Learning and Discovery in Experimental Health Science: On the Path from Data to Knowledge

University Of Wisconsin Milwaukee, Milwaukee WI

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

To achieve a healthy society, America needs both highly trained health professionals and a science-literate public. The development of both begins during K-12 education. Within the NIH, the SEPA program provides the principal means to influence pre-college science education. Our application builds on current infrastructure, which provides ca. 2000 high school students per year with authentic scientific experiences based on experiment modules that utilize live organisms as biomedical models. Students investigate the impacts of chemicals on fundamental biological processes. In the process, ca. 20 pre-service teachers per year learn to teach with an inquiry-based approach. Moving forward, the proposed SEPA program will i) engage in-service and pre-service teachers and students with an in-depth introduction to the scientific method and its components that is closely linked to the conduct of the experiment modules. A major focus will involve analytical applications of data science that emerge after aggregating large amounts of data submitted by students to a computational portal and data repository. Complementing this novel emphasis, ii) student experimentation will be placed within a context of science and society, by providing a history of chemicals in relation to chemical toxicity research. Both i) and ii) will be fully aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards. In addition, we will iii) provide new ways for early career teachers to implement our program as they transition from pre-service status to mature in-service teachers. Finally, iv) we will partner with other institutions to expand the geographical reach of our program. Our Specific Aims are to 1. Introduce in-service and early career teachers to the principles of data and data science in relation to student experimentation. 2. Collaborate with the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and UW-Stevens Point science teacher education programs to certify 100 pre-service teachers in the principles and practice of scientific experimentation and communication. 3. Provide 8,500 high school students with a) experiences in doing data- and data science-focused scientific research, and b) an understanding of the importance of chemical toxicology. 4. Work with the Milwaukee Public School System and other regional schools to provide large numbers of students with research experiences. 5. Conduct a thorough evaluation of the entire project.