log2EMBL: 26 biology teachers explored virtual research institute

26 German secondary school biology teachers gathered at EMBL Heidelberg last week to attend the LearningLAB “Log in to Science – Forschern auf der Spur: Forschungssimulation am Beispiel der Eisenspeicherkrankheit (Hämochromatose)”  – a joint CPD course organised by ELLS, the out-of-school lab ExploHeidelberg, and the Regierungspräsidium Karlsruhe (regional administrative council).

Over two days, teachers had the opportunity to explore the virtual research institute log2EMBL which has been developed by teachers, students and ELLS staff as part of the Robert Bosch Stiftung-funded iNEXT (interactive Network for Experimental Training) project. iNEXT has been a 3-year project to develop and disseminate state-of-the-art resources for teaching molecular biology at the advanced level in German schools (www.inext-embl.de).

The virtual research institute log2EMBL is a platform to offer inquiry-based research projects for students. It enables students to actively participate in an interactive research simulation which can be integrated in their school biology curriculum. As part of the LearningLAB, the enthusiastic participants received an introduction into handling the web-based aspects of the institute and also got the chance to get their hands wet in a laboratory experiment investigating the genetic basis of the hereditary disease haemochromatosis. The programme was complemented by an expert presentation on haemochromatosis and a visit to the EMBL Genomics Core Facility – the EMBL in-house genomics services centre. The course was co-facilitated by a teacher who was involved in developing the haemochromatosis project in log2EMBL.