Our Outcomes
My goal for participation in Planting Science is to provide an authentic research experience for my students. A previous biology teacher at my school used Planting Science in our middle school biology class. I observed how rewarding it was for her students to go through the entire scientific method. I was particularly impressed with the emphasis on research to develop an evidence-based hypothesis. I am also attracted to the length of the program, as it is long enough to allow students time to develop ownership of their project. I want to expose my students (and myself) to research opportunities across as many biological disciplines as possible. As a first-time biology teacher last year (I had taught earth science and chemistry before), I attempted to provide a similar experience for my students without the mentor component of the Planting Science program. I have research experience from my doctoral work, but I studied neuroscience, and my knowledge of plant research is low. In practice, the student experience would have been enriched by communicating with mentors in the field, guiding them through the experimental design phase and helping them anticipate difficulties. At the end of the program, I expect my students to be confident that they can design an experiment, conduct said experiment, analyze the results, and make a conclusion. I want them to truly understand what each of those terms mean from first-hand experience. They should be able to see the scientific method as a toolbox that can be applied to any scientific question. I also want to increase their confidence in communicating with experts that they have not met and learn how to interact professionally with these adults. Personally, I want to improve my understanding of modern plant research and see more examples of scientific mentoring.
