HIV/AIDS: Development of a Thematic Non-majors Biology Course

1. HIV/AIDS: Development of a Thematic Non-majors Biology Course David R. Wessner, Davidson College Abstract • To facilitate the teaching of biology to undergraduate students, I have proposed a non-majors Biology course that uses HIV/AIDS as a central paradigm for the investigation of biology. The goals of this course are four-fold. Students should: • Increase their understanding of biology • Better understand the inter-relationships between scientific disciplines • Understand the scientific process • Improve their ability to critically analyze and interpret data Home page for BIO 361: Biology of HIV/AIDS, a Senior seminar offered at Davidson College Existing Curricular Materials BIO 361: Biology of HIV/AIDS Seminar for Senior Biology majors. This course examines the HIV/AIDS pandemic in a chronological fashion. Students read and discuss original scientific articles and corresponding newspaper reports. Class periods are devoted to discussions of these articles. In several class periods, local residents involved in some aspect of the HIV/AIDS pandemic visit class to discuss their activities. Additionally, we have incorporated into the course a community outreach assignment that allows students to share their new-found knowledge with the greater community. Students in BIO 361: Biology of HIV/AIDS, Fall 2003. Students from this class will serve as preceptors for the non-majors class and will lead weekly small group discussions. Students pictured on standing on a large sexual contacts tree developed to promote HIV/AIDS awareness on campus. HIV/AIDS in Popular Culture With the support of a grant from the Associated Colleges of the South, students and I have developed a multimedia web site that examines portrayals of HIV/AIDS in art, music, film, and television. These portrayals are presented in a chronological fashion, along with the relevant scientific advances. Students may become more interested in the scientific advances if they view them in association with these pop culture references. Course Design • As the HIV/AIDS pandemic progresses through its third decade, the importance of teaching undergraduate students about this disease remains undiminished. Furthermore, by using HIV/AIDS as a central paradigm, one can teach students important concepts in biology within the context of a real world public health problem. • This proposed course will be unique in two respects. • 1)Specific questions about HIV/AIDS will be used as entrees into discussions of general biology topics, as shown below: • What is HIV? • Cell structure • Metabolism • How does HIV replicate? • DNA replication • Mitosis and meiosis • 2)Class periods will be divided into lecture periods and small group discussion periods. • Lecture Periods The entire class will meet together two days a week for standard lectures on specific topics. • Discussion Periods One day a week, students will meet in small groups (10-12 students) for discussions of the week’s material. These group discussions will be led by Senior Biology majors who have taken BIO 361: Biology of HIV/AIDS. Homepage for “HIV/AIDS in Popular Culture Web Site Internal page of “HIV/AIDS in Popular Culture” web site