The Modern Science Lab: Integrating Technology into the Classroom is the Solution

Technology continues to profoundly impact daily lives. It is therefore imperative that all students receive comprehensive, high quality education in STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) from adequately trained teachers. In order for students to pursue STEM career, achieving high scores on standardized science and math exams is critical. Unfortunately, science labs often make use of antiquated technology that fails to tap the potential of modern technology to create and deliver exciting lab content. As a result, students are turned off by science, fail to excel on standardized science exams, and do not consider STEM as a career option

“Revitalizing Achievement by using Instrumentation in Science Education (RAISE)” project is a partnership between Polytechnic University and four New York City (NYC) high schools. Project RAISE seeks to enhance students’ academic achievement by using computerized data acquisition and sensor-based equipment in science labs. RAISE seeks to excite students about STEM and help them comprehend challenging scientific concepts.

The authors argue that the modern science lab must integrate technology into the curriculum. This paper presents a description of the RAISE project, together with some of the sensor-based experiments which are currently in use in the “living environment” science lab. Lessons learned from year-one of the program as well as improvements made for the second year are also presented.