Donna DealyRuth MurrayTony Leger

Shaune CoughlinTerri-Lynn Smith

Scenario #3 A school district science

coordinator would like the high school biology teachers to begin using a dissection simulation program in lieu of actual dissection . This will save both time and money for materials. Some biology teachers are reluctant to make this change; they say that the students cannot learn as much about anatomy and dissection techniques from a simulation as they can from the “real thing”. However, they have agreed to test the software in a couple of classes.

 • 3.1 What would be the

expectations of the simulation method in terms of general outcomes?

The following slides highlight the assumptions the coordinator made about the benefits of using simulation programs instead of actual dissection.

from Teaching Framework Biology 11 and 12 June 2008

RationaleTo develop scientific literacy, students require

diverse learning experiences which provide opportunity to explore, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, appreciate, and understand the interrelationships among science, technology, society, and the environment that will affect their personal lives, their careers, and their future.

General OutcomesDiverse Learning

Experiences

Interrelationships among Science and Technology

Sythesize information from multiple sources and make inferences based on the information . Simulations provide students a different more controlled and safer approach to dissections.

Students analyze and describe how scientific understanding is enhanced or revised by simulation technology.

General OutcomesTeaching Framework

• Teachers need to design and implement a science curriculum that provides equal opportunities for all students according to their abilities, needs and interests.

Simulation programs allow repetition with variations. For students who may need to experience an experiment more than once this provides an greater opportunity for learning.

When does dissection occur in Biology curriculum?• “Dissection is done under comparative

anatomy.  The dissections cover not only biodiversity but also digestion. We study the characteristics of mammals in one section (taxonomy) and then digestion under human.  The dissection connects both taxonomy, comparative anatomy and digestion.” 

- Tim Beatty, Biology teacher, R.H.S.

Specific OutcomesSkills

With animal dissection, students will learn to various systems and how, for a given species, these reflect the environment for which that

species is adapted. Compile and display

evidence and information by computer

Evaluate the relevance, reliabilty, and accuracy of data collected.

KnowledgeDescribe the anatomy and physiology of a

representative organism.Use organisms found in a

local ecosystem to demonstrate an understanding of taxonomy.

Compare the digestion system of animals and humans.

Objectives3.2If you were one of

the biology teachers, how would you word objectives to match these outcomes?

ResearchFranklin, S., Peat, M., & Lewis, A.(2001).

Virtual versus traditional dissections in enhancing learning: A student perspective. In Proceedings of the 18th Conference of the Australian Society for Computers in Learning in Tertiary Education, 61- 64

Lalley, J. P., Piotrowski, P., Battaglia, B., Brophy, K., & Chugh, K.(2010). A comparison of V-Frog to physical frog dissection. International Journal of Environmental & Science Education, 5(2), 189-200

What are we really comparing?

http://dissect.froguts.com/welcome.html

3.3 What instruments or information would you

use to assess the “saving time and money” objective?

CostReal pig cost vs. Virtual pig cost

Maintenance and upkeep of real pig lab vs. maintenance and upkeep of virtual pig lab Paper assessment vs. computer assessment

TimeEfficiency Technological pedagogical content knowledge

WYSIWYGAssessment Instruction Lab set up time Computer vs. Biology