Hydroponics in Schools--An Educational Tool

by Lawrence L. Brooke and Otmar Silberstein

There are two debts that can never be repaid. The first is to our parents and family, the second is to our teachers for educating us and preparing us for the challenges, opportunities that confront us every day of our lives. No professional holds greater honor than that of a talented teacher whose training and support forms the foundation upon which analytical, social and knowledge skills are built.

As a society, we have failed to sufficiently recognize and reward the contributions of our teachers. Politicians cut school budgets while increasing investments in police and prisons -- investments in failure. There is no finer investment for a nation than education. From an educated population come all of the great achievers and achievements.

From time to time, a particular teacher will stand out. That teacher’s students shine brightly against the drab background of social mediocrity. Such an exceptional teacher is Vonneke Miller of the Peterson Middle School, located in Sunnyvale, California, in the heart of the famed Silicon Valley. While attending a summer "Space Camp" several years ago, she came up with the idea of building a space capsule with her students. As they "travel" through space and do the sorts of things that astronauts might do, the students learn and apply basic scientific concepts.

The project began to take shape in 1992 and now two simulated space capsules are part of the science lab and classroom. One is equipped to monitor the astronauts’ vital signs such as heart rate, blood pressure and temperature as they perform tasks. The other capsule is dedicated to growing vegetables hydroponically, as would have to be done to provide sustenance on extended missions.

"We were just puppies when we started," Miller said. "We didn’t know anything and learned as we went along. We visited NASA at the Ames Center, and Lockheed in Mountain View, and used their research capsule as a model for our slightly scaled-down version."

Grant money came from computer manufacturer Hewlett-Packard and members of the Hydroponic Society of America (HSA) provided information and advice. Vendors provided equipment and nutrients; local industries and individuals helped with materials and funds. The sponsors are acknowledged with stars suspended from the ceiling.

Miller and Brenda Goldstein work together as a team, teaching science to grades six through eight. Students are taught the basics along with the applied sciences they practice in the space capsule. Each student participates in mixing fresh nutrient for the hydroponic systems. The students learn that different kinds of plants need different nutrient mixes and that the mixes need to be altered for the different phases of plant growth.

Nutrient concentrations and pH are tested and adjusted. Records are kept of pH, total dissolved solids (TDS) and the frequency of nutrient changes. Tomatoes are hand pollinated using fine paint brushes. Flowers and fruit are counted and yields documented. Taste tests are carried out to compare, for example, the difference between vine-ripened fruit and fruits that were picked prematurely and stored.

While science is the main thrust of the project, there are other benefits as well. The school cafeteria serves lettuce and tomatoes grown in the space capsule. In this school there is no problem getting students to eat their vegetables; they pride themselves on the fine harvest. The enthusiasm of both teacher and students and the sense of achievement and purpose are impressive. That enthusiasm is clearly illustrated by the competition among eighth graders to become teaching assistants in the hydroponic program.

The project has gained enormous support from the community as well as within the school system. An open house during the spring term attracted over 300 visitors, not only parents, but educators and many of the sponsors and contributors.

The project at Peterson Middle School has been so successful that plans are under way to double its size. The program will take "aero-space" as its central theme and work from there to integrate other areas of study. Hydroponics will be a major component of the biology program.

The value of hydroponics as a teaching tool is in its great flexibility and control. Hydroponic planters work well inside of the classroom, offering more dramatic growth rates than soil gardening. The effects of light, temperature, nutrient composition and water quality can be isolated and analyzed. Studies in plant physiology, plant anatomy, genetics, chemistry, physics, engineering and computer applications can be conducted using hydroponic systems. Projects of increasing complexity can be designed to suit all levels of education from elementary through the university level. Hydroponics is a valuable component of the interdisciplinary approach to teaching and learning by hands-on experience.

Children have a natural affinity for growing things. Tending the plants and monitoring their progress teaches responsibility and a respect for living organisms that no textbook biology lesson could convey. The students learn in the best possible way--by doing.

The Peterson Middle School experience is not an isolated case. Science projects are sponsored by the Future Farmers of America in all of their chapters across the United States. From these they select eight finalists to exhibit their work at the annual convention in Kansas City. In 1992, three of the finalists were conducting experiments with hydroponics.

Robin Boreman, the grand prize winner, used hydroponics to study the effects of cadmium pollution on plant life. Another finalist combined hydroponics and aquaculture, growing plants and fish simultaneously. The third studied the production of biomass in space in two different hydroponic systems. A high school student in Pearsall, Texas, has taken first prizes in school and regional science fairs with his hydroponic projects.

Increasingly, hydroponics, long a tool of university researchers, is finding a place in elementary and secondary education. It offers students great opportunities to learn from their successes and from their failures. On the way, they learn about making observations, recording and interpreting data, and the need for controls in scientific research.

During the last few years, the HSA has been working with educators to familiarize them with the opportunities and concepts that can be explored using hydroponics as an educational tool. A curriculum outline is now available, as is information on experiments, guest speakers and suppliers of hydroponic equipment. Many vendors are willing to help with advice and materials to get projects started. The society also offers special student memberships, including a subscription to the HSA’s bimonthly newsletter, The Soilless Grower. More information is available from the HSA, P.O. Box 1183, El Cerrito, CA 94530.

Lawrence Brooke is a founding member of the Hydroponic Society of America and the owner of General Hydroponics Company in Corte Madera, California.

From The Growing Edge, Volume 5, Number 1