Journal article
Variation in external representations as part of the classroom lecture:An investigation of virtual cell animations in introductory photosynthesis instruction
Biochemistry and molecular biology education, Vol.45(3), pp.226-234
05/2017
Handle:
https://hdl.handle.net/2376/117717
PMID: 28032413
Abstract
The use of external representations (ERs) to introduce concepts in undergraduate biology has become increasingly common. Two of the most prevalent are static images and dynamic animations. While previous studies comparing static images and dynamic animations have resulted in somewhat conflicting findings in regards to learning outcomes, the benefits of each have been shown individually. Using ERs developed by the Virtual Cell Animation project, we aim to further investigate student learning using different ERs as part of an introductory biology lecture. We focus our study on the topic of photosynthesis as reports have noted that students struggle with a number of basic photosynthesis concepts. Students (n = 167) in ten sections of introductory biology laboratory were introduced to photosynthesis concepts by instructional lectures differing only in the format of the embedded ERs. Normalized gain scores were calculated, showing that students who learned with dynamic animations outperformed students who learned from static images on the posttest. The results of this study provide possible instructional guidelines for those delivering photosynthesis instruction in the introductory biology classroom. © 2016 by The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 45(3):226–234, 2017.
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Details
- Title
- Variation in external representations as part of the classroom lecture:An investigation of virtual cell animations in introductory photosynthesis instruction
- Creators
- Eric E Goff - University of South CarolinaKatie M Reindl - North Dakota State UniversityChristina Johnson - North Dakota State UniversityPhillip McClean - North Dakota State UniversityErika G Offerdahl - Washington State UniversityNoah L Schroeder - Wright State UniversityAlan R White - University of South Carolina
- Publication Details
- Biochemistry and molecular biology education, Vol.45(3), pp.226-234
- Academic Unit
- Molecular Biosciences, School of
- Number of pages
- 9
- Grant note
- Office of Postsecondary Education National Science Foundation (0086142; 0618766; 0918955)
- Identifiers
- 99900548337301842
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article