Scientific Inquiry in Middle Schools by combining Computational Thinking, Wet Lab Experiments, and Liquid Handling Robots

Fuhrmann, Tamar; Ahmed, Deeana Ijaz; Arikson, Len; Wirth, Mike; Miller, Mark L.; Li, Ethan; Lam, Anthony; Blikstein, Paulo; Riedel-Kruse, Ingmar H.

doi:10.1145/3459990.3465180

Cited by 7 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…From this process, we learned that one of the key challenges to replicating the robot was that the motor encoders needed to be tuned for each individual robot. The five LHRs resulting from this process were used for educational user studies, the first of which we published previously [ 21 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We also deployed the final LHR design inside of an educational setting and performed a use-case study with 6 th grade students; the results were published previously [ 21 ]. In summary, it was found that over a five-session curriculum these students were able to program the LHR to conduct a science experiment while also engaging into computational thinking (CT).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…B) The LHR interface was programmed in Snap4Arduino. (See also Supplementary Movies and reference [21]). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0275688.g001…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We conclude with a discussion on the key accomplishments and contributions for this work with an outlook for future improvements and extensions. Here, we focus on aspects of LHR performance and design; an educational study to assess how school children can use this particular LHR has been published elsewhere [ 21 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…B) The LHR interface was programmed in Snap4Arduino. (See also Supplementary Movies and reference [ 21 ]).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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DIY liquid handling robots for integrated STEM education and life science research

Lam

Fuhrmann³

et al. 2022

PLoS ONE

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Automation has played a key role in improving the safety, accuracy, and efficiency of manufacturing and industrial processes and has the potential to greatly increase throughput in the life sciences. However, the lack of accessible entry-point automation hardware in life science research and STEM education hinders its widespread adoption and development for life science applications. Here we investigate the design of a low-cost (~$150) open-source DIY Arduino-controlled liquid handling robot (LHR) featuring plastic laser-cut parts. The robot moves in three axes with 0.5 mm accuracy and reliably dispenses liquid down to 20 μL. The open source, modular design allows for flexibility and easy modification. A block-based programming interface (Snap4Arduino) further extends the accessibility of this robot, encouraging adaptation and use by educators, hobbyists and beginner programmers. This robot was co-designed with teachers, and we detail the teachers’ feedback in the context of a qualitative study. We conclude that affordable and accessible LHRs similar to this one could provide a useful educational tool to be deployed in classrooms, and LHR-based curricula may encourage interest in STEM and effectively introduce automation technology to life science enthusiasts.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…B) The LHR interface was programmed in Snap4Arduino. (See also Supplementary Movies and reference [21]). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0275688.g001…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…B) The LHR interface was programmed in Snap4Arduino. (See also Supplementary Movies and reference [ 21 ]).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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DIY liquid handling robots for integrated STEM education and life science research

Lam

Fuhrmann³

et al. 2022

PLoS ONE

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Examining Science and Technology/Engineering Educators’ Views of Teaching Biomedical Concepts Through Physical Computing

Love

Cysyk²,

Attaluri³

et al. 2022

J Sci Educ Technol

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Programming and automation continue to evolve rapidly and advance the capabilities of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. However, physical computing (the integration of programming and interactive physical devices) integrated within biomedical contexts remains an area of limited focus in secondary STEM education programs. As this is an emerging area, many educators may not be well prepared to teach physical computing concepts within authentic biomedical contexts. This shortcoming provided the rationale for this study, to examine if professional development (PD) had a noticeable influence on high school science and technology and engineering (T&E) teachers’ (1) perceptions of teaching biomedical and computational thinking (CT) concepts and (2) plans to integrate physical computing within the context of authentic biomedical engineering challenges. The findings revealed a significant difference in the amount of biomedical and CT concepts that teachers planned to implement as a result of the PD. Using a modified version of the Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument (STEBI-A) Riggs and Enochs in Science Education, 74 (6), 625–637 ( 1990 ), analyses revealed significant gains in teachers’ self-efficacy toward teaching both biomedical and CT concepts from the PD. Further analyses revealed that teachers reported increases in their perceived knowledge of biomedical and CT concepts and a significant increase in their intent to collaborate with a science or T&E educator outside of their content area. This study provides implications for researchers and educators to integrate more biomedical and physical computing instruction at the secondary education level.

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Review of low-cost self-driving laboratories in chemistry and materials science: the “frugal twin” concept

Lo,

Baird,

Schrier

et al. 2024

Digital Discovery

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Scientific Inquiry in Middle Schools by combining Computational Thinking, Wet Lab Experiments, and Liquid Handling Robots

Cited by 7 publications

References 20 publications

DIY liquid handling robots for integrated STEM education and life science research

DIY liquid handling robots for integrated STEM education and life science research

Examining Science and Technology/Engineering Educators’ Views of Teaching Biomedical Concepts Through Physical Computing

Review of low-cost self-driving laboratories in chemistry and materials science: the “frugal twin” concept

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