Courtney Richmond

Lyme disease: a case about ecosystem services

O ne way to help students develop critical thinking skills is to focus on problems or cases where they are challenged to deal with real data and experiences (Bransford et al. 2004). Both problem-based learning and case studies allow students to develop the intellectual capacity to deal with complex issues, build confidence and willingness to approach topics from multiple perspectives, and encourage communication with scientists and peers from other disciplines. Students often compartmentalize content and process knowledge by discipline, whereas an interdisciplinary approach allows them to draw from multiple resources in the life sciences, mathematics, social sciences, and other disciplines. The literature is rich with examples and methods for using case studies (see References) and the majority of authors agree that if a case study is to be useful pedagogically, it must serve a specific function for the course and students. Such focus provides students with a more efficient means of achieving specific learning goals as compared to the traditional lecture approach (Herreid 1994, 1998). Kremen and Ostfelds paper on ecosystem services (pp 540-48) contains two case studies that provide examples of how ecological data are not often collected or interpreted in isolation. We use the Lyme disease case study to demonstrate how real data can be used to teach complex topics, while enabling students to discover how a number of disciplines can inform ecological issues. This activity is designed for an ecology course but could also be used as part of an introductory biology course.