I have always been aware that students learn best through experiential practices, but find it challenging to incorporate hands-on activities into every aspect of our 7th grade math curriculum. During this summer’s Kenan Fellowship, I came to realize that such a goal may not be attainable, nor beneficial to my students. While in the lab, it became clear that “real” scientists must often complete tedious, repetitious, mind-numbing tasks in order to accomplish their overall research goals and make new discoveries to share with the world.
Understanding this aspect of life, that not everything is fun and engaging, will be very important to my students’ ultimate success in whatever field they choose to pursue – scientists need to cull through massive amounts of data to find patterns and connections, musicians must practice the same musical score ad nauseam to perfect their performance, chefs need to wait patiently for a glistening glaze – such patience and fortitude are not often expressly taught in the classroom. Henceforth, I intend to do just that in order to help my students become better prepared for life.
My realization did not crystalize in a single moment, but after reflection on the many moments of observation throughout the summer. My peers on Team Dirt had to wait hours (days?) for their bacteria to grow; those on Team Jaws spent long days in a basement at UF photographing sharks’ teeth and jaws; Team Ants faced challenges and frustrations as the first cohort in their study; and my eMammal Team sifted through hundreds of photos, many of which had no animals to identify, and witnessed interns entering data from stacks of surveys in the hopes of finding commonalities and differences among respondents.
THIS is the reality that we need to share with our students, as much as we need to share the fun and engaging aspects of our citizen science experience. THIS is the reality that many of our young adults have not yet come to terms with as they struggle to find meaningful employment. THIS is the reality that awaits my students in any field, in any part of our global economy.
The trick is to encourage students to find careers in which they are so invested and so inspired by, that those boring, tedious aspects, inevitable in every profession, seem minimal compared to the joy they receive from following their passions!