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CONTACT: Susie P. Gonzalez

susie.gonzalez@trinity.edu

July 27, 2009

Trinity Becomes a Learning Lab for San Antonio 7^th Graders

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SAN ANTONIO -- Trinity University scientists dreamed of investing in inner-city 7^th graders, pondering the possibilities of exposing them to the mysteries and discoveries of the science world. Thanks in part to a $1.5 million grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, about 200 San Antonio students visited Trinity or took University-sponsored field trips during the 2008-09 academic year. 

High-achieving science students came one day each quarter to attend the TU-HHMI Science Academy. The middle schoolers conducted or watched college students and professors perform experiments in the disciplines of chemistry, earth science, biology, ecology, and astronomy. For example, they:

• Learned how bodies respond to exercise.
   

• Used a telescope to observe planets at night.
   

• Mixed Mentos candy with soda. (Hint: it doesn’t have to be diet soda to achieve the explosion promised by the Internet.)
   

• Examined sheep’s blood to observe the salt and sugar it contains.
   

• Collected various animal and plant species during an overnight stay at the Bamberger Ranch near Blanco, Texas.

The program ignited the curiosity of many students who might never have thought college was in their future. “The feedback from 7^th graders is – this is energizing. They tell you they want to be college students and want to study science,” said Mark Brodl, the Brackenridge Distinguished Professor of Biology and director of the grant. Building upon the middle-school curriculum, Trinity scientists introduced them to free form investigation, allowing the young students to follow a line of inquiry without answering rote questions. At the same time, they had to grasp the need for precision, to be careful and accurate in their measurements, and to understand that scientific inquiry can raise additional questions.  

“For these students, it’s always been that if you fail in the classroom, you get a bad grade,” Professor Brodl said. “Here, if they have more time and they know what to do from the aspect of scientific inquiry, they can repeat the experiment and learn from their mistakes.”

The benefits were two-fold, he said. Not only did the middle school students become comfortable in a university setting, they informed Trinity undergraduates and faculty members about the culture of the larger San Antonio community. Some Trinity students began to consider a career teaching science.

Rico Rodriguez, 14, a student at Wheatley Middle School, liked science before he visited Trinity, but he said working with sheep’s blood was “cool.” He said he had no idea blood contained salt and sugar. “What I did know before is that if you have too less water, you get dehydrated. If you get too much, you have to go to the restroom.”

Maria Ortega, 12, also a Wheatley student, said she enjoyed carrying a beaker of blood to the microscope. After looking through the instrument, her task was to draw a picture of the salt and sugar in the blood. She spoke few words, but her smile radiated her approval.

“Students are always more engaged when they are doing hands-on activities,” said Gabriella Rennebeck, a Trinity biology instructor. “In their schools, they don’t always have the equipment to do that. The exposure (at Trinity) is critical as to what their future might be.”

Wheatley teacher Amun Ahmoseditdo, a 6^th grade science teacher serving as a chaperone, observed growth in the students, who were becoming self-driven and motivated to complete the experiments. “I tell them, ‘This could be your life if you choose to focus.’”

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