Hosted by SALL , contributed by Magi Mualem on 8 March 2022
Background
The project was born a year ago at the time of the Corona. The biotechnology class has received a number of basic principles for the project:
1. Do not carry out the project in zoom but only in reality !!
2. It is important to have an experiential project that will leave us all with a "sweet memory".
3. The products of the project must be innovative and exciting.
4. No virus or infinite isolation will prevent us from carrying out resolutions 1,2,3.
Unexpectedly, we revealed to the students the chosen topic: the honey bee. Immediately after exposing the issue we started working in stages.
Step One: Screams of apprehension and excitement (students who are afraid of "insects").
Step Two: In-depth learning about the life of the bee, the importance of the bee in the world and of course the danger of the bee disappearing you face the world in recent years. The study included observing a transparent hive, guest lectures by researchers in the field of bees and quite a few discussions about the importance of bees in the world.
Third stage: We created 5 startup groups, each group was asked to solve a problem related to the honey issue, the students researched, asked, read and tested and decided what they want to test as part of the project and what will be the final product.
Fourth stage: setting up the experiment, placing the beehives in the field.
This is why the class arrived early in the morning to feed the bees the designated care. After a long hour of buzzing and making noises we managed to calm down and you, the noisy and apprehensive girls. The students got dressed. Regev, my colleague, sprayed smoke to calm the bees (and the girls) only then it was possible to start. I saw them: 23 students of the new generation. They are said to be a different generation, irresponsible and uncaring, connected to the screen and to themselves. I saw 23 compassionate, interested, intelligent students. Those students who asked great questions treated bees with great love in the belief that they are an important part of our lives. The project will allow students to get a grade in the final exam in biotechnology. But this is the small profit. The project opened for the students a door to the real world, to nature. Our teaching converges most of the time to the classroom, to the lab, but the real thing happens outside. Students learned up close how a tiny bee company works, how they collaborated for the common good. I learned in the world of students is huge and flexible, you just have to open a door for them, invite them in, and they come. Then the magic is created: a good and fun experience, instructive and most of all allows each of them to express themselves and enjoy learning. At the end of the day we collected honey from the hives and everyone licked its taste and enjoyed. In conclusion the students said it was a successful day and definitely sweet!
