Introducing chaos theory in the classroom: A life sciences students’ perception.

Year 2024, , 275 - 294, 18.10.2024

João Perea Martins , Eduardo Oyanedel Ricardo Campos-soto

https://doi.org/10.24331/ijere.1502724

Abstract

This article details a concise in-class workshop to introduce life science students to basic chaos theory concepts, which is a modern subject and has high potential for applications in life sciences and other fields, justifying its knowledge. The teaching approach is based on a pragmatic strategy that uses only the essential mathematical and computing concepts required to reach the learning outcome, which this article explains step-by-step and, therefore, at least in expectation, even students or professors with no previous software knowledge could understand them. The proposed educational approach uses a meaningful learning approach, and population growth models as an educational anchor subject, which is a common subject for life science students and may be intuitive for students from other areas. Feedback from 70 students surveyed after the workshop yielded positive results, and 72.9% of the students expressed confidence in explaining basic chaos theory concepts following the session, and 94.7% stated they would recommend it to their peers, which underscores the present proposal feasibility.

Keywords

Science teaching, Chaos theory, Population growth, Butterfly effect

References

• Agtarap, H. J., Januto, A. C., Aglibot, K. A., & Toquero, C. M. (2024). Assessment strategies and challenges of teachers in evaluating students during online learning. Journal of Digital Educational Technology, 4(2), ep2418. https://doi.org/10.30935/jdet/14863