Trioecy in Pink Sea Urchins

Not all animal species operate on a system of only males and females! Trioecy, when hermaphrodites coexist with females and males in a population, is an understudied reproductive strategy being brought into the spotlight with pink sea urchins in the Mexican Pacific. Valentina Islas-Villanueva and Francisco Benítez-Villalobos brought their research to our attention because they found that trioecy is maintained as a time-stable mating system, not as a one-time coincidence or a disorder. Their work adds to a growing body of evidence about the naturally occurring diversity of sex in living things.

The Evolution and Biology of Sex by Cotner & Wassenberg

"The Evolution and Biology of Sex" by Sehoya Cotner and Deena Wassenberg is the book accompanying their course at the University of Minnesota. The book is accessible from the UMN Libraries library.

For K-12 education, we recommend Chapter 8.4 "Sex: It's About the Gametes". This short article explains how sex is defined by gamete size, why this is useful, and what vocabulary can be used to clearly discuss biological sex.

We have yet to find any modern high school biology textbook that discusses this essential definition--most texts define sex only by human-specific traits or organs, leaving students lacking the broadly applicable tools to make sense of the diversity of the living world.

The entire book is gender-inclusive, sex-positive, and is written for an audience of introductory college biology for non-majors. Thus, it may also be appropriate for high school students.

Lesson: Sex, Genetics & Athletics from PGED

This lesson uses athletics as a lens to examine the biology of sex differences, and how societies react to individuals with these differences. Through readings, slides and discussion, students will examine the history of sex confirmation in elite athletic competition and learn why dividing people into two sexes is not as clear-cut as it seems. Students consider the practice of defining sex by anatomy, DNA, and hormones and then think about the various viewpoints on fairness, diversity and inclusion in sports and society. The classroom activity asks students to imagine being a doctor responsible for verifying the sex of athletes in an international track and field competition while considering the realities of genetic complexity as well as the impact of their decisions on athletes and other stakeholders.

The lesson plan includes a Do Now, slideshow, and a classroom activity.

There is also video lesson that includes a Do Now question and prompts to pause and answer questions.

Personal Genetics Education & Dialogue (PGED) raises awareness about genetics and discuss how genetic technologies impact people’s lives now and in the future.

TESTED Podcast

TESTED: A Surprising History of Women's Sports is a series produced by CBC, NPR's Embedded, and Bucket of Eels. The series is hosted by Rose Eveleth (they/them).

Through history and the ongoing cases of current athletes, TESTED explores the surprising story of who gets to compete in the women's category of sports.

The TESTED website contains episode transcripts and links for further reading

Second Nature Documentary (2024)

From homosexual penguins and sex-transitioning fish to pregnant male seahorses and sexually dominant female bonobos, there are thousands of species that defy our expectations of gender and sexuality. Director Drew Denny takes the nature documentary to a whole new level in this eye-opening and entertaining expedition to the places David Attenborough overlooks, where giant duck penises and corkscrew vaginas take center stage. 

Turns out Darwin wasn’t right about everything. He nailed that theory of evolution, but his understanding of gender and sexual diversity in the animal kingdom was more than a little misguided. Turns out the natural world is way more diverse and complex than he — or your high school biology teacher — may have led you to believe. Meanwhile, many unsung contemporary scientists, like evolutionary biologists Joan Roughgarden and Patricia Brennan and primatologist Amy Parish, have been zealously studying animal behavior and anatomy and exposing the myth of the gender binary for decades, despite ongoing resistance to their findings from the research establishment.

High School NGSS-aligned activities on Life Cycles, Inheritance, Animal Behavior, and Sex Development

Thank you for your interest in the Inclusive Biology Curriculum Research Project. I am Charlie Blake (they/them), an Assistant Research Professor at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. I am leading a research study along with contributions and support from partners and advisors, including the folks at Gender Inclusive Biology (https://www.genderinclusivebiology.com/). I am currently recruiting high school life science teachers for the 2024-2025 school year. If you are able to participate, I would supply you with four activities (NGSS-aligned) that you would use whenever they fit into your teaching schedule. I would then invite your class to participate in some short pre- and post- surveys and invite a few students in each class to do interviews. The topic areas of the lesson materials are: Reproductive Life Cycles, Genetic Inheritance, Animal Bodies and Mating Behavior, and Sex Determination and Development. Even if you can’t do all the lesson topics you can still participate. A small stipend is available for all participating teachers!

“Inclusive Biology Curriculum Impacts on Students” IRB approved protocol #2171

If you would like to use the lesson plans but are unable to participate in the study, I will still share the activities with you, but I hope you will consider joining the study!

Google form to request the activities https://forms.gle/u5G6MbygvqunXH366

 

Thanks for all your help,

Charlie

 

Dr. Charlie Blake (they/them)

Assistant Research Professor

STEM Center for Research, Education, & Outreach

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

Queerly Natural: A Queer Ecology Podcast

Queerly Natural is a science-based podcast about the diversity of sexuality, sex, and gender in the natural world. Join three queer biologists as they chat about the huge array of LGBTQIA+ diversity among animals, plants, fungi, and more.

Episodes are released the first Wednesday of every month. The website contains episode transcripts and timestamps for topics.