Abstract:

In the context of the European Higher Education Area, the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) has been generalized over the last years as an innovative way of improving the teaching-learning process. Obviously, university students are the primary target of innovation, but we submit that many of these ICT products could also be readily adapted as suitable tools for scientific literacy with a modicum of flexibility and creativity. In this presentation, we will show two computer-based practical classes of zoology and botany which are devised for second-year students at the Faculty of Biology of the University of Valencia (Spain), i.e., the functional morphology of the mammalian skull and a field trip to a protected area to recognize plants and animals understanding their ecological relationships in different habitats. In the university context, these computer-based tools are intended to be used, inter alia, as a pedagogic aid before or after attendance to actual classes (or even as a substitute, if attendance is not possible); to foster autonomous learning (even at home) and critical thinking, and to promote group discussion. However, these classes were also designed to be self-explanatory, and an effort was made to simplify technical knowledge and to link it to everyday facts through easy and understandable ways. Accordingly, we believe that both practical classes could be useful for anyone who, having a minimum background, is interested in these topics, particularly if contents can be accessed freely via the Internet. Apart from bringing university labor to society, this approach will hopefully illustrate that good scientific knowledge can often be conveyed in simple terms.

Keywords:

information and communication technologies, innovation, scientific literacy, zoology.