A new U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) pilot program is helping to redefine the college educational experience in science classes. Instead of listening to lectures, reading textbooks, and performing “canned” lab experiments, students at 12 universities across the country will conduct original research in laboratory courses beginning in January 2008.
“No one will know ahead of time what they will find; it will be their own original work, a college education for the 21st century,” observed Erin Sanders-Lorenz, academic coordinator for the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics and an instructor for undergraduate laboratory courses in microbiology, virology, and microbial genomics. “Instead of memorizing facts,” she explained, “students will learn for themselves, think like scientists, and apply their knowledge to a scientific problem. Science doesn’t mean as much until you roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty.”
UCLA is one of the schools participating in the pilot program operated by DOE’s Joint Genome Institute (JGI), which aims to produce a Genomic Encyclopedia of Bacteria and Archaea. In the program, college science educators will adopt the genome of the microorganism Ammonifex degensii, a heat-loving bug of geothermal origin, for students to analyze. Students will use bioinformatics to analyze DNA and protein sequences in the context of biochemical pathways and the ecology and evolution of the organism. They will attempt to determine the function of proteins, including novel ones, and may discover new genes for the microorganism. Students will then contribute their work to the genomic encyclopedia.
“Among our most important goals at the JGI is to engage undergraduates as scientists in DOE mission-relevant research,” said Cheryl Kerfeld, the program’s founder and head of the JGI’s education program. Kerfeld said she wanted to initiate the pilot program after her experience in developing a UCLA undergraduate research program known as the Undergraduate Genomics Research Initiative. (To learn more about that program, refer to the May 2007 issue of PLoS Biology, published by the Public Library of Science.)
“I saw how excited and motivated undergraduates became in doing research,” observed Kerfeld, adding that she involved students in the JGI’s genomics and bioinformatics research. “I knew bioinformatics research was powerful and could be started right away,” she explained.
After starting work at the JGI in January 2007, Kerfeld began developing the program in March. She created an online bioinformatics plat-form for students with Folker Meyer of the DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory. Colleges and universities were invited to apply for the program in August. Schools selected include institutions ranging from small liberal arts colleges to state universities.
In October, the JGI invited representatives from the selected schools to attend a workshop on microbial genome annotation. The event enabled participants to collaborate and explore curriculum options for how they will implement genomics and bioinformatics at their respective institutions in the winter and spring terms.
“What this means to a faculty member trying to innovate science education: I don’t have to go it alone,” said Cheryl Bailey, an assistant professor in the University of Nebraska, Lincoln’s Department of Biochemistry. “We can see how this works across many institutions to help those in the future incorporate this type of learning at their institution. The backing by JGI gives us the credibility to make changes in our science courses; the workshop was a true collaborative effort with input and feedback working on all levels of the project. It is truly a wonderful way to innovate science education and serves to both develop faculty members and the students they engage.”
Participating schools will reconvene in June 2008 to discuss their efforts, Kerfeld said. At that time, the schools will be able to begin drafting a report discussing their strategies for advancing genomics and bioinformatics across the undergraduate curricula.
If the pilot program is successful, it will expand beyond the 12 colleges and universities. Kerfeld said she would also like to see the program implemented in middle and high schools. “I think there is potential to do this,” she observed.
For more information, refer to www.jgi.doe.gov.