Post by Okwes on Jul 24, 2007 10:22:19 GMT -5
Okla. students use DNA to probe mysteries of science
About: USA TODAY honors 20 teachers, both individuals and instructional teams, as representatives of all outstanding teachers. Members of the 10th annual All-USA Teacher Team will be announced in October 2007 and featured in USA TODAY. Each teacher receives a trophy and a $2,500 reward -- $500 for the teachers and the rest for their schools.
By Tracey Wong Briggs, USA TODAY
ADA, Okla. — Posted under the light switch in Susie Stevens' science classroom, the laminated sign sets the tone: "CSI: Latta, Conducting Scientific Investigations. Susie Stevens, principal investigator."
Each lab table is wired with laptops. The lab is stocked with spinners, data probes, gels and other equipment that allows students to do DNA analysis.
A teacher for 28 years, Stevens infuses technology into hands-on scientific inquiry in her biology, chemistry and biotechnology classes at Latta School, a K-12 school on the outskirts of this southeastern Oklahoma town.
The technology is a recent addition, but the learning-by-doing approach comes naturally to Stevens, 56. Having started out as a home economics teacher, Stevens has always stressed practical application.
"They're never going to have to go to a job interview and give a definition of mitosis (a process within cell division)," she says. "They're going to have to think and analyze; it just so happens to be about science in my class."
FIND MORE STORIES IN: Oklahoma | DNA | School | K- 12 | Ada
As students learn how DNA "fingerprints" are made, Stevens has them go to a website listing people who have been cleared of crimes by DNA evidence, including Ronald Keith Williamson and Dennis Fritz of Ada, subjects of John Grisham's The Innocent Man.
"I always take the kids to this website and then point out that there are people from Oklahoma and, gosh, there are two from Ada!" she says in an e-mail.
Stevens spends part of almost every summer studying science and technology. At a genomic biology workshop sponsored in 2000 by Oklahoma City Community College and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, she learned to take a hair sample and analyze her own DNA using the Internet. "I remember thinking, 'Whoa, I'll never have all this equipment,' " she says.
But once back home, Stevens drew on the region's cultural heritage to write grants to get it. In Ada, where the Chicasaw Indian Nation is headquartered and 40% of her students have Native American ancestry, she designed a project to have her students compare DNA samples of members of the five predominant Native American tribes in Oklahoma. She won a $25,000 Christa McAuliffe fellowship and a $10,000 Toyota Tapestry grant and has since added more than $15,000 in other awards.
The computers and other high-tech equipment not only appeal to the wired generation but also help Stevens make the science more relevant. "Nearly all the sensors and the data collection are technology-driven," she says.
From their first intro biology lab, students design protocols and develop hypotheses. Independent and dependent variables, sample size and lab technique are all learned by trial and error.
"I have to grit my teeth sometimes, but I'm teaching them what real science is all about," says Stevens, whose demeanor is nurturing and no-nonsense at the same time. "When they make those mistakes, they say, 'Oh, I remember this.' "
Stevens founded the local science fair 16 years ago and requires all her students to enter. She mentors most of the projects and maintains a Wall of Fame for the seven who made it to the International Science & Engineering Fair.
Stevens' enthusiasm for science is palpable, and it helps bring science down to earth, says Bryt Huntley, 16. "Mrs. Stevens talks about different medical things, and she'll put real-life explanations as to why things happen, like mutating cells, what they do to people." She also inspires kids with her devotion, Bryt adds. "She is there early, during lunch, and she's normally there after school. Her life is pretty much her school and teaching."
Indeed, Stevens is most often at school until 7 or later. "If you don't enjoy kids and being with them, this would be the most miserable job in the world," she says. "But when you see them accomplishing things, it makes it all worthwhile."
This is part of an occasional series on members of the 2006 All-USA Teacher Team, USA TODAY's recognition program for outstanding K-12 teachers. Winners share $2,500 awards with their schools. To nominate a teacher for the 2007 team, visit allstars.usatoday.com.
About: USA TODAY honors 20 teachers, both individuals and instructional teams, as representatives of all outstanding teachers. Members of the 10th annual All-USA Teacher Team will be announced in October 2007 and featured in USA TODAY. Each teacher receives a trophy and a $2,500 reward -- $500 for the teachers and the rest for their schools.
By Tracey Wong Briggs, USA TODAY
ADA, Okla. — Posted under the light switch in Susie Stevens' science classroom, the laminated sign sets the tone: "CSI: Latta, Conducting Scientific Investigations. Susie Stevens, principal investigator."
Each lab table is wired with laptops. The lab is stocked with spinners, data probes, gels and other equipment that allows students to do DNA analysis.
A teacher for 28 years, Stevens infuses technology into hands-on scientific inquiry in her biology, chemistry and biotechnology classes at Latta School, a K-12 school on the outskirts of this southeastern Oklahoma town.
The technology is a recent addition, but the learning-by-doing approach comes naturally to Stevens, 56. Having started out as a home economics teacher, Stevens has always stressed practical application.
"They're never going to have to go to a job interview and give a definition of mitosis (a process within cell division)," she says. "They're going to have to think and analyze; it just so happens to be about science in my class."
FIND MORE STORIES IN: Oklahoma | DNA | School | K- 12 | Ada
As students learn how DNA "fingerprints" are made, Stevens has them go to a website listing people who have been cleared of crimes by DNA evidence, including Ronald Keith Williamson and Dennis Fritz of Ada, subjects of John Grisham's The Innocent Man.
"I always take the kids to this website and then point out that there are people from Oklahoma and, gosh, there are two from Ada!" she says in an e-mail.
Stevens spends part of almost every summer studying science and technology. At a genomic biology workshop sponsored in 2000 by Oklahoma City Community College and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, she learned to take a hair sample and analyze her own DNA using the Internet. "I remember thinking, 'Whoa, I'll never have all this equipment,' " she says.
But once back home, Stevens drew on the region's cultural heritage to write grants to get it. In Ada, where the Chicasaw Indian Nation is headquartered and 40% of her students have Native American ancestry, she designed a project to have her students compare DNA samples of members of the five predominant Native American tribes in Oklahoma. She won a $25,000 Christa McAuliffe fellowship and a $10,000 Toyota Tapestry grant and has since added more than $15,000 in other awards.
The computers and other high-tech equipment not only appeal to the wired generation but also help Stevens make the science more relevant. "Nearly all the sensors and the data collection are technology-driven," she says.
From their first intro biology lab, students design protocols and develop hypotheses. Independent and dependent variables, sample size and lab technique are all learned by trial and error.
"I have to grit my teeth sometimes, but I'm teaching them what real science is all about," says Stevens, whose demeanor is nurturing and no-nonsense at the same time. "When they make those mistakes, they say, 'Oh, I remember this.' "
Stevens founded the local science fair 16 years ago and requires all her students to enter. She mentors most of the projects and maintains a Wall of Fame for the seven who made it to the International Science & Engineering Fair.
Stevens' enthusiasm for science is palpable, and it helps bring science down to earth, says Bryt Huntley, 16. "Mrs. Stevens talks about different medical things, and she'll put real-life explanations as to why things happen, like mutating cells, what they do to people." She also inspires kids with her devotion, Bryt adds. "She is there early, during lunch, and she's normally there after school. Her life is pretty much her school and teaching."
Indeed, Stevens is most often at school until 7 or later. "If you don't enjoy kids and being with them, this would be the most miserable job in the world," she says. "But when you see them accomplishing things, it makes it all worthwhile."
This is part of an occasional series on members of the 2006 All-USA Teacher Team, USA TODAY's recognition program for outstanding K-12 teachers. Winners share $2,500 awards with their schools. To nominate a teacher for the 2007 team, visit allstars.usatoday.com.