Managing Expectations
8 April 2022
When you hear about “cloning”, what’s the first image that comes to mind? Frankenstein-esque experimentation carried out in abandoned hospitals, or Clone Clubs filled with identical “sistres”? I want students to be excited by science, but also realistic about its everyday implications. Rather than making copies of whole organisms, animals or humans, the bulk of the cloning done in molecular biology labs is fusing tiny pieces of DNA together. It’s not exciting, glamorous, or particularly newsworthy, but it’s the necessary grunt-work that makes much of our experimentation possible. Scientists who are experienced in all aspects of molecular cloning and recombinant DNA technology are incredibly valuable across the sector.
Signal vs Noise
14 February 2022
When making a new video on any topic, I try to avoid reinventing the wheel. The topic for my classes this week is Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), and I quickly found dozens of great video learning resources already available on YouTube. The reality is that making new learning resources is just as much about teachers’ professional learning as it is our students. Even if the video doesn’t add anything else to the online conversation, I’ve learnt so much through this process. This is how I need to continually hone my craft as a teacher.