Applied statistics as an educational tool for undergraduate genetics students within the curriculum of biostatistics and experimental design, informed by data and insights from the Institute of Human Genetics

The conventional teaching of statistics has been subject to constant criticism over time. According to researchers, these methods provide students with few tools applicable to their future professional careers. This monotonous and loosely connected teaching to genetics contributes to increased negat...

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Main Authors:	Villalba, Eliseo G., Bogado, Rodrigo E. F., Rolón, Esteban E., Gamarra, Marcelo
Format:	Online
Language:	English
Published:	Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Químicas y Naturales 2024
Subjects:	Genetics Applied Statistics Education Genética Estadística Aplicada Enseñanza de la Estadística
Online Access:	https://www.fceqyn.unam.edu.ar/recyt/index.php/recyt/article/view/809

id	ojs-article-809
record_format	ojs
institution	Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Quimicas y Naturales
collection	Revista de Ciencia y Tecnologia RECyT
language	English
topic	Genetics Applied Statistics Education Genética Estadística Aplicada Enseñanza de la Estadística
spellingShingle	Genetics Applied Statistics Education Genética Estadística Aplicada Enseñanza de la Estadística Villalba, Eliseo G. Bogado, Rodrigo E. F. Rolón, Esteban E. Gamarra, Marcelo Applied statistics as an educational tool for undergraduate genetics students within the curriculum of biostatistics and experimental design, informed by data and insights from the Institute of Human Genetics
topic_facet	Genetics Applied Statistics Education Genética Estadística Aplicada Enseñanza de la Estadística
format	Online
author	Villalba, Eliseo G. Bogado, Rodrigo E. F. Rolón, Esteban E. Gamarra, Marcelo
author_facet	Villalba, Eliseo G. Bogado, Rodrigo E. F. Rolón, Esteban E. Gamarra, Marcelo
author_sort	Villalba, Eliseo G.
title	Applied statistics as an educational tool for undergraduate genetics students within the curriculum of biostatistics and experimental design, informed by data and insights from the Institute of Human Genetics
title_short	Applied statistics as an educational tool for undergraduate genetics students within the curriculum of biostatistics and experimental design, informed by data and insights from the Institute of Human Genetics
title_full	Applied statistics as an educational tool for undergraduate genetics students within the curriculum of biostatistics and experimental design, informed by data and insights from the Institute of Human Genetics
title_fullStr	Applied statistics as an educational tool for undergraduate genetics students within the curriculum of biostatistics and experimental design, informed by data and insights from the Institute of Human Genetics
title_full_unstemmed	Applied statistics as an educational tool for undergraduate genetics students within the curriculum of biostatistics and experimental design, informed by data and insights from the Institute of Human Genetics
title_sort	applied statistics as an educational tool for undergraduate genetics students within the curriculum of biostatistics and experimental design, informed by data and insights from the institute of human genetics
title_alt	Estadística aplicada como herramienta didáctica para alumnos de Licenciatura en Genética en la Cátedra de Bioestadística y Diseño Experimental basados en datos e informaciones brindadas por el Instituto de Genética Humana
description	The conventional teaching of statistics has been subject to constant criticism over time. According to researchers, these methods provide students with few tools applicable to their future professional careers. This monotonous and loosely connected teaching to genetics contributes to increased negative attitudes towards this discipline and a higher failure rate. Furthermore, concepts are generally taught from a purely formal approach, lacking real-world examples that students can relate to in their future work in the field of genetics. At the National University of Misiones (UNaM), "Biostatistics and Experimental Design" is crucial for Genetics Bachelor's students. Despite covering descriptive, inferential, and multivariate statistics, the dropout rate has become a significant issue. Almost half of enrolled students fail to regularize the subject, and many do not pass it in the first examination sessions. To address this challenge, collaboration between the University and the Human Genetics Institute (IGeHM) was sought. IGeHM promotes genetic education and focuses on topics directly related to the profile of a geneticist, including research on genetic diseases such as cancer. Cancer risk analysis involves estimating the probabilities of carrying a genetic variant and evaluating risks based on individual and family factors. IGeHM collects data from cancer patients, generating a variety of relevant variables. The aim of this work was to increase the rate of regular students in Biostatistics and Experimental Design and stimulate greater interest by using real data provided by IGeHM related to cancer. The methodology used was a mixed approach, combining qualitative and quantitative methods, with a descriptive and exploratory scope. Data were obtained from student surveys and analysis of approval rates. According to our surveys, most students had little or no knowledge of statistics before taking the course (76%), and only a minority had experience with health and genetics-related statistics (15%). A lack of understanding of key statistical concepts was also observed (50%). This highlights the need for more effective statistics teaching in the context of genetics. The collaboration with IGeHM has been enriching by providing real data related to cancer. This collaboration has led to increased student participation, achieving more meaningful learning observed thus far. In conclusion, it was proven that the strategy was beneficial for improving statistics learning in the context of genetics, contributing to the increased rate of regular students (11% increase), and enriching pedagogical devices to achieve more real-world-linked learning. In this context, further research is considered to continue refining teaching strategies and achieve a greater impact on student performance.
publisher	Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Químicas y Naturales
publishDate	2024
url	https://www.fceqyn.unam.edu.ar/recyt/index.php/recyt/article/view/809
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spelling	ojs-article-8092024-02-22T14:14:45Z Applied statistics as an educational tool for undergraduate genetics students within the curriculum of biostatistics and experimental design, informed by data and insights from the Institute of Human Genetics Estadística aplicada como herramienta didáctica para alumnos de Licenciatura en Genética en la Cátedra de Bioestadística y Diseño Experimental basados en datos e informaciones brindadas por el Instituto de Genética Humana Villalba, Eliseo G. Bogado, Rodrigo E. F. Rolón, Esteban E. Gamarra, Marcelo Genetics Applied Statistics Education Genética Estadística Aplicada Enseñanza de la Estadística The conventional teaching of statistics has been subject to constant criticism over time. According to researchers, these methods provide students with few tools applicable to their future professional careers. This monotonous and loosely connected teaching to genetics contributes to increased negative attitudes towards this discipline and a higher failure rate. Furthermore, concepts are generally taught from a purely formal approach, lacking real-world examples that students can relate to in their future work in the field of genetics. At the National University of Misiones (UNaM), "Biostatistics and Experimental Design" is crucial for Genetics Bachelor's students. Despite covering descriptive, inferential, and multivariate statistics, the dropout rate has become a significant issue. Almost half of enrolled students fail to regularize the subject, and many do not pass it in the first examination sessions. To address this challenge, collaboration between the University and the Human Genetics Institute (IGeHM) was sought. IGeHM promotes genetic education and focuses on topics directly related to the profile of a geneticist, including research on genetic diseases such as cancer. Cancer risk analysis involves estimating the probabilities of carrying a genetic variant and evaluating risks based on individual and family factors. IGeHM collects data from cancer patients, generating a variety of relevant variables. The aim of this work was to increase the rate of regular students in Biostatistics and Experimental Design and stimulate greater interest by using real data provided by IGeHM related to cancer. The methodology used was a mixed approach, combining qualitative and quantitative methods, with a descriptive and exploratory scope. Data were obtained from student surveys and analysis of approval rates. According to our surveys, most students had little or no knowledge of statistics before taking the course (76%), and only a minority had experience with health and genetics-related statistics (15%). A lack of understanding of key statistical concepts was also observed (50%). This highlights the need for more effective statistics teaching in the context of genetics. The collaboration with IGeHM has been enriching by providing real data related to cancer. This collaboration has led to increased student participation, achieving more meaningful learning observed thus far. In conclusion, it was proven that the strategy was beneficial for improving statistics learning in the context of genetics, contributing to the increased rate of regular students (11% increase), and enriching pedagogical devices to achieve more real-world-linked learning. In this context, further research is considered to continue refining teaching strategies and achieve a greater impact on student performance. La enseñanza tradicional de la estadística ha sido objeto de críticas constantes a lo largo del tiempo, según investigadores estos métodos proporcionan a los estudiantes pocas herramientas necesarias para ser aplicadas en su futura carrera profesional. Esta enseñanza monótona y con poca vinculación a la genética contribuye a incrementar actitudes negativas hacia esta disciplina y aumentar la tasa de desaprobados. Por otra parte, en general se enseñan los conceptos desde un enfoque puramente formal, careciendo de ejemplos del mundo real que los estudiantes puedan relacionar con su futuro trabajo en el campo de la genética. En la Universidad Nacional de Misiones, “Bioestadística y Diseño Experimental” es fundamental para los estudiantes de Licenciatura en Genética. Esta materia abarca desde la estadística descriptiva, inferencial y estadística multivariada. Sin embargo, la tasa de abandono se ha convertido en problemas significativos para la carrera; casi la mitad de los alumnos inscritos no logra regularizar la asignatura, y muchos de ellos no la aprueban en las primeras mesas de examen. Para abordar esta problemática, se buscó colaboración entre la Universidad y el Instituto de Genética Humana (IGeHM). El IGeHM fomenta la educación en genética y aborda temas directamente relacionados con el perfil de un genetista. Esto incluye la investigación sobre enfermedades genéticas como el cáncer. El análisis del riesgo del cáncer implica estimar las probabilidades de ser portador de una variante genética y evaluar los riesgos basados en factores individuales y familiares. El IGeHM recopila datos de pacientes con cáncer generando una variedad de variables relevantes. Este trabajo tuvo como objetivo principal incrementar la tasa de alumnos regulares en Bioestadística y Diseño Experimental y despertar un mayor interés mediante la utilización de datos reales proporcionados por el IGeHM en relación al cáncer. La metodología utilizada fue un enfoque mixto combinando métodos cualitativos y cuantitativos, con un alcance descriptivo y exploratorio. Los datos se obtuvieron de encuestas a estudiantes y análisis de las tasas de aprobación. Según nuestras encuestas la mayoría de los estudiantes tenían un conocimiento nulo o bajo saberes sobre estadística antes de cursar la asignatura (76%), y sólo una minoría ha tenido experiencia con estadísticas relacionadas con la salud y genética (15%). También se observó una falta de comprensión de conceptos estadísticos claves (50%). Esto destaca la necesidad de una enseñanza más efectiva de la estadística en el contexto de la genética. La colaboración con el IGeHM ha sido enriquecedora al proporcionar datos reales relacionados con el cáncer. Esta colaboración ha llevado a una mayor participación de los estudiantes logrando aprendizajes más significativos observados hasta el momento. En conclusión se comprobó que la estrategia fue beneficiosa para mejorar los aprendizajes de la estadística en el contexto de la genética; logrando así contribuir al aumento en la tasa de regulares (11% de aumento), y al enriquecimiento de los dispositivos pedagógicos para lograr aprendizaje más vinculado al mundo real. En este contexto se considera continuar investigando para seguir perfeccionando las estrategias didácticas y así lograr un mayor impacto en el rendimiento de los estudiantes. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Químicas y Naturales 2024-02-07 info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion application/pdf text/html https://www.fceqyn.unam.edu.ar/recyt/index.php/recyt/article/view/809 Argentine Journal of Science and Technology; Vol. 40 No. Supl. 1 (2024); 47-48 Revista de Ciencia y Tecnología; Vol. 40 Núm. Supl. 1 (2024); 47-48 1851-7587 0329-8922 eng https://www.fceqyn.unam.edu.ar/recyt/index.php/recyt/article/view/809/846 https://www.fceqyn.unam.edu.ar/recyt/index.php/recyt/article/view/809/847 Derechos de autor 2023 Eliseo G. Villalba, Rodrigo E. F. Bogado, Esteban E. Rolón https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ar/

Applied statistics as an educational tool for undergraduate genetics students within the curriculum of biostatistics and experimental design, informed by data and insights from the Institute of Human Genetics

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