Personal microbiome analysis improves student engagement and interest in Immunology, Molecular Biology, and Genomics undergraduate courses.

ABSTRACT: A critical area of emphasis for science educators is the identification of effective means of teaching and engaging undergraduate students. Personal microbiome analysis is a means of identifying the microbial communities found on or in our body. We hypothesized the use of personal microbiome analysis in the classroom could improve science education by making courses more applied and engaging for undergraduate students. We determined to test this prediction in three Brigham Young University undergraduate courses: Immunology, Advanced Molecular Biology Laboratory, and Genomics. These three courses have a two-week microbiome unit and students during the 2016 semester students could submit their own personal microbiome kit or use the demo data, whereas during the 2017 semester students were gi

SUBMITTER: Weber KS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5894996 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature