Pre-service Biology Teachers’ Views on Bioinformatics and Its Instruction

Yıl 2022, Cilt: 42 Sayı: 3, 2157 - 2179, 30.12.2022

Burak Gürkan , Ahmet Gökmen

https://doi.org/10.17152/gefad.1182238

Cited By: 1

Öz

Bioinformatics, which is generally defined as the study and processing of biology information through computers, is a rapidly developing scientific field today. It is becoming an important part of biology education worldwide with its increasing applications in biotechnology, health, agriculture, chemistry, genome research, and many other fields. Therefore, it is important to determine the views of teacher candidates on bioinformatics in Turkey in terms of creating a human infrastructure trained in the field. The purpose of this research is to examine the views of pre-service biology teachers’ on bioinformatics and its instruction. The study group of the research, which uses the holistic single case design among the qualitative research methods, consists of 105 pre-service biology teachers who are studying at the Faculty of Education and pedagogical formation programs of a state university. The data of the research were obtained using a semi-structured interview form developed by the researchers after the relevant literature search and obtaining expert opinions. The data obtained as a result of the research were analyzed by using descriptive and content analysis together. According to the results obtained at the end of the research, it was determined that the pre-service teachers did not have sufficient theoretical and practical knowledge, besides having positive views on the subject. Within this scope, it is recommended to integrate bioinformatics education into existing curricula, and to create learning contents and materials accordingly.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Bioinformatics, Bioinformatics instruction, Pre-service biology teachers

Biyoloji Öğretmen Adaylarının Biyoinformatik ve Öğretimine İlişkin Görüşleri

Öz

Genel olarak biyoloji bilgisinin bilgisayar aracılığıyla incelenmesi ve işlenmesi olarak tanımlanabilen biyoinformatik günümüzde hızla gelişen bir bilim dalıdır. Biyoinformatik, biyoteknoloji, sağlık, tarım, kimya, genom araştırmaları ve çok sayıda alanda giderek artan uygulamalarıyla dünyada biyoloji öğretiminin önemli bir parçası hâline gelmektedir. Bu bakımdan Türkiye'de biyoinformatik konusunda yetişmiş insan alt yapısının oluşturulması açısından öğretmen adaylarının konuya ilişkin görüşlerinin belirlenmesi önem kazanmaktadır. Bu araştırmanın amacı biyoloji öğretmen adaylarının biyoinformatik ve öğretimi konusunda görüşlerinin incelenmesidir. Nitel araştırma yöntemlerinden bütüncül tek durum deseninin kullanıldığı araştırmanın çalışma grubunu, bir devlet üniversitesinin eğitim fakültesi ve pedagojik formasyon programlarında öğrenimlerine devam eden 105 biyoloji öğretmen adayı oluşturmaktadır. Araştırmanın verileri ilgili alanyazın taramaları ve uzman görüşlerinin alınması aşamalarından sonra araştırmacılar tarafından geliştirilen yarı yapılandırılmış görüşme formu kullanılarak elde edilmiştir. Araştırma sonucunda elde edilen veriler betimsel ve içerik analizi bir arada kullanılarak çözümlenmiştir. Araştırma sonunda elde edilen sonuçlara göre öğretmen adaylarının konuya ilişkin olumlu görüşlere sahip olmalarının yanında, yeterli teorik ve uygulama bilgilerinin olmadığı belirlenmiştir. Bu kapsamda biyoinformatik eğitiminin mevcut öğretim programlarına entegrasyonu, ders içerikleri ve materyallerin oluşturulması önerilmektedir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Biyoinformatik, Biyoinformatik öğretimi, Biyoloji öğretmen adayları, Bioinformatics instruction, Pre-service biology teachers

Kaynakça

• Ali, M. M., Hamid, M., Saleem, M., Malik, S., Mian, N. A., Ihsan, M. A., ... & Awan, F. (2021). Status of bioinformatics education in South Asia: past and present. BioMed research international, 2021, 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/5568262
• Attwood, T. K., Blackford, S., Brazas, M. D., Davies, A., & Schneider, M. V. (2019). A global perspective on evolving bioinformatics and data science training needs. Briefings in Bioinformatics, 20(2), 398-404.
• Bain, S. A., Meagher, T. R., & Barker, D. (2021). Design, delivery and evaluation of a bioinformatics education workshop for 13-16-year-olds. Journal of Biological Education, 1-11.
• Bayat, A. (2002). Bioinformatics.:science, medicine, and the future. BMJ Clinical Research 324(7344):1018-22.
• Bhardwaj, R., Sharma, M., & Agrawal, N. (2021). Bioinformatics and Its Application Areas. S. Balamurugan, Anand Krishnan, Dinesh Goyal, Balakumar Chandrasekaran, Boomi Pandi Computation in BioInformatics: Multidisciplinary Applications, 121-137 Scrivener Publishing LLC: Wiley.
• Brazas, M. D., Blackford, S., & Attwood, T. (2017). Plug gap in essential bioinformatics skills. Nature, 544.
• Caspers, M. L., & Roberts‐Kirchhoff, E. S. (2003). An undergraduate biochemistry laboratory course with an emphasis on a research experience. Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education, 31(5), 303-307.,,
• Corbin J., & Strauss A. (2008). Basics of qualitative research: Techniques and procedures for developing grounded theory. Los Angeles, CA: Sage.
• Counsell, D. (2003). A review of bioinformatics education in the UK. Brief Bioinform 4, 7-21.
• Creswell, J. W., Plano Clark, V. L., Gutmann, M. L., & Hanson, W. E. (2003). Advanced mixed methods research designs. Handbook of mixed methods in social and behavioral research, SAGE publications.
• Cummings, M. P., & Temple, G. G. (2010). Broader incorporation of bioinformatics in education: opportunities and challenges. Briefings in bioinformatics, 11(6), 537-543. Doi: 10.1093/bib/bbq058.
• Eroğlu, S., & Bektaş, O. (2016). STEM eğitimi almış fen bilimleri öğretmenlerinin stem temelli ders etkinlikleri hakkındaki görüşleri. Eğitimde Nitel Araştırmalar, 4(3), 43-67.
• Form, D., & Lewitter, F. (2011). Ten simple rules for teaching bioinformatics at the high school level. PLoS computational biology, 7(10), e1002243.
• Gallardo-Alba, C., Grüning, B., & Serrano-Solano, B. (2021). A constructivist-based proposal for bioinformatics teaching practices during lockdown. PLoS Computational Biology, 17(5), e1008922.
• Hack, C., & Kendall, G. (2005). Bioinformatics: Current practice and future challenges for life science education. Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education, 33(2), 82-85.
• Hancock, R.D. & Algozzine, B. (2006). Doing case study research a practical guide for beginning researchers. New York: Teachers College Press.
• Houghton, C., Murphy, K., Meehan, B., Thomas, J., Brooker, D., & Casey, D. (2017). From screening to synthesis: using NVivo to enhance transparency in qualitative evidence synthesis. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 26(5-6), 873-881.
• Islam, M. M. (2013). Role of bioinformatics in developing country: Bangladesh. Current Trends in Technology & Science, 2(1), 160-165.
• Koch, I., & Fuellen, G. (2008). A review of bioinformatics education in Germany. Briefings in bioinformatics, 9(3), 232-242.
• Konak, M. A., & Sürmeli, H. (2021). Fen bilimleri öğretmenlerinin biyoteknolojiye yönelik tutumları ve biyoetik değerleri: biyoteknolojinin Renkleri Projesi. Türkiye Bilimsel Araştırmalar Dergisi, 6(2), 378-399.
• Kubiatko, M., & Haláková, Z. (2009). Slovak high school students’ attitudes to ICT using in biology lesson. Computers in human behavior, 25(3), 743-748.
• Kumari, D., & Kumar, R. (2014). Impact of biological big data in bioinformatics. Internation
• Machluf, Y., & Yarden, A. (2013). Integrating bioinformatics into senior high school: design principles and implications. Briefings in bioinformatics, 14(5), 648-660.
• Magana, A. J., Taleyarkhan, M., Alvarado, D. R., Kane, M., Springer, J., & Clase, K. (2014). A survey of scholarly literature describing the field of bioinformatics education and bioinformatics educational research. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 13(4), 607-623.
• Manzoor, S., Niazi, A., & Bongcam-Rudloff, E. (2017). A stepping stone to develop bioinformatics in Pakistan. EMBnet. journal, 23(1), 891.
• Marques, I., Almeida, P., Alves, R., Dias, M. J., Godinho, A., & Pereira-Leal, J. B. (2014). Bioinformatics projects supporting life-sciences learning in high schools. PLoS computational biology, 10(1), e1003404.
• Merriam, S.B. (2018). Nitel araştırma desen ve uygulama için bir rehber (S. Turan, Çev.). Ankara: Nobel Akademik Yayıncılık.
• Miles, M, B., & Huberman, A. M. (1994). Qualitative data analysis: An expanded Sourcebook. (2nd ed). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
• Mulder, N., Schwartz, R., Brazas, M. D., Brooksbank, C., Gaeta, B., Morgan, S. L., ... & Welch, L. (2018). The development and application of bioinformatics core competencies to improve bioinformatics training and education. PLoS computational biology, 14(2), e1005772.
• Neil Sarkar, I. (2010). Bioinformatics education in the 21st century. Briefings in bioinformatics, 11(6), 535-536.
• Patton, M. Q. (2005). Qualitative research. Encyclopedia of statistics in behavioral science.
• Ranganathan S (2005). Bioinformatics education—perspectives and challenges. PLoS Comput Biol 1, e52. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.0010052
• Špernjak, A., & Šorgo, A. (2009). Perspectives on the introduction of computer-supported real laboratory exercises into biology teaching in secondary schools: teachers as part of the problem. Problems of Education in the 21st Century, 14, 135.
• Špernjak, A., & Šorgo, A. (2018). Differences in acquired knowledge and attitudes achieved with traditional, computer-supported and virtual laboratory biology laboratory exercises. Journal of Biological Education, 52(2), 206-220.
• Tastan Bishop, Ö., Adebiyi, E. F., Alzohairy, A. M., Everett, D., Ghedira, K., Ghouila, A., ... & H3ABioNet Consortium, as members of The H3Africa Consortium). (2014). Bioinformatics education—perspectives and challenges out of Africa. Briefings in bioinformatics, 16(2), 355-364.
• Via, A., Blicher, T., Bongcam-Rudloff, E., Brazas, M. D., Brooksbank, C., Budd, A., ... & Attwood, T. K. (2013). Best practices in bioinformatics training for life scientists. Briefings in bioinformatics, 14(5), 528-537.
• Yang, A., Troup, M., & Ho, J. W. (2017). Scalability and validation of big data bioinformatics software. Computational and structural biotechnology journal, 15, 379-386.
• Yıldırım, A., & Şimşek, H. (2013). Sosyal bilimlerde nitel araştırma yöntemleri (9. Baskı). Ankara: Seçkin Yayıncılık.
• Yin, R. (2014). Case study research: design and methods. (5. Basım). California: Sage Publications.
• Zerman Kepceoğlu, G., Torun, B. & Pektaş, M. (2020). Fen bilgisi öğretmen ve öğretmen adaylarının biyoinformatik farkındalıkları. Kırşehir Eğitim Fakültesi Dergisi, 21(1), 595-628.