Class Gets Hands-On Look at High Tech

Say the words “research methods class” and immediately images of nerds mumbling to themselves in cluttered study carrels come to mind.

But that’s not the case in the research methods class at the Van Nuys High School Medical Magnet, where students are gaining hands-on experience by creating their own high-tech research projects.

In the past three years, the research methods class has won nearly $50,000 in grants from Medtronic Inc., an international medical supply company that has adopted the high school.

One of the innovative projects funded by the grant is a wind tunnel that students designed, engineered and built to help them study aerodynamics, said teacher Robert Coutts.

The 15-foot-long tunnel is powered by an ordinary window box fan that sends swirling air through a wooden grate that causes the air to flow in a straight line, Coutts explained, while walking the length of the tunnel.

As the air goes through a series of narrower tubes, Coutts said, it picks up speed--about 15 mph--before entering a plexiglass observation chamber, where students can view the effect lift has on various plastic airfoils and plastic foam wingspans.

After making their observations, Coutts said, the students share what they have learned with peers and professionals worldwide via their Internet Web site.

“This class has really taught me how to observe and research and how to be patient,” said Cathy Phongsamran, an 18-year-old senior and aspiring chemist.

Weslie MacGregor, a 17-year-old senior, said she also has benefited from the class. “I’ve really sharpened my observation skills and I’ve learned how to solve mechanical problems and how to work together in a group.”

Knowing the students are learning both academic and life lessons make his efforts worthwhile, Coutts said.

“The most important lesson,” he said, “is that students are learning that they can design and build things from their own minds and their own hands and not just read about them in a textbook.”