A university science enrichment program for gifted high school students

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A University Science Enrichment Program for Gifted High School Students S. C. Thomas' John G. Diefenbaker High School, 6620 4th Street N.W., Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2K 1C2 R. A. Kydd University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2N IN4 It has always been recognized in senior high schools that the needs of the "gifted" science student cannot always be adequately met. Restrictions placed on the high school teacher, oreoaration of manv courses. lack of such as laree " class sizes... . appropriate facilities and equipment, and inadequate background often combine to make it impossible to provide the additional experiences that could challenge a gifted science student. If unchallenged, these students not only may not obtain the science education they are capable of understandinp, - hut also they -may.turn to other areas of interest for stimulation, and potential scientists could he lost. Some approaches designed to provide a more stimulating experience for these gifted students have been described elsewhere ( I + ) , hut actual operating programs seem to be rare. In this article

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science and engineering departments a t the University of Calearv. " .. working in close cooneration with the science teams of the Calgary public and separate school systems, offer students from Calgary high schools an opportunity to work on a research project under the guidance of a faculty member. Possible candidates for the program are approached by their high school science teachers, and, if accepted into the program, work a t the universitv a minimum of three hours a week for a semester. The students present a short seminar on their projects to their peers, parents, teachers, and professors a t the conclusion of the program.

Benefits of the Program The advantages of this program are many. Not only do the students get the chance to work on an original research project (some of which are surprisingly sophisticated; see Table), hut also they become famihar with the university environment and realize that members of the faculty are ordinary beings and not the gods many of us feared in first-year university. The faculty, too, learn a great deal from their involvement in this propram. Thev are imoressed with the abilities and enthusikgshown. ~ b students, n ~ for example, look forward to their Christmas school break as a time when they can spend whole days on their research. In fact, in several instances, professors have subsequently employed their students as summer research assistkts. lnter&ti&ly, although special credit for this program toward high school graduation requirements is possible, only a very few students in the program bothered to apply for it. Most of them had more than enough credits already, and had entered the program simply for the challenge involved. A possible advantage to the universitv is that some of these outstanding studentsmay choose to enroll a t the host university rather than going elsewhere. Of those who have completed the program, over 70% subsequently enrolled a t the University of Calgary, approximately twice as many as would

' Author t o whom corres~ondenceshould be addressed.

Typical Project Titles for the Science Enrichment Program 1) The separation and identification of oils from Athabasca Oil Sands

2) The Bromination of aromatic compounds 3) 4) 5) 6)

Screen for mutants in B-galactosidase Respiratory behavior in keyhole limpets Optical diffraction by nearly-perfect periodic lattices Investigation of the inheritance of a spontaneous wing mutation in Drosophila pseudo-obscura 7) Circuit analysis using an Apple computer

be expected from the eeneral hieh school uowulation who .. graduate with university entrance requirements. However, these rifted students would be exuected to attend a universitv in anGevent, and i t is difficult td assess whether the Enrichment Program had any influence on their choice of which university to attend. Of those currently a t the University of Calgary, 85%are in science or engineering programs. Another positive outcome of this program is the improvement in the communication between teachers and faculty members. During both the Orientation Day and the coicluding seminars and dinners, teachers and faculty have a valuable opportunity to discuss mutual concerns. One of the most gratifying aspects of this program has been the response of the families of the students involved. In many instances, brothers, sisters, and grandparents as well as parents attend the end-of-session seminars. and in all cases thev have been extremely pleased with the Enrichment Program. In these times of disenchantment with educational institutions, the positive feeling in the community engendered by this program is extremely valuable. The program has been the subject of newspaper and magazine articles, for example, and one of the students was even featured in a national network radio program. History of the Program In the fall of 1978, the Science Team of the Calgary Board of Education approached the Chemistry Department of the Science Faculty a t the University of Calgary to determine if some special projects could he offered for gifted science students. This approach was met with enthusiasm by most of the facultv members. who recoenized that as well as encouraeinr the students to maintain their interest in science, the projects would introduce some outstandine hirh school students to the programs and facilities availableat the University. The program has expanded from chemistry and now includes biology, physics, chemical engineering, electrical engineering, and medicine. The number of students ranges from about 15-25 per semester with some students continuing on for two or more semesters. The number of professors who can volunteer their time to the program varies with their teaching load.

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Selection of the Students At the beginning of each semester, the Science Team of the Calgary Board of Education receives a listing of the professors Volume 60

Number 1 Januarv 1983

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from the various departments a t the University of Calgary who are willing to accept a student for that term. Each professor provides a brief description (typically ll? page) of the research project on which he would like the student to work, his requirements as to the number of hours he would expect the student to work each week, and the times he would he available to work with the student. This information is then circulated to science teachers within the senior high schools, who bring the program to the attention of those of their students whom they feel possess not only the ahility to do enrichment work, but also the enthusiasm and responsibility to maintain the commitment to the project over the several months of the semester. Interelted students apply for inclusion in the program, choosing three projects from the listing as their first, second, and third preferences. Their science teacher forwards their application to the Science Team and includes a written section recommending the students' acceptance into the program. In addition, the teacher completes an anecdotal report on the students' background in those disciplines from which he has selected projects. The parents' and an administrator's approval complete the application. Upon receipt of the application, a member of the Science 'ream makes the difficult decision of whom to accept into the program. As each school is asked to rank the students they submit, selection is a combination of consideration of the school's ranking plus a matching of the students' project choices with the professors' timetables. Students in grade 12 who apply are given preference over those in grades 10 or 11. The rationale is that younger students will be able to reapply in future semesters. Orientation Day The selected students, professors, and the Science Team coordinators meet together in the morning of the Orientation Day, when introductions are made and the program is described. The students then are taken on a tour of the department in which they will he working. At a luncheon the group is joined by the recommending teachers and there is the opportunity for informal discussion. A library tour follows for the students to make them aware of the periodicals and reference hooks needed for their research. Project Work After each professor and student have agreed upon a mutually convenient day and length of time to meet (typically three hours a t the university, plus two hours study a t home, each week) the students hegin work on their projects for the remainder of the semester. Undoubtedly, the most successful topics are those in which the students' project is part of the ongoing research work in the professor's lahoratory, although student initiated projects have been very successful too. Not all of the projects involve "research" in the sense of investigating something which is unknown. For example, one project which has worked out well for students with an interest in instrumentation has been a

study of the theory and operation of a GC-mass spectrometer. Although the students have a good background in science, their knowledge acquired in high school cannot he expected to prepare them for the sophisticated concepts they will encounter. Inevitably, too, new equipment and new techniques have to he mastered. However, the students are ahle, in a relativelv short time. to handle these new concents and skills. Quite often graduate students help out a t this stage and freauentlv discover that beine. wlaced in the nosition of instructor . denefits their learning as well. One of the most valuable aswects of the . oroeram .. is that the students realize that some of the science and mathematics concepts that had seemed so abstract when they were studvine . themactually have important practical appl