Team:SZU-China/Education
Education
and Lab Practical
To increase our audience size, we invented a team of high school students from different regions of China such as Wuhan and Chongqing to join our synthetic biology winter camp, which can help them know more about synthetic biology and biological laboratory(Figure 1).
To have more effective pedagogical quality, we prepared a teaching plan in advance (We give two language versions of the teaching plan so that people in more regions can take it for suggestions):
We presented a class about basic knowledge of synthetic biology and some essential operations in the laboratory. We introduced the Central dogma and how to genetically engineering E.coli. Based on E.coil which can produce Fluorescence protein, We created an interesting game called Paint With E.coli, which can link art to synthetic biology. (Figure 1). Let them do something hands-on. They loved it, and it is proven that students learn from hands on activities better than other activities. Make it educational too!
Fig 1.
and Feedback
Our purpose is to help students build a basic knowledge system of synthetic biology and know the level of knowledge of different age groups. What's more, we want to make a suitable teaching plan and get some feedback on education and our project. Therefore, we conducted two questionnaires, respectively for the survey of knowledge understanding and the collection of feedback opinions after reading.
We organized and participated in two lectures for both high school students and college students. When we gave a speech for Shenzhen University, we introduced what iGEM is, the different functions of iGEMers and the great projects in previous years. Our purpose is to arouse their interest in iGEM and synthetic biology，also inspire them to join the next year's competition (Figure 2).
The second speech which was given for Shenzhen Middle School. According to the results of our questionnaire survey, nearly 60% of students do not know central dogma. So before the lecture was given, we used an interesting analogy to explain synthetic biology.
In these two lectures, we sent our booklets to students and also designed different questionnaires to get feedback. To get more information, we had an after-class sampling interview.
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Fig 2.
In order to better analyze education and public demand, we adopted some methods for research, such as class observation, random interviews and questionnaire surveys which can help us know learners' knowledge level and preferences.
After hosting the lectures for Shenzhen Middle school students, we decided to make two booklets which are suitable for students of different school ages.
First of all, to make our materials more visible and suitable for students who may cannot have access to electronic equipment, we made a booklet to promote synthetic biology and iGEM. We also used social media and online platforms to get feedback as well as to enlarge the audience.
In addition, we take diversity and inclusion very seriously. On the cover of our booklet，there are three people of different colors. Cause iGEM is a global competition which means all people from different countries, races and colors gathered for this event. We hope this booklet will also convey the power of kindness and sharing.
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In the first edition of booklets, which is for middle school students, we made the design more lovely and the content easier to understand. We use more metaphors to help children raise interest.
In the second edition for college students, We've added some more specialized expressions which are may be suitable for adults to read. In this generation, we collaborated with 12 teams to make the content more informative.
We give our booklets to Shenzhen Middle school teachers because we wanted to make it sustainable. We have also sent booklets to different universities and businesses which can give us some advice.
We registered our Bilibili account and WeChat official account, in both platforms, we published a lot of information about our projects and some knowledge in the field of synthetic biology. We printed QR codes of two accounts at the end of two manuals. Readers can leave messages and chat below our content, or send DMs.
Because of the effects of COVID-19, many people are isolated at home. So we used social media to promote our project. We used different platforms such as Bilibili and Wechat. We also used Bilibili to build a community that consists of different teams from China. (Figure 1)
Fig 3.
After our lecture in Shenzhen university, some students showed great curiosity about Gardenia Blue and asked us a lot of questions. In our conversation, we surprisingly found that the Gardenia Blue pigment is not widely known by the public. To introduce our pigment to them, we held the iDYE workshop which provided a chance for students to experience our pigment, designing clothes in their own style. Students all had fun and got to know our project[Figure 1].
Fig 4.
Basing on our projects, we want to promote Gardenia Blue as an environmental friendly pigment via inviting more people to experience the advantages of Gardenia Blue. And we also want to test the dyeing efficiency of the product in the actual situation, to improve our project design.
What’s more, with the help of their rich imagination and creativity, synthetic biology is combined with art more closely.
We got a lot of great designs! [Figure 2-4].
Fig 5.
The dyeing efficiency performed in a great result and the actual application of Gardenia Blue surprised us. We had good feedback! Dyeing efficiency is so high that the dyeing process could be done in a few minutes with different fancy blue. Our project aroused the interest of all of them, which made some students begin to ask how to join us.
We promise that our Gardenia Blue dye, which comes from pure edible Gardenia Blue, is absolutely safe. And students will wear gloves to protect their hands.
Our friend team Shanghai_SFLS_SPBS provided us with dyes of various colours as a display, but considering safety issues, we did not directly use the dyes. Sincere thanks to Shanghai_SFLS_SPBS for helping us in showing colourful dyes produced by synthetic biology.Learn more about partnership
Fig 6.
[1]Ma Zhengang, Kuang Jun. investigation and improvement plan of biology teaching in middle schools in Chongqing [J]. Education and teaching forum,2014, 000(050):232-233.
[2]Oja K J . Using problem-based learning in the clinical setting to improve nursing students' critical thinking: an evidence review.[J]. Journal of Nursing Education, 2011, 50(3):145-151.
