Implementing An Active Learning, Large-Enrollment Online Physiology Course During The COVID-19 Pandemic

ABSTRACT

The Department of Neurobiology & Behavior at Stony Brook University offers a large-enrollment gateway undergraduate physiology course, BIO 203 - Fundamentals of Biology Cellular and Organ Physiology. BIO 203 is a required course in the biology and biochemistry majors and in the pre-health curriculum, and undergraduates typically register for BIO 203 in their sophomore year. Since Fall 2015, BIO 203 has been offered in two formats, traditional PowerPoint-based lectures presented twice per week (80 min / session) in a 570-seat auditorium with individual fixed seats and a flipped, active-learning format delivered once per week (113 min / session) in a 250-seat auditorium with shared desks and rotating chairs. Students in both sections had equal access to prerecorded lectures and online activities (content quizzes, journal activities and thought questions). The focus of the lecture section was content delivery while the flipped section emphasized active group learning facilitated by instructors and experienced undergraduate teaching assistants. Student learning was evaluated by performance on common high-stakes multiple choice exams. On average, students in the flipped section exhibited better performance on the common exams than students in the lecture section (Fall 2019 exam total, p < 0.05 in two sample t test and Wilcoxon rank sum test). As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Stony Brook University required large-enrollment courses to switch to online instruction starting in March 2020 and continuing through the Fall 2020 semester. The BIO 203 instructors implemented a synchronous online version of BIO 203 based on the active-learning curriculum developed for the flipped section. In Fall 2020, this synchronous online version of BIO 203 was offered simultaneously to two sections. Students in both sections had access to the same online resources (recorded lectures, content quizzes and activities) and were evaluated using low-stakes quizzes (administered during scheduled class time) and a common cumulative final exam (administered during a common final exam period). The primary difference between the two sections was the frequency and duration of the synchronous online meetings with instructors and teaching assistants. Section 01 (595 students) met twice a week for 80 min per session, whereas section 02 (257 students) met once a week for 130 min. A preliminary analysis of the scores on the common final exam indicates that students in section 01 (two meetings per week) performed better than students in section 02 (1 meeting per week) (p < 0.05 in two sample t test and Wilcoxon rank sum test). These preliminary findings are consistent with the hypothesis that student learning is enhanced by frequent engagement in active learning.