High school is meeting high science this summer at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Four Nebraska high school science teachers are in summer school at UNL — not to teach, but to conduct cutting-edge nanoscience research.

Scientists at the university’s Materials Research Science and Engineering Center not only conduct science on the scale of a billionth of meter — a nanometer — they also educate the public on the emerging field.

And as part of that, the center’s Research Experience for Teachers program brings high school science teachers into the world of nanoscience and nanoscience into the classroom.

Pamela Rasmussen, a UNL grad who teaches at Raymond Central High School, returned for her third summer in the program.

“What I do in the summer inspires me for what I do during the school year,” said Rasmussen, who has 22 years of teaching experience. “It makes me know that I have things to give the students — knowledge that is valuable.” 

Nanoscience has become a part of her curriculum.

Rasmussen has spent the summer investigating the properties of iron-platinum alloys with mechanical engineering professor and researcher Jeffrey Shield.

“Initially, I was not sure what to expect, especially whether the background of the teacher was strong enough to handle the ‘heavy lifting’ sometimes necessary during research,” Shield said. “Pam came in and showed tremendous knowledge and insight.”

In fact, research Rasmussen conducted her first summer was part of the work Shield’s lab published in the prestigious journal Applied Physics Letters in 2005.

Said Stephen Ducharme, a physics professor and an adviser to the program: “They become an integral part of the research group, contributing their own unique ideas and questions in addition to the practical work of preparing and conducting experiments.”

Programs like Research Experience for Teachers are designed to foster partnerships between researchers and teachers and help all involved — including students.

Tony Love was a student in an applied physics class at Seward High School taught by program participant Steven Wignall.

“I’ve talked to him quite a bit about his research,” said Love.

Wignall, in his third summer at the program, works in the lab of physics professor and researcher Diandra Leslie-Pelecky.

“It was very rejuvenating for me as an educator to get back into the college setting again and be part of ground-breaking research in the nanotechnology area,” Wignall said.

A UNL alumnus with 23 years of teaching experience, Wignall is continuing his study of nano-sized iron particles and their possible medical applications.

He’s also involved in developing lessons and a Web site that will contain resources for teachers to implement nanotechnology into their classrooms, he said.

The program gives UNL scientists a window into high school science classrooms.

“The program also gives me a chance to learn more about the challenges and opportunities faced by high school teachers in Nebraska,” Ducharme said.

One such challenge?  Staying up to date in the world of science.

Through contact with the center’s researchers, high school teachers and their students are exposed to innovations in nanoscience. During the school year after a teacher’s participation in the program, his or her research adviser visits the teacher’s classroom to show students examples of how materials research affects their lives.

Shield has visited Rasmussen’s classroom at Raymond Central.

“That experience keeps me in touch with the future scientists and engineers,” Shield said.

Discussing MP3 players with Rasmussen’s students gave Shield a chance to highlight a focus of the center. UNL’s scientists specialize in nanomagnetics — a technology that is helping increase storage capacity in computers and devices such as MP3 players and has seen applications in medicine and other fields.

Beyond the classroom and the research lab lie further opportunities for participants. After their first summers, Rasmussen and Wignall attended the Materials Research Society Fall 2004 meeting in Boston. 

Wignall presented his research at a poster session there, and both teachers attended talks and events designed specifically for high school teachers.

“I’m at the edge of research and staying current,” Rasmussen said.

Raychelle Burks is a graduate student in chemistry at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. To write this story, Burks received support from a National Science Foundation grant to the UNL Department of Physics. She can be reached at rmburks@hotmail.com.

About the program* Research Experience for Teachers participants receive a weekly $1,000 stipend, provided by a National Science Foundation grant to UNL’s Materials Research Science and Engineering Center.

 

* Since 2003, eight teachers from high schools in eastern Nebraska have participated in the Research Experience for Teachers. In addition to Pamela Rasmussen and Steven Wignall, others doing nanoscience at UNL this summer are Chris Deeter of Lincoln Lutheran Middle School and Nick Reding from Papillion-LaVista High School. 

* For details: www.mrsec.unl.edu/index.html.