麻豆果冻传媒

_{Students in the 鈥淪ounds of Science鈥� honors colloquium prepare for their end-of-semester recital. From left: Faith Jolley, Olivia Furr, Drew Bucher, Mary Clemons, Sarah Owens, Kelsey Rainey and Bradie McCarty.} 

Simon & Garfunkel may be known for 鈥淭he Sounds of Silence,鈥� but if a group of innovative faculty leaders at 麻豆果冻传媒 have their way, the institution could soon be known for 鈥淭he Sounds of Science.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

A class of juniors and seniors in Tech Honors, the university鈥檚 honors program, recently took part in a semester-long colloquium by the same name, culminating with a recital in which they offered musical interpretations of various scientific concepts.

The project came about after a fateful parking lot conversation in 2022 between Kathryn Rust, Tech chemistry instructor, and Colin Hill, director of Tech鈥檚 School of Music.

Rust and Hill both volunteer with a local grief support ministry called Heart of the Cumberland. At the group鈥檚 annual banquet, Hill led a group of middle schoolers in a drum circle, which allowed the students to express feelings of grief through music.

鈥淚 kept thinking, what if we incorporate music as part of our teaching in sciences? We could get more of an auditory demonstration of some of those scientific concepts,鈥� Rust said.

She stopped Hill outside the event venue to ask if he would consider a collaboration, and he happily agreed.

鈥淩ather than students ingesting factual information in lecture form, as it鈥檚 traditionally done, she wanted to explore creating conceptual, aural and kinesthetic connections between chemistry and music,鈥� explained Hill. 鈥淚 was fascinated by the idea, so we created an honors colloquium course that explored this concept.鈥�

To bring their concept to life, the pair approached Rita Barnes, director of Tech Honors, who gave the project her full support.

鈥淚 thought immediately that it was the perfect colloquium: going into uncharted territory,鈥� said Barnes. 鈥淭he two faculty members navigated the course through their own energy for experimenting with how they teach their own field, a field they love, and they took a leap of faith in sharing it with the students.鈥�

The class met once a week for three hours, following a format that included a general chemistry lecture, followed by a corresponding music theory lecture and then a hands-on musical activity to link the two concepts.

For Rust, who has taught at Tech for nearly 35 years, the course was part of a deeper vision for rethinking how universities teach and engage students in a changing world.

鈥淚鈥檓 at a place in life where my kids are grown and my ideas have been revitalized,鈥� said Rust. 鈥淪tudents are more multisensory receivers and processors of information today, so I really want to challenge people to look beyond what we鈥檝e done in the past to see how we can reach the students we have, not the students we were. Can we present information in a different mode that can help students be more successful in the classroom?"

Rust put that theory to the test with an end-of-semester recital. The students, who represented a diverse group of majors and were mostly not trained musicians, performed an original piece of music representing a concept, person or event in their field of study. The results exceeded the instructors鈥� wildest expectations. 

鈥淭he student performances were incredibly creative and original,鈥� said Hill. 鈥淚t was fun watching many of these students perform a musical composition on stage for the first time in their life."

_{Students in the honors colloquium prepare for classmate Emily Ellsworth鈥檚 (center) musical interpretation of the destruction of the coral reef. From left: Jeremy Eduave, Jacob Reed, Emily Ellsworth, Sarah Owens and Faith Jolley.} 

Barnes recalled how Emily Ellsworth, a senior biology major, composed a piece representing the destruction of coral reefs 鈥� all without any previous music experience. 

鈥淭he students were playing a mix of standard instruments as well as glassware, hammers and a conch shell,鈥� she added. 

Likewise, a civil engineering major in the class performed an auditory representation of a dam breaking amid heavy rains, while a chemical engineering major composed a number conveying the distillation process using beakers as instruments. A computer science major offered a musical interpretation of dual-processors and a music major composed a piece representing the freezing of bubbles. 

鈥淚t was really fabulous,鈥� said Rust. 鈥淭he students did an excellent job.鈥�

With the success of this honors colloquium under her belt, Rust now has hopes of taking her methods to other areas of campus and beyond. She already has two supporters in Hill and Barnes. 

鈥淢any honors students became 鈥榟onors students鈥� because they found a community in band back in middle school,鈥� said Barnes. 鈥淢usic and other forms of art help us see more possibilities and make us more open to learning in ways that we don't expect. That's the beauty of this course.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

鈥淲hen students engage their other senses, it seems to create a deeper connection and understanding,鈥� added Hill. 鈥淚鈥檓 a firm believer that Mrs. Rust鈥檚 approach is not only innovative and fun, but incredibly impactful.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

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