Peer Review

Embryology for K12 Students

Material Detail page

Reviewed:: Jul 25, 2003 by Teacher Education

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Content Quality:

Effectiveness:

Ease of Use:

Overview:: This website was developed to help K-12 students and teachers gain understanding
of human embryonic development through a series of Web pages with a
description, interesting facts, images, and a glossary of key vocabulary to
describe human development. Weekly developmental stages are linked to materials
that can be used for elementary, middle and high school/college curriculum.
The resources cover human development from fertilization through week 12. The
work has been started, but is incomplete for weeks 13-38 and birth. For those
wanting to see dynamic processes of development (and have a reasonably quick
computer connection) digitized movies show how changes occur. The mirror URL
compares embryonic development of fly, worm, zebrafish, frog, chicken, mouse,
rat, and rabbit.
Type of Material:: Collection of visual images and videos with annotations. Materials include an
introduction, reading units, computer activities, CD and digital videos, list of
weekly objectives, learning activities, text overviews and numerous references
and articles about human embryologic development.
Recommended Uses:: Possible uses include:
1. Study of human embryonic development in an Advanced Placement Biology and/or
an introductory college biology course. The materials could be used for
introduction of the subject through comparison of development in animals,
particularly in human, mouse, and frog, and as resource for Internet updates on
research in the field of human embryology.
2. At the K6 level, the material may be useful for comparison of growth in
different organisms and introduction of key terms related to the development of
the human embryo. The site, at the discreption of the teacher and considering
the grade level, is a content-rich source of information for younger students.
3. The link for more detailed embryology notes for Years 7-12 is ideal for
students in high school biology who wish to further explore human embryonic
development.
Technical Requirements:: Videos require Quicktime plug-in. It is best to be on a high speed Internet
connection that many K12 schools have. Since some of the material consists of
streaming video, the download time may be considerable on a slow phone line.
Identify Major Learning Goals:: Resources will help students understand how scientists use stages as a way of
measuring and of comparing changes that occur in embryos of different animals.

1. Students will understand abnormalities that occur during each weekly stage of
human embryonic development.
2. Students will understand the physiological changes that occur during each
weekly stage of development.
3. Students will understand the structural changes that occur during each weekly
stage of development.
4. Students will note and compare physiological and structural changes during
the entire period of the development of the human embryo.
5. Students will use digital technology and web links to view weekly
developmental changes in the human embryo.
Target Student Population:: For K-12 students and their teachers, although in the United States, this
content is covered mainly in the elementary school years.
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:: Students and teachers must be familiar with using computers and how to link to
different websites. The teacher may need to assist students (especially K-6)
with the key concepts, introductory materials, and links to the videos of human
development. Middle and high school students may need further explanations of
key concepts, text overviews, and some of the references and articles.

Content Quality

Rating:
Strengths:: According to the National Science Education Standards, as a result of activities
in grades K-4, all students should develop understanding of the characteristics
of organisms and the life cycles of organisms. And yet when asked where frogs
come from, middle school children show poor understanding of the relationship
between tadpoles and frogs. Middle school children explain that the
metamorphosis of caterpillars into butterflies provides an example of evolution
from one species into another. The problem is that our children fail to
understand the changes that happen during normal cycles for the continuity of
life.

Dr. Mark Hill provides a comprehensive collection of resources showing how eggs
are fertilized and organisms undergo substantial changes as the fertilized egg
grows and develops the systems characteristic of the adult organism. Starting
with what interests students most, namely themselves, visual and explanatory
resources show how the single cell grows into an embryo during the first weeks
of development with many different cell types creating different shapes to do
jobs in the body. Comparisons are made to similar processes that occur in
various animal embryos. An outstanding movie of mouse embryo growth starts out
similar to human embryo growth but gradually takes on the shape and shows bones
of a mouse. The author got permission from the Center for In Vivo Microscopy
and other image sources to deliver relevant visual information from one central
location. The website contains a significant amount of information about human
embryonic development. Extensive digital images are exceptional.
Concerns:: Students (K-12) and teachers may need additional assistance and guidance using
the website. This site would be good for teachers to practice finding ways to
clarify and emphasize the learning objectives. Some language and spelling
problems should be fixed. For example,
http://anatomy.med.unsw.edu.au/CBL/Embryo/K12/limb.htm writes that -
Snakes used to have legs and have lost them, by loosing the signals that form
their limbs (should be losing, not loosing).
You first have paddles for hands, and cells die between your fingers so that you
have separate fingers digits (clarify fingers or digits).
Some people have cells that have not been totally lost webbing between their
fingers or toes (clarify lost webbing between).
The annotations with the images are important to help children and their
teachers notice the important content. However, because this content is most
taught at the Elementary level, a recommendation to improve the resources would
be to simplify explanations and reduce the vocabulary, leaving the visual
information in a more prominent position.

Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool

Rating:
Strengths:: A picture is worth a thousand words for teaching. Most students have seen
tadpoles develop into frogs and caterpillars develop into butterflies, but they
don't associate such changes with their own development. With these resources
children can now see the development of human and mouse babies. The content
organization by weekly segments helps students more fully understand the timing
of stages of human development. The website has excellent materials for K6
students with additional links for Year 7-12 students with detailed embryology
notes for each week.
Concerns:: When images are lined up as in human stages 10-13 at
http://anatomy.med.unsw.edu.au/CBL/Embryo/K12/week4.htm comparisons become easy.
But when viewing the images of the human stages it is difficult to navigate to a
page that shows similar stages or video of development in other organisms for
comparison.
More direct comparisons of human and mouse development would be valuable for
elementary children, especially since a main learning goal is to know that other
organisms have offspring. Although the timing differs, the processes are
similar in different organisms. To improve the resource for children, the
author may want to create a page with the human stages at the left
(http://anatomy.med.unsw.edu.au/CBL/Embryo/wwwhuman/Stages/Stages.htm) and the
mouse video in a right side panel.
(http://anatomy.med.unsw.edu.au/CBL/Embryo/Movies/Growth.mov)
Some of the curriculum for Grades 7-12 may be too complex. The material is more
appropriate for Advance Placement Biology and college biology courses.
Students will need additional guidance and support by their teacher.

Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty

Rating:
Strengths:: What makes this site easy to use for both students and faculty are the links
that are easily accessible. The curriculum is very complete and provides an
extensive source of information. The site provides many different types of
materials that students should find interesting. Visual resources for meaningful
comparisons are posted. The set showing stages 7-23 at
http://anatomy.med.unsw.edu.au/CBL/Embryo/wwwhuman/Stages/Stages.htm is
especially effective.
Concerns:: It is not always clear which images will show more detail or a video when
selected. Sometimes images from within the Embryology for K12 Students web lead
out of that area to resources that are more appropriate for college students -
and it becomes difficult to return to the set that is annotated for K-12.
The Quicktime movie 340 Kb link at
http://anatomy.med.unsw.edu.au/CBL/Embryo/Movies/Movies.htm under the image
labeled Movie of mouse embryo growth shows human, not a mouse embryo movie. The
mouse movie shows up if the mouse image is selected, but there is no indication
for the user.

A few links such as http://flybrain.neurobio.arizona.edu/Flybrain/
http://anatomy.med.unsw.edu.au/CBL/Embryo/Movies/week1/earlydiv.htm and
http://vflylab.calstatela.edu/edesktop/VirtApps/VflyLab/IntroVflyLab.html do not
work.

Many of the image labels and some content are not appropriate for K-12. In some
cases, terms are linked to make new words meaningful (Auricle of external ear)
but in other cases, no clue as to meaning is provided (external acoustic
meatus).

Some image labels are difficult to read. (eye at
http://anatomy.med.unsw.edu.au/CBL/Embryo/wwwhuman/Stages/Stage19L.htm)

Other Issues and Comments:: The website has great potential for enhancing teaching and learning but content
may be too difficult for most Grade 7-12 science students. The material is very
easy to access and first time users should have little trouble. The links work
well with little lag time from one link to another. The idea of students in
different countries seeing what happens in other countries in relationship to
curriculum and academic levels of learning is outstanding. But to be most
useful, it is necessary for teachers to select from among these resources and to
create a sequence appropriate for specific learning goals.
Since the story of development is most appropriate for early elementary, a guide
for k-6 children or a mirror site where K-6 students and teachers could
navigate among only the most appropriate resources would be a welcome addition.
Development of such a resource would be a wonerful project for K-6 science
teacher education.
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