Anatomy Academy Online: Tips and Tricks for the Anatomy and Physiology Educator and Student

Anatomy and Physiology (A&P) is a subject that most health science students must take at some point in their coursework. Many educators who teach the subject would like to find better ways to instruct their students and to increase student knowledge retention and performance. Recent research has shown that college-level A&P has a pass rate of around 52% and that a large proportion of students taking A&P at any given point are repeat students (Hughes, 2011). Therefore, this blog is dedicated to both the A&P instructor and student to try and find ways to increase not only their performance in A&P classes, but also their ability to transfer this knowledge to future classes and careers.

First, some explanation of what this blog is not: This blog is not meant to be a refresher or a tutoring guide to specific A&P topics. I will not be going over the nephron loop, the neuromuscular junction, or the origin and insertion of the long head of the biceps brachii. What this blog is meant to do is provide you with some tips and tools for approaching the study of a very difficult topic. Mainly, I intend to cover three specific topics that are emerging in higher education and to help relate them specifically to anatomy and physiology. These topics are Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and how it relates to learning A&P, using the blended learning format for teaching A&P, and using the adaptive learning tools that many higher education publishers have created for use by A&P instructors and students.


Before we get into the topics I mentioned above, let me just start with some tips that I give to all of my new students. I have been teaching at the college level for several years now, and one of the most common questions I get is just how should the student study for anatomy and physiology? This is a great question and the answer is very similar to the question “How do you get to Carnegie Hall?” The answer for both is practice, practice, practice. Learning A&P comes from repetition, repetition, repetition. There is a vast amount of information that must be taken in, sorted, organized, and remembered. This information retention is accomplished through practice! However, there are many different ways to take in this information and to practice the material. This fact is precisely what this blog is all about; ways to use new technology to your advantage in either teaching A&P or learning it as a student.