Biomedical students from Bob Jones and James Clemens high schools collaborated on research on the body’s physiology that the Bob Jones students had compiled analyzed. (CONTRIBUTED)

MADISON – In an exercise exemplifying collaboration, biomedical students for both Madison high schools shared research and produced a public service announcement (PSA).

Twenty biomedical students at Bob Jones High School presented research to their 15 peers at James Clemens High School.

“Bob Jones biomedical interns invited the James Clemens biomedical interns to observe their research poster presentations. Then, I had them do a collaborative lesson after dividing them into groups” mingling both schools, Melinda Lawson said.

Lawson, a registered nurse, chairs the Project Lead the Way (PLTW) Medical Academy at Bob Jones.

Students developed a 30-second PSA to advertise Madison City Schools’ PLTW program.  “This work was done in about 45 minutes from planning to recording,” Lawson said.

“This collaborative effort … drew two rival schools together to work as a team with a common goal, much like what they will do when they become healthcare providers,” Lawson said.

At James Clemens, Leah McRae, Elesia Jemison and Patricia Williams teach biomedical courses. Kathryn Teare, Lois Stratton and Lawson teach these classes at Bob Jones.

Lawson’s students had completed a unit covering statistical analysis of research data. “In the first three courses, they have spent (much) time learning about the scientific method of research,” Lawson said.

Students developed a research project related to the physiology of the body, collected and statistically analyzed data from 30 subjects and created a scientific poster communicating their research results. Their poster presentation parallels what Lawson would see at a professional nursing conference.

To develop their PSA, students recorded messages with their cell phones.

Lawson hopes the students can reassemble for a more professional recording “to advertise this fabulous program.” Their selling points include the fun involved with the courses and learning answers to real-world problems. “The program prepares them for college or the workforce.”

“I firmly believe that what I do in the classroom must be relevant to what students will be expected to do in the workforce, or I have failed the students,” Lawson said.