Michelle writes,
<Is this student list going to be primarily for high school students or
for college students?>
My guess would be college students, since to the best of my knowledge,
only colleges offer specific courses in microbiology. And, of course some
of them have actual major programs in microbiology for undergrads (I wish
mine did: I have to "settle" for Biology/Biotechnology!). Plus we
shouldn't forget there are students in grad school who are studying
microbiology. I remember (believe it or not!) when I was in high school
(I graduated in 1979), we only had biology, chemistry and physics as
science courses. High school biology class included a brush-over mention
of microorganisms, but there was no in-depth study of them. It was
general biology, with its actual focus on humans (but we dissected a
frog, not a human!). As another example of what high school biology
didn't cover, even if it isn't microbiological: I didn't even know what a
cotyledon was until I took college biology. Yes, I went to public school.
:-P But anyway:
Maybe there ARE some good high schools out there who do offer classes in
microbiology and related subjects. Or high school students who somehow
get interested in microbiology on their own, do some independent reading
and want to learn more. If so, I'd say we should include them too.
Meaning: if you're a student (any level) who wants to learn more about
microbiology, you're in. :-)
Infectionately,
Yersinia.
