Local science students attend symposium
Kira Rossi, left, and Elliot Brady work in the lab.
Local students from Kip Brady's science class recently attended the Student Wildlife Research Symposium at Maumee Bay State Park.
"I like science because it is about figuring out what is unknown," sixth-grader Elliot Brady said.
The Welty Middle School student, along with other Ohio students elementary through high school, was among those who attended the second annual Student Wildlife Research Symposium last month in Maumee Bay State Park.
"The Ohio Department of Natural Resources’ Division of Wildlife started the Student Wildlife Research Symposium to provide a venue for students to share the results of their research," said Kip Brady, a science teacher at New Philadelphia High School. "The idea is to encourage students to become more engaged in science and in the study of local ecosystems."
Kip Brady was recently recognized as one of the winners of the 2018 Dr. William J. and Mae Hurst Jackson Award for Distinguished Teaching. The awards are decided based on nominations from students, parents, alumni and other teachers. Kip Brady sent two groups of New Philadelphia students to the symposium.
The symposium is noncompetitive and open to students all across the state. It is modeled after similar professional events, and some wildlife professionals attend the student event as well.
Kip Brady explained that the breadth of experience students receive from participating encompasses both the scientific process and the communications and public speaking aspects.
"They gain experience designing experiments and collecting and analyzing data. There is the process of discovering what your data means in the big picture. These are all fundamental to science, and they all precede formalizing the research into a presentation, which is all about effective communication. From the presentation they gain interpersonal skills and confidence. They become more effective communicators, and they gain a much deeper understanding of their research than they would otherwise," Kip Brady said.
The process for attending the event parallels that of professional symposiums. Students must submit an abstract or summary of the research they wish to present. If accepted, the ODNR invites the student to attend at no cost.
Much of the research conducted by Kip Brady's students looks at the effects of land use on forest biodiversity, particularly the restoration potential of forest landscapes that have been mined.
"Our region has a long history of surface coal mining, and many of the older mines (pre-1972) have become reforested," Kip Brady said. "During the 2016-17 school year, my high school students worked with our district’s fifth-grade classes to compare eight headwater streams in abandoned mine land (AML) and unmined forests. We surveyed the streams and upland habitat for salamanders, sampled stream macroinvertebrate communities, measured leaf decomposition rates, and evaluated water chemistry variables such as pH and conductivity."
Elliot Brady and Kira Rossi, another Welty Middle School sixth-grader, had worked with Kip Brady as fifth-graders. They continued to assist Kip Brady in data analysis and presented their findings at the symposium.
The students were enthusiastic about their participation in both the research and the presentation. Rossi said, "The most important thing to me about my research was the fact that there is so little known about the effects of surface coal mining, and we showed how devastating those effects were. It was a cool way of showing how we as humans damage our environment. I learned a lot about science, the effect humans have on nature and myself."
For Elliot Brady the experience fueled his interest in pursuing a career in science. "I know I would like to do something in science and thought it would be a good experience for me. I learned that I definitely enjoy presenting and explaining what we did and what we found."
The other presentation was made by two of Kip Brady's high school biology II students, Dawson Carr and Doug Bailey. The pair presented findings based on research conducted last fall by Kip Brady's classes.
Kip Brady said, "[We] examined how an invasive plant called Japanese stilt grass was affecting forest small mammal communities. We used live traps to survey small mammals in regions of forest with and without Japanese stilt grass. Mammal trapping is always an adventure because we have to collect our data every morning before school. We trapped three nights a week during the fall, and each morning I would meet a group of my students at 5:30 a.m. to collect our data."
Bailey shared his enjoyment of the scientific process as well as the presentation. "I liked the experience of going out into nature and gathering information for a specific issue or question. I love nature, and I learned that a lot of people are interested in our studies. Getting the message across was fun."
The senior sees the potential for this type of program to have a wide-reaching effect on education. "I would say that you need to get more kids involved and continue to support theses groups in communities all over Ohio and the nation because it is a positive thing," Bailey said. "It has a potential to make a huge impact."
Both studies lead to environmental questions and lend themselves to further research.
With respect to the stilt grass study, Kip Brady said, "We captured twice as many deer mice in stilt grass habitat as in open understory habitat. This is particularly interesting because of the importance of deer mice as seed predators of forest plants and as reservoirs for Borrelia burgdorferi, which is the etiological agent that causes Lyme disease. By simply introducing one invasive plant, we could be altering the number and kinds of trees growing in our forests and also increase the spread of disease. Future research will involve more mammal trapping, evaluating the effect of more mice on seed predation and deer tick abundance."
The other study indicated that "although most abandoned mine lands in Ohio have become reforested, these forests are less biodiverse and are functionally different from unmined forests."
Of this study, Kip Brady said, "This is really alarming. I think most people see these forested landscapes and suspect that nature has restored itself after mining, but that is certainly not the case."
In addition to following up on these two studies, Kip Brady and students are looking at methods for surveying Sugar Creek and the Tuscarawas River for the endangered eastern hellbender salamander.
Kip Brady said, "Experience is always the best teacher. Forests are no longer just places with big trees; they have sounds and smells and lots of other stuff. Small mammal data isn't just a bunch of numbers; those numbers represent real, living, breathing animals."
The science teacher believes this type of education is particularly relevant in today's world. He said, "We are in the midst of a mass extinction of biodiversity that is the result of how humans use the landscape. I think that one of the most important goals of education should be to provide opportunities for students to develop a love for local biodiversity. Because when you love something, you behave in ways that protect it."
Much of Kip Brady's research depends on the generosity of local landowners. "We are always looking for more study sites," he said. "If anyone reading this has forested land or reclaimed mine land that they would be willing to allow us to study, please leave me a message at the New Philadelphia High School office."