Scientific Research in Schools

An Internet Compendium of Practical Experience

New Internet Interactive Edition of this highly regarded user-friendly guide to the UK scene, compiled and edited by Dr Eric Albone (Clifton Scientific Trust), Dr Nigel Collins (King Charles I School, Kidderminster) and Trevor Hill (Taunton School).

The Compendium:

provides much needed information, encouragement and advice to teachers and scientists in setting up working partnerships through which young people of all ages and abilities can share meaningfully in real scientific exploration.
focuses on some 30 examples of current achievement in UK schools, and backs this with information concerning many UK organisations which support such endeavours.
was sponsored by charitable donations from a wide range of leading scientific and engineering professional bodies, by the Research Councils and by the Wellcome Trust.
has been sent free of charge to the Head of Science of every secondary school in the UK, and to many others. Funds did not permit similar circulation of primary schools.

A limited number of the Hard Copy version of the Compendium are still available from Clifton Scientific Trust. A charge is made for mail and handling as follows: per copy Ł2 UK; Ł3 Europe; Ł7 rest of world.

We are now planning a further update of the Compendium such that new entries can be added on a standard format worldwide. If in the interim, you have specific projects which you would like to bring to wider attention, please do contact us.

In Reponse to the Compendium...

Dr Andrew George, Senior Lecturer in Immunology, Imperial College School of Medicine, Hammersmith Campus, Du Cane Lane, London W12 0NN (ageorge@rpms.ac.uk) reports that post-16 school students which he has invited to work in his laboratory as part of his research team during the summer vacation have sometimes made very significant research contribution in their own right. He reports as examples the following current publications (school students names in italics):

George, A.J.T., Danga, R., Gooden, C.S.R., Epenetos, A.A., and Spooner, R.A., "Quantitative and qualitative detection of serum antibodies using a resonant mirror biosensor", Tumor Targeting (1995), 1, 245-250

Rayner, S.A., Gallop, J.L., George, A.J.T., and Larkin, D.F.P., "Distribution of integrins a _vb 5, a _vb 3, and a _v in the normal human cornea; implications in clinical and therapeutic adenoviral infection." Eye (in press, 1997)

George, A.J.T., Rashid, M., and Gallop, J.L., "Kinetics of Biomolecular Interactions", (submitted, 1997)

Jennifer Gallop, a sixth form student from Badminton School, Bristol, who has been supported for two successive summers in Dr George's laboratory on a Nuffield Science Bursary, has herself written,

"The experience of working with a scientist on a real project of my own, with an unknown outcome, was second to none. I have had the most interesting and exciting summer ever and has made me even more sure that I definitely want to pursue a career in research."

Although today only relatively few school students have the chance of working in a scientific laboratory as a part of a genuine research team, the experience is that they can often achieve far more than would be expected of them in a routine school science context.

In an effort to extend the outreach, over the past six years, Professor Mary Ritter and Dr Andrew George have run 3 to 5 day Sixth Form Science Schools in Immunology and Molecular Biology at the Hammersmith Campus with British Society for Immunology sponsorship. Both scientists and students have greatly enjoyed the experience, and out of these summer schools a number of school students have come forward to work in the laboratories for summer work placements.

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