The Benefits of Adding “Strategic Stops” When Teaching Biology

Though educators understand the role misconceptions play in the learning of science concepts, the reality is that we can’t possibly think of all the misconceptions students bring to the biology classroom. We can, however, continue to explore strategies that prepare us as educators to address the wide variety of misconceptions that our diverse student population brings to the classroom. Much like our cells during the cell cycle undergo multiple checkpoints with the goal of identifying any errors, as educators we can incorporate checkpoints within the lesson, allowing us to actively monitor, identify misconceptions, and create an environment in which these real-time conversations facilitate students’ learning. Oftentimes some strategies require significant time allocation or a budget; however, the strategic addition of stops as the checkpoints presented in this article can be implemented with ease across grade levels and disciplines to identify and address misconceptions and to advance scientific learning.