Teachers in ASU Workshop Debate Benefits of GMOs

A look at genetically modified organisms through a microscope.

By Jeremy Summers, NCBiotech Writer

 

As most teachers know, the key to engaging students is to capture their attention with an interesting issue or concept. 

For science teachers, there are few issues as polarizing and interesting to students as genetically modified organisms (GMOs). GMOs are organisms that have had DNA molecules from different sources combined into a single molecule, creating a new set of genes. 

The controversial issue was the subject of a teacher workshop at Appalachian State University last week, which was part of the North Carolina Biotechnology Center’s 2012 Summer Biotechnology Workshops for Educators.

These workshops introduce teachers at any grade level to new and exciting methods for teaching biotechnology in their classrooms. The ASU workshop included numerous laboratory sessions that allowed teachers to make their own GMOs as well as perform tests to detect the presence of GMOs in food and the environment. Teachers will be able to use these lessons in their classrooms to get students interested in science.

Eva Gonzales, Ph.D., an assistant professor of Biology at ASU, was the workshop’s instructor. By focusing her lesson plan on a polarizing issue such as GMOs, Gonzales said she hoped it would lead teachers to consider the “adoption of some of the activities in high school classrooms that would lead to increased number of students interested in science.”

“Most incoming students in our department are pre-med or want to go to science education. Very few students have imagination for other fields in biology,” said Gonzales. “Biotechnology is an important industry in North Carolina. While preparing students for their health-related careers is important, I would like to emphasize other options for our students, too.”

Debate an effective method for teaching

The workshop culminated with a spirited debate on genetically modified crops among the teachers participating in the workshop. 

Genetically modified crops have been engineered to be more efficient and easier to grow. These crops, such as genetically modified corn and cotton, can require less water, be more resistant to pests and harsh conditions or  contain increased nutritional value.

But the fact that they undergo genetic manipulation makes them very controversial and an issue primed for debate.

At the start of the workshop, the teachers were split into groups assigned to form arguments for the pros and cons of the health benefits and environmental safety of genetically modified crops. The teachers had time during the first two days of the workshop to research and prepare their arguments. On the afternoon of the third and final day, they debated their respective sides.

The time the teachers spent preparing their argument was “more important and beneficial than the actual debates themselves,” said Gonzales, who uses debate as an effective teaching method in her classroom.

“To prepare for the debates, the participants had to research both sides and learn arguments that lead to the opposition of the GMOs as well as supporting GMOs,” Gonzales explained. “In addition, the participants had to differentiate between various claims about GMOs found on internet versus evidence-supported claims.”

See the teachers in action

 

Watch Debate Team 1 in action.

In the first debate, the teachers discussed the health benefits of genetically modified crops. 

According to Gonzales, the goal of the debate was “to bring awareness to current environmental and population growth issues and contributions that GMOs offer as one of the solutions to those problems.”

The second debate focused on the environmental safety of GM crops.

 

Watch Debate Team 2 in action.

The group assigned to arguing for the safety of GM crops began by echoing a point that had been made in the first debate: no evident exists that conclusively suggests a detrimental impact of GMOs on the environment.

Besides arguing the safety of these products, the teachers asserted that the many benefits of these products make them an important part of the ever-expanding population of the planet. “Not only is it safe,” the group proclaimed, “but it is absolutely essential for the environment.”

The teachers arguing against the environmental safety of these products began with the claim that this is the “wrong question at the wrong time.” People should be asking “not is it safe, but do we really need it?” the group said. While these products, as well as other scientific and medical advances, can accommodate the planet’s ever-expanding population, the inherent ethical dilemmas in doing so should not be overlooked.

To be sure, this is a debate that will carry on for a long time. But as these teachers take back the lessons they learned in this workshop, they will be able to inspire their students, and the next generation of scientists, to explore the possibilities of GM crops and other scientific breakthroughs. 

Gonzales explained that her hope was for the teachers to take back the lessons they learned in this workshop and use them to interest their students in science. “In my experience, these labs ‘demystify’ the process of technological advances involved with GMO development in the minds of students, which I view as essential in the process of gaining public understanding and support of GMOs,” said Gonzales.

(Editor's note: For more information on GMO crops and foods, Please visit the website GMOAnswers.com).

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