ABSTRACT
Biology consists of complex systems that multiple levels of organization, such as structure and function. Interactions occur both within and between these levels (Wilensky & Resnick, 1999). Students tend to focus on the (easily seen) structures that comprise the system and miss the (mostly implicit) functional interactions. On the other hand, experts tend to focus on more on how a complex system works (Hmelo-Silver & Pfeffer, 2004). Structure-Behavior-Function (SBF) theory may provide a deep principle that is useful for thinking about complex systems (Goel & Chandrasekaran, 1989). SBF theory provides a framework that allows effective reasoning about the functional and causal roles played by structural elements in a system, by describing a system’s structures, their purpose in the system (functions), and the mechanisms that enable their functions (behaviors).
