Outreach: Empowering Students and Teachers to Fish Outside the Box

Abstract

The purpose of the Project BioEYES Outreach Program is to foster an enthusiasm for science education, promote interest for future participation in a biology-related field, and allow all students the opportunity to learn life science through a hands-on, student-centered approach to instruction. In the 7 years since the program's inception, we have studied our growth and impact in and out of the classroom. Our model of promoting science education through a University-K12 partnership is exemplified by Project BioEYES success in multiple cities. This effort has allowed students to perform real experiments as lead scientists in their own classrooms. The University-K12 partnership model has also provided teachers with the training and skills needed to facilitate their teaching of the experimental process by integrating complex scientific concepts into the classroom setting. Our demonstrated success with Project BioEYES in a number of large public school districts supports our effort to disseminate Project BioEYES both nationally and internationally.

Growth and Maturation in the Zebrafish,Danio Rerio: A Staging Tool for Teaching and Research

“…Currently, many educational tools focus on embryonic development such as BioEYES. 10 However, researchers are increasingly examining aspects of later growth and maturation and so, educational programs are also increasingly examining these later stages. One obvious example of the use of larvae in the classroom is a studentdriven educational module developed at Sidwell Friends School in Washington D.C. 12 , where students examine pigment pattern formation in normal and mutant conditions.…”

“…BioEYES, an educational program for grades 5-12, has introduced zebrafish into the classroom, engaging more than 50,000 children (bioeyes.org/ ourstory.html). 10 As zebrafish researchers expand their studies into larval, juvenile, and adult stages, educational programs followed suit and have begun to include later developmental stages, as shown in the study of pigment patterning developed by a set of high school students. 11,12 Smaller initiatives include the use of zebrafish to teach neuroscience, development, evolution, and behavior at many academic levels.…”

A 3-Year Model for Building a Sustainable Science Outreach and Teacher Collaborative

“…Their embryos and larvae are transparent allowing students to observe their growth from a single-cell embryo to a free swimming larva with a beating heart and blood flow in a matter of four days, and for children to make connections about their own biology. Participating teachers regularly report that BioEYES' hands-on approach, with its use of live organisms, fosters student engagement and comprehension of tough science topics (Shuda and Kearns-Sixsmith, 2009). PD Components.…”

Making a Difference: Education at the 10th International Conference on Zebrafish Development and Genetics

“…1 BioEYES founder Steve Farber of the Carnegie Institution for Science gave an update on the program, noting that as of this year BioEYES, which is active in Philadelphia, Baltimore, South Bend (IN), and several other cities, will have reached over 70,000 students in grades K-12. The genetics component of BioEYES continues, and the Baltimore program has added an extensive module in Environmental Science to enhance learning about the Chesapeake Bay watershed.…”