First Advisor

William Griesar

Date of Award

Spring 6-18-2023

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Biology and University Honors

Department

Biology

Language

English

Subjects

Sleep deprivation, High school students -- Health and hygiene, Neurosciences, Public health

DOI

10.15760/honors.1336

Abstract

Northwest Noggin (NW Noggin), an all-volunteer neuroscience education outreach non-profit, serves its community by bringing students, artists, scientists and other participants together for artistic collaboration and learning. The outreach takes place in K-12 schools and other institutions (such as museums, coffee shops and correctional facilities) all over the Pacific Northwest. Neuroscience education outreach generates discourse surrounding community concerns through illuminating the brain-centric qualities of issues and by drawing on neuroscience research to create solutions. The neuroscience research-informed perspectives on these concerns stimulate awareness, create momentum towards evidence-based reform, and can result in policy interventions. This thesis details how NW Noggin outreach helped address chronic sleep deprivation and its associated health risks for teenagers in the Vancouver Public School District. This was achieved when NW Noggin volunteers persistently re-sparked discussion surrounding the start times for high schools in the district while referencing neuroscientific evidence centered around research on sleep and developing brains. Further educational and communal concerns are analyzed in parallel with a demonstration of how NW Noggin works to explore research-informed initiatives and solutions. The efforts of NW Noggin are then positioned in the context of STEM education research by understanding how outreach efforts aim to improve metrics associated with student motivation and performance.

Rights

In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).

Persistent Identifier

https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/40162

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