Storylines in the Classroom: Facilitating 3D learning of biology concepts and engaging high school students

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS, 2013) have been created to engage students in scientific and engineering practices and apply crosscutting concepts to further understand science topics. Three dimensional (3D) learning, the use of phenomena to design solutions to real world issues, is derived from NGSS standards. The purpose of 3D learning is to help students understand phenomena, an observable occurrence. From 3D learning, storylines have been utilized to help students make sense of the phenomena and apply it in a meaningful, tangible way (NSTA, 2019). However, little is known about the impact of storylines on student engagement and transfer of learning. A student teacher in a biology classroom performed a self-study to examine if storylines improve student engagement in the biology concepts being taught and transfer of learning through storylines. The findings, used from analyzing field notes, student work progression, test scores, and student feedback, indicate the storyline used in the biology classroom did improve student engagement, but did not directly impact transfer of learning. This teacher research will contribute to the conversation of the direct student impact of storylines in the classroom.