The COVID-19 pandemic that started in 2020 forced a rapid change in university teaching, with large numbers of courses switching to distance learning with very little time for preparation. Courses involving many practical elements and field excursions required particular care if students were to fulfil planned learning outcomes. Here, we present our experiences in teaching field botany in 2020 and 2021. Using a range of methods and tools to introduce students to the subject, promote self-learning and reflection and give rapid and regular feedback, we were able to produce a course that allowed students to achieve the intended learning outcomes and that obtained similarly positive student evaluations to previous years. The course and its outcomes were further improved in 2021. We describe how we structured field botany as a distance course in order that we could give the best possible learning experience for the students. Finally, we reflect on how digital tools can aid teaching such subjects in the future, in a world where public knowledge of natural history is declining.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8757578 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/aobpla/plab079 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Synergistic effects of PGPRs and fertilizer amendments on improving the yield and productivity of Canola (Brassica napus L.).
BMC Plant Biol
January 2025
Department of Botany and Microbiology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia.
Background: Organic fertilizers are safer and more eco-friendly than chemical fertilizers; hence, organic fertilizers can be used to support sustainable farming. The effects of PGPRs are manifold in agriculture, especially in monoculture crops, where the soil needs to be modified to increase germination, yield, and disease resistance. The objective of this study was to assess the effects of PGPRs combined with fertilizer on the yield and productivity of canola.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEfficient adsorptive removal of Congo Red dye using activated carbon derived from Spathodea campanulata flowers.
Sci Rep
January 2025
Department of Chemical Engineering, Manipal Institute of Technology, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka, 576104, India.
This report investigates the preparation, characterization, and application of activated carbon derived from Spathodea campanulata flowers (SCAC) to remove Congo Red (CR) dye from aqueous streams. SCAC was synthesized using orthophosphoric acid activation which yielded a mesoporous material with a specific surface area of (986.41 m/g), significantly exceeding values reported for flower-derived activated carbons in the available literature.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGreen synthesized FeNPs ameliorate drought stress in Spinacia oleracea L. through improved photosynthetic capacity, redox balance, and antioxidant defense.
Sci Rep
January 2025
Department of Botany, Lahore College for Women University, Lahore, Pakistan.
The present study was designed to highlight the ameliorative role of iron nanoparticles (FeNPs) against drought stress in spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.) plants. A pot experiment was performed in two-way completely randomize design with three replicates.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnhanced photocatalytic dye detoxification by banana peel derived enzyme inherited ZnO/g-CN nanocomposite: Validation by soil health and seed germination analyses.
Int J Biol Macromol
January 2025
PG & Research Department of Physics, AVVM Sri Pushpam College (Autonomous), [Affiliated to Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirappalli], Poondi, Thanjavur 613503, Tamil Nadu, India. Electronic address:
Development of bio-supported photocatalysts has become a pressing need in the field of environmental remediation. This work reports the synthesis of bio-enzyme (from banana peels) inherited (ZnO/g-CN) nanocomposite by simple soft chemical method and its photocatalytic degradation ability against the mixed dye (Methylene blue (MB) + Rhodamine-B (RhB)) under UV irradiation. Synthesized nanoparticles were characterized using experimental techniques XRD, FESEM, TEM, EDAX, XPS, UV-vis-NIR spectroscopy and FTIR.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEthnobotany of vascular plants use, conservation and management practice in the homegardens by the people of Dawuro in Southwestern Ethiopia.
J Ethnobiol Ethnomed
January 2025
Department of Biology, College of Natural and Computational Science, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia.
Background: Homegardens (HGs) are well-time-honored traditional land use systems in small plots of land with purposely designed intricate structure and a mixture of planted vascular plants (VPs) for different purposes. Hence, the present study was initiated to investigate the ethnobotanical information of vascular plants of homegardens and their use, conservation and management practice by the people of Dawuro in southwestern Ethiopia.
Methods: A total of 162 farmer informants were selected and interviewed within a distance of < 2 km, 2-4 km and > 4 km between the natural forest and homegardens, and 0.
Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!