Resulting Projects, Research, and Recognition

Undergraduate Research

Bio 46B students have been involved in research service-learning projects that have generated a course manual for teaching about HIV/AIDS in the Kenyan context that has been used by over 2000 students in Kenya. They have also generated a peer education manual and a manual for a program on gender, health and development in Kenya.

Every year since the original funding from SENCER in 2002 Duke students have traveled to Kenya to participate in research and service projects. Upon their return students often become peer teaching assistants to share they understanding of HIV in Kenya. As students realize the complex connections between gender, economics, access to information, and HIV risk they have develop a series of projects to empower Kenyan students, particularly girls in a rural area. Duke students have installed the first solar panels and computer cluster in an unelectrified school district near Lake Victoria and given computer lessons to students and staff.

Another major project for Duke students has been to help girls stay in school (which delays marriages and HIV risk) by providing them with sanitary pads, an inaccessible item in the area. Without sanitary pads, girls in Kenya miss several days of school each month leading to increased dropping out, are stigmatized, or use unhygenic items that cause inflammation and increase the risk of infection with HIV. By partnering with Johnson & Johnson, Duke students have developed a sanitary pad distribution program and are working on a reusable pad program that will serve as a microfinance program for village women.

In recent years Bio 46 and Bio 46B students have focused on programs to enhance education for girls in a rural village in Kenya, leading to a 'summer camp' program on gender and health, and plans for a new school and community center, the Women's Institute for Secondary Education and Research, WISER, near Lake Victoria.

Land for site of new school for girls with students from campWISER

More information about the student generated holistic program to improve health, education and economic development in Muhuru Bay can be found at www.wisergirls.org.

Publications related to the development of this course:

• Ogwang-Odhiambo, R. and Broverman, S. (2005) Globalizing the Microbiology Curriculum. ASM News 71 (10): 448-449.

Presentations related to the development of this course:

• "United Nations Millennium Development Goals and HIV/AIDS in Africa", Meredith College. November 2005
• "Innovative Course Design: HIV/AIDS courses for secondary school teachers in training" Makerere University, Uganda. October 2005
• "How Much Can One Course Multi-task: scientific, multi-disciplinary and international education" Association of College and University Biology Educators. October, 2005
• "International Collaborative Learning on HIV/AIDS: linking students and courses" SENCER Summer Institute, August 2005
• "Effect of Linked, International Curricula on Science Literacy and Civic Engagement" National Science Foundation, DUE/OISE May 2005
• "Mainstreaming HIV education into the undergraduate curriculum in African Universities" Association of African Universities 11th meeting, Cape Town, South Africa, February 2005
• "Origins of HIV: comparing hypotheses", Rand Afrikaans University, Johannesburg, South Africa, February 2005.
• "Using Social Controversy to Stimulate Problem Based Learning in the Sciences" SENCER Summer Institute, August 2004
• "International Perspectives on Microbiology" American Society for Microbiology, May 2004
• "Teaching Science, Exploring Controversy, Taking Action: Perspectives on Global Education" American Association of Colleges and Universities National Meeting, January 2004
• "Teaching about HIV/AIDS without textbooks". Egerton University, Kenya, May 2003
• "Teaching HIV/AIDS: Science and Ethics" American Society for Microbiology, May 2003