Teacher Enhancement in Molecular Biology and Recombinant DNA Technology

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9454355 Bhattacharjee The Teacher Enhancement workshop in molecular biology and recombinant DNA technology supported by the NSF was initiated to provide high school biology teachers with needed basic knowledge and proficiency in recent advances of molecular biology and recombinant DNA technology. The objectives of the project are to improve the teaching of biology, attract more students to careers in biomedical sciences, and make Ohio high school graduates "DNA literate." This summer workshop should involve two weeks of intensive lectures (topics include structure and function of DNA, genome size and propoerties of prokaryotic and eukaryotic genes, and the principles and applications of gene cloning and recombinant DNA technology), discussions, special seminars (topics include oncogene and career, human genome project, evolution and plant biotechnology), field trip to an Ohio biotechnology company, lesson plan development, and hands-on laboratory experiments involving simple recombinant DNA techniques (E. coli transformation, plasmid DNA Isolation, restriction digestion and gel electrophoretic analysis of recombinant DNA). Twenty teachers would be selected for each workshop. Through expanded outreach efforts, at least half of the teachers will be actively recruited from the inner-city high schools of Ohio. Each participating teacher will be provided with a stipend, travel, room and meal expenses as well as a textbook, accessories, video tapes, a list of granting agencies and research resource laboratories in Ohio, an electrophoretic gel box and power supply, and various laboratory supplies. The instructional team would include the PI, one faculty associate, other Miami faculty, graduate teaching assistants, high school master teachers, curriculum and assessment consultants. In order to increase the impact of the project, the PI and the faculty associate would conduct regional and annual summative follow-up activities. Second-tier teachers from the sch ools and districts of the participating teachers will be included in the follow-up activities. As a result of this project, at the end of the current grant period more than 10,000 students in more than 100 high schools in Ohio woul be benefitted.