The University of Southampton

Inspired by science at LifeLab – celebrating British Science Week

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Although more than 7,500 students already having visited LifeLab, it is always just as inspiring for our first-time visitors.

What better time to reflect on the importance of our project in encouraging young people to consider a future in science than during National Science Week 2018.

The campaign which is running throughout this week is aimed up championing all things science and underlining the importance of research and discovery throughout the country.

Here at LifeLab we are doing our bit by empowering teenagers to make healthy choices by investigating their own health through scientific enquiry.

Students in LifeLab
Students in LifeLab

After training teachers to lead in-school sessions with a with a series of lessons and resources, the students then spend the day in our custom-built laboratory at University Hospital Southampton.

Here they are able to get hands-on with their health and study things like DNA, grip strength, and use techniques like ultrasound.

Using the equipment
Using the equipment

This week we welcomed Bohunt school from Hampshire, so we took the opportunity to ask them what part of the Lifelab experience they enjoyed the most.

Jake told us: “A visit here makes your understanding of science and biology so much clearer.”

His classmate Eve said: “It was fun and important because you learn different things from when you are in school.” Fellow student Marley added: “It has made me more interested in science and discovering new things was quite fun.”

Along with being able to measure their own health, the students were also inspired by our Meet the Scientist session where they got to meet a researcher currently working in the field of cancer sciences.

Jake said: “I have been inspired to do something with research in cancer. You hear how common it is so it has given me that determination to do something about it.”

Isla added: “Meeting James who was working on this vaccine for oral cancer, was really inspiring.”

Watch the video here

 

LifeLab shares its story with government ministers from near and far

It was the start of a new school term for many and here at LifeLab we have hit the ground running.

This week saw us ‘bookended’ by government visits. Today we had the pleasure of showing public health minister Steve Brine MP around the purpose-built LifeLab facility.

He was keen to find out abut how Early LifeLab – the part of the project aimed at primary schoolchildren- can help deliver on the government’s Childhood Obesity Strategy.

Mr Brine was shown around the education space at University Hospital Southampton that is primarily used by secondary school pupils on their visit days, and talked through how the project is tailored towards a younger audience using a range of engaging and hands-on resources.

One of the aims of Early LifeLab is to engage children in understanding health messages and encouraging them to think about the choices they are making in their own lives. Mr Brine’s visit came during Obesity AwarenessWeek, a national campaign aimed at highlighting the issue and showcase projects, like LifeLab that are trying to tackle it.

 

Steve Brine (right) chats to programme leader Kathryn Woods-Townsend and Mark Hanson
Steve Brine (right) chats to programme leader Kathryn Woods-Townsend and Mark Hanson

We kicked off the week in similar parliamentary fashion, welcoming a delegation from overseas.

Alongside a bumper cohort of Cantell pupils visiting our purpose-built facility we also had the pleasure of hosting a delegation from the Republic of Ireland government.

The party included Professor Donal O’Shea from the University College Dublin; Professor Catherine Woods, Chair of Physical Activity and Health at University of Limerick; Dr Kwok, a post-doctoral fellow along with Dr Fiona Manseragh from the Department of Health and Dr Kevin McCarthy from the Department of Education.

The purpose of their visit was to see first-hand our state of the art facilities and how the LifeLab project was engaging with schools to promote healthy life choices in an effort to help tackle the impact of non-communicable diseases on future generations.

The delegation from the Republic of Ireland government on a fact-finding mission to LifeLab
The delegation from the Republic of Ireland government on a fact-finding mission to LifeLab

The group was shown around the dedicated education space where they witnessed the hands-on learning in action.

Programme leader Kathryn Woods-Townsend and Professor Mark Hanson explained how the project used a range of resources to engage students in understanding the science behind health messages through a series of interactive experiences whilst at the same time helping with the professional development of teachers who continued with the modules back in their classrooms.

The group was interested to learn how the model could be used to advance the Healthy Ireland Framework which has been launched in the Republic of Ireland and is aimed at tackling health risk factors and promoting protective factors in youth, for lifelong health and wellbeing.