Mapping the core concepts of physiology across Australian university curricula.

Core concepts in physiology, designed by physiology educators to promote improved learning and teaching, have existed for over a decade. This study aimed to investigate the extent to which a set of 15 core concepts of physiology (developed by Michael and McFarland, U.S.

A blended learning exercise physiology theory module that supports student autonomy and improves academic performance.

A limited number of studies have explored the impact of blended exercise physiology theory curricula on student learning and experience. This study aimed to investigate the impact of an exercise physiology blended learning theory module on student performance, engagement, and perceptions. The module, which comprised a range of elements (student guide, lecturer-recorded videos, supplementary videos, formative quizzes, workshops, and discussion forum), was implemented in a third-year subject taken by students in nonspecialist undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degrees.

Teaching students to explain the pathophysiology of diseases to lay audiences with a scaffold that supports student choice.

Expert educators in science argue that science graduates are often lacking skills in effectively communicating scientific information to lay audiences. To address this, we designed a project, Communicating Disease, for final-year undergraduate human pathophysiology students. Students chose a disease, a relevant nonscientific target audience, and a mode of communication and produced a communiqué designed to educate the audience on the pathophysiology of the disease.

Reflex ankle stiffness is inversely correlated with natural body sway.

We aimed to determine whether effective ankle stiffness (EAS), measured during slow unperceived perturbations of stance, is related to natural anterior-posterior body sway. Because the perturbations are not perceived, any neural component of the response to perturbation is assumed to be "reflex", in the broad sense of an involuntary response to a stimulus. Subjects stood on a force platform for three 10-min trials.

The effectiveness of separating theory and practicum as a conduit to learning physiology.

Many conventional science courses contain subjects embedded with laboratory-based activities. However, research on the benefits of positioning the practicals within the theory subject or developing them distinctly from the theory is largely absent. This report compared results in a physiology theory subject among three different cohorts of students: those taking the theory subject alone, those taking it concurrent with a physiology practicum subject, and those who previously took the subject when it had practicums embedded within the one subject.