BIOCHEMISTRY and MOLECULAR BIOLOGY
EDUCATION ELSEVIER
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education 29 (2001) 104
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Laboratory exercises
Editorial What makes a good laboratory experiment?
Lahoratory experiments are, or should be, an integral part o f the education of any student in biochemistry and molecular biology. In some institutions laboratory courses are stand-alone courses. In others they are integrated with lecture courses. In either circumstance a well-designed experiment illustrates and teaches far more that how to perform a particular technique or laboratory skill. The experiment will include a variety of skills and techniques so that students see a related whole, designed to answer a question rather than teach a technique in isolation. The laboratory may require prior preparation on the part of the student in the form of a problem set of use of a webbased simulation, etc. In many institutions several laboratories may be interconnected to mimic a more research-project-like laboratory experience, with the student expected to write up a block of experiments in a format approaching that of a manuscript being submitted for publication, or in the format of a poster, or slides for prescntation. The student learns many skills as well as becoming confident with the experimental approaches of modern biochemistry and molecular biology. So what are the qualities of a good laboratory experiment’?It should work; students get frustrated and bored by experiments that do not work. What does this mean? It should work to the extent that it can give reproducible data in the hands of an average student. It does not mean that the outcome of the experiment should be an obvious and forgone conclusion. In fact many of the best and most educational experiments have unexpected outcomes where the student must learn to assess the trustworthiness of the dato that they collect before they can draw the appropriate conclusions. This means that a good experiment should be designed to allow students to get sufficient data, either alone or in teams, to analyze the data appropriately and draw conclusions. From a practical standpoint a good experiment is one that can easily translate into a variety of settings and not req tiire overly expensive or sophisticated equipment that is unlikcly to be available except in exceptional circumstances, similarly with reagents unless an author is prepared to make them available upon request. A good experiment is one that can easily and reliably be set up by a technician or laboratory manager. To encourage the submission of such experiments for publication in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education, the Editorial Board has established a set of
guidelines for those authors considering such submissions in the future: Detailed instructions for submissions of laboratory experiments Authors submitting manuscripts for consideration that describe laboratory experiments should in addition to the general authors guidelines, adhere to the following: 1. Experiments should be described in full detail including background theory, any pre-laboratory preparation by the student such as a discussion of appropriate background laboratory skills or problem sets, expected data analysis and discussion, and expected data presentation (including suggested worksheets, etc.) and write-up by the students. Authors should explain how the experiment serves as a teaching tool including the pedagogical reasons for using it. The description of the experiment should clearly indicate the allotted time or number of time blocks required to conduct the experiment. 2 . The authors must submit sample data obtained by (a) a student or student team, and (b) the instructor. If the experiment requires a student team appropriate distribution of labor should be discussed. 3. The authors should include some discussion as to typical student pitfalls that might be encountered in the laboratory. 4. The authors should include set up sheets with sufficient detail to allow a technician to set up the reagents and equipment required for the laboratory. 5. The authors should include a list of relevant web sites that provide either simulations of the protocols or equipment used or detail useful to the experiment. 6. The authors should include one or two references to the scientific literature where the technique or principles illustrated by the laboratory are used in a research setting. It is also appropriate to discuss how the experiment might be used in a linked series of laboratories to more appropriately mimic a “research” environment. 7. Authors should outline safety issues including hazardous reagents or conditions and describe disposal of reagents and products.
E. Bell Department of Chemistry, University of Richmond, Richmond, V A , 23173, USA E-mail address:
[email protected]
1470-8175/01/$20 00 LL 2001 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd on behalf of IUBMB PI1 \ 1 4 7 0 - 8 1 7 5 ( 0 l ) 0 0 0 4 2 - x
