Students present at Minds@Work

The annual Minds@Work Conference welcomes students of all disciplines to share what they have discovered and achieved through their time at Shippensburg University with the campus community and the general public. This year’s conference was held Tuesday, April 23.

Pollinator Interactions Between Native Flowers and Their Exotic Counterparts on Shippensburg University’s Campus

Christopher Duff, a biology graduate student graduating, presented his research, “Pollinator Interactions Between Native Flowers and Their Exotic Counterparts on Shippensburg University’s Campus”.

“I wanted to investigate whether urban pollinators preferred Pennsylvania native plants over exotic, ornamental plants that you can find at everyday retailers and nurseries. So, I picked four native wildflowers—brown eyed Susan’s, fall phlox, swamp milkweed, and hoary vervain—and paired them up with hybrid or cultivar counterparts,” Duff said, “I then put a plant from each native species in pots (four plants per pot), and a plant from each exotic species in pots (four plants per pot). Then, I placed pairs of native and exotic pots outside of buildings across campus.”

According to Duff, he left the plants outside from June to October 2023, and measured pollinator visitation rates and captured and identified visiting bees. He also measured how much pollen these plants’ flowers produced, as well as measured various morphological traits such as flower surface area.

“Now that I’m wrapping up my data analysis, I’ve found that pollinators have mixed preferences for whether they prefer native or exotic flowers depending on the genus we’re looking at,” Duff said.

Duff enjoyed presenting his research at the conference and discussing the importance of the habitats for these pollinators. “I feel like one of the best ways for my research to make an impact in the world is through events like this. It’s fun to have discussions about the topic. I also enjoy getting to spread awareness around urban pollinator habitats and how simple it can be to help out local bees, butterflies, and even underrated friends like hoverflies,” said Duff.

Unlocking Imagination: Enhancing Middle School Literacy Through Interactive Short Story Instruction

Carleyrose Wagner, a secondary education major graduating this spring, presented her research, “Unlocking Imagination: Enhancing Middle School Literacy Through Interactive Short Story Instruction”.

“My project goes along with a unit I implemented during my student teaching experience during the first half of the spring semester. The unit question that I attempt to answer with students is, ‘How can analyzing the central conflict help the reader better understand the story?’” Wagner said.

Her unit uses a story called “The Bicycle and The Sweet Shop” from Roald Dahl’s autobiography, Boy: Tales of Childhood. Dahl retells an event in his life where he pulls a prank on the grouchy woman that works at the boy’s favorite candy shop.

According to Wagner, she wanted to present her findings at Minds@Work because she enjoyed working on this unit with students and to help give other student teachers ideas on how they can help their students better understand a story.

How can analyzing the central conflict help the reader better understand the story?