Assistant Professor University of Hartford, United States
Introduction:: Introduction and Challenge Statement: Biomaterials are essential components in Biomedical Engineering education. One of the key challenges in biomaterials education is the complex nature of the materials and the interdisciplinary nature of the field, which encompasses concepts from materials science, chemistry, biology, and engineering. Pedagogical strategies such as the Jigsaw II collaborative learning technique[1] foster active student participation, engagement, and accountability, as students are responsible for mastering a particular aspect of the material and sharing their knowledge with their peers. This technique also promotes critical thinking and problem-solving skills, as students are required to analyze information from different sources and perspectives. In addition, the technique provides opportunities for collaboration and peer-to-peer learning, which would be beneficial in complex learning topics such as Biomaterials Science. Here, the Jigsaw II collaborative learning technique was implemented as an effective pedagogical approach to teaching hydrogels as a curricular activity in a semester-long undergraduate-level biomaterials course. This technique involved the introduction of polymer chemistry, modification, and characterization techniques to all groups, while each group focused on different techniques to prepare Polyvinyl Alcohol Hydrogels (PVA), characterizations, and applications.
Materials and Methods:: Challenge Design and Initiative:
The application chosen for this activity was designed for self-healing hydrogels in meniscus repair and regeneration. The class was divided into groups of three students, each focusing on a different project involving the preparation and characterization of freeze-thawed PVA hydrogels each project focused on one aspect of the design such as polymer chemistry and physical cross-linking, PVA hydrogel's function as a substitute for meniscus repair, pore size, and density control using salt leaching technique for tissue regeneration purposes. Students received lectures and reading materials and were trained on how to prepare the samples. Pre-recorded videos were also provided to help students understand the required characterizations and analysis steps. Depending on the project's nature, students were trained on how to measure various properties, such as degradation, swelling ratio, and cell adhesivity. Figure 1 summarizes the steps for each module and the data collected by students in different groups. After collecting and analyzing their results, students presented their projects to the class. The hands-on modules include Module 1: the development of the self-healing behavior of PVA hydrogels; Module 2: The evaluation of the impact of freeze-thaw cycles on PVA hydrogel degradation and swelling characteristics; and Module 3: The salt-leaching technique as a method to change the morphology and topology of PVA hydrogels. Finally, all groups presented their results to the class, which allowed students to collaborate and integrate different pieces of information to develop a deeper understanding of the design.
Results, Conclusions, and Discussions:: Reflection: The deployment of Jigsaw II collaborative learning in the Biomaterials course provides students with a toolkit for closely reflecting on lecture objectives, critically thinking about biomaterials research, gaining hands-on experience with characterization methods, applying statistical knowledge to analyze data, and observing how knowledge in the field can be used to engineer biomaterials based on criteria such as polymer chemistry, surface characteristics, and functions. Throughout this process, students learn not only about hydrogels but also about the broader field of biomaterials research. Using this technique, students also showed interest in furthering their knowledge about polymer chemistry and expanded their knowledge on how they could improve their results to achieve an optimized system. In addition, students explored other applications of the proposed system in tissue engineering and drug delivery.
Acknowledgements (Optional): : The author would like to acknowledge the Center for Teaching Excellence and Innovation at the University of Hartford for their support in this educational project.
References (Optional): : 1. Tabiolo, James L., and Villar Rogayan. "Enhancing Students' Science Achievement through Jigsaw II Strategy." Journal of Science Learning 3.1 (2019): 29-35.
