Team Based Learning in
Animal Physiology
Mary Kate Worden, PhD
Dept of Neuroscience, UVA SOM
BIOL 3230 Fall 2010
87 students in 13 teams, including
Megan Barron and Jake McLean
http://teambasedlearning.org
The Team Based Learning Collaborative
Team Based Learning™
Team-Based Learning (TBL) is an increasingly-popular form of
small group learning.
The four components of TBL are permanent teams, readiness
assurance, application activities, and peer evaluation.
TBL is possible even in large theater-style classrooms with
fixed seats.
TBL teachers report high levels of student attendance,
preparation, participation and critical thinking.
TBL students report being more motivated and enjoying class
more, even when the subject is not in their major.
Forming the teams
• Students complete a survey on the first day of
class
• Teams (5-7 members) are balanced with
novice learners (0-1 previous course in
biology) and expert learners (4-5 previous
courses, Bio majors).
• Teams are permanent and sit together in class.
TBL Course Design
A. independent learning prior to class
B. in-class “readiness assurance testing” of
individuals (iRAT) and teams (group RAT)
C. in-class “application activities”
problem solving of real world problems
D. Online peer evaluations
hold students accountable for preparation
and class participation in the team
Animal Physiology (BIOL 3230)
Examples of Learning Objectives for
pre-class reading
Define the following terms: natural selection,
adaptation, adaptive significance, homeostasis,
acclimation, acclimatization
List the two central questions of physiology. Explain
why knowledge of one does not imply knowledge of
the other.
Distinguish between those animals that exhibit
conformity to external conditions and those that
exhibit regulation to external conditions. Explain how
a salmon shows conformity with respect to one
parameter and regulation with respect to another.
List five different time frames over which physiology
changes and distinguish between them.
TBL Course Design
A. independent learning prior to class
B. in-class “readiness assurance testing” of
individuals (iRAT) and teams (group RAT)
C. in-class “application activities”
problem solving of real world problems
D. Online peer evaluations
hold students accountable for preparation
and class participation in the team
Individual RAT (10 questions)
Q2. You buy a new fish for your aquarium and bring it home
sealed in a bag of water. The seller advises you to float
the sealed closed bag in your home aquarium for half an
hour before you release the fish in order to help it adjust
to the temperature of the aquarium. The physiological
process the fish undergoes
A. is adaptation
B. is homeostasis
C. has adaptive significance
D. is acclimation
E. is acclimatization
Individual RAT (10 questions)
Q2. You buy a new fish for your aquarium and bring it home
sealed in a bag of water. The seller advises you to float
the sealed closed bag in your home aquarium for half an
hour before you release the fish in order to help it adjust
to the temperature of the aquarium. The physiological
process the fish undergoes
A. is adaptation
B. is homeostasis
C. has adaptive significance
D. is acclimation
E. is acclimatization
Exam is on hardcopy
Collect responses using iClicker.
Group RAT (same 10 questions)
Q2. You buy a new fish for your aquarium and bring it home
sealed in a bag of water. The seller advises you to float
the sealed closed bag in your home aquarium for half an
hour before you release the fish in order to help it adjust
to the temperature of the aquarium. The physiological
process the fish undergoes
A. is adaptation
B. is homeostasis
C. has adaptive significance
D. is acclimation
E. is acclimatization
Group RAT (same 10 questions)
Q2. You buy a new fish for your aquarium and bring it home
sealed in a bag of water. The seller advises you to float
the sealed closed bag in your home aquarium for half an
hour before you release the fish in order to help it adjust
to the temperature of the aquarium. The physiological
process the fish undergoes
A. is adaptation
B. is homeostasis
C. has adaptive significance
D. is acclimation
E. is acclimatization
Using same exam on hardcopy
Collect responses using scratch cards
Immediate feedback on assessment
using scratch cards
Students get immediate feedback on
• which is the correct answer
• how well they grasp the learning
objectives
• whether the team discussion was on
track
• which team members had a good
grasp on the learning objectives and
who made the key arguments.
Immediate feedback on assessment
using scratch cards
Peer to peer learning occurs in
discussion.
Teams are invested in doing well as a
group. (Group scores were worth 65%
of the quiz grade, iRAT scores worth
35%)
Energy levels and in-class
engagement are high.
“Social loafing” is minimized by the
fact that peer evaluations will factor
into grades.
Follow-up to IRAT/GRAT quiz
• Written appeals on quiz questions before
deadline
poorly worded question
multiple answers/no answers are correct
Q or A does not match the LOs or text
High level of passion in the appeals process!
TBL Course Design
A. independent learning prior to class
B. in-class “readiness assurance testing” of
individuals (iRAT) and teams (group RAT)
C. in-class “application activities”
problem solving of real world problems
D. Online peer evaluations
hold students accountable for preparation
and class participation in the team
Reading and discussing the primary
scientific literature in class
• Abridged versions of articles from Journal of
Experimental Biology (intro, methods, results
including key figures) ~ 1.5 pages single spaced
• Set of 3- 5 MCQs about the data and its
interpretation, all related to the LOs
• Students debate in teams and arrive at group
answers (small group discussion)
This is similar to reviewing a scientific paper, only in
a more structured format and in a group setting.
Voting on the “right answers” in class
• All teams vote simultaneously by holding up a
flag (color coded for A,B,C,D,E)
• Instructor asks teams to justify their votes,
encouraging debates between teams (large group
discussion)
• Instructor explains her choice for best answer,
and reveals the authors’ answers.
Advantages of TBL format
• Students very willing to speak up because they have
“previewed” their arguments in the group
• High energy in class, teams are invested in drawing the
correct conclusions based on their foundational
knowledge
• Instructor illustrates that the primary literature is not
always perfect, authors can be wrong or illogical,
reviewers can be faulty. Science is messy and advances
through debate.
• Class attendance was very high, even without grading.
TBL Course Design
A. independent learning prior to class
B. in-class “readiness assurance testing” of
individuals (iRAT) and teams (group RAT)
C. in-class “application activities”
problem solving of real world problems
D. Online peer evaluations
hold students accountable for preparation
and class participation in the team15% of grade
Course evaluations for BIOL 3230
Would you have preferred Animal Physiology to be taught in
lecture based format, rather than TBL?
5.8% lecture based
83.5% TBL
10.6% no preference
If this were a two semester course, how likely would you be to
enroll?
73% very likely
16.5% somewhat likely
5.8% not sure at this time
4.7% unlikely
Course evaluations for BIOL 3230
Animal Physiology
Other biology courses Fall 2010
(Agree or Strongly agree)
(Agree or Strongly agree)
This course developed
your ability to apply the
basic concepts presented
in new or different
contexts:
98%
84%
94%
45%
This course developed
your ability to propose
new research questions,
models, and
experiments:
94%
63%
I learned a great deal in
this course.
96%
84%
This course developed
your ability to interpret
graphs, data sets or
experimental results:
TBL enables large enrollment courses to have the
interactive class discussions characteristic
of small seminars.
14
N= 560 Cell Biology
and genetics
12
10
Number of
Biology Dept
courses offered
in Fall 2010
N= 372 Genetics and
Mol. Biol
8
6
N=216 Cell Biology
4
2
0
0-35
36-100
100-200
Class size (# students)
>200
TBL enables large enrollment courses to have
the interactive class discussions characteristic
of small seminars.
As of 3/30/2011:
614 Biology majors
(Graduating 280 majors
this year)
Faculty size constant for
40 years.
On course evaluation: True or false
I have experienced difficulty in enrolling
in Biology Department courses I want to
take because classes fill to capacity
before I sign up.
85% True 15% false
My estimate: TBL would be workable with
25 teams of 7 students = 175 students