Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37181206›Full record

ArticleEcology and evolution2023

Comparing study features is easy but identifying next steps is hard: Evaluating critical thinking through the Biology Lab Inventory of Critical Thinking in Ecology.

Ashley B Heim, David Esparza, Natasha G Holmes, Michelle K Smith

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Ecology and evolution, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
8.6field-weighted citation impact, top 2% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed, 9 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 1 institution in 2 countries.

Ashley B HeimDepartment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Cornell University Ithaca New York USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8526-7342
David EsparzaDepartment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Cornell University Ithaca New York USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8458-4741
Natasha G HolmesLaboratory of Atomic and Solid State Physics Cornell University Ithaca New York USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9141-373X
Michelle K SmithDepartment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Cornell University Ithaca New York USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7721-7417
Cornell University · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Critical thinking, which can be defined as the evidence-based ways in which people decide what to trust and what to do, is an important competency included in many undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses. To help instructors effectively measure critical thinking, we developed the Biology Lab Inventory of Critical Thinking in Ecology (Eco-BLIC), a freely available, closed-response assessment of undergraduate students' critical thinking in ecology. The Eco-BLIC includes ecology-based experimental scenarios followed by questions that measure how students decide on what to trust and what to do next. Here, we present the development of the Eco-BLIC using tests of validity and reliability. Using student responses to questions and think-aloud interviews, we demonstrate the effectiveness of the Eco-BLIC at measuring students' critical thinking skills. We find that while students generally think like experts while evaluating what to trust, students' responses are less expert-like when deciding on what to do next.

Indexed as

assessmentbiologycritical thinkingecologynext stepsresearch group comparisonundergraduate teachingvalidation

Identifiers

PMID37181206
PMCPMC10171991
OpenAlexW4376139844

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.