School Outreach

 

Churchill High School

 

 

In June of 2014, a member of our group conducted a short presentation about genetic engineering for an AP Biology class at Winston Churchill High School in Potomac, Maryland. The presentation contained information on the process of genetic engineering in general including transcription and translation, the basics of bacterial genetics, plasmid design; and on our team’s project including the importance of oysters to the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem and economy, the mechanism by which P. marinus infects oysters, and the protein structure being designed for our project. Approximately half of the class period, both during the presentation and after it, was left for students to ask questions. Some of the students were clearly interested in learning more about the current and future applications of genetic engineering, such as in agriculture, and about the possible risks involved and how they can be reduced. Some of the students asking these questions later said after the presentation that they were interested in studying genetics in college. Overall, the presentation was understandable and engaging to most of the class and several students were clearly interested in learning more about IGEM and our team’s current project.