Overview:

This lab explores the tonicity of different solutions to potatoes. Students must design their own

experiment to test unknown solutions. This modeling exercise is focused on the passive transport

of water, osmosis, into and out of different cell types. Water moves down a concentration

gradient- from a high volume of water to a low volume of water. It also will cover homeostasis

and equilibrium. This lab is being taught to introduce students to designing their own

experiments, and to see real life examples of material they have already learned. Students will be

assessed both formally and informally throughout the unit.

Student background, culture, and context:

There is about 40% of students in this class on free and reduced lunch. The class is 32%

Caucasian, 32% African American, 29% Hispanic, and 7% other. The class is made up of 20

males, and 11 females. There are two students who are repeat biology students, so they are 10th

grade students. Everyone else is in 9th grade, and this is their first time in biology. 90% of these

students were in gwinnett county for middle school, so they have had a miniature course with

biology topics in 7th grade. In middle school, these students were allowed to retake every test,

quiz, and turn in any assignment with no time constraints. As they transition to high school, they

are not allow this luxury. This is harmful for a lot of these students because they have been

conditioned to “retake” everything, and when we do not allow it their grades suffer. Research has

shown that there is already a negative effect on math and science when students transition from

middle to high school, and this policy is only making that divide worsen (Rice, 1997 page 1).

These students have to improve their study skills, so they can succeed in biology the first time.

At parkview, at the beginning of the school year there is a night for parents to come meet their

child’s teachers. Parents of 6 students in this class showed up to meet me. There is a direct
correlation with parental involvement and academic achievement (Deka, 2016 pg 58). I want to

get my parents more involved in the class, so I try to send out a weekly email summarizing what

we are doing in class.

Rationale:

This lesson was developed for this group of students because they are more than capable of

designing their own lab experiments. I want to push the limits, and teach my students a little bit

more than just what the standards say they must learn. This group strives to do their best

academically, and I want to support that. This lab will provide a deeper understanding of tonicity

and transport. I do not want my students to memorize material, but have an understanding for

what they are learning. Research has shown that when provided with materials, students should

be able to design their own experiment (Meijerman, 2016). I will give the students material and

an end point, and I want to see them get there on their own. This is an inquiry based skill that the

students must be exposed to to promote deeper understanding. Christopher Longo found that

when students must design their own experiment, they have a deeper understanding of the

material versus when they are given a step by step procedure (Longo 2011). The students will be

able to understand why soaking something will make it expand, or understand why they are

bloating when they drink a lot of water. This lesson is apart of the Gwinnett County AKS, and

they must learn it in order to succeed on their end of course tests. Our next unit is cell energy, so

this will explain to students how molecules get in and out of the cell.

Central Focus:

1. Which solution is most hypotonic to the potato cells?

2. How does this show the movement of water across potato cells?
Learning Objectives:

• Students will design their own experimental plan.

• Students will identify which solutions are hypotonic to the potato cells.

• Students will be able to explain the reason why each solution made the cells hypotonic or

hypertonic.

• Students will implement their design plan.

Standards:

SCBI.A.2: obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to analyze the role of cellular
transport in maintaining homeostasis
SCBI.A.2.a: plan and carry out investigations to determine the role of cellular transport
(examples of active and passive transport) in maintaining homeostasis
SCBI.A.2.a1: construct a written argument that relates movement of molecules with or
against a concentration gradient (or in bulk) to the use of energy
SCBI.A.2.a2: ask questions and propose explanations that investigate the response of
various types of cells to different external environments
SCBI.A.2.a3: plan and carry out investigations that demonstrate the movement of water
into and out of a cell depending upon the tonicity of its environment
Formal and Informal:

On September 14th, the students will take a cell transport test. This test covers the organelles of

the cell, and what would happen if those organelles were damaged. It also covers several types of

active and passive transport. There are also questions on tonicity, and how tonicity can be

measured. There are questions that are directly from this lab on the test. They students will have

to understand the effects of different solutions on the potato cells to succeed. This was a short

unit, so I only gave one informal assessment. I gave a ten questions quiz, but I only weighted it

as a classwork assignment. The standards in Gwinnett county are moving toward more

application based instead of memorization. The questions on both formal and informal
assessments are very application based. The students have to read a graph, or think through

information given to them in order to get the correct answer.

Facilitation & Safety:

My classroom has 7 lab benches running on the sides of the room. I will put them students into

groups of 4 students, and assign them to a lab bench. They must always have the lab safety

goggles on whenever we are participating in a lab. If they have longer hair, I will ensure that it is

tied in a ponytail away from the solutions. I check their shoes right when they walk into the room

to ensure they are wearing closed toed shoes. I will explain the lab to the students before they get

up from their desks. The students know that during lab instruction, whenever I start talking they

must immediately stop. They know the importance of lab safety, and the importance of my

instruction. During the lab, I will walk between lab stations to see how the students are

progressing. Whenever they need help or have a question, they always raise their hands and call

my name. I will distribute all supplies needed for the lesson at the beginning of the day. When

each class period is over, I will instruct the students on how to clean up and get everything ready

for the next set of students. I plan to set certain amounts of time needed for each activity. When

it is time for a transition, I will instruct the students on what to do next.

Language Function:

Students will design their own experimental design in order to identify which solution is most

hypotonic to the potato.

Vocabulary:
The worksheet that students are going to receive has pre and post lab questions. The students

already know the vocabulary associated with the topics that we are going to be testing. They will

answer those questions using known vocabulary words.

Vocabulary: Hypotonic, Hypertonic, Isotonic, Osmosis, Passive Transport, Active Transport,

Homeostasis

Syntax or Discourse:

Students will demonstrate this by designing their own experiment. I must approve their

experiment before they can continue through the lab.

1. Monitoring Student Learning

a. The students were given a formative assessment in the form of extension

questions after a lab. The questions below were answered:

i. While vacationing at the beach you catch a minnow swimming in the

ocean. You take it back to your home and put it in your freshwater

aquarium. The minnow dies shortly after. In terms of osmosis and

diffusion, why did the minnow die?

ii. During Part 1 you observed celery in a hypotonic solution (distilled water)

and a hypertonic solution (saltwater). What observations would you

expect if you soaked the celery in an isotonic solution? Would this be

better or worse for the survival of the plant? Why?

iii. In your own words, explain why diffusion is important for a cell to

maintain homeostasis.
 iv. WHY do plant and animal cells require different osmotic solutions for

survival?

I will be formally assessing their knowledge by providing feedback on these

questions. By answering these questions, they are demonstrating their knowledge

about cell transport and tonicity of cells. They must be able to identify what is

happening to the cells in each of the real-world scenarios, and why it is

happening. They must apply previous knowledge to answer the questions. After

turning in the lab, we went over the questions as a class. I could see most of the

students understood what was being asked, and could apply their knowledge to

the situation. I could also see some were struggling to grasp the material. I gave a

informal assessment the next day, and the average was a 71.7. Cell transport will

show up again on the county wide midterm, so the students will again be formally

assessed.

b. The assessments were given in a college prep biology class. The class consists of

29 9th graders that are taking biology for the first time, and 2 10th graders who are

repeaters. These students are developing science skills. After the lab questions, I

could tell I needed to support vocabulary learning more. The students scored an

average of 71.7 on the informal assessment, so I was pleased with their

knowledge. The summative lab really allows for differentiation in this class.

Students got to design their own experiment, so they could do what makes sense

to them. It is open-ended and is extremely student centered, so provides great

support for all different types of students.

2. Analyze Student Learning

a.

i. Students will be able to analyze information given to them to assess the

role of cellular transport in maintaining homeostasis.

ii. Students will be able to explain their reasonings for why each solution

made the cells hypotonic or hypertonic.

iii. Students will be able to plan and carry out investigations determining the

role of cellular transport in maintaining homeostasis

iv. Students will be able to informally answer multiple choice questions based

on knowledge gained during this lab.

b. The chart below shows the range of grades students received on the potato

tonicity lab. There were four extension questions the students were suppose to

answer after completing the lab, and that is where their grades came from. Each

question was worth 25 points. Below the pie chart is a breakdown of my informal

assessment. In Gwinnett county, teachers must give common informal and formal

assessments. This gives me some great data. The table shows that the district

average was a 64, and the school average was a 64, but this sections average was
 a 71.7. I am very pleased with this data.

C. The student below is one who is struggling in biology. We will call him Chris, and he

currently has a 61% average in the class. I formally assed the class on this particular assignment.

I wanted them to use their vocabulary to apply their knowledge to these questions. For question

1, Chris restated information that was already given to him. He did not use vocabulary to explain

his thoughts. For question 2, I wanted him to tell me why the celery soaked in an isotonic

solution would stay the same. He is developing his knowledge because he knew isotonic

solutions would stay the same, but I wanted him to tell me water would be entering and exiting

the celery at the same rate, so it would stay the same. For question 3, again Chris is developing.

He needs to learn to use more vocabulary terms whenever answering questions. I wanted him to
tell me too much solutes, but instead he just said “too much.” Overall, I think with more practice

Chris will be able to apply his knowledge better whenever asked real world scenario questions.

On the informal assessment, Chris scored a 60. The feedback provided for him is below. I

wanted him to understand what he missed and why, so I assigned him homework to submit the

correct answers to the questions. He also had to submit what he put, and why he missed the

question. This will ensure he understands what he missed.

The next student is David, and he has an 85 in biology. He understands the material, and is

working on mastering applying his knowledge to real world scenarios. I was pleased with his

answer for number 1. It showed me that he understood which type of transport would occur, and

what would happen to the fish cells. For number 2, I was pleased that he knew nothing would
happen, but I wanted him to understand that isotonic means the flow of water in and out of the

celery would be the same. For number 3, I wanted him to use equilibrium. He needed to

understand hypotonic or hypertonic cells are not in equilibrium. I thought he responded well to

number 4. He knew to talk about cell walls in plants, and this shows he understands the different

organelles in the different type of cells. I was very pleased with his understanding of the

questions, and I think he is going to do well mastering real world questions. David scored a 90

on the formative assessment. He took the feedback provided for him, and used it to prepare for

the formative assessment. I was very excited that he took the feedback seriously, and used it to

do better on the formative.

The next student work is from Gabriel. He has a 97 in biology, and I feel he truly understands the

material being presented to him. In the questions below, he answered them using his vocabulary

terms in ways that made sense. For number 2, he knew isotonic solutions would be in dynamic

equilibrium. I would only have asked why he thought this would be bad for the celery to expand

more on his thinking. He knew in number 3 that if a cell becomes hypotonic, it will eventually

burst. We soaked a gummy bear in pure water overnight, and the gummy bear fell apart. He took

previously knowledge from that demonstration, and answered the question. In question 4, he

knew a cell wall meant it is a little harder for things to enter and exit the cell. I would have loved

for him to say the cell wall has carrier proteins embedded throughout, but I think his answer was

great. Gabriel scored a 100 on the formative assessment. He used all the materials provided for

him to study for the assessment. I was very pleased with his progress.
2. Feedback to guide further learning

a. Feedback written directly work samples or in separate documents that were provided for

the focus students

b. I provided a lot of feedback for the focus students in the form of questions. I want them

to realize I am doing this because I want more information from them provided when

they are answering the questions. According to Mahfoodh, students respond differently to

teacher feedback (Mahfoodh). Some react with surprise, happiness, rejection, acceptance,

and even anger. I try to make sure my feedback is always positive, but still constructive.

Chris needs a little bit more constructive feedback because he is struggling with the

material being presented. On question 4, I told him okay. This is showing him that it is

not exactly what I wanted, but that he is still doing a good job. He can answer questions

while speaking with me, so I feel questioning him on paper will help him strive. David is

a student who loves to be validated whenever he is doing something correct. This is why

I gave him feedback like “great” and “good.” I also made sure he understood why his

answers were not completely correct, and that I needed some more information from him.

Gabriel is my shining star student. I made sure to let him know he was doing great, but

added in a question. I want to make sure that he feels like he is still getting good

feedback, even though he is doing great with the material he is learning.

c. The questions completed after the lab will show up again. There are a few multiple-

choice questions on their unit test that directly relate to the lab questions. The short

answer portion also has one question that correlates. This will ensure that the students

look at their feedback, and make corrections. This will help them out tremendously when

it comes to the short answer portion of their test. They will know I want them to apply the

knowledge they have learned to answer each question. I am always available if my

students have any questions related to feedback on their assignments. I will also go over a
 few examples of student answers that I thought were good. This will help give the

students an idea of exactly what I was looking for in their answers.

3. Evidence of Language understanding and Use

a. Upon review my data, I can tell some of my students are struggling with language

understanding. They know how to use familiar words, but not necessarily their

scientific vocabulary words. My proficient student knew the words to use to

answer to questions presented to him. My other two students did not use as much

vocabulary words as I would have liked. For example, Chris said the fish would

die in the fresh water because it is not in its familiar environment. I wanted him to

tell me the fishes cells would become hypotonic because though osmosis water

would flood into the fish cells.

4. Using Assessments to Inform Instruction

a. Based on my data, I can see my students need more support with their vocabulary

words. At the beginning of each unit, they have to write the vocab words, and

then find the accompanying definition in the book. I am going to make them go

back and draw some sort of picture to aide them as a memory clue. This strategy

was studied in a group of 7th grade students, and showed they could retain science

vocabulary words much better when they had drawn a memory clue (Shore,

2015). I will also give my students more writing activities. In 10th grade, they

must pass the science gateway so I need to expose them to more writing in

biology. I want them to be able to form correct answers using the language they

have learned in class. Camfield did a study showing that writing in biology
 promotes active learning (Camfield, 2017). I want to take those practices used at

the college level, and modify them for my 9th graders.

b. The next steps I plan on taking supports theoretical and empirical foundations. By

writing, the students will elicit different prospectives based on their knowledge.

Within their writing, students can use their culture as a starting point. This will

bring so many different views on science, and can possibly help more students

understand the material (Tobin, 2013). There is also a tremendous amount of

research showing that students can learn a lot from their peers. I can give them

some time to go through the vocab and memory clues with one another. This

many give them a different outlook, and support their learning even further

(Olisky, 2007).

References
Camfield, E. e., & Land, K. M. (2017). The Evolution of Student Engagement: Writing
Improves Teaching in Introductory Biology Courses. Bioscene, 43(1), 20-26.
Deka, P. P. (2016). A study on parental involvement in higher level of education : voices of
parents and students in Pub-Kamrup College and Patidarrang College, Kamrup district.
Clarion: International Multidisciplinary Journal, 5(1), 57-64.
Longo, C. M. (2011). Designing Inquiry-Oriented Science Lab Activities. Middle School
Journal, 43(1), 6-15.
Mahfoodh, O. A. (2017). “I feel disappointed”: EFL university students’ emotional
responses towards teacher written feedback. Assessing Writing, 3153-72.
Meijerman, I., Nab, J., & Koster, A. S. (2016). Review Article: Designing and implementing an
inquiry-based undergraduate curriculum in pharmaceutical sciences. Currents In
Pharmacy Teaching And Learning, 8905-919.
Olitsky, S. (2007). Promoting Student Engagement in Science: Interaction Rituals and the
Pursuit of a Community of Practice. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 44 (1), 33-
56.
Rice, J. K. (1997). Explaining the Negative Impact of the Transition from Middle to High School
on Student Performance in Mathematics and Science: An Examination of School
 Discontinuity and Student Background Variables.
Shore, R. R., Ray, J., & Gooklasian, P. (2015). Applying cognitive science principles to improve
retention of science vocabulary. Learning Environments Research, 18(2), 233-248.
TOBIN, K. (2013). A Sociocultural Approach to Science Education. Magis: Revista
Internacional De Investigación En Educación, 6(12), 19-35.