Behavioural
Ecology Group


FREE ONLINE COURSE: ANIMAL BEHAVIOUR



An introduction to Animal Behaviour.





Explore the amazing range and complexity of wild animal behaviour with this new MOOC ‘Introduction to Animal Behaviour’ of Wageningen University & Research. Discover how animals learn, communicate, find food, avoid predators, and interact socially. You can subscribe now!


The course ran the first time from August to October 2016 and is now archieved on the EdX platform, so that the videos are still accessible. Over six weeks, learners explored the various behaviours animals adopt in order to meet the challenges of their daily lives. The course is aimed at anyone looking to broaden their understanding of animal behaviour beyond nature documentaries or a typical high school education.


The course had more than 50,000 participants and was ranked by Class Central in 2020 among the "best online courses of all time".


For more information take a look at the course page.


MOOCs are Massive Open Online Courses: They are available for everyone, everywhere, online and free.


NOTE! WUR students can receive 1 ECTS when they enroll via Osiris for the course BHE50801, see the Study Handbook for more information.


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Trailer MOOC



Introduction to animal behaviour



course information





Language of instruction:

English


Contents:

Introduction to Animal Behaviour - will introduce you to the fundamental topics involved in Animal Behaviour research. You will learn not only what animals do, but also how scientists figure out the 'whys' behind their behaviour. The course will make you familiar with a range of different topics, illustrated with examples from the scientific literature. By completing this course, you will gain a broad understanding of the fundamental topics of behaviour.


Learning outcomes:

After successful completion of this course students are expected to be able to: - understand how animal behaviour is a result of evolution and natural selection; - understand the process of formulating and testing hypotheses about why animals do what they do; - understand introductory concepts around animal cognition, communication, foraging, reproduction, and social behaviour; - understand methods scientists use to study and answer questions about behaviour; - understand how scientific research is reported.


Activities:

The course contains no scheduled activities, students can follow the course anytime. The course contains knowledge clips, reading materials and assignments.


Examination:

On campus multiple choice exam covering the content of the course. The exams will take place during the re-exam period in February and in July.


Literature:

All materials are made available online.




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