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Preliminary Results on the Prevalence of Physiology Students’ Homeostatic Misconceptions
Author(s) -
Wright Ann,
McFarland Jenny,
Cliff William,
Michael Joel,
Modell Harold,
Wenderoth Mary Pat
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.27.1_supplement.739.5
Subject(s) - homeostasis , blood pressure , process (computing) , physiology , wonder , psychology , medicine , computer science , social psychology , operating system
We specifically asked forty‐seven physiology students in a survey about the core concept “homeostasis.” Physiology students (200 level) were asked to define homeostasis and describe the process by giving a physiological example of homeostasis. Finally, students chose whether heart rate, blood pressure, or both were homeostatically regulated and justified their answer. Definitions, examples of the homeostatic process, and justifications of whether heart rate, blood pressure, or both were homeostatically regulated were scored as Unclear Definition , Partially Complete Definition , or Complete Definition . For the most part, the results indicated that students’ understanding of homeostasis is incomplete and superficial. We are also concerned about the language students used to answer the questions. For example, we wonder what students mean by a “balanced internal environment?” At what level do they understand “balance?” The results also reveal the importance of incorporating many different examples of homeostasis as a general model during instruction to improve understanding. Supported by NSF grant DUE‐1043443.