OAE Biology case studies
OAE Biology · Put your knowledge to work in context.
The OAE Biology assessment (exam code 007) is one of the Ohio Assessments for Educators subject tests used in the educator licensure process for candidates who want to teach biology in Ohio schools. It is designed for people preparing for an initial teaching license in the life sciences, typically candidates completing a teacher-preparation program or adding a science endorsement. The OAE Biology case studies are 5 cases and about 2,638 words.
1Planarian Regeneration and the Limits of a Classroom Comparison
Alvarez's ninth-grade research class is testing whether a commercial ‘regeneration solution’ speeds planarian regrowth. Each student cuts 30 planarians transversely behind the pharynx and places the posterior halves individually into wells: 10 in spring water, 10 in pond water collected behind the school, and 10 in a 1:50 dilution of the commercial solution.
557 words, about 3 min2Lactase Supplement at Refrigerator Temperature
A student investigates whether a lactase supplement hydrolyzes lactose at refrigerator temperature. She prepares 5% lactose solution in pH 6.0, 7.0, and 8.0 buffers.
580 words, about 3 min3Heterozygote Deficit in an Island Lizard Population
A conservation team manages a closed population of 250 northern fence lizards on a 6-ha island. Albinism is a recessive trait controlled by a single locus, and 9 lizards are albino.
524 words, about 3 min4Cryptic Stonefly Morphotypes above and below a Dam
During a stream biomonitoring project, students collect 120 stonefly larvae from two reaches of an Ohio creek: Reach A above a low-head dam and Reach B below it. Using a key, they sort larvae into two morphotypes: ‘tufted’ (three gill tufts per abdominal segment) and ‘smooth’ (two tufts).
485 words, about 2 min5Alum Treatment, Internal Loading, and a Proposed Biomanipulation
A 12-ha kettle lake has been monitored monthly for five years. Mean summer total phosphorus (TP) was 85 µg/L in years 1–3 and 46 µg/L in years 4–5 after a 2021 alum treatment.
492 words, about 2 min