A web‐based adaptive tutor to teach PCR primer design

When students have varying prior knowledge, personalized instruction is desirable. One way to personalize instruction is by using adaptive e‐learning to offer training of varying complexity. In this study, we developed a web‐based adaptive tutor to teach PCR primer design: the PCR Tutor. We used part of the Taxonomy of Educational Objectives (the three cognitive processes: remember, understand, and apply) to design exercises of varying complexity. Using this method, we demonstrated that we were able to systematically categorize exercises. There was also a good learning effect and a positive student perception when using the PCR Tutor.