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Skip to content Skip to search Skip to footer Institute for School Partnership Open Menu Back Close Menu Search for: Search Close Search About Us Our Programs Faculty Engagement Results and Impact News Blog Contact Us Support Open Search Faculty & Staff Science Through ASSET Program, students see science that’s alive and active By Anne Heinrich • May 7, 2024May 9, 2024 Tetrahymena a genus of unicellular ciliated protozoan and Bacterium under the microscope “Science is something you do, not a bunch of stuff you memorize.” Longtime biology teacher Jessica Rowe has always believed this, and she’s thrilled to be able to start biology classes for freshmen and sophomores at Francis Howell Central High School with an experience that is all about doing. They just need microscopes and an introduction to a single-celled microorganism with a BIG name: Tetrahymena.  Biology teacher Jessica Rowe enjoys watching her students at Francis Howell Central High School observe how active and responsive Tetrahymena are when watched closely under the microscope. “Tetrahymena are alive and so active,” says Rowe. “Starting out the year watching them move and interact sets the stage for the rest of the year and gives students early success using microscopes.” Rowe leads her students back to the microscopes throughout the school year, and together they are discovering how accessible Tetrahymena are for learning about basic scientific principles. There’s even room for creativity. “The students want to watch them, and I let them set their own experiments during an observation day using items from the kitchen. For instance, we know that soy sauce dehydrates and watching Tetrahymena react to varying concentrations of it helps us see cell response in action and discover at what concentration it’s no longer toxic. The kids can take photos and videos with their cell phones, and they come up with creative ways to ask and answer questions.” Rowe learned about what a versatile teaching tool Tetrahymena can be after attending a workshop led by Douglas Chalker, professor of biology in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis. Chalker received a five-year $660,281 collaborative award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support the ASSET program, an outreach program initiated at Cornell University that has relocated to WashU under Chalker’s leadership.  Chalker, who has been working with Tetrahymena since he started his postdoc in 1992, isuniquely poised to take the lead of the program which distributes kits containing the organism and lesson plans to high schools across the U.S. Among the new aims outlined in the SEPA-funded grant for the program is reaching populations traditionally underrepresented in science in the St. Louis area. For that part of the work, Chalker knew he had just the right WashU partner in mind: The Institute for School Partnership (ISP).  “Students are naturally curious about the world,” Chalker says. “With the ASSET program, we’re putting something in the hands of teachers, wherever they are, so they can engage students in the process of inquiry.” “I really appreciate the ISP’s expertise in connecting with schools in places that wouldn&＃8217;t have access to real scientific inquiry otherwise,” says Chalker. “The ISP has been working with these target populations for nearly 30 years, and having that established network has beeninstrumental in our ability to do this part of the work.” With administrative support from the ISP, Chalker’s lab has one full year of ASSET kitdistribution nearly completed, equipping teachers across 30 states with a resource they canleverage to get students excited about science learning. “This first year distributing kits has made me realize the scope of the overall project,” addsChalker. “Last year we have made an impact on more than 10,000 students.” Doug Chalker, professor of biology in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, has been working with Tetrahymena since 1992. He’s assembled a team of teachers and colleagues at the ISP to refine lessons using the single-cell organism and distribute kits to classrooms nationwide. Bridging research and engaging classroom learning Additional goals for the ASSET program under Chalker’s leadership include modifications to curriculum to meet evolving science standards and teaching approaches. In short, the lessons need to provide today’s students with opportunities to enforce their quantitative skills when thinking about biological samples. Rather than think about math and science as two separate sets of learning, students need opportunities to meld the two like they will have to do if pursuing STEM careers. For that work, the ISP’s expertise connecting WashU faculty with area educators for professional development and research learning opportunities has proven valuable. With ISP support, Chalker hired area teachers Anne Deken and Courtney Hausner to help align existing lessons with NGSS standards and write modules, all while gaining experience doing research in a lab.  For Chalker, Deken and Hausner, the collaboration over the last two summers has been a win, win, win, says ISP’s Laboratory and Project Manager Chris Mohr; wins for the ASSET program,the teachers, and, most importantly, the students. “The whole notion is that teachers are the experts in the classroom,” Mohr says. “They know the standards and students. Aligning the lessons with standards is an iterative process, and having them help us think about what will work with students makes sense.” Hausner, who teaches biology at Oakville High School, has more than ten years of experienceteaching. She says she’s enjoying learning more about research from Chalker and having ateaching peer in Deken with whom to share ideas. When reworking lessons for ASSET, shesays something as simple as changing the order that information is presented can make all the difference. “Do the lab first!” Hausner says. “Get to the good part first, then the students are excited to ask about and learn the information. It’s all about making the lessons more engaging for kids and accessible for teachers.” A favorite lesson that Hausner has worked on illustrates the possible health effects of smoking and vaping. The students have an opportunity to expose the Tetrahymena to differentconcentrations of alcohol, cigarette smoke and vape extracts.  “I hope the students see the cellular damage that happens,” she says. Hausner’s ASSET partner Deken teaches sixth grade at John Burroughs, and says she’s alsoenjoyed refining her own knowledge about research and sharing it with students.  “I’m always looking for ways to connect my kids to see real life science,” Deken says. “I wantthem to think about what we did outside the confines of a textbook. One of my favorite thingsabout teaching is that first time a student really sees something. I love that moment. Once they are confident, they start seeing more things for themselves.” Allowing students to see things for themselves is key to healthy inquiry and is the basis forscientific understanding, says Chalker. “Students are naturally curious about the world,” Chalker says. “With the ASSET program, we’re putting something in the hands of teachers, wherever they are, so they can engage students in the process of inquiry.” To learn more about the ASSET program, visit https://assetprogram.wustl.edu/ or email:[email protected]. 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