Educational Research and Reviews Vol. 7(3), pp.

61-71, 19 January, 2012

Available online at http://www.academicjournals.org/ERR
DOI: 10.5897/ERR11.205
ISSN 1990-3839 2012 Academic Journals

Full Length Research Paper

What makes biology learning difficult and effective:

Students views
Atilla imer
Fatih Faculty of Education, Karadeniz Technical University, Trabzon, Turkey. E-mail: cimeratilla@yahoo.com.
Accepted 30 November, 2011

The present study aims to determine the biological topics that students have difficulties learning, the
reasons why secondary school students have difficulties in learning biology, and ways to improve the
effectiveness of students biology learning. For these purposes, a self-administered questionnaire
including three open-ended questions was employed to collect the data. It was administered to 207 11th
grade students in the district of Rize, Turkey. The data were analyzed both qualitatively and
quantitatively. There were five topics that the students had the most difficulties learning: Matter cycles,
endocrine system and hormones, aerobic respiration, cell division, and genes and chromosomes. The
main reasons for learning difficulties were the nature of the topic, teachers style of teaching, students
learning and studying habits, students negative feelings and attitudes towards the topic and a lack of
resources. To overcome these difficulties and make their biology learning more effective, the
participants suggested such strategies as teaching biology through the use of visual materials,
teaching through practical work, reducing the content of the biology curriculum, using various study
techniques, teaching biology through connecting the topics with daily life, making biology learning
interesting, and increasing the number of biology questions in the university entrance examination. The
findings were discussed in relation to the relevant literature.
Key words: Biology teaching, Biology learning, learning difficulties, effective teaching, effective learning,
student views.
INTRODUCTION
Students' difficulties in learning biology have been
studied by various researchers across the world
(Johnstone and Mahmoud, 1980; Finley et al., 1982;
Tolman, 1982; Anderson et al., 1990; Seymour and
Longdon, 1991; Jennison and Reiss, 1991; Lazarowitz
and Penso, 1992; Bahar et al., 1999). Many concepts or
topics in biology, including water transport in plants,
protein synthesis, respiration and photosynthesis,
gaseous exchange, energy, cells, mitosis and meiosis,
organs, physiological processes, hormonal regulation,
oxygen transport, genetics, Mendelian genetics, genetic
engineering, and the central nervous system can be
perceived as difficult to learn by secondary school
students. Tekkaya et al. (2001) also found that
hormones, genes and chromosomes, mitosis and
meiosis, the nervous system, and mendelian genetics
were considered difficult concepts by secondary school

students. Experiencing difficulties in so many topics in

biology negatively affects students motivation and
achievement (zcan, 2003). Students difficulties with
many topics in biology have stimulated researchers to
investigate why students experience such difficulties and
how to overcome these difficulties.
There are many reasons why students have difficulties
in learning biological concepts (Lazarowitz and Penso,
1992; Tekkaya et al., 2001; imer, 2004; Zeidan, 2010).
The nature of science itself and its teaching methods are
among the reasons for the difficulties in learning science,
while according to Lazarowitz and Penso (1992), the
biological level of organization and the abstract level of
the concepts make learning biology difficult. Overloaded
biology curricula, the abstract and interdisciplinary nature
of biological concepts, and difficulties with the textbooks
are the other factors preventing students from learning

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Educ. Res. Rev.

biology effectively (Chiapetta and Fillman, 1998; Tekkaya

et al., 2001). Chiepetta and Fillman (1998) state that
overloaded biology curricula may not contribute to
students achievement and lead them to learn the
material through memorization. This, of course, prevents
meaningful learning. Designing learning environments
while ignoring students interests and expectations
causes several learning problems as well as decreasing
their interest in biology (Yzbalolu and Atav, 2004;
Roth et al., 2006; Zeidan, 2010). Fraser (1998) indicates
that there is a close relationship between students
perceptions of their classroom learning environment and
their success. Osborne and Collins (2001) also report
that students diminishing interest in learning science was
due to the curriculum content being overloaded and not
generally related to working life, the lack of discussion of
topics of interest, the absence of creative expression
opportunities, the alienation of science from society and
the prevalence of isolated science subjects. Another
reason reported by many researchers, specifically in
Turkey, is that due to the nature of biological science,
biology learning is generally based on memorization.
Biological science includes many abstract concepts,
events, topics and facts that students have to learn. This
makes it hard for students to learn them (Anderson et al.,
1990; Efe, 2002; zcan, 2003; imer, 2004; Saka, 2006;
Durmaz, 2007). Teachers styles of biology teaching and
teaching methods and techniques may also be factors
that affect students learning in biology (imer, 2004). If
students are not happy with the way that biology is
taught, they may show disinterest in and negative
attitudes towards biology and its teaching. Furthermore,
according to recent statistics from the University Entrance
Examination in Turkey, students answered on average
12.77 out of 30 science questions correctly (OSYM,
2008). This is equivalent to 42.6% of the total science
test. When average answers per subject are examined,
the percentage correct was 42.6 for physics, 46.4 for
chemistry and 38.1 for biology, making biology the
lowest-percentage subject for these students (Telli et al.,
2009). Having the lowest percentage of questions
answered correctly has been a concern among many
teachers, students and researchers in Turkey, who all
wonder why students have difficulties in answering
biology questions correctly on national exams. From this
perspective, there appears to be a clear need for further
and deeper insight into the factors that may cause low
achievement in biology. Also, in addition to determining
the factors that negatively affect students learning in
biology, understanding students views on what makes
their biology learning effective is crucial, as many
researchers suggest that in order to improve the quality
of teaching and learning in school, students views must
be taken into consideration by researchers, teacher
educators, schools and teachers (Fullan, 1991; Macbeath
and Mortimore, 2001; imer, 2004; Ekici, 2010). They
argue that what students say about teaching, learning and
schooling is not only worth listening to but provides an important

perhaps the most important foundation for thinking about

ways of improving teaching, learning and schools. For
instance, Phoenix (2000) states that student views of
teaching may reflect the ways that they learn best.
Indeed, schools that acknowledge the significance of
student views have found that these views can make a
substantial contribution to classroom management, to
learning and teaching, and to the school as a social and
learning place (Macbeath et al., 2000). It is thought that
how students perceive the learning environment in
biology affects their attitudes towards biology and its
learning (akrolu et al., 2003; Telli et al., 2009).
Therefore, understanding secondary school students
perceptions of biology will help policymakers, teachers
and teacher educators plan more effective teaching
activities that can help students learn biology better and
have more positive attitudes towards it.
Therefore, the aim of the current study is to determine
the biology topics that secondary school students have
the most difficulties learning and understanding, their
views of the reasons they have difficulties learning some
biological topics and the strategies or methods that can
make biology learning more effective. This will provide a
knowledge base for policy-makers and teacher educators
in the implementation of the new secondary biology
curriculum and textbooks which have been used since
the 2008 to 2009 academic year in Turkey. Knowing
students views of the factors affecting their learning and
suggestions on how to make biology teaching and
learning effective may facilitate the implementation of the
new curriculum and help policy-makers and teachers to
update it in line with students learning needs.
Additionally, teachers can see their weak and strong
areas regarding teaching biology.
The research questions investigated in this study are the
following:
1) Which biology topics do secondary school students
have difficulties learning?
2) What are secondary school students views of the
reasons they face difficulties in learning biology?
3) From the perspective of secondary school students,
what makes biology learning effective?
METHODOLOGY
Research design
The study was carried out with a mainly quantitative research
approach but used qualitative methods as well (Lincoln and Guba,
1985; Miles and Huberman, 1994; Cohen and Manion, 2000;
Cresswell, 2003; imer, 2004). There is a common belief that when
a combination of methods from both approaches is used, the
resulting combination would generate complementary results that
would add greater breadth and depth to the analysis than either one
could generate on its own (Patton, 1990). As the aim of this study
was to determine secondary school students views, this study
adopted a survey research design (Babbie, 1990; Cohen and
Manion, 2000; imer, 2004).

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63

Table 1. Demographic Information of the participants.

Type of School

Number of schools

General secondary school

Anatolia teacher secondary school
Anatolia secondary school
Science secondary school
Total

4
1
1
1
7

Participants
The participants were selected from secondary school students in
Rize province, Turkey. They were 207 students (grade 11) from
nine science classes at seven different secondary schools. Table 1
shows demographic information about the students chosen from
each school.
Data collection tool
As questionnaires have often been used to gather data from large
populations in educational research (Bell, 1999; Cohen and
Manion, 2000; Bryman, 2001), a self-administered questionnaire
developed by the researcher was used for this purpose. The
questionnaire used in this study involved two main parts. In the first
part, 38 topics covered in the secondary school biology curriculum
that the researcher initially examined and identified were listed to
help students recall them (Table 2) while answering the following
three questions:
1) Read the list of biological topics stated above and chose the five
that you found the most difficult to learn, and write their names
below.
2) Please write the possible reasons why you have found these
topics, or biology in general, difficult to learn and understand?
3) What do you think makes your biology learning effective?
The second part of the questionnaire sought to obtain demographic
information of the students, for example, the type of school and
their gender, to identify some contextual features. The
questionnaires validity was established by three researchers in the
field of biology education. They were asked whether each openended question was relevant to the aim of the research and
whether they were clear and easily understandable for secondary
school students. Revisions were made according to their comments
and suggestions.
When the questionnaire was ready to use, the researcher visited
the schools and personally applied them in the classrooms.
Therefore, all of the questionnaires given to the participant students
could be received back. Before the students started responding to
the questions in the questionnaire, the researcher explained the
purpose of the study and instructed students not to write their
names on the questionnaire. Thus, they were assured of strict
confidentiality of their responses. Therefore, the students felt free to
write what they thought when responding the questions. The
researchers presence and explanation during the data collection
stage increased the efficiency of the process and recovery rate.
Hence, all of the questionnaires were involved in the data analysis
process.
Data analysis
As both quantitative and qualitative data were obtained from the
student questionnaires in this study, data analysis was carried out

Gender
Girl Boy
58
53
22
19
14
18
9
14
103
104

Students in each school

f
%
111
53.6
41
19.8
32
15.4
23
11.2
207
100

both qualitatively and quantitatively. The responses to question 1

were analyzed quantitatively to identify descriptive statistics.
Descriptive statistics were used to determine the frequencies of
difficult biology topics as perceived by the secondary school
students.
Questions 2 and 3 were analyzed qualitatively. The responses were
categorized for each open-ended question to analyze them. Each
open-ended question was responded to by a different number of
students (question 1, 177; question 1, 163; and question 3, 179).
For each question, the responses of all questionnaires were listed
with the previously assigned number. The similarity of the
responses was checked. Accordingly, codes into which the
participants similar or identical responses would be grouped were
identified and named. Thus, these codes formed the categories.
Each category was carefully examined, and it was investigated
whether there emerged categories under each category that would
become subcategories. The number of individuals who gave
responses in each code and subcode was recorded. After several
revisions, the percentages were calculated and tabulated. Tables
were designed in a way that would best explain the reasons why
students have difficulties learning biological topics and describe the
strategies that make their learning in biology more effective.
The findings are provided in the form of a frequency (f) table,
which included direct quotes of students as well.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The findings of the study are organized according to the
research questions: the biology topics that the students
have difficulties learning; reasons the students have
difficulties learning those topics; and the students views
of the strategies that make their learning in biology
effective.
Five most difficult biology topics for the participant
students to learn
Of 207 participants, 177 answered the question about
their five most difficult biology topics. Table 3 shows the
results of question 1. The analyses of the data reveal that
five main topics predominated.
As shown in Table 3, the students stated that the topics
matter cycles, endocrine system and hormones, aerobic
respiration, cell division and genes and chromosomes
were the most difficult to learn. While matter cycle was
one of the five hardest topics listed by 60 students out of
177, endocrine system and hormones was chosen by 52
of them as one of the hardest topics to learn. The thirdmost prevalent topic was aerobic respiration, while the

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Educ. Res. Rev.

Table 2. The topics covered in the questionnaire.

No
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38

Topics
Inorganic compounds in living things (Water, Minerals)
Organic compounds in living things (proteins, carbohydrates, fats)
Structure and function of the cell
Cell division ( meiosis and mitosis)
Matter exchange in cell (active transportation and passive transportation)
Variation and classification of living things
Living things (Animals, plants, etc.,)
Matter cycles (water cycle, carbon cycle, nitrogenous cycle, phosphorous cycle)
Views of evolution of living things
Reproduction ((sexual and asexual)
Reproduction system in humans
Development and growth in plants
Development and growth in animals
Tissues ( epithelium, blood, muscle, etc.,)
Nervous system in humans (central and peripheral nervous system)
Endocrine system and hormones in humans
Support and movement in plants
Support and movement in humans
Digestive system and digestion in humans
Circulatory system in humans
Defense and immunity in humans
Respiratory system in humans
Excretion system in humans
Energy and energy types
Anaerobic respiration
Photosynthesis
Aerobic respiration
Nucleic acids
Genetic code
Protein synthesis
Mendel principals and applications
Genes and chromosomes
Mutation of genetic materials
Genetic disorders in humans
Variation and modification
Biotechnology
Gene cloning and cloning tools
Genetic engineering

Table 3. Biology topics students had difficulties to learn (n=177).

Rank
1
2
3
4
5

Biology topics students had difficulty with

Matter cycles
Endocrine system and hormones
Aerobic respiration
Cell division
Genes and chromosomes

f
60
52
46
43
39

fourth was cell division. Finally, the fifth-most difficult

topic, listed by 39 students, was genes and
chromosomes. Previous studies have reported difficulties
in similar topics among students (Johnstone and
Mahmoud, 1980; Finley et al., 1982; Anderson et al.,
1990; Lazarowitz and Penso, 1992; Sanders, 1993;
apa, 2000; Tekkaya et al., 2001; Tekkaya and Balc,
2003). Tekkaya et al. (2001), for instance, revealed that
endocrine system and hormones, cell division and genes
and chromosomes were the most difficult parts of the high
school biology curriculum because students perceived these

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65

Table 4. The main reasons for why the students had difficulties to learn biological (n=163).

Main category

The nature of the

topic

Sub-category
Based on memorization
Abstract topics
Including foreign / Latin words
Complex topics
Too detailed knowledge
So many concepts/knowledge to learn
The topics are forgotten quickly

Samples of the students quotations

requires too much memorization S107
..abstract to the difficulty of animationS12
Contains complex and foreign words..S14
Topics are too complex to understand S20
some issues are too deep and detailedS89
Too many subjects to be learnt S102
Issues are forgotten quicklyS6

Total
Not conduct practical works (experiments,
observation, lab. studies)
Teachers
teaching style of
biology

Not taught as associated with daily life

There is a laboratory, however we never use it. I

think we should do more observations in biology
lessons S116
We take information that we do not use in real
life, examples are not from the daily life and I do
not understand why we learn some topics. S16

16

Lack of subject knowledge

Our teacher does not have full mastery over the

topic, and just reads from the textbook S68

7
139

Do not study biology regularly

I have not repeat the topics day to dayS168

I do not solve enough questions.. S51
I do not study regularly S173

Do not listen to the teacher

..And we do not listen to the teacher S67

Negative attitudes towards biology lessons

A boring lecture. I am not interested in a lecture

S59

Negative attitudes toward some biology topics

.. I am not interested in the topic S98

Total
Material/ equipment
Lack of resources
and time

55

Teacher's teaching style... S17

Total
Students feelings
and attitudes
towards the topics

61

Lack of skills in teaching

Total

Students learning
and studying
habits

f*
73
33
28
23
11
10
12
190

Laboratory
Time of lesson

We cannot do experiments because the school

does not have the test tools and equipment. S201
we dont have laboratory S187
issues are too much and time is very limited
S45

Total

68

11
79
34
22
54
17
12
10
39

*: As the participants reported more than one reasons, the cumulative number is bigger than the number of the participants in the study.

concepts as abstract and complex. Lazarowitz and Penso

(1992) reported that high school students in Israel found
hormonal regulation, oxygen transport and physiological
processes difficult to learn.
Reasons for why the students have difficulties to
learn these topics in biology
Table 4 shows the collated responses to the reasons why

students had difficulties learning these topics in biology.

According to the data analysis, five main reasons
emerged: the nature of the topic, teachers style of
teaching biology, students learning and studying habits,
students negative feelings and attitudes towards the
topic, and a lack of resources.
The participants identified the nature of the topic itself as
the main reason for their difficulties in learning biology.
The main reasons for this were that biology includes that

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Educ. Res. Rev.

there are a lot of concepts, various biological events that

cannot be seen by the naked eye, some concepts are too
abstract, and that there are a lot of foreign/Latin words.
Moreover, as a discipline, biology encompasses a great
deal of topics, concepts and issues that students have to
learn. Similar findings are also reported by many studies
in Turkey (Tekkaya et al., 2001; Efe, 2002; Atlboz, 2004;
imer, 2004; Gerek, 2004; Yzbalolu and Atav,
2004; Durmaz, 2007). Those studies also reported that
the biology curriculum and biology textbooks in Turkish
secondary schools included very detailed knowledge and
covered topics or concepts that were difficult to learn and
use in their daily lives.
Many students in the study also added that the nature
of biology forces them to memorize biological facts in
order to learn them. Thus, memorization as a learning
strategy was common among the participants. Several
studies of Turkish biology teachers and students (Kaya
and Grbz, 2002; zcan, 2003; imer, 2004) have
reported that memorization is common among secondary
students as a biology-learning strategy. One reason for
this choice might be the way biology is taught. When
texts and classroom activities do not appear to be
relevant to students daily lives and do not include
practical work or experiments, students may consider
biology a science that just requires the memorization of
factual knowledge. When they think in this way, perhaps
students may not connect biology with their daily lives
(Science and Engineering Indicators Report, 1993; Roth
et al., 2006; Kidman, 2008).
The next factor affecting the students learning in
biology was the way in which it is taught. According to the
participants, biology lessons are generally carried out
through teachers lectures and can be identified as
teacher-centered lessons. Practical work and studentcentered activities in biology classes were merely used.
Another sub-factor related to the way biology is taught
was the lack of a relationship between what was taught in
the biology class and the participants daily lives. Many
participants stated that the biology lessons or teachers
could not help them to connect what they had learned in
the class and with their daily lives. This indicates that in
biology lessons, teachers just talk and transfer theoretical
or abstract knowledge and do not provide examples from
daily life. In other words, the students could not
understand why they were learning those topics or
concepts in biology, as they could not relate them with
their real lives. A lack of understanding the relationship
between what was taught in the class and students daily
lives makes learning biology hard for students. This
results in students losing their motivation to learn biology
and developing negative attitudes towards it. Kaya and
Grbz (2002) and imer (2004) reported similar findings
in their studies of secondary students.
Another sub-reason in this category for why students
had difficulties learning biology was teacher qualities. A
few of them indicated that teachers lack of mastery in

biology and teaching negatively affected their learning.

Biology teachers usually prefer to employ mainly
traditional teaching approaches and techniques (Yaman
and Soran, 2000; imer, 2004). Therefore, biology
lessons are mainly run in a teacher-centered manner:
teachers transfer the knowledge that they have and that
is written in the textbook without conducting studentcentered teaching activities. This, of course, has negative
effects on students attitudes towards biology and their
motivation to learn. Indeed, Zoller (2000) asserts that
teacher-centered or traditional lessons can be nonproductive and, in some cases, detrimental to student
learning. In addition, Lanier and Little (1986) claim that
traditional lessons are less likely to promote conceptual
understanding or to facilitate conceptual change and thus
are less likely to promote the development of technical
skills. Therefore, teachers competencies and knowledge
in both biology as a discipline and its teaching are crucial
for enhancing students learning. If teachers show
weaknesses in their knowledge of the subject, this might
create distrust in students of the teachers abilities and
knowledge (imer, 2004). Students may then not listen to
teachers in the lessons and might develop negative
attitudes towards both biology and its teachers.
Students learning and studying habits were one of the
reasons they had difficulties in learning biology. Many of
them stated that they did not study biology regularly,
review previously taught materials, or work on biology
questions on a regular basis. In addition, a few of them
added that they were not interested in what the teachers
were teaching or saying in the class and thus did not
listen to the teacher. As a result, in such a context,
students cannot learn biology properly. This might result
from the teachers style of teaching, the nature of topic
being taught or the students lack of interest in biology
due to its perception as verbal, theoretical knowledge
with the least number of questions on the student
selection and placement examination for university
entrance in Turkey.
The final reason students have difficulties in learning
biology, according to many participants, was the paucity
of facilities, materials and lesson time. Some of them
reported that as their schools did not have proper biology
laboratories or enough teaching and learning materials,
they did not carry out biology lessons as they expected.
They stated that they could not conduct biological
experiments or observations in the laboratories or
student-centered learning activities. All of these factors
result in biology lessons being taught via a teachercentered style or lectures (imer, 2004). As a result,
biology lessons become boring and uninteresting for
students. In the end, this negatively affects students
learning in biology. In addition, a few students indicated
that lesson time for biology was insufficient. Although
there were many topics, concepts or issues in the
textbook and curriculum, the time allotted to teach them
was not enough compared to the other science disciplines,

imer

such as physics or chemistry. To cover the whole

textbook and curriculum in the term, teachers sometime
had to teach biology in a quick way and to try to cover
many concepts or issues in a one-hour lesson. Teaching
so quickly may, of course, negatively affect students
learning biology, as they could not go into detail, ask
many questions or conduct practical experiments.
In summary, the participants of this study listed many
important reasons for why they had difficulties in learning
biology. These were the nature of the topic, teachers
style of teaching biology, students learning and studying
habits, students negative feelings and attitudes towards
the topic and lack of resources.
The students views on what makes biology learning
effective
Of 207 students, 163 responded to the question, What
do you think makes your biology learning effective?
Their responses are summarized in Table 5. The
students suggested various strategies or techniques for
making their learning in biology effective: teaching
biology through the use of visual materials, teaching
through practical work, reducing the content of the
biology curriculum, using various study techniques,
teaching biology through connecting the topics with daily
life, making biology teaching interesting, and increasing
the number of biology questions in the university
entrance examination. While some of these suggestions
are related to teachers, some are related to students
themselves, and some relate to the biology curriculum.
A great majority of the students suggested that in biology
teaching, teachers should use visual materials. As
biology includes many abstract concepts and phenomena
that require observation, the participants indicated that
they should see what they are learning. Therefore, they
stated that in biology, if the teachers use various visual
teaching and learning materials and tools, such as
figures, models, computer simulations, videos, 3-D
materials, and real-life objects, both the teaching and
learning of biology may become more effective (imer,
2004, 2007). Because they defined effectiveness in
learning as retention of knowledge for a long time, they
expressed that teaching biology through visual materials
and tools helps them retain biological knowledge for a
long time and thus remember or recall the information
much more easily. Previous researches also promote
teachers using visual materials like pictures, posters,
models, and computers in the lessons, which were found
to be effective for making the lessons attractive and
interesting for students (Mistler-Jackson and Songer,
2000; Peat and Fernandez, 2000). Recent studies have
indicated that students remember best those ideas or
concepts that are presented in a way to relate their
sensory channels, for example, audio and visual
representations, pictures, charts, models and multimedia

67

(Reid, 1990; Joyce et al., 2000; Nayar and Pushpam,

2000; imer, 2004). Teaching with visual materials can
provide more concrete meaning to words, show
connections and relationships among ideas explicitly,
provide a useful channel of communication and strong
verbal messages and memorable images in students
minds, and make lessons more interesting to students.
(Cyrs, 1997; Harlen, 1999; Newton, 2002; imer, 2004,
2007). In the end, this makes their biology learning more
effective.
More than half of the students indicated that in biology
lessons, practical work should be done regularly. This
indicates that current biology lessons include too few
practical work sessions. These might be in the form of
experiments, observations, field studies or projects.
Rosenshine (1997) and Trowbridge et al. (2000)
emphasize that for students to comprehend new ideas or
concepts and construct their own knowledge, they need
to see clear examples of what the new ideas or skills
represent. As stated above, because biology includes
many abstract concepts and phenomena that require
observation, students need to see what they are learning
or to experiment with what is being taught. Practical work
may help their learning through convincing them what
they are being taught really exists or happens in the real
world (Dillon, 2008). When students engage in practical
work, they can test, rethink and reconstruct their ideas
and thoughts (imer, 2007). Also, as students engage in
learning while conducting experiments or observations,
they can understand the topics and recall them easily
because practical work allows students to learn the topics
through various cognitive activities, for example, doing,
watching, touching, talking, thinking, and discussing.
Furthermore, Joyce et al. (2000) strongly emphasize that
in learning new materials or skills, students should be
given extensive opportunities to manipulate the
environment because, according to Piaget (1978),
students cognitive structures will grow only when they
initiate their own learning experiences. Therefore, the
participants suggested that teaching through practical
work in biology lessons might make biology teaching and
their learning more effective.
Many students indicated that reducing the content of the
biology curriculum may increase the quality of their
learning. According to the participants, as biology
contains many Latin and foreign terms and many
concepts, definitions, terms, principals, and topics, it
makes it difficult for them to learn biology effectively.
Additionally, in Turkish textbooks, Turkish biologists and
textbook writers prefer to use foreign, usually English,
words in explaining biological knowledge instead of their
Turkish translations or counterparts. This makes it even
harder and more complex for students to understand
biology. In the end, students cannot learn biological
knowledge in a meaningful way and retain it in their
memory. Instead, they try to memorize biological
knowledge without thinking about their meaning and

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Educ. Res. Rev.

Table 5. The students suggestions for making Biology learning effective.

Sub category
Not using foreign / Latin words
Take out of detailed knowledge from
topic
Not teaching too much detail
Increase time for teaching

The students quotations

Foreign terms should not be used but Turkish words should be used instead...S76

Figures

Lessons would be more effective with figures. S14

..If biological events are shown visually on the computer to students, knowledge becomes
more permanent.. S97
Videos related to the topics should be watched in the lessons.S13
better learning takes place if three-dimensional objects are used S107
..Real life objects related to the topics should be shown in the lessons. S4
Teacher must use technology in the lessons...S23

92

Experiments and observation should be done... S46

Experiments can be conducted through group work or inquiry activities can be done by
studentsS157
research assignments can be given to studentsS61

83

58

Taking or dictating notes

Solving biology questions increases retention in our mind.S93

I think we can learn biology if we study on a regular basis.S6
By repeating every day, we can learn biology easily...S117
taking notes or the teachers dictating the key issues facilitates our learningS17

Teaching the topics in an interesting

and fun way
Explaining foreign words

It is the first thing for teachers to make the lessons interesting for students to learn effectively
S138
Foreign words should be described and explained more S121

44

teaching
biology
through
connecting the topics with daily
life

Connecting the topics with the real

world
Establishing the links between the
topics

Teaching biology with real life examples would be very effective for students to learn biology.
S49

Increasing the number of biology

questions in the university
entrance examination

Increasing the number

questions at OSS

Although there are a lot of topics in biology, few questions are asked at OSS S8

Main category

Reducing the content of biology

curriculum

Computer simulations,
Teaching biology through using
visual materials

Teaching through practical work

Video
3-D materials
Real life objects
Technologic instruments

Experiment / observation
inquiry
Solving questions

Students using
techniques

making
interesting

various

biology

study

teaching

Repeating regularly

of

the

Some issues involve too much detail. These must be removed. S126

f*

101

If the topics are not explained in detail, I think we will understand better. S19
It should be given more time for teaching the topics in biologyS53

42

The topics should be taught in a way that they are connected to each other.S27

*: As the students gave more than one answer, the cumulative total of the frequencies is bigger than 163.

17

imer

functions. Sometimes, biology learning feels like learning

a foreign language. Because there are many topics in
biology and because teachers try to explain everything in
detail, as dictated by the curriculum, students cannot
connect the topics to each other and comprehend the
knowledge. Since biology has many topics, the weekly
lesson time is not enough to teach all of the topics in a
proper way. To cover all of the topics in the curriculum,
therefore, teachers try to teach biology quickly without
engaging in practical activities or involving students in the
lessons. As the students are introduced to many
concepts, terms, or information in too short a time, they
may not learn biology properly. Tekkaya et al. (2001) and
imer (2004) also reported similar problems related to
the content of the biology curriculum in Turkish
secondary schools. For this reason, they explained that
the weekly lesson time is not enough to teach such
abstract topics or concepts in a detailed way. As a result,
students tend to learn biology through memorization
without proper understanding. Therefore, the students in
this study suggest that if biology contained fewer topics
and foreign words but had more weekly lesson time, they
could learn biology much more easily and effectively.
About one-third of the students stated that making their
learning effective in biology is related to their study skills
or behaviors. They suggested various study strategies or
tactics to make biology learning effective, such as solving
questions, and regular reviews and taking notes. The
students believe that if they solve various biology
questions related to the biology topics being taught, they
can learn biology more effectively because while solving
questions, they can review the topics again and learn
new ones as well. Additionally, sometimes solving
questions require students to make connections between
topics or with other disciplines as well. This facilitates
their learning. As stated earlier, because the students
consider biology a verbal science and indicate that
biology contains many verbal and abstract concepts, in
order for the students to retain the information, repeating
and reviewing the knowledge regularly helps the students
recall biological knowledge much more easily. In addition,
the students suggested that taking notes or the teachers
dictating the key concepts or issues in the lessons helps
them learn biology effectively. The teachers dictating
notes about the key issues helps them focus on what
needs to be learned instead of trying to learn everything
in the textbook or the teachers lesson. Studying the
notes being dictated by the teacher may save time for
students, leaving extra time for repeating and reviewing
and for studying for the exams. Similar findings are also
reported by imer (2004).
Another suggestion made by the students for making
biology learning effective is that it should be taught by
connecting the topics with daily life. Regarding making
connections between the topic and students daily lives,
Trumper (2006) stated that a better fit between the
curriculum and students' interests could lead to better

69

cognitive and affective outcomes as well as increased

enrollment in the sciences. Schaefer (1979) indicates that
if the concepts taught at school are not related to
students everyday lives, they may fail to use them
adequately outside the school. Therefore, their
knowledge may remain in the form of acquired isolated
knowledge packages. Effective learning requires
students to apply newly acquired concepts or skills to
different contexts (Gallagher, 2000; Yip, 2001; imer,
2007). As a result, they can achieve higher learning
outcomes and use their knowledge or skills to solve the
problems in their everyday lives. Therefore, as the
students expressed, teachers should provide examples
from the real world or students daily lives so students
can recognize easily what is being taught. Because they
are familiar with them or can see them around them in
their daily lives, they can understand and learn those
topics easily. Also, the students suggested that while
teaching biology, teachers should establish links between
the topics. This can help them see the big picture and
learn in a more meaningful way.
Several students also indicated that teachers should
make biology lessons interesting and attractive for
students to learn more effectively. As stated earlier,
biology includes much abstract and verbal knowledge
and insufficient weekly lesson times, so biology lessons
are run in a quick way and are mostly teacher centered
(imer, 2004). In addition, using so many foreign words
with less or limited explanation or definition also
decreases students attention to and interest in biology
lessons. This makes biology lessons for students
unattractive, irrelevant, meaningless and boring. They
develop negative attitudes towards biology and its
learning. As a result, they may fail to achieve highly in
biology classes or exams. Many researchers indicate that
there is link between students attitudes towards biology
and their learning environment (Adolphe et al., 2003;
Chuang and Cheng, 2003; akrolu et al., 2003; Roth et
al., 2006; Prokop et al., 2007; Zeidan, 2010). Therefore,
as the participants suggested, teachers should try to
make biology lessons interesting, fun and attractive.
When teachers make the instruction personally more
meaningful and relevant to students lives and more
enjoyable, interesting, and challenging, students have a
higher intrinsic motivation to learn (Brophy, 1987; imer,
2007; McCombs, 2011). Forsyth and McMillan (1991)
emphasize that variety in teaching activities revitalizes
students' involvement in the course and their motivation.
Teachers might accomplish this by using visual materials,
teaching through practical work, giving examples from
students daily lives, linking the topics to each other and
explaining foreign terms or vocabulary more.
Finally, the students suggested that there should be
more biology questions on the university entrance
examination, as having a small number of biology
questions on the examination decreases students
motivation to study biology. This negative side effect of

70

Educ. Res. Rev.

the university entrance examination on students attitudes

and motivation to learn biology has previously been
reported in Turkey (imer, 2004; Yzbalolu and Atav,
2004; Telli et al., 2009; Pehlivan and Kseolu, 2010).
The university entrance examination covers the schools
subjects, but the number of questions from each school
subject differs. The categories Turkish Literature and
Grammar and Mathematics have the highest number of
questions. Students usually allot their preparation time for
the exam according the number for questions of each
subject. In this context, as biology is one of the school
subjects with the lowest number of questions on the
university entrance examination, even though it has one
of the most detailed curricula, many students put less
emphasis on it. Instead, they prefer to study the other
subjects, such as Mathematics, Physics or Turkish
Literature and Grammar. This, in turn, negatively affects
their learning and achievement in biology in school
(imer, 2004). Thus, Sencar and Erylmaz (2004)
reported that few Turkish high school students preferred
biology as their favorite subject. For these reasons, as
suggested by the students, if there were more biology
questions on the university entrance examination, they
might become more interested in learning biology and
then put more focus and energy toward it.
CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS
Overall, this study sought to determine the biological
topics that students have difficulties learning, the reasons
students have difficulties learning biology and the ways
students could learn biology more effectively. Each
student chose five biological topics that were the most
difficult to learn. The five most prevalent topics were
matter cycles, endocrine system and hormones, aerobic
respiration, cell division, and genes and chromosomes.
The students listed several reasons for having difficulties
learning biology. Among these, the nature of the topic,
teachers style of teaching biology, students learning and
studying habits, students negative feelings and attitudes
towards the topic and lack of resources predominated. To
overcome these difficulties and make their biology
learning effective, the participants suggested that
teachers teach biology through the use of visual
materials, conducting practical experiments, connecting
the topics with daily life, and making biology teaching
interesting. They also proposed that the content of
biology curricula be reduced and that the number of
biology questions in the university entrance examination
be increased. Finally, they also suggested that students
use various study techniques in order to be successful in
biology.
The students views reported here seem to contain
valuable information for those interested in the biology
teaching process, such as teachers, schools, policymakers and researchers. They should consider these

views in designing the curricula, textbooks, teaching

activities and materials and teacher educational
processes. Otherwise, their reform attempts may not be
successful.
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