What was your high school science experience? At a privileged high school in Cincinnati, Ohio, I completed gel electrophoresis labs, inserted GLOW genes into bacteria, and dissected fetal pigs. My students in DC do not even have microscopes, dissecting kits, or running water in our lab.
My students are ambitious, dedicated, and resilient.
The demographics of my students are 80% African American and 20% Hispanic. All of my students qualify for reduced or free lunch, most come from extremely low socio-economic backgrounds, and the majority read on a 4th grade reading level. The educational achievement gap is America is alive and visible at our school. Minority, low income students are achieving at a lower level because they have been the victims of educational disparity for years in DC.
Our school has very little resources and this specifically affects science. The labs that we complete in biology center around supplies that you can get at the grocery store. However, my students are determined to learn biology at the same level of rigor at which other students learn in other privileged school districts. My students' curiosity and excitement for science is unrestrained and I am determined to give them the most meaningful science experience possible.
My Project
The units my students and I have left to cover are: mammal biology, plant biology, and ecology. Without microscopes and lab supplies, and LCD projector is the best way to enable my students to visualize body systems, microscopic plant biology processes, and the differences between biodiversity in a variety of ecosystems. This projector will allow us to watch videos, complete online simulations and animations as a class, and view biological systems and structures on the microscopic level so that such concepts do not seem as abstract. For example, in our mammal biology unit, students will complete a presentation project where they make diagnoses and recommend treatments for infectious diseases using their knowledge of body systems. We will also complete a virtual dissection lab as a class. In plant biology, students will be assigned various topics to research and present with the LCD such as photosynthesis, plant adaptations, and water transport.
My students are clearly more engaged and learn more effectively when I am able to use some form of technology in the classroom.
The gift of an LCD projector will allow my students to learn as the majority of their peers do across the nation and will increase the depth of their understanding of biology. I refuse to let my students leave biology without a clear idea and image of the dynamics of life on a micro and macroscopic level. Please help bring biology alive!
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