A Biology Workshop Program

Abstract

X ithin the past five years, there have been developments in several areas of biological science which have had tremendous impact on the scientific world. The advances in molecular genetics and the unraveling of the basic features of the genetic code, the isolation and identification of the primary reactants in photosynthesis, and the concepts of the origin and evolution of our planet and its life will continue to activate biological thinking and research for many years to come. The more recent biology programs are including these topics in their syllabi. It is obvious that the critical link in the chain leading from the research laboratory to the student is the high school biology teacher. If there is now a gap between experimental science and the high school laboratory, the bridge between the two cannot be built merely by readings, seminars or lectures, no matter how well presented or conscientiously attended. Biological science is learned to a large extent by doing, and the information gap must be closed by personal contact between the teacher and the experimental scientist. In order to develop a personal contact program, the Catholic Science Council of the Archdiocese of New York inaugurated a Teacher's Workshop in Biology Program during the academic year 1966/67. The procedure followed may be of interest to school districts contemplating such a program. The Science Council arranged a series of eight sessions with one meeting each month from October through May. Meetings were held in a biological science laboratory room of Cardinal Hayes High School which was centrally located within the archdiocese. The third Thursday evening of each month was selected, although a Saturday meeting might be more convenient for districts embracing a large area. In order to facilitate direct personal contacts between instructors and the teacher participants, the group was held to twenty-six. Selection of teacher-participants was an administrative function of the Science Council and the individual schools; where departments are large, a single participant was selected from each school. Selection of instructors was, in the New York area, an easy task. The topics were chosen first and appropriate scientists were invited to serve as instructors for particular topics. Universities, research institutes, federal, state and local agencies and health science professionals form a pool of talent which can be tapped with surprising ease. The topics and instructors for 1966/67 included: Effects of Visible Radiation on Growth of Plants (Richard M. Klein, New York Botanical Garden) Virology (Karl Maramorosch, Boyce Thompson Institute) Induction of Mutation by Ultraviolet Radiation (Deana T. Klein, Hunter College, CUNY) Exobiology (Sanford Siegel, Union Carbide Research Institute) Microbiology (John J. McLaughlin, Fordham University) Animal Tissue Cultures (Philip Marcus, Einstein College of Medicine) Plant Tissue Cultures (Jacques Lipetz, Manhattan College) Taxonomy and Classification of Plants (Howard Irwin, New York Botanical Garden)