To Pass or Not to Pass: Acting out membrane transport

The aim of the activity is to increase students’ understanding of molecules’ movement through the cell membrane while using their knowledge of molecules’ shape and polarity.

The cellular and physiological effects of molecules greatly depend on its absorption by the cells, students can apply this knowledge to understand the effect of many molecules, drugs, pathogens, vaccines, etc. Acting as either part of the membrane or as specific molecules wanting to cross the membrane, the class acts out membrane transport. As each molecule (student) passes through the membrane, other students provide immediate feedback on whether the process was correctly carried out. Afterwards, the class creates a summary table together or individually for homework.

This activity can be described as peer learning, while students have to use knowledge from various parts of the biology and chemistry courses, which some students may recall more than others. The activity can be done in many phases. The first phase described here can be done in 30-45 minutes, after a lesson on membrane transport.

• Students will be able to state the detailed composition of cell membranes and how it acts as a boundary
• Students will be able to describe the various mechanisms for molecules to cross a cell membrane
• Students will be able to identify the mechanism used by a specific molecule to cross a cell membrane depending on the molecule’s properties
• Students will describe how the concentration of a molecule affects its transport (diffusion and osmosis, active and passive transport)