What Did PROBE Accomplish?
1) PROBE promoted an excitement for science by enabling students to experience the joy of learning by actually doing science.
2) PROBE developed good problem solving, critical thinking and communication skills that benefited students in all curricular areas. Furthermore, students learned the importance of working in cooperative groups, thereby benefiting from the knowledge and enthusiasm that others bring to the research experience.
3) PROBE gave students the confidence and competence to do good science research. Students were freed from uninspiring 'cookbook' instruction.
2) PROBE developed good problem solving, critical thinking and communication skills that benefited students in all curricular areas. Furthermore, students learned the importance of working in cooperative groups, thereby benefiting from the knowledge and enthusiasm that others bring to the research experience.
3) PROBE gave students the confidence and competence to do good science research. Students were freed from uninspiring 'cookbook' instruction.
“The marsh was beautiful and the information that I walked away with I will never forget…When we did all of our observing and testing, it didn’t even seem like we were doing work because it was so fascinating and fun. I had the most fun walking into Spring Lake and collecting the macroinvertebrates. It was amazing to put the trays in the sunlight and watch what seemed to be noninhabited samples come alive before my eyes. I never realized how many organisms live in the water, and we didn’t see half of them!”
High School Student
4) PROBE encouraged students to seek out answers to questions that interested them and in the process sometimes achieve recognition for their research accomplishments. Here is one of the numerous examples.
Following her research at the Hamilton/Trenton Marsh, Kelly Hamilton, a junior at Steinert High School, became motivated to design and conduct an Independent Research Study entitled:
How Population Effects Water Quality
After an intensive study of two watersheds in New Jersey, Kelly submitted her research report to several organizations for evaluation. She subsequently won the following awards:
• NJ Water Environment Association (NJWEA) Science Fail Excellence Award ($500 presented in Atlantic City)
• Yale Science & Engineering Assoc., Inc. – Most Outstanding 11th Grade Exhibit
• Association for Women Geoscientists Award for Geoscience
• Mercer Science & Engineering Fair 2nd Place in the Field of Environmental Sciences
• United States Army Certificate of Achievement for Outstanding Science Project
Dear Dr. Gemmell,
The Rider University’s PROBE Program is an awesome marsh ecology experience that helps students gain knowledge about their surrounding environments and formulate research papers to present their findings. My experience with this program helped me to develop an award-winning project I entered in to the Mercer County Science & Engineering Fair. The program sparked my interest in water ecology and focused my attention on ‘How Population Effects Water Quality.’ I learned a great deal of background information during the trip to the marsh that I was able to incorporate into my science project such as dissolve oxygen tests and macroinvertebrate studies. The enthusiasm Dr. Gemmell showed for the PROBE program was infectious and I hope other classes will be able to experience that same enthusiasm.
Sincerely,
Kelly Hamilton
The Rider University’s PROBE Program is an awesome marsh ecology experience that helps students gain knowledge about their surrounding environments and formulate research papers to present their findings. My experience with this program helped me to develop an award-winning project I entered in to the Mercer County Science & Engineering Fair. The program sparked my interest in water ecology and focused my attention on ‘How Population Effects Water Quality.’ I learned a great deal of background information during the trip to the marsh that I was able to incorporate into my science project such as dissolve oxygen tests and macroinvertebrate studies. The enthusiasm Dr. Gemmell showed for the PROBE program was infectious and I hope other classes will be able to experience that same enthusiasm.
Sincerely,
Kelly Hamilton
5) PROBE helped students to gain a good mastery of basic ecological principles not by reading about them in books but by conducting exciting outdoor research.
“Thank you for helping my class and I [sic] understand more about marsh ecology. The PROBE program was excellent. The packet on the marsh ecology that you gave us had so much information in it that really helped to tie everything together. We learned about ecology in class prior to going on the trip to the Hamilton/Trenton Marsh, but we couldn’t fully understand everything that we’ve learned without experiencing it. Thank you for such a great time.”
High School Student
6) PROBE enhanced self-esteem and confidence in academic ability by awarding scientific excellence.
Every student who participated in PROBE was required to submit a comprehensive research report. All research papers were graded and students who submitted exemplary reports – typically 100 to 150 each year – were invited to Rider University each fall for an Awards Ceremony.
Every student who participated in PROBE was required to submit a comprehensive research report. All research papers were graded and students who submitted exemplary reports – typically 100 to 150 each year – were invited to Rider University each fall for an Awards Ceremony.
Dear Dr. Gemmell…PROBE is all the more valuable to me because ours is an all-girls school. Girls get to see themselves as scientists, in every respect. It has been so powerful for them.
I am grateful for your commitment to students, to inquiry based science education, and to the PROBE Program. I am very appreciative of all of your time, energy, enthusiasm and expertise that you generously share with both students and teachers alike. I recently read that over 80% of scientists identify an experience outside of the classroom that inspired them to pursue a career in science. I feel that weaving experiential learning into the classroom experience is critical to helping students feel the vitality and vibrancy of science. The PROBE Program is a perfect example of just that. We did not simply discuss biodiversity and oxygen, but students could experience collecting the macroinvertebrates and observing the conditions at the marsh. Working with you has been an invaluable component of my Biology course and our Science Curriculum in general."
Biology Teacher
Rider University Awards Ceremony Recipients
7) PROBE helps underserved students become interested in and succeed at learning science.
The AES2 Program
PROBE found that inner-city students from Trenton Central High School were not able to approach their research study at the Marsh as rigorously as students attending suburban schools. Furthermore, only a few exemplary research reports had ever been submitted compared to a substantial number of very high-quality papers from suburban schools. Therefore, PROBE created the AES2 Program – Academic Excellence in Science through Aquatic Ecology Studies. This program provided more hands-on pre-trip training for students, a research question directly relevant to their lives and extensive support services to help each student complete a credible science research report.
The AES2 Program
PROBE found that inner-city students from Trenton Central High School were not able to approach their research study at the Marsh as rigorously as students attending suburban schools. Furthermore, only a few exemplary research reports had ever been submitted compared to a substantial number of very high-quality papers from suburban schools. Therefore, PROBE created the AES2 Program – Academic Excellence in Science through Aquatic Ecology Studies. This program provided more hands-on pre-trip training for students, a research question directly relevant to their lives and extensive support services to help each student complete a credible science research report.
Pre-trip preparation
Research conducted over several days
Award recipients
When PROBE was integrated into the science curriculum at a Trenton high school, classroom attendance by participating students rose from 50% to 95% and the number of exemplary science research reports reached an average of 75%.
“As an educator for 28 years in the Trenton Public School District, I am please to comment on the PROBE science program at Rider University. For the previous 9 years as Teacher Leader of the Applied Engineering & Science Academy at Trenton Central High School, I had the privilege of working with Rider University staff involved in the implementation of the PROBE aquatic science and advanced AES2 programs for the high school students.
I would have to especially commend Dr. Gemmell for his efforts in motivating our students. Through a great deal of preparation, patience and perseverance, Dr. Gemmell was successful in motivating our students to accept the challenges of the program. Students would routinely complete 25 page research papers for submission to the university program. The hands-on field research is what separates the PROBE program from traditional classroom experiences. In my opinion this has been an extremely successful approach to science education.”
David J. Cipolloni
Credits: Two Male Students, Five Female Students, Two Students with Tray (Mary Leck) / Rider University Awardees (Kathleen Browne) / Students in Classroom, Two Students with Bucket (Dennis J. Gemmell)