BY ANNIE TIAN ’29
Jericho’s Science Research program is no stranger to winning. The program’s latest accolades include many awards in various competitions and fairs, such as the Association of Chinese American Physicians’ (ACAP) annual science fair. Students who competed are in the Science Research class, led by Ms. Alexis Vandergoot, Ms. Samantha Sforza, and Ms. Loriann Ciasulli. The Science Research course is a year-round class that serves to educate students on the research process, guiding them through experiments, and providing them with opportunities for competitions to present their research.
All competitions vary in requirements and guidelines; some may only be available in person, while others can be entered virtually. ACAP is a mix of both. For this competition, students must first create and submit an abstract. This abstract is judged by a group of professionals in the biomedical field, including physicians, teachers, and professors. If deemed high-quality enough, the student will then earn an opportunity to advance as a semi-finalist. These semi-finalists go on to deliver an oral presentation, where they are then graded by the judging panel. As its site says, ACAP’s goal is to “foster the love of Science and Biomedicine in the younger generations and provide a platform to showcase their research ideas and outcomes. ACAP Science Fair is a nationwide research/scientific competition in the biomedical field for middle and high school students.”
Jericho’s Science Research program is exceptional because teachers provide students with constant updates regarding competitions and opportunities so that students can cast a wide net in applications. Students are notified immediately about upcoming competitions and also utilize the science research program to be able to find available ones that align with their work. The curriculum is designed to educate students on research and the process that goes into it, enabling them to apply to rigorous competitions. As Ms. Vandergoot said, “We teach them the procedures, we teach them how to do literature reviews, how to analyze data. We’re involved in every step of the way teaching the students, but very often my students come and they have to teach me many things that are high-level and advanced because these projects are above anything that I’m an expert in.” In Science Research, each student has their own path they follow, stemming from their unique topics and research. Students are allowed to do independent work at their own pace, as long as they obtain competition credits. Sophomores must get three of these credits, while juniors and seniors have to get four. Students are free to choose what competitions they are interested in from a large spreadsheet of over 60 competitions that have been reviewed and deemed school-appropriate.
However, the journey to craft a solid piece for competitions can be extremely tough. Students must come up with unique ideas substantial enough to execute an experiment, and this path is certainly not without countless obstacles. Jennifer P. ’27, a winner of an ACAP Honorable Research Award, said, “The hardest part of the project was finding ways to make my research novel. It was important to me that my idea was at least unique so that I can present findings that were both new and exciting. However, I found myself finding past papers that already answered my research questions, making my ideas not novel.”
While Ms. Vandergoot finds that the hardest part of a research competition is when students don’t achieve their expected and optimal results from their experiments, students identify the most challenging obstacle to be the start of the process. ACAP Honorable Research Award winner Aanya G. ’27 testified to the amount of work that goes into the research process, especially in finding scientists to support one’s research. Aanya said, “After I found my topic, I started contacting people who do research in the same field I was interested in, and luckily got a reply from someone who was willing to mentor me. From there, I went into the lab every day in the summer to conduct my research.”
Ultimately, ACAP is one of many science competitions that Science Research offers. Although it was one of the earliest competitions of the year, there are still be countless that follow. While some competitions repeat each year, new competitions are actively formed and added every year, providing even more opportunities for students who wish to spread their research.