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Removing the barrier between teaching in the classroom and research in the laboratory
Author(s) -
Mattos Carla,
Swartz Paul D.
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.21.5.a39-b
Subject(s) - context (archaeology) , class (philosophy) , mathematics education , set (abstract data type) , process (computing) , point (geometry) , computer science , chemistry , pedagogy , psychology , mathematics , paleontology , geometry , artificial intelligence , biology , programming language , operating system
This talk will discuss an experiment where research and classroom education are intimately linked and where efforts in effective teaching translate into a high interest in research. The research project taken into the classroom aims at probing binding surfaces on proteins using the Multiple Solvent Crystal Structures (MSCS) method. For this, the crystal structure of a protein is solved in at least 10 organic solvent environments. The final 10–20 structures are superimposed to reveal characteristic patterns of bound organic solvents for analysis. At the beginning of the course, each of 10–20 students is given a data set and a starting model for structure refinement. A series of modules are being developed to simultaneously guide the students through the refinement process and to point out properties of protein structure and chemistry being discussed in class. Graduate students, postdocs and the PI work individually with the undergraduates in a coordinated fashion and at the end all students are either authors or acknowledged for their work in the publications. The project brings together various groups that are often separated in the traditional academic setting to accomplish common goals in a situation that decreases the gap between teaching and research, exposes students to topics discussed in traditional classrooms in the context of the pressing questions guiding cutting edge research, motivates graduate students and postdocs to be excellent teachers because the results provided by the undergraduates will feed into their research and publications. This connection between teaching, learning and research is effective in keeping the students interested in science.