Team:XHD-Wuhan-B-China/Communication
According to the questionnaire, we found that not many people have heard of synthetic biology or IGEM. We wanted to share what we learned in the way of popularizing. We went to NO.1 Middle School Affiliated to Central China Normal University and gave a special class to students of grade nine. We believed that students like them have the desire to obtain new knowledge and they can be introduced to the world of synthetic biology and be future iGEMers to make contributions. We talked about some basic knowledge and the concept of synthetic biology, what we are doing, the application of our project, what iGEM is, and how iGEM influences the world. We believed that we had a successful class because we interacted with them and we received applause and enthusiastic responses. All of them can follow us and ask their questions. As a result, they got knowledge outside school and had a basic understanding of synthetic biology and iGEM. After school, they will share what they have learned in this class with their friends and parents.
In China, grade nine students are facing one of the fiercest competitions for college attendance in the world, which is The Senior School Entrance Examination. Most of them are sacrificing their interests, social life and even bedtime, having stacks of books and test papers on their desks. Some of them may feel lost in this effort because they can't see how their learnings are transformed into real-world productivity or why they are fighting so hard when they don't really know about their future careers. We hope that our education activity can show them some of the possibilities in the world and encourage them to chase their dreams.