Have you ever wondered how many times you blink a day or what happens to your body when you consume alcohol? Why are some people naturally good at singing? These types of questions can be answered by taking the “Mystery of the Human Body” course. This course is taught in English to any Korea University (KU) student who is interested in this subject, allowing them to learn and be amazed by the mysteries and wonders of our bodies.
The “Mystery of Human Body” is a core general studies course taught by Professor Kim Ik-Hwan (Department of Life Sciences and Biotechnology). Apart from being a professor in this course, he is also involved in other research projects related to biotechnology, medicine, and life sciences with around 81 research papers published to date. Unfortunately, this fall semester, the course could not be held at school due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19), meaning that the classes are held as online real-time lectures through KU Blackboard Collaborate.
The Structure of the Course
In the “Mystery of Human Body” course, students learn how to maintain a healthy body. They are introduced to the wonders of life with the knowledge extracted from the human body, and the dignity of humane and inhumane things. During an interview with Professor Kim, he mentioned, “The purpose of this course is to help young students who are prone to materialism, individualism, and collective egoism to realize the mystery and dignity of the human body and to have a worldview that serves to save people, life, and the global environment.”
In his class, Professor Kim asks students to research with a randomly assigned group of students and give a presentation about an organ system to show their understanding of the topic. Each class, he talks about a different organ system and the group presentation correlates with the organ discussed that day. Thus, a regular class consists of a student group presentation and the professor’s lecture. For the first 30 minutes, a group of students presents their assigned organ system. According to Professor Kim’s syllabus, the team presentations are assessed according to their creativity and presentation skills, the number of interesting facts presented about the organ system, the relationship between the organ system and both human life and society, information on how to keep the organ healthy, and perfect answers to the questions asked by other classmates. This course has no final exam nor midterms, so each assignment is considered important to complete.
Remembering by Reviewing
Professor Kim’s lecture, following the students’ presentation, offers knowledge on various organ systems such as the digestive system, the vision system, and the muscle system — 22 organs in total. After the educational lectures, Professor Kim requires students to answer a three- question quiz and complete a take-home exam due before the beginning of next class. The three-question quiz consists of three simple multiple-choice questions, and it has to be completed within 15 minutes after the class. All of the questions differ depending on the organ system presented by the professor during the lecture. Questions such as, “Which organ is responsible for balance?” or “How often do our skin cells regenerate?” are a few examples of the quiz questions.
The take-home exams consist of writing down five amazing facts and three pieces of knowledge about the human body, and a quote about the body organ discussed that day. The reason Professor Kim conducts take- home exams is for “students to think deeply about the topics they learned in class, discover the wonders and wisdom contained in their body and remember them for their lifetime.” At the beginning of the semester, some students may experience difficulty completing the take-home exam. Nonetheless, by writing what they have learned on that day, they are able to connect the knowledge with their personal life and remember the class better. Through these assignments, students are able to summarize what they have learned and show the professor that they have paid attention to the lecture.
An Enlightening Course for All
Although there are many biology courses at KU, the “Mystery of Human Body” course is unique because it provides integrative learning. Professor Kim states that “Unlike biology majors that require scientific knowledge, this course is an integrated liberal arts course that connects science and humanities. The course focuses on answering the big question, ‘What is a human being?’ Thus, I tried to consolidate the knowledge of biology, engineering, and humanities. I ask students to discover the wonders of their bodies by themselves, rather than to give simple lectures on an infusion basis.”
Because courses have been delivered online this year, Professor Kim stated that the change of platform significantly affected the way he usually teaches the course. It was difficult for him to discuss topics with students directly and check the responses of students. Yet, he said that he is “grateful for being able to teach online because of the network in place during the COVID-19 era.” For this semester, he mentioned that he would endeavor to make improvements to his course, and thus he expects his students to “learn the wisdom contained in their bodies and the importance of human dignity.”
The “Mystery of Human Body” course is not only educational but also entertaining. Students who enjoy learning about the human body or are interested in the function of different organ systems will be able to broaden their knowledge. After taking this course, many students will be able to learn new facts about the human body and different ways to take care of the various organ systems — and to pursue a life that serves both humans and the environment.