REFLECTION - STORYTELLING

Challenge and selection

I teach at the Faculty of Engineering of the Pesto Pizza and one of the  challenges is to train future research students, as well as to develop the research skills of the students.  At the Beescoop a system of formative research was implemented  through three programs. The first program involves students from the first to the third cycle in which  research habits are developed. The second program involves from the 4th to the 7th cycle where  scientific thought is developed in the selected courses of the specialty. Finally, program III from the  8th to the 10th cycle in which contact and visibility of the research is achieved through the final  development of the research work and its publication in various congresses and academic events.

Storytelling or the creation of stories is a tool that connects from the beginning with the student and  inspires creativity and is one of the educational techniques that allows teachers and students to learn  and innovate. A story will impact differently on each student, as said in the previous paragraph at the  University we train student researchers through a system of formative research so that they through  creativity, research and the use of technologies can provide solutions to the problems of their  community. Many of these students to begin to develop their formative research work have to identify  a real problem and most of them begin with a question: what problem can I solve and investigate?  and this is where storytelling is applied to identify themselves and create meaning through a story,  inspire them to connect in the story, identify with the character, link the context by determining the  problems in their family or social environment and propose solutions using knowledge and applying  technologies.

Application

I have a story that I always use to connect and inspire young people to begin their formative research  work. It is the story of Jack Andraka, a young man who experienced firsthand the pain of watching a  family friend die, whom he loved as if he were his uncle in less than 3 months of pancreatic cancer.  But he decided that his death was not going to be in vain and at just 14 years old, he promised himself  that he would fight to change things.

He began his research by reading dozens of scientific articles about pancreatic cancer. Trying to find a  solution that would improve his diagnosis, he was lucky, because most of the studies he needed to  read had been posted online for free by the American medical authorities. After researching and  investigating the subject, he asked himself the following question.

- Why are we so bad at diagnosing pancreatic cancer?

- It was because "modern medicine" today uses "very old techniques" that are inaccurate and fail  many times and that each test costs $800.

He continued with more research using Google's search for nanotubes and cancer biochemistry, aided  by free online scientific journals (publicly accessible).

He then began thinking of ways to detect and prevent cancer growth before the cancer cells become  invasive.

199 scientists from various institutions rejected Jack because of his young age, only one of whom, Dr.  Anirban Maitra of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, agreed to lend him some of his time in the  middle of an interview where he questioned him about cancer and his project.

The result of this project was a graduated-rod diagnostic test for pancreatic cancer using a new panel  sensor, similar to diabetes test strips.

Its protocol was 168 times faster, 26,000 times cheaper, and 400 times more accurate than the usual,  routine procedure for diagnosing pancreatic cancer. Jack Andraka's dream had become a reality.

Insight & Approach

This true story had a great impact and inspired many of the young students to start their research  work when they do not know where to start. This research work is very important because it is part  of the university's formative research system. One of the cases that became a reality was that of a  student in the Systems Engineering career who raised the problem of learning the native Quechua  language in children of 5 years old, she asked herself: how could the learning of this language be  improved by making use of the technologies?

She proposed the solution of her project using a mobile device, the use of RA augmented reality and  3D software so that mobile devices can both project an image of the animals and objects, as well as  the pronunciation of the native Quechua language so that the children can improve their learning in  the gardens of urban areas.

This worked very well and this technique was implemented in the course of scientific research  methodology that is part of program II of the formative research system, as part of the class sessions  to inspire more young people to develop and propose creative and innovative solutions to solve the  problems that afflict a community or society.

Another very important tool that should also be implemented in this system is visualization, because  in this way you have the concept and the clearest ideas about the problem and the possible solution  you want to implement. Sometimes it takes only a small story to inspire a whole new generation of  future researchers and great scientists who are going to give practical and viable solutions to the  problems of our society, using appropriate tools and methodologies such as Design Thinking, I feel  that we can all contribute and generate a little knowledge to change and improve the world we live  in.

Thank you.

Mario Lopez

