MGT300

CUCMS field trips give students insight on biology

March 13, 2011

THE Biology syllabus offered in the Centre for Foundation in Science Studies at the Cyberjaya University College of Medical Sciences focuses on the best possible approach to help enhance learning experiences toward the Biology subject.

It also ensures that students are not overly buried or inundated with a smorgasbord of biological facts, theories, processes and concepts, without getting a full grasp of the key concepts and understanding of the subject learned.

While it cannot do away with the facts and theories embedded in the subject, the centre places great emphasis on student learning process such as infusion of Student Centered Team-based Learning and Project-Based Learning mode.

Through this, students learn to self-direct their own learning by sourcing for informative resources, conducting research and exploring reading materials other than their textbook for a given project.

In one of the lessons that used the Project-Based Learning approach, the students were acquired to apply cooperative learning and team work to design and construct a replica that illustrated the mechanism of the receptor-mediated endocytosis using any material available.

Materials used by students ranged from recycled materials, like mineral water bottle, tuna can, cotton swabs, pistachio nut shell, coconut shell and other household materials.

Some even sourced for edible substances and food colouring in constructing the pathway model.

Poster presentation was another example of group projects with the purpose being to expose the students to present their experimental results in a scientific way in the format of a poster, an alternative to their lab report.

Development of critical thinking and reasoning power are necessary for the students in their participation of the laboratory activities and poster presentation.

The centre also organised an educational outfield trip for students to allow them to learn with nature and echo their university theme of "Nurturing the Passion to Care" for the environment.

Recently, CUCMS students had an opportunity to visit Ulu Gombak Biodiversity Centre under the care of Professor Dr Rosli Hashim from the Institute of Biological Sciences, University Malaya.

A bird watching session was also led by Prof Rosli to expose the students to be alert of their chirping sounds, as their presence were normally obscured by the trees. The identification and knowing the medicinal values of the plants collected were certainly informative for both the students as well as the CUCMS staff.