Spring 2020 ELIFF Recipient: Jonathan Pincus and Kimberly Ritterhoff
Human Anatomy Laboratory
What are the learning goals and outcomes for your proposed EL activity/program?
(1) Use anatomical terminology to follow verbal and written guidance for proper identification and exploration of structures within the human cadaver
(2) Identify gross anatomical structures in the human body: bone features, joint structures, muscles, nerves and the plexuses, blood vessels, organs and organ structures, brain and spinal cord components
(3) Explain anatomical knowledge on muscle actions and innervation as well as blood flow and joint actions
(4) Utilize anatomical relationships to predict the location and identification of structures
(5) Develop a full, three-dimensional, tactile understanding of soft tissues and their relationship to anatomical structures
(6) Effectively communicate with classmates by discussing, reviewing, and problem solving as a group (7) Demonstrate professional behavior in regards to donor confidentiality
(8) Demonstrate ethical behavior when working with and discussing structures within a cadaver
(9) Cultivate rigorous observation, description, accurate reporting of findings, and discuss the visual culture of anatomical illustration
(10) Reflect on unique visual perspectives and correlate to a perceived real life experience where multiple perspectives are needed to reach a conclusion / goal
(11) Reinforce knowledge of gross anatomy while exploring other issues such as focused attention and situational awareness
How will your EL activity/program enable active, hands-on, self-guided learning?
The laboratory course enables self-directed learning through a variety of methods and the addition of the visual arts experience will also allow the students to freely support their learning through creative means. The students are encouraged to find the structures listed in their laboratory manual by utilizing content received in the lecture course, guided explanation found in their lab manual, and guided prompts offered by the instructors and teaching assistants. The students work in small groups during these activities to use critical thinking and discussion to work through anatomical relationships for the correct identification of structures. The drawing experience will enable students to actively interpret their understanding of human structure and the anatomical relationships that guide their correct identification of structures. The students will have a risk-free opportunity to reinforce their anatomical knowledge by participating in open drawing sessions where they can interpret the human form by expressing the anatomical structure within. This component would be guided by techniques grounded in evidence-based cognitive thinking dispositions and thinking routines derived from adult learning theory to improve the core skills used during clinical examinations.
How will you ask students to reflect on what they learned through the EL activity/program?
Students will be asked to reflect on the use of the visual arts to refine their observational skills and ability to interpret the deep anatomical structure found beneath the surface anatomy. The reflection will be expressed in a short essay at the end of the semester and will require them to connect the structures identified in the human donors in the lab with the structures observed in visual artwork and human models. The students will also be prompted to make a real world connection to how these skills could be utilized during their work or service experiences and/or their future vocation.
How will you assess what your students learn as a result of participating in experiential learning?
The student’s learning will be assessed through several means. Their understanding and knowledge of anatomical content will be assessed through three practical exams in the cadaver laboratory with the use of human donors. A variety of structures will be tagged for students to identify and include prompted additional functional relevance regarding the action and innervation of muscles, blood flow direction and branching, articulation of bone features, and relationships of structures within organ systems. The use of the visual arts to support student’s learning of anatomy will be assessed through two surveys. One survey will be conducted at the start of the semester to gauge their current use of drawing to represent their understanding and knowledge of human anatomy and their experience of utilizing the visual arts to interpret the human experience. The post-experience survey will be conducted at the end of the semester to gauge their understanding of how the visual arts changed or altered how they viewed human structure and interpreted the content received. Questions will focus on whether or not they felt that their knowledge was reinforced and more efficiently recorded by the use of drawings. The post-experience survey will also include open-ended questions that allow students to respond on the opportunities to gain observational skills and better understand their unique perspective on how physical structure, function, and emotion can be portrayed through the visual arts.
How does your EL program/activity advance at least one or more of UD's institutional learning goals?
(Scholarship, Faith Traditions, Diversity, Community, Practical Wisdom, Critical Evaluation of Our Times, Vocation)
This course and additional visual arts activities will advance the student’s learning in two of the University’s Institutional Learning Goals; Practical Wisdom and Critical Evaluation of Our Times. The students taking this course are building a foundation of knowledge about the human body that they will use in future clinical programs for the Health Sciences. The use of visual arts in this type of pre-medical / clinical education to assess the impact on clinical and non-clinical skills will make our students more attractive candidates when pursuing their advanced degrees. The course will advance their understanding of practical wisdom by increasing their knowledge of anatomical structures and relationships in the human body. The use of human donors will offer students a direct, three-dimensional and tactile understanding of where structures in the human body are located and how they correlate to other tissues not typically focused on and/or identified. The introduction of exercises for the visual analysis of works of art and drawing activities have been proven to be beneficial, valued, and a cost-effective intervention to improve the core cognitive skills that are a key component of clinical diagnosis. The critical evaluation of our times will be enhanced through both the laboratory experience and visual arts experience throughout the course. In the cadaver laboratory, students will have the opportunity to view signs of aging, disease, and surgical repairs to anatomical structures. The students will reflect on how human structure changes over time through the normal aging process, the effects of lifestyle choices on the body, and how these changes to structure result in functional consequences. Students will also have the opportunity to view various surgical alterations to structures like joint replacements and cardiac bypass and will review how the structures were altered and the functions that were enhanced through such repairs. Furthermore, exploring connections between art and medicine will offer the students the additional benefit of cultivating empathy, developing greater tolerance for uncertainty, improving communication, and fostering wellness. These skills are necessary for our students to not only excel in, but drive the way we will analyze the human body and produce creative means for intervention and rehabilitation.
