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"Cases are stories with a message. They are not simply narratives for entertainment. They are stories to educate" (Herreid, 1997, p. 92). By this definition, a case study is two things: a story and a strategy to drive learning. Although the story typically comes from a narrative purposefully written for the classroom, such as the case studies in the National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science collection, other types of stories could be used, including newspaper articles, news broadcasts, oral stories, songs and poems, and online videos. Given that a large proportion of current students report enjoying learning via digital media, educators must embrace the many sources of science stories available online. A video case study that segments a video using questions to cue student attention and encourage critical thinking would be an effective learning strategy. Creating a case study in this manner is quicker and easier than writing a case study from scratch because it capitalizes on an instructor's existing skills of fostering inquiry in students rather than asking them to engage in the novel skill of storytelling. Once an instructor becomes familiar with the format, he or she will be able to transform a short online video (less than 10 minutes) into an approximately 60-minute, student-centered activity. In 2014 article, "A Picture Worth a Thousand Words? Making a Case for Video Case Studies" (see EJ1041415), author Aditi Pai advocated for the inclusion of videos in the classroom when doing case-based instruction. The article provided strategies for doing so, along with online sources and suggestions for how to select the best ones for the classroom. The present article picks up where Pai's article left off, focusing on the creation of effective questions that supplement a video and, in so doing, describing how to create a video case study.

Phylogenetic trees are used throughout biology to represent evolutionary relationships and communicate ideas about evolutionary processes. Dedicated instruction in how to read and interpret phylogenetic trees (i.e., tree thinking) is necessary for students to be able to access this information. There are many cognitive barriers to mastering tree-thinking skills, and for some students, such as students who are blind or low-vision, there are physical barriers. We used a Universal Design for Learning (UDL) approach to increase the accessibility of the Great Clade Race, an effective activity for teaching tree-thinking skills. Here we provide an example of how applying a UDL approach reduced not only known barriers, but also barriers that were undetected until they were removed, providing benefits to all students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many introductory biology laboratories include a session devoted to plant anatomy. Students often view these laboratory sessions as tedious, laborious, and requiring little more than memorization of slides. Thus, students do not sufficiently learn the fundamentals of plant anatomy, nor do they develop an appreciation of histological techniques and comparative approaches that can be used in biology. I propose the use of plant anatomy laboratory exercises in which students not only view prepared slides, but they also prepare their own slides. In the laboratory exercise I will describe, students use histological techniques for the staining of biological tissues to identify slides containing unknown plants. Through this approach, students not only make a more detailed study of plant anatomy, but they also learn fundamentals of histological techniques, concepts related to cell wall biochemistry, and how to conduct comparative analyses. It has been my experience that students develop a greater understanding of plant anatomy and key anatomical concepts through the use of this approach.

In most species, all fruits produced by a plant have uniform morphological and ecological characteristics that reflect a balance among conflicting fruit characteristics, such as seed number vs. seed size, and optimization of complementary characteristics such as seed size and seedling survival. Numerous species in the Asteraceae have evolved achene heteromorphism in which different ray and disc florets within the same capitulum produce morphologically and ecologically dissimilar achenes. One achene class is typically larger, have a thicker pericarp, lack dispersal structures, and require specific conditions to germinate. The alternative achene class tends to be lighter, have dispersal structures such as a pappus, and do not require specific stimulus to break dormancy. Ecological and population genetic studies have shown that achene heteromorphism is a bet-hedging strategy whereby plants offset the contrasting spatial and temporal risks of seed dispersal by partitioning reproductive output between two ecologically and genetically different seed pools. What is not known about achene heteromorphism is how development differs between floral meristems to produce morphologically distinct achenes. Furthermore, it is not known whether plants can adjust the proportions of distantly and locally dispersed achenes that are produced in response to different environmental conditions. Anatomical and developmental studies indicate that allometric differences produce dissimilar achene types, and that some species are able to alter the proportions of achene types produced.