JBE 43 (4) Autumn 2009

PDFs of articles in this issue are available to download on the right

Editorial

The importance of research in educational change in Germany

Marcus Hammann, Germany
When asked to explain the kind of work we do as researchers in biology education, I often use the term ‘research reforming practice’

Reviews

Causal and teleological explanations in biology

Cheng-Wai Yip, Singapore
This paper also aims to suggest ways in which students can be taught to differentiate between causal and teleological explanations, for example, through the specific ways in which questions can be phrased, and by explicitly teaching students to identify the cause and significance of biological events.

Abstract:A causal explanation in biology focuses on the mechanism by which a biological process is brought about, whereas a teleological explanation considers the end result, in the context of the survival of the organism, as a reason for certain biological processes or structures. There is a tendency among students to offer a teleological explanation instead of a causal explanation when they are required to describe how a particular biological phenomenon is brought about. They have difficulty distinguishing between the end result, generally biological adaptation and survival, and the cause that leads to the end. In this paper, examples of causality and teleology are discussed, with reference to: photosynthesis, transpiration and transport of water up the plant via pull of transpiration; the human circulatory and respiratory systems, particularly exercise physiology. This paper also aims to suggest ways in which students can be taught to differentiate between causal and teleological explanations, for example, through the specific ways in which questions can be phrased, and by explicitly teaching students to identify the cause and significance of biological events. This will reduce misconceptions that students have about certain biological processes in organisms.

Plant nutrition in Spanish secondary textbooks

Concepción González-Rodríguez, Susana García–Barros and Cristina Martínez-Losada, Spain
In this paper, the authors analyse the conceptual contents related to plant nutrition in the widely-used school texts of six Spanish publishers. Not all of the texts promote the development of a global conception of plant nutrition.

Abstract:In this paper, the authors analyse the conceptual contents related to plant nutrition in the widely-used school texts of six Spanish publishers. An analysis dossier was elaborated based on the epistemological and pedagogical study of this subject. The publishers deal with the issue of plant nutrition at three different levels (multicellular, cellular and ecosystem) and they establish a conceptual progression. Furthermore, they include a great number of concepts which they deal with in the texts. However, not all of the texts promote the development of a global conception of plant nutrition.

Educational Research

Representations of the human circulatory system

Asunción López-Manjón and Yolanda Postigo Angón, Spain
This paper analyses to what extent students with varying degrees of biology instruction and different ages have been able to change their intuitive beliefs into scientific representations of the workings of the human circulatory system.

Abstract:There is no agreement about the robustness of intuitive representations of the circulatory system and their susceptibility to change by instruction. In this paper, we analyse to what extent students with varying degrees of biology instruction and different ages (High School Health Science and Social Science students and first and final year University Psychology students) have been able to change their intuitive beliefs into scientific representations of the workings of the human circulatory system. We analysed two aspects of the representation of the circulatory system: models of the circulatory system (the relationship between the heart and lungs in the blood pathway) and the circulatory system pattern (the blood pathway between organs). In relation to the models of the circulatory system, we found differences among the different groups of students according to the amount of biological instruction they had. The majority of participants (High School Social Science students and both University Psychology student groups) had an incomplete model, which did not include the lungs while the High School Health Science students group had a scientific representation. As for the circulatory system pattern, we did not find differences among groups. However, we cannot conclude that the representations of the two aspects of the circulatory system (model and pattern) are independent. The data in this study show that compulsory human physiology instruction did not enhance the acquisition of a scientific representation of the human circulatory system.

The influence of emotion on students’ performance in dissection exercises

Nina Holstermann, Dietmar Grube and Susanne Bögeholz, Germany
This paper addresses the issue of how emotions like disgust influence students’ self-belief in terms of mastering a dissection task and also how these affect their interest in the biology of the heart.

Abstract:This paper investigates the issue of how emotions such as disgust influence students’ self-efficacy belief in terms of mastering a dissection task and also how these affect their interest in the biology of the heart. Following models of intrinsic motivation and the development of motivation, we expected disgust to negatively impact on students’ self-efficacy belief and their interest levels. Ninety-two secondary school students completed questionnaires on disgust, self-efficacy belief and interest before and during the dissection of a pig’s heart. We compared two groups of students, one that felt disgusted during dissection and one that did not. No differences in self-efficacy belief and interest were shown between the two groups before the dissection. The development of self-efficacy belief and interest proved to be significantly affected by the disgust experienced during dissection. During dissection, disgusted students saw themselves as less effective at mastering the dissection and reported lower interest in the heart than students who did not feel that emotion. These findings suggest that teachers should try to reduce disgust-provoking stimuli during dissection, since self-efficacy and interest can influence cognitive as well as motivational and affective processes.

Field biology experiences of undergraduate students: the impact of novelty space

Debby R E Cotton and Peter Cotton, UK
Previous research suggests that the novelty of being in an unfamiliar field environment can negatively, as well as positively, impact on the student experience and learning. This research uses the framework of novelty space to explore the student experience of an undergraduate biology field course to South Africa.

Abstract:Fieldwork is generally considered an essential aspect of teaching and learning about biology, at both school and university level. However, previous research suggests that the novelty of being in an unfamiliar field environment can negatively, as well as positively, impact on the student experience and learning. This research uses the framework of novelty space to explore the student experience of an undergraduate biology field course to South Africa. It also evaluates the impact of enhanced pre-course preparation (using a CD resource) on the students’ experiences in the field. The research uses questionnaires and student diaries (video, audio, and written) to investigate, first hand, the student experience of field-work. This paper explores the impact of four aspects of ‘novelty space’ (geographical, cognitive, psychological and social) on the student experience, and considers what action tutors can take to reduce the impact of the novelty effect and enhance student learning in the field. It appears that novelty is an important mediating factor which may influence student learning in the field, and that prior preparation can help students adjust to the new environment.

Case Studies

Charles Darwin goes to school: the role of cartoons and narrative in setting science in an historical context

Paulo Roberto Costa da Silva, Paulo Rogério Miranda Correia and Maria Elena Infante-Malachias, Brazil
Scientific literacy can be considered a new goal of science education and the epistemological gap between natural sciences and literacy disciplines must be overcome. The history of science is a possible bridge to link these ‘two cultures’ and can foster an interdisciplinary approach in the classroom.

Abstract:Science education is under revision. Recent changes in society require changes in education to respond to new demands. Scientific literacy can be considered a new goal of science education and the epistemological gap between natural sciences and literacy disciplines must be overcome. The history of science is a possible bridge to link these ‘two cultures’ and to foster an interdisciplinary approach in the classroom. This paper acknowledges Darwin’s legacy and proposes the use of cartoons and narrative expositions to put this interesting chapter of science into its historical context. A five-lesson didactic sequence was developed to tell part of the story of Darwin’s expedition through South America for students from 10 to 12 years of age. Beyond geological and biological perspectives, the inclusion of historical, social and geographical facts demonstrated the beauty and complexity of the findings that Darwin employed to propose the theory of evolution.

A ‘bottom up’ approach to food web construction

Dorita Demetriou, Konstantinos Korfiatis and Constantinos Constantinou, Cyprus
The ability to comprehend trophic (nutritional) relationships and food web dynamics is an essential part of environmental literacy. However, students face severe difficulties in grasping the variety of causal patterns in food webs.

Abstract:
The ability to comprehend trophic (nutritional) relationships and food web dynamics is an essential part of environmental literacy. However, students face severe difficulties in grasping the variety of causal patterns in food webs. We propose a curriculum for comprehending trophic relations in elementary school. The curriculum allows students to construct a food web using real data and following guidelines for the identification of organisms and their food preferences. The curriculum was applied to 23 fourth graders of an elementary school in Nicosia, Cyprus. Another 24 fourth graders participated as control group. Children of the experimental group managed to construct quite precise and complicate webs, including a large number of species and drawing multiple trophic connections between them. However, difficulties in grasping aspects of the functional and behavioural characteristics of food webs remained after the learning intervention. We conclude that the proposed curriculum could serve as an introductory basis for studying food webs, but it should be accompanied with a series of activities for more explicit consideration of the function and behaviour of food webs in order to offer a compete educational account for comprehending trophic relations.