0000000000297360
AUTHOR
Rebecca Sammet
What Do Secondary Students Really Learn during Investigations with Living Animals? Parameters for Effective Learning with Social Insects
ABSTRACTExemplary for social insects, Temnothorax ants allow for various hands-on investigations in biology classes. The aim of this study was to provide a quantitative and qualitative analysis of secondary school students’ learning achievement after teaching units with ants lasting between one and six weeks. The questionnaires included transfer and factual knowledge tasks divided into eight fields of knowledge. Students (N = 459) from 22 classes participated in the study and received different treatments: The experimental group (n = 366) started their investigations by initial observation using stereo microscopes, while the control group (n = 93) conducted ant research without this i…
Human–Insect Relationships: An ANTless Story? Children's, Adolescents', and Young Adults' Ways of Characterizing Social Insects
ABSTRACTAnts may serve as powerful model organisms for uncovering principles of insect biology and social behavior. The aim of this study was to provide a quantitative analysis of secondary-school students' perceptions and knowledge of ants. It was part of a longitudinal project based on the concept of “ant research” in classrooms. The outcomes were to be used to implement studies of ants into a progressive curriculum for all secondary-school students. In order to design modules for science education, it was necessary to identify the perceptions and knowledge that students in different grades had of ants. Three hundred and twenty-one students from 14 classes in the 6th, 7th, 9th, and 12th g…
Developing Science Observation Skills
Acorn ants (genus Temnothorax) are a powerful model organism for illustrating the variety of interactions in an ecosystem. We developed five teaching units with acorn ants as the exemplary insect. The aim of this study was to provide a quantitative and qualitative analysis of secondary school students’ attitudes before and after teaching units. Students (N = 459) from 22 classes participated in the study. Students’ attitudes were measured using a two-stage test design. We investigated the influence of class level, gender, teaching units, and time period of participation on students’ attitudes. Additionally, we surveyed a subsample of students on their learning enjoyment in 10-minute intervi…
Hands-on or Video-based Learning with ANTicipation? A Comparative Approach to Identifying Student Motivation and Learning Enjoyment During a Lesson about Ants
The observation of living animals in school laboratories provides authentic views of biological research. Various studies stress the importance of primary experiences in biology classes. However, educational films may serve as an alternative in some cases. The aim of this study was to investigate student motivation before and after treatments, including (1) an educational film, (2) a hands-on activity with living animals accompanied by an educational film and (3) a hands-on activity with living animals. We investigated the influence of teaching method, gender and class level on student motivation and learning enjoyment. In all treatments, Temnothorax ants were addressed, which can be easily…