The Vivarium: Maximizing Learning with Living Invertebrates—An Out-of-School Intervention Is more Effective than an Equivalent Lesson at School

Wüst-Ackermann, Peter; Vollmer, Christian; Randler, Christoph; Itzek-Greulich, Heike

doi:10.3390/insects9010003

Cited by 20 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 51 publications

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“…First, we investigated the effectiveness of living animals for increasing interest, motivation, and achievement comparing an in school or an out-of-school intervention with living invertebrates. We found that the out-of-school intervention is more effective than an equivalent lesson at school where girls showed higher achievement after treatment than boys (Wüst-Ackermann et al, 2018). Conscientiousness was a predictor of invertebrate-inspired achievement.…”

mentioning

confidence: 72%

“…The living invertebrates used were the giant African land snail (Lissachatina fulica), millipedes (Spirostreptidae sp. 6 and Archispirostreptus gigas), phasmids (Eurycantha calcarata, Extatosoma tiaratum, Heteropteryx dilatata, and Phyllium giganteum), the Madagascar hissing cockroach (Gromphadorhina portentosa), and the mealworm beetle (Tenebrio molitor) (Wüst-Ackermann et al, 2018).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Invertebrate disgust reduction in and out of school and its effects on state intrinsic motivation

Wüst-Ackermann

Vollmer²,

Itzek-Greulich³

et al. 2018

Palgrave Commun

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Invertebrates are used in environmental, biology, and science education. However, they can elicit disgust, which can be detrimental for motivational and learning outcomes. In addition, practical work including hands-on interaction with living invertebrates could be a viable way to reduce invertebrate disgust and strengthen state intrinsic motivation. Moreover, Big-Five personality may explain the students' reaction to the exposure with live invertebrates. Therefore, the present study tested the effects of an intervention with living invertebrates on disgust and state intrinsic motivation in a sample of 1861 students (age 10-12 years). Moreover, we tested whether an in-school or an out-of-school intervention was more successful in reducing disgust as compared to the control group. While disgust was measured at pre-and post-test, trait motivation was measured at pre-test and state intrinsic motivation was measured at post-test. Results show that while both treatment conditions reduced disgust more than the control condition, the out-of-school condition had a more pronounced disgust reduction than the school condition. Disgust was negatively related to state intrinsic motivation, but state intrinsic motivation was equally high in both treatment conditions (school and university). Extraversion was negatively and neuroticism was positively related to disgust. Big-Five personality was generally associated with state intrinsic motivation. In conclusion, invertebrate disgust can be successfully reduced by an intervention with live invertebrates. The workstation-based intervention with live invertebrates is useful in different settings, both in and out of school and effective with invertebrate species, especially with snails and mealworms, because children's disgust for these species was significantly reduced and lower disgust was related to higher state intrinsic motivation.

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confidence: 72%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Invertebrate disgust reduction in and out of school and its effects on state intrinsic motivation

Wüst-Ackermann

Vollmer²,

Itzek-Greulich³

et al. 2018

Palgrave Commun

Self Cite

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“…The study encompassed a pre-test, the teaching intervention and a post-test ( Figure 2). As the purpose of the study was also to test which of the conditions, teacher-centered instruction, working at workstations or an out-of-school setting contributes most to the students' knowledge about and attitude towards wolves, the sample was divided into three groups, [36,37]. The teacher-centered School condition and the workshop School condition groups were from the general upper secondary school (School 1).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wolves’ Conservation through Educational Workshops: Which Method Works Best?

et al. 2019

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(1) Background: Conservation biology education is an important societal goal, targeting the worldwide promotion of biodiversity conservation. When learning about animals, direct experience poses an ideal opportunity to influence the participants’ attitudes and knowledge. However, in the case of large carnivores, direct experiences are scarcely possible, except at local zoos. School teaching should therefore rely on preserved materials, which are still originals. (2) Methods: Here, we investigated how students’ attitudes and knowledge regarding wolves can be improved in three different teaching contexts: (a) through conventional lectures, (b) through lectures combined with hands-on activities in the real classroom setting, and (c) through lectures with hands-on activities at the university. Students from general and vocational (veterinary) upper secondary school participated in the study. Attitudes and knowledge were tested before and after the teaching. (3) Results: Students displayed positive attitudes toward wolves and their prior knowledge had the highest influence on attitude ratings. Knowledge about wolves improved during teaching regardless of the teaching approach. The highest influence on attitudes and knowledge was observed in the university setting. (4) Conclusion: The university setting evidently produces the strongest effect so it is a recommended approach when designing conservational topics.

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“…Several studies have shown that little knowledge about insects exists [ 34 , 35 , 36 ]. Research on student knowledge has often focused on invertebrates or insects in general [ 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 ]. Other studies have focused on taxa such as beetles, butterflies or ants [ 34 , 41 , 42 , 43 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition, long-lasting effects of knowledge and attitude could be illustrated. Wüst-Ackermann et al [ 38 ] found that an out-of-school intervention is more effective than an equivalent lesson in school.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Don’t Know Much about Bumblebees?—A Study about Secondary School Students’ Knowledge and Attitude Shows Educational Demand

Sieg

Teibtner

2018

Insects

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Many insects are threatened with extinction, which in the case of pollinating insects could lead to declining pollination services and reduced ecosystem biodiversity. This necessitates rethinking how we deal with nature in general. Schools are ideal places in which to instill a willingness to behave in an environmentally-friendly way. Whereas scientific studies and school textbooks stress the importance of honeybees as pollinators, the role of bumblebees is either underestimated or neglected. The aim of this study was to provide information concerning student knowledge and attitudes, which are important factors of an individual’s environmental awareness. A questionnaire with closed and open questions was developed, which also included drawing and species identification tasks. We surveyed 870 German secondary school students between 9 and 20 years of age. Our results indicate limited knowledge of bumblebees by students of all grades. Knowledge increased with higher grades but only with a small effect size. The attitude of students towards bumblebees was generally positive; however, this positivity declined with increasing grade of the participants. This correlation also had a small effect size. Our results are discussed, with a particular focus on future educational demand.

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The Vivarium: Maximizing Learning with Living Invertebrates—An Out-of-School Intervention Is more Effective than an Equivalent Lesson at School

Cited by 20 publications

References 51 publications

Invertebrate disgust reduction in and out of school and its effects on state intrinsic motivation

Invertebrate disgust reduction in and out of school and its effects on state intrinsic motivation

Wolves’ Conservation through Educational Workshops: Which Method Works Best?

Don’t Know Much about Bumblebees?—A Study about Secondary School Students’ Knowledge and Attitude Shows Educational Demand

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