Peer Review

Cell Size and Scale

Material Detail page

Reviewed:: Sep 6, 2019 by Biology

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Ratings

Overall Rating:

Content Quality:

Effectiveness:

Ease of Use:

Overview:: A simple animation tool from The Genetic Science Learning Center from the University of Utah that enables users to understand the size and scale of microscopic units using common cell components and structures. The visual representation of size and scale can be used by students and instructors alike to visualize things that are too small to see but are often discussed in biology. This tool can be used as an in-class demonstration for both high school and college introductory biology courses.
Type of Material:: Animation
Recommended Uses:: In class as a fast teacher-led demonstration As homework before class lecture on prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells.
Technical Requirements:: None needed.
Identify Major Learning Goals:: Students will gain an appreciation for the relative size of major cell types, viruses, molecules, and atoms. Students will learn the difference between different metric scales (mm vs. um vs. nm vs. pm).
Target Student Population:: This material is appropriate for use in high school or introductory college level biology classes.
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:: Students will need basic computer navigational skills (enter URL, click and drag bar). Otherwise, the interface is very user-friendly. Its use of amoebae, photoreceptor rods, lysosomes, adenine, methionine, etc. as examples indicates that understanding of the function of these components is a prerequisite for intended student understanding.

Content Quality

Rating:

Strengths:

Easy to use visualization tool.
Clearly demonstrates an often difficult concept.

Concerns:

None identified

Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool

Rating:

Strengths:

A useful tool which can be used to learn a lot in a very short period of time.
Some included information helps to clarify misconceptions students might have.
Demonstrates relationship between cell size and the metric scale Communicates ideas quickly

Concerns:

Learning objectives and prerequisite knowledge can be determined by the teacher, but are not made readily apparently in the material itself. There is no form of assessment included. It would be nice to see a few “check your understanding” questions added to the notes section below the animation, or even better, a short worksheet teachers can assign to students.

Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty

Rating:

Strengths:

Slider scale is easy to move and allows users to control the speed of animation.
Visuals are appealing.

Concerns:

Include short instructions on use such as "Use slider to adjust scale."

Other Issues and Comments:: No additional comments.
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