A new study has revealed that children learn more effectively about evolution when they are engaged through stories that are read through a teacher, rather than them going through doing tasks to demonstrate the same concept.
In a randomized controlled trial conducted at the Milner Centre for Evolution at the University of Bath, the researchers concluded that storytelling, which is the oldest form of teaching, is also the most effective one for teaching primary school children about evolution.
During the study, the scientists investigated using various types of methods for teaching evolution in primary schools. They did so in order to test whether a teacher-centered approach (where the teacher read the story to pupils) or a pupil-centered approach (where pupils took part in the activity), led to better improvement in understanding the topic.
They compared results to determine which method produced better outcomes in terms of the children’s understanding of evolution….