Which way is better? comparison of two interactive modeling approaches for teaching meiosis in an introductory undergraduate biology course

Kelsey J. Metzger, Joanna Yang Yowler

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

3 Scopus citations

Abstract

The processes of mitosis and meiosis are oft-cited and long-standing examples of concepts that are difficult for students to learn and understand. While there are many examples in the literature of "how-To-do-it," innovative instructional approaches for teaching mitosis and meiosis, publications that include measurement of learning gains are fewer. Moreover, when measurement of learning gains are reported, the outcomes of innovative approaches are most often compared to outcomes from traditional lecture-format instruction. In contrast, this research compares two active-learning approaches to teaching meiosis through modeling in an introductory undergraduate biology course for health sciences majors. Items from the published, validated Meiosis Concept Inventory were used for pre-and post-instruction assessment. In addition, we collected data regarding student perceptions of the learning experience in each modeling scenario through two Likert-scale items and two free-response items. Overall, students demonstrated significant learning gains from pre-to post-Assessment. We found no significant differences in performance on the posttest between the two modeling approaches, indicating that the selection of the modeling activity used to support student learning can be made on the basis of other criteria, such as instructor preference, physical classroom layout, or available supplies.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)98-109
Number of pages12
JournalAmerican Biology Teacher
Volume81
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 2019

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This research has been supported by tenure-track faculty start-up funds provided to K.J.M. by the University of Minnesota Rochester. J.Y.Y.’s collaboration was supported by a Career Development Internship during her Ph.D. studies at Mayo Graduate School in Rochester, MN. The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. There is no connection between any authors and a commercial product being used or included in the manuscript.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 National Association of Biology Teachers.

Keywords

  • Active learning
  • Meiosis Concept Inventory
  • cell division
  • curriculum design
  • meiosis
  • mitosis
  • modeling
  • student performance
  • student-centered teaching

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