TY - JOUR

T1 - Upper secondary students’ thinking pathways in cell membrane biology

T2 - an evidence-based development and evaluation of learning activities using the Model of Educational Reconstruction

AU - Johann, Leonie

AU - Rusk, Fredrik

AU - Reiss, Michael

AU - Groß, Jorge

PY - 2024

Y1 - 2024

N2 - This study reports on the theoretical- and empirical-based design and evaluation of cell membrane biology learning activities within the Model of Educational Reconstruction and experiential realism. First, we designed analogy-based learning activities by considering students’ and scientists’ conceptions as described in the literature. Secondly, we carried out two video-taped teaching experiments to study students’ learning processes when interacting with the learning activities. Interpreting students’ conceptual development as thinking pathways enabled us to identify and understand the roots of their learning difficulties. Due to inherent ontological and epistemological presumptions, the students had difficulties in understanding that cell membrane structure determines their two-fold function: to separate and to connect environments in order to maintain living processes. The multiple analogies we employed helped foster conceptual development because they highlighted aspects of the concrete everyday experiences the students already had, but had not thought about. As a result of the learning activities, the students revised their conceptions regarding the terms barrier, gatekeeper and environment and connected these to a more coherent conceptual structure of cell membrane biology. Methods and outcomes of the study may contribute to a better understanding of how this important concept can be brought to science classrooms.

AB - This study reports on the theoretical- and empirical-based design and evaluation of cell membrane biology learning activities within the Model of Educational Reconstruction and experiential realism. First, we designed analogy-based learning activities by considering students’ and scientists’ conceptions as described in the literature. Secondly, we carried out two video-taped teaching experiments to study students’ learning processes when interacting with the learning activities. Interpreting students’ conceptual development as thinking pathways enabled us to identify and understand the roots of their learning difficulties. Due to inherent ontological and epistemological presumptions, the students had difficulties in understanding that cell membrane structure determines their two-fold function: to separate and to connect environments in order to maintain living processes. The multiple analogies we employed helped foster conceptual development because they highlighted aspects of the concrete everyday experiences the students already had, but had not thought about. As a result of the learning activities, the students revised their conceptions regarding the terms barrier, gatekeeper and environment and connected these to a more coherent conceptual structure of cell membrane biology. Methods and outcomes of the study may contribute to a better understanding of how this important concept can be brought to science classrooms.

KW - cell membrane biology

KW - experiential realism

KW - learning processes

KW - Model of Educational Reconstruction

KW - students’ conceptions

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85122856770&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1080/00219266.2022.2026805

DO - 10.1080/00219266.2022.2026805

M3 - Article

VL - 58

SP - 144

EP - 165

JO - Journal of biological education

JF - Journal of biological education

SN - 0021-9266

IS - 1

ER -