Building a Better Understanding of Equine Anatomy Through Integrated Learning
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The University of Maine DigitalCommons@UMaine Honors College Spring 2019 Building a Better Understanding of Equine Anatomy Through Integrated Learning Emily Gorney University of Maine Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/honors Part of the Animal Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Gorney, Emily, "Building a Better Understanding of Equine Anatomy Through Integrated Learning" (2019). Honors College. 522. https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/honors/522 This Honors Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@UMaine. It has been accepted for inclusion in Honors College by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UMaine. For more information, please contact [email protected]. BUILDING A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF EQUINE ANATOMY THROUGH INTEGRATED LEARNING by Emily Gorney A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for a Degree with Honors (Animal Science) The Honors College University of Maine May 2019 Advisory Committee: Robert Causey, Associate Professor of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Advisor Colt Knight, Assistant Professor of Extension - State Livestock Specialist Anne Lichtenwalner, Associate Professor of Animal and Veterinary Sciences Julia McGuire, Lecturer in Biology Edith Elwood, Adjunct Assistant Professor in Sociology and Preceptor in the Honors College ABSTRACT Most people tend to have horses as their first contact with livestock animals. They are usually more common to see or interact with than cows, sheep, or other farm animals. This makes them a good starting animal for students learning about livestock, as well as the fact that they can be used for show, for work, or as a pet, making the equine industry a big one. While models have been used to teach students in topics such as architecture, cycles, and human muscles, little published research was found on the topic of having students build models of equine anatomy and physiology. Using hands-on methods of teaching can lead to a better understanding of a topic, as well as increasing levels of other skills important to students, like teamwork or problem-solving. To understand how students learn when constructing a model, we had two groups of two high school students with some previous knowledge of horses take a pre-test, build a model of a horse’s leg out of PVC pipe, and take a post-test, then answer metacognitive questions about the process. All of the students increased their scores and understanding of equine anatomy, and most of the students enjoyed learning in this manner. The kits we made for the students to put together could easily be made and used as a lesson in a classroom, or in a club, such as 4H. However, more research is needed to measure the model’s effectiveness as a learning tool across a wider variety of students of different ages, genders, and levels of knowledge. The workshop and tests can be made easier or more challenging, and other parts of the body or other animals can be used as the basis for the model. With a better understanding of anatomy and physiology, equine owners, veterinarians, racing trainers, and others involved in the industry can prevent injuries and increase the quality of life for horses. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank Dr. Causey for all of his help with this thesis. Thank you for allowing me to work with the PVC model, and for working with me on my project. Thank you to Julia McGuire for inspiring me during the Honors tutorial class, for helping me with the IRB application process, and for helping me to figure out how to take my ideas to the next level and make them Honors worthy. Thanks to all of the students working on the project before me, including Kasey Fitch with the hind legs, Rachel Keating with the fore legs, Jaime Stukey with the serratus ventralis, Helen Crawford with the muscular sling of the thorax, Heather Woodbury with the spine, Arianna Goulatis with the ribs, Ericka Malley with the skull and neck, Kourtney Cole with the neck muscles, Amanda Mayhew with the nuchal ligament, Libby Williams and Marie Barnes with the epaxial muscles, and Zandalee Toothaker with the intercostal muscles and legs. I would also like to thank all of my committee members Edith Pratt, Colt Knight, and Anne Lictenwalner for the help with the different aspects of this project. Thank you to Megan Demers, Natasha McGowan, and Amya Tucker for helping to build the kits, practice putting them together, and working with me to get things done. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................. 1 The Problem ........................................................................................................... 1 A Possible Solution ................................................................................................ 2 Similar Projects ...................................................................................................... 3 What We Hope to Learn ........................................................................................ 4 HYPOTHESIS AND OBJECTIVE ................................................................................... 6 MATERIALS AND METHODS........................................................................................ 7 Materials ................................................................................................................ 7 Building the Legs ................................................................................................... 9 Attaching the Pieces ............................................................................................. 14 The Building Workshop ....................................................................................... 17 Qualitative Coding Process .................................................................................. 26 RESULTS ........................................................................................................................ 28 DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS ........................................................................... 37 Study Limitations and Curriculum Changes ........................................................ 42 Conclusion ........................................................................................................... 44 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................ 45 APPENDICES ………..................................................................................................... 47 APPENDIX A: Pre-test ................................................................................................... 48 APPENDIX B: Post-test .................................................................................................. 50 APPENDIX C: Reflection Questions .............................................................................. 52 v APPENDIX D: Test Answers .......................................................................................... 53 APPENDIX E: IRB Approval ......................................................................................... 54 APPENDIX F: Student Answers ..................................................................................... 55 Question 2 ............................................................................................................ 54 Question 3 (Pre-test) ............................................................................................ 54 Question 3 (Post-test) ........................................................................................... 55 Reflection Questions ............................................................................................ 55 AUTHORS BIOGRAPHY .............................................................................................. 58 vi LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES Figure 1. The Rigid workstation vice. 8 Figure 2. The drill, drill bits, saw, & screws. 8 Figure 3. Some of the PVC pieces used (from left to right: two PVC 2” P Traps, two PVC 2” 45-degree elbows, four PVC 2” T Junctions, and a 3” x 2” PVC coupling). 8 Figure 4: Cutting one of the T junctions. 10 Figure 5: The P trap piece elbow being cut. 10 Figure 6: Markings indicating where to drill holes on the 5” PVC piece. 11 Figure 7: Markings indicating where the holes are drilled on the T junctions. 12 Figure 8: Drilling the holes in the 18” piece. 13 Figure 9: The holes drilled in the P trap piece. 13 Figure 10. Where the screws are placed on the T junctions. 14 Figure 11. Our practice model (top) and Toothaker’s simple model (bottom). 17 Figure 12. The image from the pre- and post-tests 20 Figure 13. The setup for each group. 21 Figure 14. Group 1 threading the fishing line. 22 Figure 15. Group 2 comparing their model to ours. 22 Figure 16. The rope options and fishing line. 23 Figure 17. Group 1 pulling the rope through. 24 Figure 18. Group 2 pulling the rope through. 24 Figure 19. Final Product: Group 1 model (left) and Group 2 model (right). 25 Figure 20. Bloom’s Taxonomy chart 27 Figure 21. Pre-test vs. post-test scores. 28 vii Table 1. Correct answers for Q1 of the pre- and post-tests from each student 29 Table 2. Percent change of the students’ scores from pre-test to post-test 33 Table 3. Bloom’s taxonomy levels for question 1 35 Table 4. Bloom’s taxonomy levels for question 2 35 viii INTRODUCTION The Problem Equine injuries can potentially cost owners a lot