©2006 The Chestnut Hill Local

Pilot science project teaches diversity and college preparation
by JENNIFER KATZ

Administrators at Girard College and Germantown Friends School have found new means to give seniors experience at doing college level work. As part of a pilot project, this year two advanced biology classes from GFS and one Evolution in Genetics class from Girard collaborated on extensive scientific research projects using the internet as their laboratory.

“The goals of the project were to engage the students in authentic, collaborative research with peers from diverse backgrounds and improve student’s ability to examine and manipulate large public databases using Internet based tools,” explained Gen Nelson, head of the science department at GFS.

For the project, 44 GFS and 14 Girard students formed into small groups and chose topics ranging from malaria to bioluminescence to conduct extensive research via the Internet using databases such as Genbank and Swissprot. They collaborated mostly via e-mail and met twice to take the information they gathered and turn it into slide presentations.

Over two nights in May, the groups presented their findings at Girard to their peers and academic advisers. The final phase of the project was a 30-page thesis paper.

“This was a wonderful opportunity to bring students together from different backgrounds, different neighborhoods,” said Frannie Smith, head of school for education at Girard. “And I also liked the idea of students doing authentic scientific research because they get to see both the tediousness of it and the excitement in seeing your idea really work.”

Smith, along with GFS Head of School Dick Wade, applied for funding for the program through a grant from the EE Ford Foundation. The foundation provides grants to independent secondary education institutions. The schools received a $75,000 matching grant for three years from the foundation and raised $75,000 themselves. The bulk of the money went to buy laptop computers for both schools.

The project was intended to provide the seniors with an opportunity to do college level work and practice independent study skills, Nelson said.

“As seniors they need to start thinking and acting like college students,” Nelson explained. “To work on time management skills.

“It was a big risk, kind of like letting go. They had enough rope to hang themselves and they didn’t.”

In fact, the students said they enjoyed the freedom and the unique challenges the project presented.

“We were pushed beyond our comfort level,” said GFS’ Sam Biddle, 17, of Chestnut Hill. “It was an exercise in logistical planning. We really needed better communication and more of a commitment from some of the Girard students. But in the end, I really felt like I learned about taking responsibility even when relying on other people.

“It was a good experience to use in the future like when entering a new job,” said Biddle, who plans to attend Sarah Lawrence College next year.

Girard student Jimmy Brown, 18, of West Philadelphia, agreed that it was difficult to coordinate everyone’s schedules, and that became part of the lesson.

“It was kind of hard because our school schedules conflicted,” explained Brown, who plans to attend Cheney University in the fall. “It taught me that communication is key. In order to do a good project, you need good communication.”

Girard biology teacher and herpatologist (someone who studies snakes) John Romano said he hoped the students would gain a decent knowledge of genetics and evolution.

Romano student Devin Freeman, 17, of North Philadelphia, said that his favorite part of working on his project about mammals was learning about them in-depth “beyond just general information.”

GFS student Jenna Stern, 17, of Chestnut Hill, also said she enjoyed learning a subject comprehensively.

“It’s cool to know that much about one thing,” said Stern, who plans to enter Pitzer University next year. “It was really interesting to see what professional scientists do.”

For next year, both Romano and Nelson said they hope to avert some of the first year’s pitfalls, namely having more parity in the number of students from each school and also coordinating more in-person meetings for the students.

Regardless of the bumps in the road, both teachers said that they believed their goals for the students had been met and that they looked forward to doing the project again.