Educatio biologiae, No. 6., 2020.
Stručni rad
https://doi.org/10.32633/eb.6.5
Teaching the topic Human nutrition through learning by research and basic principles of choice theory and quality school
Ana Petelinec
orcid.org/0000-0001-5260-8227
; Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Prirodoslovno-matematički fakultet, Biološki odsjek
Ema Nikša
; Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Prirodoslovno-matematički fakultet, Biološki odsjek
Dominik Grudiček
; Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Prirodoslovno-matematički fakultet, Biološki odsjek
Mirela Sertić Perić
; Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Prirodoslovno-matematički fakultet, Biološki odsjek
Sažetak
Malnutrition is a growing problem in modern societies and is already occurring among children and adolescents. The main goal of this study was to point out the methods and forms of teaching that can be used to raise awareness of the importance of healthy nutrition among primary school students. Student research on the nutrition of fifth and seventh grade elementary school students was conducted to investigate the daily meals and the diversity of students’ nutrition. Based on the research results, by adapting teaching activities to students' interests, students were guided in learning about healthy eating habits. The results of student research showed that students who participated in the study daily consumed at least three meals and at least one type of fruit or vegetable. We link these findings to previous research explaining that children's and young people's eating habits are greatly influenced by various environmental factors, such as parents' eating habits, traditions and media. The results of the student research served as a basis for further teaching on the topic of healthy human nutrition, i.e. for building predicted biological concepts and student attitudes, and for developing the ability of applying the acquired knowledge about nutrition on everyday life examples. During the teaching activities, students expressed their interest in the topic of healthy nutrition and in developing healthier eating habits. We are of opinion that this could be achieved by applying the basic principles of quality school and theory of choice during teaching, which is based on students independently choosing their future behavior and/or on correcting their existing habits, based on information they independently collect and process. In one part of this research, the teaching content was adjusted to the student interests, which resulted in increased student activity, pointing to the positive effects of applying the principles of quality school and choice theory in teaching biology. We suggest that student participation in creating lessons would probably help to create a better relationship between students and teachers and a more positive learning environment, which is also one of the quality school basic settings. In addition, greater student involvement in creating lessons can support building (positive) student attitudes or encourage positive changes in behavior (food choices) of students. Furthermore, based on the results of this research, we suggest that teachers record student activity in detail during classes. It could help them in self-assessment of their work, as well as in assessing student interest in certain teaching topics and forms of work.
Ključne riječi
student nutrition; biology teaching; student research; choice of possibilities
Hrčak ID:
254821
URI
Datum izdavanja:
27.12.2020.
Posjeta: 2.471 *