Byte-sized bioinformatics: introducing Big Data through computational biology

该项目将建立在我们与苏格兰各地高中班级和教师的成功公众参与的基础上。我们建议通过以下方式增加覆盖范围和覆盖深度：-进一步的学校访问，为高等生物学，高等人类生物学和高等生物学学生提供我们的研讨会联系研讨会;-国家部署我们最近为年轻学生开发的研讨会，采取国家4和国家5生物学;丰富和进一步发展与学校的长期关系。我们的目标是直接影响至少70%的生物信息学教学在项目结束时，苏格兰的中学。我们将提供，完善和分享整个苏格兰学校的生物信息学在S3-S6的学生，以及在苏格兰教师的持续专业发展（CPD）的全班活动。重点将包括远离主要STEM活动中心的学校，以及大学升学率较低的学校。生物信息学是大数据的一个例子-这是STFC使命的核心主题。大数据是现代生活许多方面的核心，包括通信、设计、商业、金融、制造、运输、工程、娱乐和营销以及科学。我们使用与生物信息学相关的生物信息学作为切入点，吸引年轻人参与计算科学和大数据。计算科学和大数据提供职业发展机会，进行和支持具有国际竞争力的研究的能力，是未来经济增长和安全的基石。这些科目通常在大学科学课程中教授。但为了取得快速进步、社会包容和公众理解，必须在教育的早期阶段就获得这些技能。生物信息学（计算生物学）提供了一个很好的手段，让年轻人获得计算技能，并展示计算科学和大数据的普遍相关性。计算思维-以及许多计算技能-可以在大数据和STEM之间转移，包括计算机科学，物理学，天文学，化学，统计学和应用数学。生物信息学是医学、农业和环境研究当前和未来进展的基础，许多科学和技术促进委员会的科学和技术项目都有生物信息学的组成部分，在苏格兰，新的高等生物学和高等人类生物学卓越课程取得了重要的飞跃，其中明确包括生物信息学。然而，这一主题通常没有实际内容，可能被视为远离学校的实践。实际上，学校可以很容易地获得实用的生物信息学-只需要免费软件和互联网连接，就可以访问与专业使用的完全相同的工具，数据和环境。生物学学生的生物信息学全班活动几乎完全覆盖了科学计算的新受众，并抵消了与计算机科学相关的强烈的男性性别偏见。我们的全班活动在多样性和包容性方面具有广泛的优势。我们的工作坊将让学生体验大学水平的实践活动，将生物学课程中的主题与生物学和计算之间的主题联系起来，并增加对大数据的理解。我们将让苏格兰教师在生物信息学方面自给自足，我们将让学生更好地理解生物信息学，并意识到计算科学和大数据在现代研究，工业和社会中的核心作用。我们将开发的材料将在网上免费提供给所有人。这个项目是在爱丁堡大学资助的一个试点项目和一个由STFC公众参与大型奖（ST/R 000328/1）部分资助的成功项目之后进行的。

This project will build on our successful public engagement with senior secondary school classes and teachers across Scotland. We propose increased reach and depth of coverage through:- further school visits to deliver our curriculum-linked workshop for Higher Biology, Higher Human Biology and Advanced Higher Biology pupils;- national deployment of our recently developed workshop for younger pupils, taking National 4 and National 5 Biology; and- enrichment and further development of long-term relationships with schools.We aim to have directly impacted bioinformatics teaching in at least 70% of secondary schools in Scotland by the end of the project. We will deliver, refine and share whole-class activities in bioinformatics across Scottish schools for Biology students in S3-S6, as well as continuing professional development (CPD) for teachers in Scotland. Priorities will include schools remote from major centres of STEM activity, and schools with low progression rates to university.Bioinformatics is an example of Big Data - a topic central to STFC's mission. Big Data is at the heart of many aspects of modern life, including communications, design, business, finance, manufacturing, transport, engineering, recreation and marketing as well as science. We use curriculum-linked bioinformatics as an entry point to engage young people with computational science and Big Data.Computational science and Big Data provide career development opportunities, an ability to conduct and support internationally competitive research, and are a keystone to future economic growth and security. These subjects are typically taught within university science programmes. But for rapid progress, social inclusion and public understanding, acquiring these skills must be integrated at much earlier stages in education.Bioinformatics (computational biology) provides an excellent means to allow young people to gain computational skills and to demonstrate the pervasive relevance of computational science and Big Data. Computational thinking - and many computational skills - are transferable across Big Data and STEM including computer science, physics, astronomy, chemistry, statistics and applied mathematics. Bioinformatics underpins current and future progress in medicine, agriculture and environmental research, and many STFC science and technology projects have a bioinformatics component.In Scotland, an important leap forward was made with the new Curriculum for Excellence for Higher Biology and Higher Human Biology curricula, which explicitly include bioinformatics. However, the topic is usually taught without a practical component, and may be seen as distant from practice in schools. In reality, practical bioinformatics can be easily accessible to schools - requiring only free software and an Internet connection to access exactly the same tools, data and environment as used professionally.Whole-class activities in bioinformatics for biology students reach an almost entirely new audience for scientific computation, and off-set the strong male gender bias associated with computer science. Our whole-class activities have extensive advantages for diversity and inclusion. Our workshops will give a taste of practical university-level activities, link topics within the Biology curriculum and across Biology and computing, and increase understanding of Big Data.We will leave Scottish teachers self-sufficient in bioinformatics, and we will leave pupils with a better understanding of bioinformatics and an awareness of the central role of computational science and Big Data in modern research, industry and society. The materials that we will develop will be made freely available to all, online.This project follows a pilot project funded via the University of Edinburgh and a successful project part-funded by an STFC Public Engagement Large Award (ST/R000328/1).