Changing colors and understanding: the use of mutant chromogenic protein and informational suppressor strains of Escherichia coli to explore the central dogma of molecular biology.

The central dogma of molecular biology is a key concept for undergraduate students in the life sciences as it describes the flow of information in living systems from gene-to-gene product. However, despite often being covered in many introductory life science courses, students may still have misconceptions surrounding the central dogma even as they move on to advanced courses. Active learning strategies such as laboratory activities can be useful in addressing such misconceptions. In the laboratory exercise presented here, senior undergraduate students explore the intricacies of nonsense suppressor mutations to challenge their understanding of the central dogma. The students introduce a plasmid carrying a nonfunctional chromogenic protein gene due to a nonsense mutation in a codon encoding the chromophore to various nonsense suppressor strains of Escherichia coli. Students then observe distinct chromogenic phenotypes, depending on the suppressor strain. Students showed a moderate increase in understanding of the central dogma. While the central dogma remains a challenging concept, active learning strategies like the one presented here can help reduce conceptual errors.

Learning in a real-life escape room: an explorative study on the supervisory relationship in GP residency during the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: The relationship between supervisors and residents plays a prominent role in the professional development of general practice (GP) residents. When disruptions occur in the normal course of healthcare, due to effects of e.g. war or emerging epidemics, we need to consider how this may affect the training of the next generation of general practitioners. As both supervisors and residents face new and unprecedented challenges that impact overall quality of the training. In this study, we examined the characteristics of the supervisory relationship in GP training during the disruptions early on during COVID-19. Our aim was to understand better how resident learning is affected in these circumstances, which is a first step in enabling supervisors, residents and faculty to anticipate disruptive situations better in the future. METHODS: We conducted a qualitative case study with a constructivist approach. Seven GP residents at the start of their second placement, and their 10 supervisors participated in this study. Participants came from a University Medical Centre in the Netherlands. Semi-structured interviews were held between September 2020 and February 2021. The subjects were (1) interviewed individually about what they had learned regarding COVID-19, and (2) they were interviewed in supervisory pairs about how they had learned. Data were iteratively analysed; thematic analysis for (1) and template analysis in (2). RESULTS: We identified notable changes in the supervisor-resident relationship attributable to COVID-19. Supervisors and residents were confronted with an all-encompassing uncertainty in the workplace, and disruptive changes in patient care and learning opportunities for residents. Supervisors and residents addressed these emerging workplace challenges through three types of collaboration, (1) getting the job done; (2) residents' learning; and (3) collective learning. Each type had a different focus and distinctive characteristics of the supervisory relationship. CONCLUSION: With the outbreak of COVID-19, supervisors and residents were faced with disruptive uncertainty. In these circumstances, learning occurred not only between residents and their supervisors, but also with non-supervising GPs and assistants in collective learning. We propose to complement collective learning in the workplace with reflection between residents and supervisors at the training institution.

Sandbox University: estimating influence of institutional action.

The approach presented in this article represents a generalizable and adaptable methodology for identifying complex interactions in educational systems and for investigating how manipulation of these systems may affect educational outcomes of interest. Multilayer Minimum Spanning Tree and Monte-Carlo methods are used. A virtual Sandbox University is created in order to facilitate effective identification of successful and stable initiatives within higher education, which can affect students' credits and student retention - something that has been lacking up until now. The results highlight the importance of teacher feedback and teacher-student rapport, which is congruent with current educational findings, illustrating the methodology's potential to provide a new basis for further empirical studies of issues in higher education from a complex systems perspective.