Needs and Use for Nanoeducation Modules for the Middle School and High
School Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Programs
General Background
There are many opportunities to integrate the study of nanoscale science and
engineering methods and processes into a wide range of middle school and high
school STEM Education programs in ways that are compatible with the state and
national learning standards that guide instruction. By developing and implementing
nanoscale activities for middle school and high school STEM programs, students can
gradually develop an understanding of and interest in nanoscale science and
engineering processes. In addition, many middle school and high school teachers
are, themselves, interested in gaining a understanding of nanoscale science and
engineering and will be more likely to integrate nanoscale activities into existing
units of study if nanoscale activities involve laboratory experimentation and guided
discussions that are similar to and enrich the classroom activities that are already
a part of a school’s STEM curriculum. Nanotechnology activities can also provide
unique opportunities for students to apply their understanding of fundamental
scientific and technological principals to a study of nanoscale science and
engineering. In addition, students can gradually develop a better understanding of
relationships among scientific research, the engineering design process, and
manufacturing processes. Nanotechnology processes also provide opportunities for
students to develop an understanding of the unique range of useful nanoscale
products and applications.
However, the integration of nanoscale science and engineering into middle school
and high school STEM programs presents a number of challenges for middle school
and high school educators. The very small dimensions of nanoscale structures are
difficult for many middle school and high school students to comprehend. There
risks to be evaluated in nanoscale science and engineering as well as benefits. The
instrumentation required to manufacture or detect nanoscale structures are far
more sophisticated than instruments commonly utilized in middle school and high
school STEM programs. The emphasis on meeting local, state and national
curriculum guidelines requires that middle school and high school educators
articulate ways in which classroom activities that focus on nanoscale science and
technology assist in meeting those curriculum guidelines and preparing students for
local and state students and school assessments.
Specific Needs and Use of modules for Middle School and High School STEM
Programs
The development and use of video and 3D animation modules has the capacity to
provide a link between the classroom activities that are common to middle school
and high school STEM programs and sophisticated and complex nanoscale science
and engineering processes. This capacity was demonstrated during the presentation
of two modules at a nanotechnology summer institute for middle school and high
school educators held at the University of Massachusetts Amherst during the
summer of 2007. That institute was developed jointly by the STEM Education
Institute and the Center for Hierarchical Manufacturing at the University of
Massachusetts Amherst
The context for presentation in of one of the modules was an activity where
teachers used isopropyl alcohol as a solvent to create a dilute solution of oleic acid.
One drop of that solution was then dropped onto the surface of a layer of water
that was covered with a thin layer of chalk dust. The alcohol solvent dissolved in
the water and a nanoscale layer of oleic acid spread across the surface of the
water.
The module described both the process by which oleic acid forms a nanoscale layer
on the surface of water and the methods by which the dimensions of the oleic acid
thin layer can be calculated. The module provided animations and images that guided
viewers toward an understanding of the formation of a nanoscale layer of a
substance.
The discussion that followed the oleic acid module presentation revealed many ways
in which the module can facilitate educational processes at the middle school and
high school level. Some teachers indicated their preference to have students do
the hands-on activity before showing the module. Other teachers expressed a
preference to use a segment of the module to introduce students to the laboratory
procedure and then use another segments of the module to review the quantitative
aspects of the activity and/or the chemical interactions of molecular structures.
The module effectively reinforced the concept that data collected by students
during a hands-on activity resulted in the self-assembly of a nanoscale structure.
In a second module presented at the summer institute, video and animation modules
were used to illustrate the design and applications of an Atomic Force Microscope.
Prior to the presentation of the module, teachers has used plastic building blocks to
design and construct a device that used a combination of a lever mechanism and a
laser light beam to map the small changes in elevations along the surface of a
structure. The teachers recognized the value of hands-on activities that engage
students in the engineering design process as they designed and constructed a
model of a device that detects and maps nanoscale structures. They also
recognized the tremendous value of providing students with an opportunity to view
video footage of an actual Atomic Force Microscope as well as animations that
revealed the similarities between their module and the actual device.
Future and Other Perspectives
There are many opportunities to develop modules that will enrich the middle school
and high school curriculum. An example is a module that would relate the
electroplating of zinc metal onto a copper electrode, as is commonly done in middle
school and high school physical science courses, to nanoscale electrodeposition
processes. Another module could reveal the interdisciplinary nature of nanoscale
science and engineering by relating the chemical synthesis of nanoscale ferrofluid
particles in a chemistry laboratory to the delivery of nanoscale medicine to tumors
via the human body’s circulatory system. It is evident that, with a careful review of
local, state, and national STEM curriculum guidelines, the development of modules
provides a vital link between the entire middle school and high school STEM
curriculum and nanoscale scientific research as well as nanoscale engineering and
manufacturing.
In addition, the production of the modules is an excellent example of the
application of technological devices that have components that include nanoscale
structures. These devices provide the technological capacity to provide images and
animations that build an understanding of nanoscale science and engineering. Many
of the technological devices that many middle school and high school students
utilize would not be available without nanoscale manufacturing processes. The
availability of these devices provides a unique opportunity for students to recognize
that many ways in which nanoscale science and engineering has impacted their lives.