Final Project Reflection- Michael Silver

1. For my final project, I went to Clarke Central High School to help AP Bio students learn about antibiotic resistance.

2. In order to prepare for this field trip, the entire class went through our own walkthrough of the same experiment the high school students would be conducting. We collected our own samples of dirt from different areas on campus, logged the exact latitude and longitude of our samples, and then brought them into class in order to dilute them to the point where we could count the levels of bacteria. We then plated the bacteria, adding different amounts of antibiotic to the plates. By the end, we had three different plate sets: those treated with no antibiotics, those with Tet3 antibiotic (which was the weaker of the two antibiotics), and Tet30 (the stronger antibiotic). Each set had plates with staggered levels of diluted soil, ranging from 10 to 10,000.

After the plates had incubated, we counted the colonies of bacteria. Since the levels of dilution varied, some plates were swarmed in bacteria, while some had little to none. We were told that the optimal bacteria levels for counting were between 30 and 300, so we used the plate with levels between that amount and multiplied it by the dilution factor in order to get an estimate of how much bacteria was in the real-world soil sample.

3. This project was interesting because it had a very hands-on approach. By conducting every step, I felt engaged in the experiment and it was easier to understand how each step in the process worked, whether it was the dilutions or the antibiotics or anything else. I learned that, scarily, there is a lot of bacteria in our nearby environment that is resistant to antibiotics. I also found that working on the subject matter a second time, while presenting and helping the high school students with their own experiment, made the information stick in my head. Articulating the process in my own words to the students made me really think about what it meant and how antibiotic resistance works.

4. We incorporated the following characteristics by relating the experiment to the high schoolers’ individual lives. Everybody, at one point or another, plays outside or even walks on a dirt path. But nobody really stops and thinks about how the bacteria in the soil exists and how it is getting stronger and more resistant to common antibiotics. By highlighting a global health concern, and then relating it back to their lives, it creates a relevancy for the audience. By thinking about how the problem occurs and taking necessary scientific steps to visualize it, we stimulate the students intellectually. Lastly, the experiment itself was creative because it wasn’t an ordinary classroom exercise–instead, we were actively conducting research and experimenting.

5. As an education major, it was nice to get into a classroom and try out skills that I will eventually be using in the future. I definitely felt more confident, and I felt surprisingly comfortable talking about the subject even though science is not my strong suit and I don’t want to become a science teacher. It made a huge difference that I knew the material well and felt comfortable talking about it in my own words, and I think that I would not have felt as comfortable if we didn’t perform our own similar experiment beforehand. I don’t think I had any assumptions about the audience, but I was surprised to see the quality of educational materials at Clarke Central–every student had a Chromebook readily available.

6. Going in, I figured that the students didn’t know much about the experimental process, so I tried to explain it as simply as possible. For me, that was easy, because in order for biology to make sense in my head it has to be in layman’s terms. This made it simple because the terminology that I remembered wasn’t confusing for the students. In future communication efforts, I can execute this similarly in order to get my point across without confusing the audience.

7 I would have tried to create a dialogue with the students in order to get a better understanding of how much they knew about the topic or experiment itself, so we could cover more ground without being repetitive.

8. This experience helped me understand the material relating to antibiotic resistance because it gave me tangible objects to associate with the unit terminology. By analyzing my audience, I was able to get a general feel for how well the students grasped the material, so that I could explain what they didn’t know. As the experiment went on, it got more complex, and it was important that the students understood the initial procedure so that they could extract data from their results. Feedback from the students was important, because it allowed me to further understand their limits on what they knew and what I needed to explain to them.

9. Again, as a future teacher (hopefully), this classroom experiment will help me by giving me real experience in a school with a core subject matter. Especially because I don’t plan on teaching a STEM subject, it gave some light on how being a STEM teacher works and how it is different from, say, a history teacher.

10. I think that I came across the way I hoped to come across. I think that I offered myself to the class as a resource to help with the assignment without doing it for them, and when needed, could explain the process in a way that made sense. In the future, I hope that I can improve my communication skills even further.

11. While the assignment that I completed was different from that described in the question, I still feel that this assignment was effective in helping me learn the about antibiotic resistance while also getting to help in the local Athens community.

Composting Infographic

What: This infographic is so appealing to me because it falls in line with all three effective forms of delivery. It is intellectually stimulating because it offers the information in a way that is easy to read yet teaches composting terminology at the same time. It also shows relevancy to the audience by mentioning the cost benefits of composting and how it can help all of our wallets while saving the earth. Lastly, it is creative through its illustrations and ways of construing ideas to the reader.

Gut: The graphic invoked a feeling of accomplishment before I even started composting. By showing all of the positive results that composting accomplishes, it created a sense of pride that I could save the earth by following a few simple rules. It was pleasing to read, because the terminology wasn’t super confusing, almost as if the intended audience was for a child without being condescending.

So What: Surprisingly, I had never even thought about putting the compost to use in my own dwelling–I always expected to send it off for someone else to use. So saving money on fertilizers by using fresh compost seems beneficial and a no-brainer. Sadly, the infographic fails to cite its sources, so I am curious to see where they got their information.

Now What: I think that highlighting the cost benefits of composting will be a biggie when it comes to attracting college students living in University Village. While composting may be environmentally friendly, in the end students will be more concerned about themselves and how to make it day to day. By highlighting information relevant to them, it may be easier to get them involved. I think the reason we haven’t thought of this yet is because we’ve been so driven on giving the how-to’s of composting, rather than the long term results that come with composting itself.

UGArden

In this picture, I see a man who is really passionate about soil. And there’s nothing wrong with that–he’s being environmentally conscious by doing so. I think this picture is really cool because it not only captures the compost itself, but also a professor who has spent hours upon hours of his time doing the composting (and best of all, in the middle of explaining the ups and downs of the temperature of said compost). This picture makes me think about one main thing (stay with me on this one): Could you increase the productivity of composting by putting all of your organic material in a blender? That’s what, sadly, I was thinking about throughout the professor’s entire presentation. And to my surprise, he actually answered my wild internal question, albeit indirectly–there was a machine that sliced and diced organic material to speed up the composting process. So, when I look at this picture, I think about the innovations that keep popping up in the agriculture industry. However, I think this particular picture is about something more specific: the determination of one professor to do his part, whether it be turning over the piles of dead leaves via tractor or throwing egg shells into a homemade compost bin away from UGArden. No matter where he is, he tries to make a difference.

Reflective post #1

This is me with a friend from high school looking all dapper (I’m on the right).

In high school, I took intro science classes each of my first three years: Physics as a freshman, Chemistry as a sophomore, and Biology as a junior. I’m not really a science-oriented student, so I didn’t have a favorite course, more just a favorite teacher. My Chemistry teacher was incredible so I always looked forward to listening to her even though the course material wasn’t too fun.
Even though I’m taking this course because it’s required for my major, I want to get a basic understanding of Biology. I passed Bio in high school, but never fully grasped a lot of the concepts. I think that having a small classroom environment and unique agenda will help me really understand biology.
How much does the diet of farm animals play into the addition of antibiotics in soil? If we fed farm animals food more similar to their undomesticated diets would that make a change?
It seems to me that the reasons composting hasn’t really taken off on a big scale all comes down to money. How could we make composting and reducing the amount of antibiotics in soil more cost-efficient so that the general public would approve it over cheaper, less eco-friendly options?
I think that going out into the local area and promoting composting and other ideas will help me learn how to connect with others and have civilized discussions about issues. Climate change is always talked about in the news, so if we start by making a small difference in the Athens community, we can make a broader impact on a larger scale if we stick with it.