Instructor Stories and Adaptations

These resources describe how the module was adapted for use in different settings. We hope these stories inspire your own use of the module and give you insight into how to adapt the materials for your classroom.

Heather Karsten: Future of Food at Penn State University: This 15-week course was offered to beginning students and taught the pilot as a blended course. Prior to each class, students read the module and independently completed a formative assessment and online quiz. Then a 75-minute class each week provided valuable time for discussion and clarification of important course concepts. Students began working on the summative assessment with classmates and assistance from instructors. Some of the modules could be used in other courses, and for biweekly class meetings in which students could engage in active-learning with classmate; or the entire class could be taught only online.

Gigi Richard: Future of Food at Colorado Mesa University: The Future of Food was taught as a 15-week general-education science course for non-majors. The course was taught in a blended format, with class meeting once a week for 75 minutes. Students worked on the formative assessments before class and most summative assessments were performed during the class period with students in small groups, and completed outside of class. Students came from a wide variety of majors and were not familiar with many of the science concepts presented. Supplemental lectures and discussions were conducted at the beginning of class time to clarify concepts that were particularly challenging. Bringing food to class, eating together, and discussing the sources of the food proved to be a particularly useful tool to illustrate some of the issues and concepts discussed in the course.