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RESEARCH PAPER
Albanian first-year university students’ knowledge and acceptance of evolution
1
Department of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Tirana, Tirana, ALBANIA
2
Museum of Natural Sciences “Sabiha Kasimati”, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Tirana, Tirana, ALBANIA
3
Department of Pedagogy and Primary Education, School of Education, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, GREECE
Online publication date: 2024-09-19
Publication date: 2024-10-01
EURASIA J. Math., Sci Tech. Ed 2024;20(10):em2512
KEYWORDS
ABSTRACT
Evolutionary theory provides the foundation for modern biology with evolution as a core concept
and unifying principle. This research aimed to examine evolutionary knowledge and acceptance
among first-year university students. The participants considered for analysis consisted of 87
students enrolled in the first-year bachelor’s in biology and biotechnology at the University of
Tirana, Albania. The respondents’ average age was 18.95 ± 0.78 years, with a pronounced
dominance of females (90.2%). The study used the standardized research instrument “evolution
education questionnaire on acceptance and knowledge” to measure knowledge and acceptance
about evolution in an international context. We employed descriptive statistics to analyze the
collected data. The findings of research revealed that over half of the respondents, 61%, fall into
the ‘very low knowledge’ category on evolution and none fall in the ‘high knowledge’ category.
Only 60.9% accept evolution. The need for a revision of the evolutionary concepts and topics in
the curricula, from primary school, is recommended coupled with the incorporation of
philosophical dialogue into teaching practice.
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