bioCEED news

Use of app to identify species helps students learn

A recently published bioCEED study has found that biology students using an app to identify sedges get more correct identifications than their peer using the traditional textbook method.

skjermbilde-2016-05-31-14-56-59-768x480The results of the experiment with 70 biology students from the University of Bergen revealed that the students found identifying species more interesting and enjoyable when using a smartphone or tablet. The students also felt that they were more competent after using the app than when using the book. Being able to identify species is a key skill for biologists, but undergraduate students often find identifying species difficult and uninteresting. An important finding in this study, therefore, is that using modern technology could enhance students´ interest and learning in ways that perhaps are not possible when using a textbook. The study was published online in Computers & Education in December 2016 (see link further below).

The app used to identify sedges is also a bioCEED product. ArtsAPP was created when a biology student with information technology skills and a biology professor found that they had the same idea – to create an app for species identification. ArtsAPP became a project where students, professors, educational outreach and technical staff work together to create a tool that is useful both in university teaching, but also for schools and nature lovers.

 

Download Artsapp for Android from Google Play 

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Reference

Lucas Jeno, John-Arvid Grytnes and Vigdis Vandvik published the article entitled “The effect of a mobile-application tool on biology students’ motivation and achievement in species identification: A Self-Determination Theory perspective” in the latest issue of the journal Computers & Education.

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