Huntington's
Disease WebQuestINTRO | TASKS | QUESTIONS |RESOURCES | RUBRICS | STANDARDS | NOTES FOR TEACHER
BACK TO DISEASE PAGE | BACK TO "BIG SCIENCE, LITTLE FLIES"
Introduction: Mike and Julie have just come home from a visit with their doctor, heads swimming with the information they just obtained. At least now they have a name to go with the weird things that have been going on with Mike. [Huntington's Disease] As each drifts off to sleep that night, they start thinking about what their future will hold - how their lives will change. Will the dreams they had when they first were married become fulfilled? They decided they were going to wait until they were more secure and stable in their jobs before having children. What now?
Tasks:
You and your team will play the roles of Mike and
Julie. Your job is to gather information from the following individuals
and keep a journal of what facts and information these people provide.
Be as factual as possible, but sometimes, you may have to extrapolate what these
people would tell you in terms of the implications of the information.
(You should be creative in "designing" your story.)
Questions to Address in Your Journal:
All of these questions can be answered using the links below. Don't waste
time going anywhere else on the web until you've utilized every link thoroughly.
The Physical and Emotional Aspects of Huntington's
1. What are the symptoms of Huntington's Disease?
2. What causes the symptoms associated with Huntington's Disease?
3. What physical challenges will Mike face?
4. What emotional problems will Mike and his family face?
The Genetics of Huntington's
1. How is Huntington's Disease inherited?
2. What are Mike and Julie's chances of having a child with the disease?
The Ethics of Huntington's
1. Should they choose to have a child, what choices do they have before conception and after conception?
2. Should they get the embryo tested for HD? Why or why not?
3. Should they get the child tested for HD? Why or why not?
4. Should Mike choose to participate in a study?
5. What benefits might result from his participating?
6. What reasons might there be for not participating in the study?
Advanced Questions
1. What is the codon repeated in Huntington's Disease?
2. What is the amino acid repeated in Huntington's Disease?
3. What correlation is there between the severity and onset of the disease and the number of codon repeats?
4. How does "slippage" occurring within replication cause specific protein alterations in the brain?
5. What other animals show codon repeats?
6. What is the significance of research with these organisms in understanding human disease?
7. What other human genetic diseases are a result of "slippage"?
Resources
you should use:
Go to these sites first!
Physician
DNA
Learning Center--Cold Spring Harbor
Huntington's Disease Association
Genetic Counselor
Invitro-Fertiliation Institute
Friends and Family
Handbook on Huntington's Disease
Caring for People with Huntington's Disease
"Big Science"
(Tri-nucleotide repeats, codon repeat disease, etc.)
Possible Future Treatment for Huntington’s Disease
Abstract on Codon Repeats in Genes Causing HD
Questions to Address in Your Journal: All of these questions can be answered using the links above. Don't waste time going anywhere else on the web until you've read every link thoroughly.
The Physical and Emotional Aspects of Huntington's
1. What are the symptoms of Huntington's Disease?
2. What causes the symptoms associated with Huntington's Disease?
3. What physical challenges will Mike face?
4. What emotional problems will Mike and his family face?
The Genetics of Huntington's
1. How is Huntington's Disease inherited?
2. What is their chance of having a child with the disease?
The Ethics of Huntington's
1. Should they choose to have a child, what choices do they have before conception and after conception?
2. Should they get the embryo tested for HD? Why or why not?
3. Should they get the child tested for HD? Why or why not?
4. Should Mike choose to participate in a study?
5. What benefits might result from his participating?
6. What reasons might there be for not participating in the study?
Advanced Questions
1. What is the codon repeated in Huntington's Disease?
2. What is the amino acid repeated in Huntington's Disease?
3. What correlation is there between the severity and onset of the disease and the number of codon repeats?
4. How does "slippage" occurring within replication cause specific protein alterations in the brain?
5. What other animals show codon repeats?
6. What is the significance of research with these organisms in understanding human disease?
Rubrics:
Far be it from us to tell you how to grade your students.
The following rubrics can be used as a checklist, or you may choose to assign
points for each category, so different components carry a weight comparable to
your grading scale. Modify the rubrics according to your particular
circumstances.
Exceptional: The student...
| will take responsibility for being cooperative within the group. | |
| is a self-starter and goes after information with little motivation from the teacher. | |
| actively becomes engaged in the role of the task. | |
| frequently writes in depth and analytical entries in his/her journal. | |
| works to broaden his/her knowledge base of the task. | |
| uses correct grammar and spelling. | |
| is creative and organized. | |
| has at least 85% of the journal entries well articulated. | |
| understands complex concepts addressed by the task. |
Satisfactory: The student...
| is usually responsible for being cooperative within the group. | |
| needs frequent teacher direction to seek out information. | |
| seems not involved in the role(s) demanded of the task. | |
| writes mostly directed entries in Journal, which are frequently not in-depth or analytical. | |
| demonstrates little attempt to broaden knowledge base of the task. | |
| uses grammar and spelling that is mostly correct. | |
| shows minimal creativity. | |
| uses scattered organization. | |
| has at least 75% of the Journal entries. | |
| demonstrates only cursory understanding in Journal entries. |
Unsatisfactory: The student...
| is not very cooperative or responsible for their role in the group. | |
| shows little evidence and motivation to pursue materials. | |
| is indifferent and unengaged in the role(s) of the task. | |
| doesn't write frequently or in depth in Journal. | |
| doesn't work or demonstrates apathy toward broadening his/her knowledge base of the task. | |
| has multiple grammar and spelling errors in his/her Journal. | |
| shows no creativity. | |
| has less than 75% of the journal entries well articulated. | |
| demonstrates minimal organization of materials. |
The following rubric is designed to be an extension for the advanced students.
Advanced: The student...
| takes complete responsibility for being cooperative within the group. | |
| is a self-starter and goes after information with no motivation from the teacher. | |
| actively becomes engaged in the role of the task. | |
| consistently writes in depth and analytical entries in his/her journal. | |
| actively works to broaden his/her knowledge base of the task. | |
| uses correct grammar and spelling. | |
| is creative and organized. | |
| has at least 95% of the journal entries well articulated. | |
| understands complex concepts addressed by the task. | |
| demonstrates exceptional knowledge of how codon repeats translate into disease. |
A. Science as Inquiry
B. Content in Life Science: the students should develop an understanding of the cell and the molecular basis of heredity.
E. Science and Technology, as well as technological design
F. Science in Personal and Social Perspective
G. History and Nature of Science
You may want to add in additional characters, such as clergy members, additional family and friends, etc.
Instead of a journal, you could role play all of the characters, and even add other characters such as a life insurance agent, researcher, fertility doctor, etc.
You could have students find out the potential costs involved, such as the cost of an assisted living facility, home care, hospitalization, etc.
This WebQuest could be extended into an ethical debate.
At the conclusion of the WebQuest, each individual student could write a persuasive essay based on their opinion of how to deal with Huntington's disease based on the research they've done
Interested in designing your own WebQuest? Check out this site: http://webquest.sdsu.edu/materials.htm
.
