Fall 1998
Vol 7 Issue 1
IN THIS ISSUE...
Peeking Around the TechnoCorner
Getting Rid of (Visible) Instructional Technology
A Philosopher's View of the Net and the Future
Demo of a Real Time Remote Experiment
What the Future Holds for Learning Languages
SEE ALSO...
The Forum
Maricopa Center for Learning and Instruction
Demonstration of a Real Time Remote Experiment Using the Internet in the Undergraduate Biology Classroom
Pushpa Ramakrishna, CGCC
B. L. Ramakrishna, ASU
Introduction
Imagine scientific research being conducted beyond the walls of a traditional laboratory; this is research that can be done in a university undergraduate classroom or in a community college. Imagine students in K-12 classrooms observing these experiments. Or even imagine observing it from your own living room.
As we move into the next millennium, such synergistic collaborations are possible because of the recent development of the web as a practical affordable tool for linking universities, colleges, schools, museums--in short anyone with a computer on a network. Transcending the barriers of time and space, we can break walls and fully leverage all the resources of our world. Students at Chandler Gilbert Community College use the web in a variety of ways. Performing and observing experiments remotely via the web is an ultimate web activity which has high student participation.
Power of the Internet
"By the year 2000, 60 percent of the new jobs in America will
require advance technological skills."
-- Vice President Al Gore
As the beginning of the next millenium rapidly approaches, education which utilizes technology is rapidly expanding. Today's student has come to expect the latest technology for career preparation and new pedagogies in learning styles. The United States is a world leader in science and technology, but we are still striving to transfer the excellence from the research frontiers into K-16 classrooms. We also need to transfer the excitement of scientific research into these classrooms.
This has been achieved by the National Science Foundation INVSEE project, Interactive Nano Visualization for Science and Engineering Education (http://invsee.asu.edu/). INVSEE has created a consortium of educators with a common vision of building an interactive web site for nanoscience and technology. A state-of-the-art scanning probe microscope has been put on the web. Partners of the INVSEE project include Arizona State University, Chandler-Gilbert Community College, Arizona Science Center, Motorola, and Topometrix.
Students and faculty from universities, colleges, and high schools can become actively involved in real-time research. Experiments that were previously only described in scientific journals and textbooks can become a part of everyday science and engineering education. INVSEE enables students and teachers, through novel learning technologies, to visualize and understand our material world at the invisible atomic and molecular level.
INVSEE is a unique initiative that enables a science or engineering class ('operator') to select and investigate materials over the web. Using a 'fishbowl' format, other classes ('observers') will be able to observe the operator class while they conduct an experiment. The web allows us to use technology truly as a collaborative environment.
This educational innovative technology provides an opportunity to revitalize the curriculum. All modules have integrated state-of-the-art research from the frontiers of science into the undergraduate curriculum.The lesson modules are built around a theme "levels of scale" from macroscopic to microscopic to nanoscopic worlds. The lesson modules are multidisciplinary. Students of Biology and Math can study the module on "statistical analysis of yeast budscars."
This visualization across the curriculum which uses cutting edge technology is a powerful tool and may challenge students to enter careers of science and engineering. This technology also has the ability to energize students. And, it empowers them by providing ownership of their knowledge.
The lesson module "The Five Kingdoms" explains the different characteristics from organisms of the different kingdoms. When the remote experimentation was piloted with the BIO 181 (Biology for Majors) students, they were absolutely fascinated by the technology. Nathan Smith, a BIO 181 student wrote,
I thoroughly enjoyed last week's lab, giving me an opportunity to see things that many have never seen before. For example, the image of the yeast in the process of budding. I have read very little on the topic, even though I know a little of the process, the visual effect would be enough to inspire even the most hardened science critics. Using the technology of today to motivate the students to participate more in the sciences is evident in many ways. The computers allow you a hands-on approach. With this hands-on approach it allows everyone to become involved in the moment of excitement. In my eyes, this experiment would be invaluable to the students of the future, allowing their minds to grow around science.
Conclusion
The internet has been a great tool to bring together students with diverse backgounds. These interactive modules provide the necessary framework to empower students to do real scientific work. Also, this technology gives a new meaning to hands-on interactive experience.
Future goals for this project include developing a number of lesson modules and allowing more opportunities for K-16 schools to utilize the web for research based experimentation.
Acknowledgements
INVSEE is a National Science Foundation grant (NSF//REC9632740) awarded to Arizona State University with subcontracts to Chandler-Gilbert Community College and the Arizona Science Center.
The key personnel in this project who provided invaluable help in developing the remote experiment of the yeast module are Dr. Ed Ong and Dr. Tony Garcia from Arizona State University. Acknowledgements also go to James Archer and Cecilia Hernandez, students of CGCC for their web design.