’s a matter of experience. Lab reports seem to take me a lot more time when I was a freshman than they do now, and it’s because you never stop writing them up. You have labs for every science class, so you start to understand them more.”
This is music to any struggling biology student’s ears. Labs, like other genres, may seem alien now, but a student’s skill grows with experience. In addition, the creation of a proper lab report will most likely be introduced by a professor in a beginning course, to the relief of students. However, different professors may value different things in students’ work. Ava said that, “There is a set guideline to writing [a lab report] but sometimes different professors want more or less of something. It’s not hard to adapt to.” Most likely, the professors adaptations will be slight and not intimidating, but if a student understands what a professor specifically wants, that makes the process of writing a lot easier. Another thing Ava mentioned is that research papers were a particular struggle in her early years. Ava expressed that researching took so much time, and “by the time I got all of the research, I had no idea how to make it into a paper.” She said it with a laugh, but then went on to say, “but without the research, you can guarantee there’s no paper.” Research will be hard: it matters on topic, and there are sources found in a number of different areas that you must go out and find in order to have enough information. Take that information, narrow it down to what is most important, and use it to your benefit. Experiments and journal articles were Ava’s favorite sources to use for her writing. Another annoyance of gathering research is sifting through it. “A lot of the sources that are helpful are 100 pages long or just really dense, and it can get pretty ridiculous.” This is something that all students encounter. With biology-specific writing, research can be tedious because there is an abundance of information, but often the important pieces are buried in these larger documents. Students may also find information they aren’t familiar with, which could change the course of a paper. Ava emphasized the importance of understanding your research for this reason. Professors most likely have more of a clue on what students writing about than they do, so it’s important to keep facts straight. This information seems helpful, but what if a student is new to writing a research paper? More importantly, how can a student get better at writing for their major as a whole? Professors don’t always realize that some students have never produced this kind of writing before. What many students fail to realize is that there are resources out there to help. College is very good at providing resources that not only help students write papers, but explain to students how to write papers. The University of Denver provides a resource known as the “DU Writing Center” consisting of students and T.A.s that are hired specifically to help students with their writing skills. Ava was very insistent on the help she received from the DU Writing Center. “I used to go to the writing center all the time as a freshman when I had pretty much no idea what I was doing. It helped a ton early on, and now I get really good grades on written work.” I asked a follow up question: “Do you ever go anymore?” To this, Ava claimed that the writing center is the best when you don’t have a clue what you’re doing. She then referred to another great resource found in most college libraries: a Research Center. “Sometimes I’ll go to the DU’s Research Center. It’s in the library and it is amazing how much faster and easier [research] is with help. There are a lot of really useful books and documents.” She also wanted to point out that documents can be mailed to the library if the one you need is unavailable. That being said, writing and research help is never far away. Professors are a very good resource to help with writing as well. If students are having difficulty achieving good grades on papers in a class, going and talking to their professor may clear things up. Professors are not trying to fail students, just encouraging them to work hard on
the task at hand. When Ava was a freshman, she did poorly on a research paper written in her introductory biology course. She didn’t understand why, so she chose to talk to her professor. “He told me I need to be more clear on sourcing and my information needs to be more organized, then he showed me how to do it. He even pointed out the parts that were unclear and where I could use sources. It was almost more helpful than the writing center.” In addition, professors will be incredibly helpful for writing in their class, specifically, and will probably take note that you asked for advice. Considering the professor is teaching a specific course, they may even know better sources than the research center. Ava advised meeting with your professor at least once, for all these reasons. By visiting with your professors, they can understand you more as a writer, help you succeed in their class, and may even take a mental note of your determination to do well in class. The interview with Ava emphasized the difficult process every student will take to become a better writer. There is a lot to learn, and it’s hard to understand new ways to do things, but that doesn’t mean it will always be hard. Athletes don’t just suddenly become incredible at their sport; they have to practice. This idea applies to writing, too. Ava knows from experience: “I was a C+ writer, and now I get A’s on my papers and lab reports. You just have to go with it and learn from the old stuff. I don’t always like to write papers or lab reports, but when I have to, it’s not so bad anymore.” Don’t fret about having a difficult start with writing. Just keep practicing and learning from your mistakes. College is set up to help you succeed. By using your resources, talking to professors, and putting in effort, writing will no longer seem like a scary subject.
Ch. 4 How to Help Biology Major’s Writing: Proposing a Change It seems like throughout every chapter, we get further into the explanation of writing in the field of biology, but there is always a similar problem: biology students may not fully understand how to write in their majors without some help. Like Ava, many other students feel that they have no idea what they’re doing when it comes to biology-specific writing. This book is intended to help with that problem, but there are other books and articles similar to this one that have been around for years. This issue remains very present in students’ lives, which is why a change to common science curriculum might be necessary. It may require some extra effort from academic organizers and professors alike, but overall, the main goal is to help the student, which should always be top priority among professors of college courses. The problem can be fixed. Professors know how to write in biology, so why shouldn’t the students? If the professors realized the lack of knowledge many students have on the subject of biology-specific writing, they’d probably devote some time to teaching about it. However, that would require some changes to their course curriculum, and that might take a little bit of time from the professor as well as the whole biology department. It’s not always easy to implement a new style to an old course, but it may be just the right solution to this lasting issue. Because students still struggle with writing for their major, a portion of every introductory science course should be devoted to just writing. Professors can’t expect students to provide effective written work for the class if they only focus on the science and conceptual parts of biology. Incoming freshman need guidance from their science professors on writing as well, if it’s going to be asked of them. The problem can be easily solved with a few tweaks to those introductory biology courses, such as in-class writing, workshops on different rhetorical genres, and even just simple word-of-mouth explanation. Although this idea may sound incredibly simple, there are some opposing views. Professors in biology have a jam-packed curriculum. The thought of including a “writing”
section to that curriculum does not sound appealing to them at all. There are enough topics to learn in biology as it is, and to add writing among them could make the class more difficult for the professor to teach, as well as more difficult for the student to learn. Unfortunately, keeping the curriculum the way it is won’t solve any problems for struggling students. The professor’s job is to help the student learn, so teaching them skills necessary to succeed should be on the top of their job description. A great way for the professor to do this, is to take that jam-packed curriculum, and help students understand it through writing. Assigning in-class writings and giving a lecture or two on the importance of lab reports and research papers is not impossible. The professor, as well as the student, may have a little more work, but the pros definitely outweigh the cons. Another argument is that there are already “writing” classes the student is enrolled in. Students should be able to take the skills taught in that class and apply it to other courses. The only problem with this idea is that a writing course doesn’t teach you about lab reports, or scientific research. They teach you the basics of writing through many different subjects, like history or English literature, but they never spend enough time on a single subject. That’s not to say that writing class isn’t helpful. It’s to say that a writing class doesn’t emphasize biologyspecific writing. Introductory biology courses should fill in those gaps that weren’t taught in writing class. It’s time for this change to take place in colleges everywhere, and it can definitely be done. If it is implemented, biology students will finally have a fuller understanding of what is required from them through their writing skills. Professors will also appreciate this new change, despite the extra time they may have to put in. Contrary to students’ beliefs, professors don’t enjoy seeing their students perform badly in class. By devoting time in class to this idea, professors may notice that their students show signs of improvement. They’ll come to find that little bit of explanation can go a long way, and their students can quickly become successful writers. Not only will your current professors notice these things, but future professors will appreciate the writing skills attained through this new and improved introductory biology class. General audiences may also benefit from students’ skilled writing. Eventually the skills attained in writing will be taken into the professional world, and by getting a head start as a freshman in college, your writing skills are sure to be even more impressive in the upcoming years. Audiences will be more educated on complicated topics being discussed because of your clear explanations, which could lead them to pass it on to other people interested. This introductory class could be what sets students on their path to publishing professional works in a journal, or even writing a book. That being said, there is something biology majors need to understand. Students are their own best/worst nightmare in school. It is up to them to be the best they can be, and take advantage of the knowledge provided to them. This curriculum change can be implemented, but it is up to the student to use it wisely. Excellent writing earns better grades, which makes the job application process easier, as well as acceptance to graduate programs, if that is something they’re working towards. Also, if students use their knowledge to the best of their abilities in undergraduate school, working on rhetorical genres in graduate school and beyond will be much easier. In reality, writing a book or publishing a science article in a journal can’t be attributed to just one simple curriculum change in an introductory class. It might help lead students in that direction, but the ultimate goal of the proposed solution--to devote class time to teach writing in
introductory biology courses--is to allow students the opportunity to get a head start in effective writing. The common problem of having little to no biology-specific writing knowledge should become a thing of the past. Students can be better writers more quickly, and professors will appreciate the improved writing received from their students, but this can only happen if the idea is implemented. At this point, it is up to students to request this curriculum change. If you want your biology professors to help you with writing, talk to them about it. They are required to listen to your concerns in their job description, so take advantage of it. Some may turn you down immediately, saying they don’t have the time. Others may agree that it’s a good idea, but decide not to do anything about it. Remember that there is power in numbers. If enough students show interest in a curriculum change, it might be considered by professors, as well as administration. With that in mind, this proposition is the most effective way to help students with the skills of biology-specific writing sooner, rather than later. Students shouldn’t have to struggle as much as they do with this topic, and this could be their answer.
Conclusion A lot was discussed in the last four chapters. From genres, to implementing a change in biology curriculum, there is more than a lot to be said on the topic of biology-specific writing. This book might seem long, but it only scratched the surface of what is to come in the biology major. It does provide some insight, but the only way to truly succeed at writing in biology, is to write. The rhetorical genres in chapter two are meant to communicate questions and ideas, but the effectiveness of the communication is up to the student. College level classes require time and determination, no matter what the subject. Students may have to go to certain lengths if they can’t effectively write. Ava Jurden was once a prime example of the stereotypical struggling biology major. As a freshman, she dealt with the many difficulties of research and writing, but she eventually chose to do something about it. She sought help from her university’s research center, its writing center, and her professors so she could better her skills. Because of that determination, she now achieves excellent grades on her writing in biology. However, even with help, writing never necessarily becomes easy--some genres require weeks of work and research--but by working to understand the writing processes and skills like Ava did, students can become more concise and effective in their communication. That being said, biology has many specific writing skills that need to be communicated effectively in order to succeed in the major. Whether biology students like it or not, research papers and lab reports will be a big part of their lives these next four years. Depending on students’ professional paths, these genres may really never go away. Thankfully, many writing skills are universally agreed upon by professors and science professionals, and are not likely to change. For example, in chapter one, literary examples are used to explain certain science-based writing guidelines, and multiple sources provided the same information. It’s relieving to know that the rules aren’t going to change any time soon, but that only makes understanding them more important. The earlier these rules are in students’ brains, the better. If students can write a good research paper, or produce a solid lab report by the end of their first biology course, they can expect to be more comfortable with future science courses. This can be done solely through personal determination, or through this book’s proposed solution. As mentioned in chapter four, biology-specific writing taught by the biology professor would be immensely helpful for students who don’t know where to start. Some introductory science courses tend to involve little to no writing preparation whatsoever, which is why students should push for this change in curriculum. From a text book to a lab report, biology-specific writing will play a major role in your biology classes, but don’t forget to learn about the basic science of biology; it is just as important. Understanding subject matter is done through multiple rhetorical genres that are not
student produced. Reading, and listening to your professor are equal in value to writing in biology. Without one, you really can’t have the other. As expressed in chapter one, writing and biology are very individual and important spectrums of education, but they need one another to achieve effective scientific communication. Every subject, from religion to economics, needs effective communication. There is at least one piece of writing on every notable subject worth understanding. It’s pretty amazing to think about how many books are actually out there, and full of information that many people have never even heard of. In that case, what is there to be said about biology? It’s all written down too, and new discoveries are being made everyday. It’s possible you may be the one with a new discovery, someday. If that day comes, your responsibility is to report your findings and show them to the world. However, you’re still only a college student. A biological discovery may be in your distant future, but right now, understanding the basics is more than enough. At one point, twopage high school essays were all you knew, but not anymore. That genre disappears and new biology-specific genres fill it’s place. As new college students, it is perfectly normal to struggle, especially with writing. It’s just like learning to play a sport; a person can’t just immediately become an NBA basketball star if they’ve only played the game once. They must get familiar with the sport, devote time to practicing, and consult their coach before they expect to get any better. In writing, students can get familiar by knowing what skills will be required of them, practice through writing and class discussion, and work with their teachers to understand what to improve on. Before students realize, writing will seem routine, and cause much less frustration than it did in the past. In multiple sources, authors confirmed the same idea: “Writing is the primary means through which we communicate our work.” (DeLyser) Once students understand how it is done, they are well on their way to succeeding in the biology major.
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Writing in Biology Page Kemna Thanks for reading!