Molecular Biology laboratory skills for teachers: outreach to high school teachers,
Summer 2008
written by Dr. Robert Rose
This summer BCH590I was taught for the first time. This class was developed
cooperatively by the Departments of Biochemistry and Math, Science & Technology
(MS&T) Education. The goal of the class is to promote inquiry in high school biology
classes by developing laboratory skills among teachers. The class is an intensive 3 week
introduction to molecular biology. Five teachers participated from three different high
schools: Enloe in Raleigh, Garner High School in south Raleigh, and Durham School of
the Arts in Durham. The class was a great success: providing teachers with basic
laboratory skills, giving them time in the lab to develop their own class projects, and
sharing ideas and motivation between teachers for developing hands-on inquiry based
projects.
The class was motivated by an NSF Career Award, but the NSF funds were
inadequate to support the class. The class would not have been possible without funding
from the Provost, Larry Nielsen and by Robert Beichner, the director of the newly formed
Discipline Based Education Research Center. With their support we bought equipment
and supplies to set up a lab for the class. These supplies will be available to teachers who
have taken the class to facilitate the application of laboratories in their classrooms. We
were also supported by the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS), particularly
Gerry Luginbuhl, the Assistant Director of Academic Programs, and Steve Lommel, the
Associate Dean of Research. Their funding supported stipends for a graduate student
from the Department of SM&T Education, and an undergraduate from the Department of
Biochemistry to assist with developing and teaching the class. In addition, their funds
paid for stipends to support teachers taking the class. This class would not have been
possible without the support of NCState!
The course was taught during the second summer session but was organized as an
intensive 3-week workshop to accommodate teacher's schedules. Teachers were paid a
stipend and received biology credit for the class. Classes were held for 5 hours per day, 5
days a week. This turned out to be an excellent format. Meeting daily allowed teachers
to develop laboratory skills over a short time period. The 5 hour classes provided time
for teachers to work through labs on their own. In particular it allowed time for teachers
to make mistakes and to trouble shoot. In retrospect, this was one of the most valuable
aspects of the course. Teachers have limited time to develop labs during the school year.
In order for them to develop labs, they have to have skills and confidence in their ability
to troubleshoot when experiments fail. In addition they have limited class time for
laboratories. Teachers feel pressure for the laboratories to work the first time. If they
don't work, they need to know enough to help students interpret the results. The teachers
invariably expressed that the class helped them develop this confidence.
The amount of laboratory experience by the teachers was a great unknown in
planning the course. As it turned out, the teachers had a wide range of laboratory skills.
Some had only taken laboratory courses in college, though 5-10 years ago. Others had
experience working in a research laboratory. There was also a wide range of access to
laboratory equipment. In all schools, the amount of money available for supplies and
equipment was very limited. Seeing the equipment we used in the lab helped teachers
know what kind of equipment to ask for from their administrations and to look out for as
donations. Equipment from the class will be available for them to borrow. Some teachers
said this helped motivate them to take the course.
Overall the teachers were very motivated to work in the lab. They understood this
to be an opportunity to develop laboratory skills and labs they could use in their classes.
Teachers said there are many opportunities to take workshops, but the course was unique
in that it was long enough and in-depth enough for them to really develop skills. The
teachers were also very appreciative of having an "expert" to ask questions. They had
many questions that came up through the course. Discussing their questions also helped
them develop confidence.
In addition to developing laboratory skills, the class promoted inquiry-based
approaches through alternative teaching strategies. New laboratory techniques were
introduced through small group inquiry time, starting with a question for discussion. For
example, before we started growing E coli we asked groups to discuss why E coli has
become the standard organism for introducing recombinant genes. Before we
transformed cells we discussed how we might measure how efficiently E coli takes up
plasmids. Individuals would brainstorm about their current knowledge of the topic and
discuss their ideas in small groups of 2-3 people. Research books were available for
them to look up information. After the groups talked through their ideas, one group
would present to the class. This would start a class discussion and leading questions to
arrive at an approach to the problem. Teachers were encouraged to record laboratory
procedures in laboratory notebooks. When time was short, we would address questions
through group brainstorming sessions. Several teachers expressed discomfort in not
knowing the "correct" answers first. But in the end almost everyone agreed that
providing time for students to develop their own ideas was beneficial.
Participation by a biochemistry undergraduate student and SM&T education
masters student was helpful for the class, and for the students. The education student,
Julia Glowacki, was an important mediator between myself, as a scientist, and the
teachers. Julia has worked in the schools and was able to suggest ways to focus the class
that would benefit teachers. She also has thought extensively about inquiry approaches to
learning, from a practical and academic perspective. We were lucky that Julia had some
laboratory experience as well, making her particularly valuable in bridging between the
teachers and the laboratory. Jason Bolen was the undergraduate who assisted with the
lab. He spent the first half of the summer developing the reagents used in the lab. He also
assisted with troubleshooting labs before and during the class. And he was available to
answer questions during the class. This was an enriching experience for him and provided
him with important laboratory experience and extensive responsibilities.
At the end of the class, each teacher developed and presented a laboratory that
they could do in their own classrooms. As an example, Katie Monroe from the Durham
School of the Arts developed a laboratory component for procedures she only talked
about previously in her classroom. Her lab was called: Murder Mystery at Clue Mansion:
A Forensic Biotechnology Lab for 10th Grad Biology Students. In this lab Katie
develops a story about a murder which is solved through DNA fingerprinting. In the past
she gave out hypothetical data for students to analyze. This year she will provide
students with DNA samples which they will analyze by restriction digests and agarose
gels. In an interview about her experience with the class, Katie said: “It’s been really
great for me to get practical lab experiences in biochemistry. This class is going to help
me lead my students through labs that are more meaningful.”
As a second example, Kalyani Tawade, who teaches biology and physical science
to 9th through 12th graders at Enloe High School, developed a new lab for her students to
explain the idea that we can change the genotype of an organism by introducing foreign
DNA. The lab will introduce an antibiotic resistant gene into E coli. In describing how
she benefited from the class, Kalyani said: “This lab will enable me to make more
exciting labs for students, to provide hands-on learning and more lab experiences related
to real life and to get them excited about science courses for college.”
The course will be taught again in 2 summers. From this first class I have learned
a lot about ways to make the course better. In particular, the teachers wanted more time
spent on developing and testing their own labs. We have to perfect some of the labs we
did in the class. I also need to learn more about how laboratories can fit into the standard
course of study required in the schools. Next time we will do more extensive outreach to
increase the class enrollment. Ideally we will have about 8 teachers in the class. The
class alumni will be great resources for advertising the class in the future. One difficulty
in sustaining the class will be to find stipends for the teachers. I will work over the
coming year to identify sources of stipend money. Finally, in organizing the course I
attempted to find a way for teachers to pay reduced tuition. It turned out to be impossible
to reduce the tuition and still award academic credit. I will explore the idea of supporting
teacher education by reducing the required summer tuition at NCSU.
A second phase of the NSF project was to bring high school teachers into my
laboratory to engage in research. One teacher, Brian Wood, is scheduled to work in my
laboratory over the coming year. He has also involved a high school student to work in
the lab. Their work will be facilitated by an undergraduate, Elizabeth Gass, who will
work with the high school student and provide continuity for Brian Wood's project.
This class is building important connections between the Biochemistry
Departments and the School of MS&T Education. There are currently few interactions
between science departments and the science education program. One of the teachers in
the class, Katie Monroe, had been a student in the MS&T Education Department. In the
future we hope to attract more Education students. I will continue working with the
Science Education Department to develop the class. There is also a need to develop
similar programs with other scientific disciplines. In particular the teachers had stories
about high school chemistry classes which have no labs. I will explore the idea of
expanding this model of a summer class to chemistry faculty.
Working so intensely with these teachers was an enriching experience for me. I
really appreciated the commitment of these teachers to their students. Teaching the class
felt rewarding. Teachers make wonderful students, since they are motivated to learn and
strive to take advantage of the opportunity. It also helped me to realize how few
resources most teachers have to work with, and the benefits for them to have University
connections. Very small input on our part can assist them greatly, for example providing
them with plasmids or E coli for experiments, or answering questions they have. It seems
a shame that schools are not routinely linked with University faculty as a matter of
course. Overall I’m convinced of the value of this partnership between universities and
secondary schools. If we are going to inspire the next generation of scientists, we need to
support our teachers.
This course was directed by Robert Rose, Associate Professor in the Department of
Molecular & Structural Biochemistry.