Analysis of drawings on representations of COVID-19 among senior high school students:case of the Dakhla-Oued Eddahab region, Morocco

Abstract Since the coronavirus COVID-19 was identified as an international public health emergency in 2020, many studies on the perceptions of students in higher education have been published concerning it. Although young students’ perceptions also influence decision making and actions, their perceptions of COVID-19 have, so far, been little studied. Therefore, to increase knowledge about their understanding of COVID-19, a cross-sectional and descriptive study was conducted as a drawing survey in two schools in the Dakhla-Oued Eddahab region, Morocco. The participants were 94 high school students (aged 14–19). The drawings were analyzed by inductive and deductive content analysis. The findings show that the majority of the students knew the archetypal representation of COVID-19. They had a good grasp of the COVID-19, how it spreads, and how to stop it from spreading. Some students were aware of the potential dangers associated with COVID-19. Admittedly, misrepresentations related to fear and unfamiliarity with COVID-19 lead to mental health issues that undermine the key factors in students’ academic success. Younger children’s representations were dominated by magical thinking that reduces COVID-19 to preventive measures. Overall, the results made it possible to deduce that COVID-19 is strongly associated with terms that are both characteristic and socially valued (disease, prevention, barrier measures, etc.) and, conversely, with rather negative terms (fear of dying, anxiety, sadness, helplessness, etc.). The identification of these representations is very useful because they make it possible to apprehend and understand the attitudes and behaviors of these students, which, therefore, implies the need to define the appropriate teaching methods to try to align these behaviors with the behaviors desired

Views of Moroccan university teachers on plant taxonomy and its teaching and learning challenges

Abstract Plant taxonomy includes the identification, description, and classification of plants at the level of species or other taxa. This study aims to analyze the views of university teachers on plant taxonomy and its teaching, the causes of the shortage of plant taxonomists, and the challenges encountered by students in learning plant taxonomy. University teachers in Morocco (n = 24) responded to a survey consisting of fixed and open-ended questions. The data was analyzed by inductive and deductive content analysis. The results showed that all university teachers considered a taxonomist as a scientist and plant taxonomy as a dynamic and highly scientific, and descriptive discipline. They stated that the taxonomist community is in crisis because of the shortage of plant taxonomists and the decrease in the quality of training provided at the university. The biggest challenges in learning plant taxonomy were the prevalence of traditional teacher-centered methods, the inadequacy of time and didactic resources spent on teaching, and the Latin nomenclature. The difficulties associated with the concept of evolution and the diversity of classifications were also mentioned. The angiosperm group was the most difficult for students to understand. Furthermore, this research shows that the financial, human, institutional, pedagogical, and didactic resources for the teaching of plant taxonomy are insufficient and do not allow for the use of teaching methods supporting learning. How to plant taxonomy is taught is important, and when it is considered difficult, it can lead to a reluctance to study plant species and be one of the reasons for the decline in plant taxonomists in Morocco. Consequently, this issue can negatively affect the preservation and conservation of local flora