Exploring Undergraduate Biochemistry Students' Gesture Production Through an Embodied Framework

Interpreting three-dimensional models of biological macromolecules is a key skill in biochemistry, closely tied to students' visuospatial abilities. As students interact with these models and explain biochemical concepts, they often use gesture to complement verbal descriptions. Here, we utiliz...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:CBE life sciences education 2024-06, Vol.23 (2), p.ar16
Main Authors: Randa, Lora, Wang, Song, Poolos, Zoe, Figueroa, Vanna, Bridgeman, Anna, Bussey, Thomas, Sung, Rou-Jia
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biochemistry - education
General s and
Gestures
Humans
Students
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Summary:Interpreting three-dimensional models of biological macromolecules is a key skill in biochemistry, closely tied to students' visuospatial abilities. As students interact with these models and explain biochemical concepts, they often use gesture to complement verbal descriptions. Here, we utilize an embodied cognition-based approach to characterize undergraduate students' gesture production as they described and interpreted an augmented reality (AR) model of potassium channel structure and function. Our analysis uncovered two emergent patterns of gesture production employed by students, as well as common sets of gestures linked across categories of biochemistry content. Additionally, we present three cases that highlight changes in gesture production following interaction with a 3D AR visualization. Together, these observations highlight the importance of attending to gesture in learner-centered pedagogies in undergraduate biochemistry education.
ISSN:1931-7913
1931-7913
DOI:10.1187/cbe.23-06-0106