With a new iLab Network project underway at the School of Education and Social Policy and MIT, high schools that barely have funding for test tubes can access some of the most advanced science laboratory equipment in the world — including instruments using output from nuclear reactors. The goal of the iLab Network, which recently received a two-year, $1 million grant from the National Science Foundation, is to help students learn more and become more engaged with science through remote access to world-class science instrumentation. The Office of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Education Partnerships (OSEP) is developing a series of remote laboratory experiments geared for high schoolers, in partnership with MIT. For example, advanced high school science students will be able to use mass spectrometers and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) machines at Northwestern, a neutron beam diffraction lab housed at MIT’s research nuclear reactor, electronic circuit testers at the University of Queensland and devices from other universities worldwide. The Northwestern team is developing innovative and accessible online interfaces for students to control the instruments remotely, see the devices operate via live webcam video, and visualize and analyze the experimental results.
		In the past, the experiments available to the vast majority of high school students have been limited. “To a certain extent, a high school science lab curriculum is based on what supplies are available and what can be done in 45 minutes instead of what makes the most sense for learning science. iLabs will allow science teachers to reconfigure the science labs in a way that makes much more sense pedagogically. Labs can now be done in study hall or as homework as well as in class, so students can have a lot more time to conduct experiments,” says Research Associate Professor Kemi Jona, principal investigator on the project and one of the leaders of OSEP.
		“Students will use actual instruments and get real data. These are not simulations,” explains Research Assistant Professor Dean Grosshandler, associate director of OSEP and senior investigator on the project. “Students will have 24/7 access and will be able to conduct multiple runs, taking advantage of replicability and the opportunity to analyze variations in their results, both of which are at the heart of the scientific enterprise.” In addition, iLabs not only will increase the opportunity for inquiry-based learning in both formal and informal environments but also will foster genuine enthusiasm for learning science. “There’s real excitement in using the equipment scientists actually use and working with it the way scientists do — it makes a big difference in science education. Many students find it motivating and exciting because they feel more a part of the scientific enterprise, they’re working with real data, and of course it’s very cool,” says Grosshandler. Physics teacher Mark Vondracek will use iLabs with his students at Evanston Township High School as part of a mix of learning experiences. “For students, the main benefit we anticipate as the project matures is exposure to new sets of real experimental data that high schools normally would not be able to collect,” says Vondracek, “iLabs should ultimately expand the lab selection I can choose from in my classes, because there will be experiments I cannot ever hope to do in the high school because of a lack of resources.”

In the fall schools including the Chicago Public Schools, Illinois Math and Science Academy, Illinois Virtual High School and Evanston Township will begin using the iLab Network. In November, a workshop co-hosted by Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry will bring together the science museum community and representatives from the Department of Energy’s national labs to explore how iLabs can change informal science education and create new partnerships. In time, the number of iLab experiments and partners will grow. “The idea is to create a scalable and sustainable platform for remote scientific experimentation for science learners from all over the world. We are creating the eBay marketplace for online labs,” says Jona.

With a mission of connecting K–12 students with world-class science, technology, engineering and mathematics resources, OSEP was initiated by SESP, the Northwestern Office of Research Development and the Northwestern Office of Research in 2007. More information about OSEP is available at http://osep.northwestern.edu.

Read more in the Pioneer Press.

Images:
Top two photos: iLab Network allows students to remotely access university-owned equipment such as a shake table to collect actual data. Bottom photo: High school students will be able to collect data from lab instruments such as this neutron beam spectrometer at MIT.