| “I
knew that I wanted to start something this year to link students
with the science community to try to spark some interest in the
scientific fields. I thought since my class was right before lunch,
I may be able to convince students to eat lunch in my room if I
could get science professionals from our surrounding communities to
come in and talk with them,” explained Blevins.
Blevins connected the lunchtime speakers to
the physics concepts her students were learning about in class. “The
first few sections were on the importance of making precise and
accurate measurements, so I invited Kim Matthews, a local
pharmacist, to come in to talk to the students about how important
measurement is in her field. She did a fantastic job and the kids
learned a lot,” continued Blevins. “Then, when we started our study
on motion, I asked Blake Fitch, a member of the Accident
Investigation Unit of the Manistee County Sheriff's Office, to join
us to share how he uses physics everyday to figure out what happened
in an automobile accident.”
Students demonstrated excitement for the
speakers, which encouraged Blevins to continue to find science
professionals to inspire her students. “Real life examples and
connections to book studies can really help students become
motivated to learn,” said Blevins. “So, when we got to the chapter
on forces, I started to think of a fellow high school classmate of
mine who had also gone into engineering, as I had, in college.”
Blevins contacted Manistee-native Howard
Bowersox, who has a degree in Aerospace Engineering from the
University of Michigan and now works at Boeing in Seattle, WA. She
asked him to participate in a live video conference with her high
school students. Bowersox was immediately on board.
With the help Onekama School Technology
Coordinator Bruce Peabody, on Friday November 4, 2011, OHS physics
students were able to have lunch, conversation, and inspiration from
a real-life “rocket scientist.” Bowersox was streamed through the
large screen in the ITV room, and his computer was connected to the
Onekama School projector system so that the students were able to
view Bowersox’s PowerPoint presentation, complete with airplane and
rocket videos.
“Howard told the students that his job as an
aerospace engineer is similar to an Emergency Room doctor for 747
planes,” said Blevins. “He diagnoses issues for new development
programs and also makes improvements to existing products. We were
all amazed by the facts and figures that he gave us on the shear
enormity of the Seattle facility. The building where they build the
747's and 787's is in the Guinness Book of World Records for being
the largest building by volume in the world! You could fit 13 Empire
State Buildings (lying down) and the Statue of Liberty could stand
inside except for her torch. It is hard to imagine this, but he
showed us several pictures and even had a model plane in his hand
for demonstrations.”
“He also said there are one million light
bulbs in this facility -- so many that they do not need to heat the
building. There are 30,000 employees there and a 747 weighs one
million pounds, can fly at a speed of 600 mph, fly seven miles high,
and contains more than six million individual parts. He then
proceeded to show us how Newton's laws of motion provided lift for
an airplane, what aerodynamic drag was, and why wings look the way
they do.”
The lunchtime conference made an enormous
impression on the OHS students. Sophomore Claire Harvey commented,
"It was really interesting to hear about all the history he knew and
all the structural obstacles that exist in aerospace engineering.
There were so many things to think about after the presentation."
"It was so fascinating! Just knowing that what
we're learning about can actually be applied in these jobs. I was
blown away by how cool Mr. Bowersox made everything seem," said
Junior Elizabeth Bergren. Added Senior Cordell Williams, "The
presentation literally left me speechless, and not a lot of things
do that, so you know it was legit!"
More than a discussion of rockets and
engineering, Bowersox motivated students to consider potential
careers in science. As Bowersox explained, engineering is an
exciting field right now because it has gone beyond what students
learn about in the physics classroom and has become somewhat of an
art form, combining math and art in order to bring new and
innovative designs to the world.
“It’s important for working
professionals in the sciences to reach out to students because it
provides a reality check and a connection to what they are learning
in school,” said Bowersox. “It's a way to say, this is real, and
here is how you can use it.” Bowersox and Blevins both challenged
the students to become the next generation of engineers who solve
the riddles that still elude us in the field of science today.
"It gave me a chance to see what working in
the engineering field is like,” said OHS Junior Emily Barnard. “I
feel so lucky to have had this opportunity." |
