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Teaching Botany for Adults with the Blended Learning Modality

Abstract:

In the area of biological sciences, teaching botany constitutes a fundamental contribution to understand the dynamics of living systems. Traditionally, this process has done in person with the help of field trips, visits to the herbarium and simulations in the classroom. However, little is known about how new information and communications technology would promote digital teaching environment for the development of academic skills. The present study focused on a training course on the introduction to botany of vascular plants present in the tropical dry forest, which used blended learning supported in constructivist activities using digital tools. Overall, the study showed that digital tools are used by participants in the development of autonomous and previous work. However, young adults showed low participation, being mature and older adults are the ones who stood out, regarding the development of activities and work in the blended learning modality. In addition, it was evidenced that older adults are who develop activities that demand a higher level of cognitive complexity. The results showed that there are few students who dropped out during their development. In conclusion, the results provide a basis for promoting digital instruction using blended learning. Furthermore, the study shows the effectiveness of digital tools for teaching botanical science.