Test Your Problem-Soving Quotient

In A Modeling-Based Approach to Biology, students are given open-ended problems that have no perfect answer. Think global climate change, antibiotic-resistant tuberculosis, poverty, human slave trade. Emphasis is on process rather than content. They must find relevant information and data to construct their models, since without understanding the problem they would not be able to propose a solution. Grades are based on how well students find and learn the necessary material and whether they have taken into account the drawbacks and benefits of a solution.

Problem: Tuberculosis
It is estimated that one-third of the human population is infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Develop a health care plan for control.

• Find, analyze, and document the relevant background information.
• Provide a model of your plan. For instance, your model should show the number of people infected with tuberculosis decreasing over time as a result of implementing your health care plan.
• Present your health care plan, along with background information, assumptions, and model. Your solution should take into consideration possible economic, ethical, and/or policy issues necessary for your plan to be successful.

Click here for one team’s solution.