Case Study: Notre Dame Academy
Case Study:
Notre Dame Academy
A Strategic Investment in Student-Centered Science Technology
When Notre Dame Academy received grant funding for new science technology in 2024, administrators wanted an engaging and high-tech tool to impact their broad range of students. So, after careful consideration of their student population and curriculum needs, biology teacher and science department head Joy Mayer recognized an opportunity with the Science Table by Anatomage. With approximately 750 science students, the Science Table’s versatility across biology, chemistry, physics, and Earth & space science made it the ideal choice for maximizing the technology’s impact.
Challenge
Although she has delivered top-tier education for over 20 years, Joy still faced the common struggles of many science teachers: limitations with lab materials, time-consuming setup, and student disengagement when exploring complex topics. These issues could make it more difficult to equip students with the foundational knowledge they needed to meet academic standards.
The school wanted a solution that would address these challenges while complementing their existing curriculum. As Joy explained, when determining what Notre Dame should do with their funding, “I wanted to make sure that more students [could benefit] from it,” highlighting the importance of finding technology with broad applications.
The Science Table has allowed my students to see complex biology topics in a new way and interact with their teacher and other students in a fun way.
Solution
After assessing the potential impact of the 100+ different experiments available, the school carefully implemented the Science Table across multiple science courses with thoughtful pedagogical approaches. Joy immediately found value in the variety of ready-to-run experiments, especially when integrating the new hands-on learning with her International Baccalaureate (IB) Biology students.
Joy introduced simulations like “DNA Replication” and “Photosynthesis: Light Reactions” to supplement her regular lectures with visualizations of what was actually happening on the molecular level. To encourage active engagement, she guided small group rotations of four to five students to ensure that each student had the opportunity to interact directly with the Table’s features. During these sessions, she presented targeted questions designed to prompt deeper thinking and classroom discussion, and even developed custom lab worksheets to provide structure as students worked through these complex biology concepts.
The Science Table also demonstrated its flexibility across disciplines, with Joy and her fellow instructors in biology, chemistry, and physics finding other unique ways to incorporate its experiments into their lessons. The platform’s wide range allowed each teacher to tailor its use to their subject matter, whether reinforcing foundational concepts, replacing traditional labs, or extending student thinking through interactive applications:
Biology Applications
- Using the “Phylogenetics” experiment for a fun, interactive visualization of cladograms and evolutionary history
- Adapting the “Virtual Microscopy” lab for protist observation, eliminating issues with ordering live proteus specimens
Chemistry Applications
- Utilizing the “Conservation of Mass” experiment as an entry point to key chemistry concepts while allowing students to compare ideal scientific outcomes with the variability introduced by real-world indeterminate errors
Physics Applications
- Validating mathematical models with pre-calculation of theoretical results followed by virtual testing with the “Projectile Motion” experiment
Results
The Science Table became a flexible resource that could enhance key lessons, reinforce difficult concepts, and offer an interactive element — especially when standard labs weren’t feasible. Plus, since implementing the Science Table, the school has seen significant positive outcomes across multiple dimensions:
Enhanced student engagement
“[Students] are all trying to touch it at the same time,” Joy said. The tactile, interactive nature of the Science Table has lent itself to a more participatory learning environment.
Improved concept visualization
Complex processes like photosynthesis are now more accessible to students. “I think the Science Table definitely has helped them visualize those steps better,” Joy explained. “They can actually picture what happens.” Students’ comments about the platform also indicated improved comprehension of challenging concepts.
Reduced preparation time
Some labs required overnight setup and specialized materials. “With the Respiration vs Photosynthesis experiment, I used to do something like that as a demo,” Joy shared. “That definitely took set up, and I stopped doing it because it was just so tedious. When I saw it was very similar on the Science Table, I thought, ‘Oh, that’s perfect.’” The Science Table has revitalized these valuable learning experiences without the associated logistical challenges.
Expanded experimental capabilities
The Science Table has even enabled experiments that would otherwise be impractical or impossible. The “Fruit Fly Genetics” lab, for example, allows students to run multiple genetic crosses and observe hereditary patterns without the challenges of maintaining live specimens. “I wouldn’t have done [the experiment] at all,” Joy admitted, “so it was nice that I could do that.”
Cross-disciplinary implementation
Unlike specialized equipment that benefits only one subject area, the Science Table has been successfully integrated across Notre Dame’s biology, chemistry, and physics classes, maximizing the school’s investment and exposing more students to advanced technology.
Overall, the Science Table has delivered measurable instructional value with minimal barriers to use, empowering Joy and her department to revisit key lessons with materials that are accurate, engaging, and ready to implement. As teachers grow more familiar with its capabilities and with many experiments still to explore, the Science Table remains a resource with untapped potential — one that Joy and her colleagues are actively working to incorporate more deeply into their science curriculum.