2026 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Making the Invisible Visible: Hands-On Models of Bioengineering Imaging for K-8 Classrooms (Resource Exchange)

Presented at Pre-College Engineering Education Curriculum and Resource Exchange

Integrating basic science with engineering provides K-8 students with a comprehensive understanding of healthcare solutions. This resource presents a set of NGSS-aligned activities that first build foundational knowledge and then introduce a corresponding bioengineering technology. For example, after discussing how cancer cells differ from healthy cells, students model fluorescence imaging. Using magnetic, glow-in-the-dark beads as "probes" that bind to a hidden magnet "tumor," they simulate how bioengineers make cancer visually detectable for diagnosis. This approach reinforces scientific knowledge while developing critical thinking and inspiring students to become future innovators.

Authors

Andrew Jose Loarte University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign
Carlos Mansour Saeh University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign
Stephanie Maria Espino University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign
Ahmed Sulaiman Nadeem University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign
Zaeem Qureshi http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4145-7093 University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign
Emily Rodriguez University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign
Stephanie Dietrich http://orcid.org/0009-0001-1855-6512 University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign [biography]

Stephanie Dietrich holds a master's degree in library and information sciences and is a certified K-12 teacher, with experience teaching computer science and engineering design to K-8 students. She currently serves as the Educational Programs Manager at the Cancer Center at Illinois, where she leads K-12 outreach and community engagement initiatives, inspiring young learners through hands-on STEM activities and cancer education.
Dr. Marcia Pool http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2813-4217 University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign [biography]

Dr. Marcia (“Marci”) Pool is the Assistant Director for Education at the Cancer Center at Illinois and a Teaching Associate Professor in Bioengineering. She holds a Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering, has served for sixteen years as teaching faculty/staff in biomedical/bioengineering and nine years in departmental/institute educational administration, and is an ABET program evaluator for Bioengineering/Biomedical Engineering. She focuses on identifying and evaluating mechanisms to enhance the educational experience and develop students into engineers and researchers. Her work includes interventions to enhance training for high school students, undergraduate students, and predoctoral (graduate students) and postdoctoral trainees through training programs such as NIH T32s. These programs include curricular, extracurricular, and professional and career development components with required evaluation and tracking of student participants.

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