Emergency Contraception and RU-486 (Mifepristone): Do Bioethical Discussions Improve Learning and Retention?

To systematically investigate whether the inclusion of a bioethical discussion improves the learning and retention of biological content, students in two sections of an introductory zoology class were taught the biology behind emergency contraception and RU-486. Students in one section of the course...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Advances in physiology education 2012-03, Vol.36 (1), p.34-41
Main Author: Bodensteiner, Karin J
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Bioethics
Bioethics - education
Biological Science Disciplines - education
Biological Science Disciplines - ethics
Biology
Birth control
College Students
Contraception
Contraception, Postcoital - ethics
Contraceptives, Postcoital, Synthetic - administration & dosage
Ethics
Feedback (Response)
Female
Health education
Higher Education
Humans
Instructional Effectiveness
Instructional Improvement
Introductory Courses
Learning
Male
Mifepristone - administration & dosage
Recall
Retention (Psychology)
Science Education
Science Instruction
Surveys
Teacher Educators
Teaching Methods
United States (Midwest)
Young Adult
Zoology
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Summary:To systematically investigate whether the inclusion of a bioethical discussion improves the learning and retention of biological content, students in two sections of an introductory zoology class were taught the biology behind emergency contraception and RU-486. Students in one section of the course participated in a bioethical discussion, whereas students in the other section participated in a content-only discussion. Pre- and postsurveys, response paragraphs, and a final exam were collected and used to examine the learning and retention of content knowledge. Results suggested that students who participated in a bioethical discussion of emergency contraception and RU-486 learned and retained information better than students who received content-only instruction. Interestingly, students who participated in the bioethical discussion also appeared to be more confident in their answers. The results of this study may inform the teaching practices and goals of science educators who would like to incorporate a discussion of bioethical issues into their curriculum but often feel that content coverage is paramount. (Contains 1 table and 2 footnotes.)
ISSN:1043-4046
1522-1229
DOI:10.1152/advan.00122.2011