National Park College (NPC) Assistant Professor of Anatomy and Physiology Gwendolyn Carter led a hands-on heart dissection workshop for teens at the Garland County Library last month.
Teenagers and parents participated in the educational event, which introduced students to the anatomy of the heart, its function and the sounds it produces. Following a brief lecture, students dissected pig hearts, traced the flow of blood through the chambers and used stethoscopes to listen to heart and chest sounds. As the session wrapped up, several younger children and their parents stopped by to observe and learn.
“The Garland County Library contacted our math and sciences department for an instructor to do an insect dissection,” Carter said. “As insects are not my specialty, I suggested a heart dissection as I’m more familiar with human anatomy.”
Carter said her goal was to help students understand the basic parts of the heart, the pathway of blood flow and how heart sounds are produced. She emphasized the value of hands-on learning in making abstract concepts more tangible.
“Hands-on experiences help students bring head knowledge into a real-world experience, with seeing the realistic anatomy and listening to the same sounds that their doctor would hear using a stethoscope,” she said.
Carter said the teens were enthusiastic and asked many questions. Events like this, she said, align with her mission as an educator by exposing students to new perspectives and helping her refine her own teaching methods. She sees such outreach as a way to spark interest in health care and STEM careers.
“It helps students gain exposure to more knowledge with the hands-on experience that is often beyond the resources of K-12 schools,” she said. “The mink dissection in my college-level anatomy and physiology I class is many times the first dissection that some students have ever done.”
Carter plans to return to the library for future events as part of its summer learning series. For students inspired by the workshop, she offered simple advice.
“Almost all of the world’s knowledge can be searched from the palm of their hands, with parental supervision, of course,” she said. “YouTube University is a great resource for learning.”
She also expressed gratitude to the Garland County Library for hosting the event.
“I’m thankful that the library is reaching out to the resources in our community to expand the opportunities for our neighbors,” she said.
