Posted by David Wetzel
Hands-On Learning Using Math and Science
Your students’ future and education needs are not like yours and mine. For the most part, we are a product of an education system heavily influenced by the industrial age - lectures and rote memorization. This style of teaching was primarily designed to produce factory and skilled trade workers.
Due to the dynamics of today’s world economy, most students no longer have the same types of jobs waiting for them when they graduate. Their future is in the service, health, and technology career fields. However, there is still a demand for skilled trade workers (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2010).
A Need for a Shift in Teaching Strategies
Today’s education system is still following the demands of the industrial age. So how does this clash with students’ needs for the future?
When students are forced to sit in straight rows and listen to the industrial revolution style of teaching — lectures and rote memorization of facts — countless become bored underachievers! Primarily because education system is out of step with the information age.
Unfortunately, many students view math and science as the two hardest subjects to master. Why? Because there is way too much emphasis on lectures and memorization. This contributes to their boredom in school and does motivate them to learn.
So what must be done to stimulate their curiosity and engagement in a manner that makes them to want to learn math and science?
Tips for Increasing Student Engagement Motivating underachieving students requires moving away from demonstration, telling, showing, and rote recall. Today’s math and science students need hands-on, minds-on experiences to stimulate and challenge them to think. The following are example strategies.
Technology Tools - must have specific learning objectives, along with real-world applications. Students use technology tools every day, so why not use their prior knowledge and experiences with these tools to challenge them to learn concepts.
Online Interactive Math or Science Programs - must address specific learning concepts. Not just means of keeping students occupied or as a reward for good behavior.
Problem Solving - solving real world problems frequently motivate underachieving students. Why? Because they are allowed to think out of the box to solve problems. Also, this strategy takes advantage of challenging higher-order thinking skills. This strategy works well for all students, not just underachievers. In addition, many students do not understand how to solve problems. These students must be taught how to solve problems.
Concepts - help students understand the critical features of a concept. This includes requiring students to develop examples and non-examples of a concept, assessing their true level of understanding. Also, require them to provide examples of a concept linked to one or more other concepts.
Lessons - must include opportunities for students to shift to a new, although still related to lesson objective, activity every 15 to 20 minutes. Examples include giving students opportunities to analyze, use or demonstrate what they learned, and show how to or explain what would happen if… This paradigm moves beyond completing worksheets (which in my experience, students view as busy work).
Higher Order Thinking (HOT) - requires the use of higher-order thinking questions. Open-ended questions to stimulate discussion. Do not use “yes or no answer” questions. Effective use of wait time “I” and “II.” Do not use questions which contain the answer. Example higher-order thinking questions, include:
- What might happen if ____?
- Can you summarize ____?
- What evidence supports ____?
- How is this similar or different to ____?
- How might you organize ____ into categories?
- What other ways can you show or illustrate ____?
Math Example Instead of showing your students the formula in geometry for determining the volume of an object, labeling variables, and how to solve the equation. Followed by endless drill and practice. Give them concrete and tangible objects to explore, touch, and measure. This leads to higher levels of thinking as they analyze and apply the concept of volume. After providing them with a variety of objects (regular and irregular shapes), ask them how they will determine the volume of these objects. Example higher-level questions include:
- Which object has the greatest volume?
- How do you know this true?
- How many ways are there to determine the volume of an object?
- How could you visually represent your solution? (looking for a graph, table, equation, pictures, etc.)
Science Example Instead of showing, demonstrating, or watching a video of a discrepant event. Allow students to participant through hands-on discrepant event investigations. For example: Air Pressure Materials - One Set for Each Group: one aluminum pan pie (non-smooth bottom), water, one 16oz clear glass, one candle (about 3 inches tall), and matches.
- Students attach the candle to the center, bottom of the pie pan.
- Now they pour water into the pie pan, about three quarters of an inch deep.
- Students light the candle.
- Now they place glass over the candle and observe what happens.
- Allow students to repeat as necessary.
After they have observed and recorded their observations, ask them higher-level science questions, for example:
- Why is ____ happening?
- What do you think is causing ____?
- You seem to be assuming that ____?
- What conclusions may be draw from ____?
- How is ____ different (like) ____?
Motivating underachieving students to learn math and science can be difficult or even challenging on occasions. With these teaching strategies students will no longer be bored by traditional lessons. They will find that math and science are not that difficult, because they are allowed to participate, think outside the box, and make connections.
Now it is your turn, do you have any additions to these strategies?
Sources
Occupations with the Largest Job Growth, Bureau of Labor Statistics, December 08, 2010.
HOT Skills Question Templates, Russellville Science Department Professional Learning Community
Posted by David Wetzel
Alternative Assessments
Alternative assessments provide you opportunities to determine the true level of understanding your students have regarding science and math concepts. These tools improve the learning environment for your students, along with your assessment of their real understanding.
So how does this happen?
The use of an alternative assessment provides students the opportunity to demonstrate their breadth and depth of concept understanding. This moves beyond the traditional multiple choice tests in which many students pass with good guesses or an innate ability to eliminate options.
Although these alternatives often require more work on your part, you will not be unpleasantly surprised with many of your student’s outcome on standardized testing. Why? You have already discovered their weak areas and addressed them in advance.
Technology Based Assessments
The important point to consider when using technology is that it’s only used as a means for students to demonstrate their concept knowledge. The emphasis must not be placed on the quality of a technology based project. Weight in the alternative assessment must be on the concept application and understanding.
Student Blogs – are used in lieu of a hand written journal. Blogs provide a venue for students to reflect on their understanding of concepts, by requiring them to:
- critically analyze ideas in science or math
- provide resources (images, references, websites, etc.) to support their position regarding their understanding of a concept
- provide instructions for how to solve math problems or conduct a scientific investigation
Presentations – are used in lieu of common presentation tools, traditional posters, or works of art. Students use the following alternatives to express their understanding of concepts.
- Voice Tread – provides five tools to communicate with group members, teachers, and students in other schools. Voice Thread provides the ability to share knowledge gained during science or math project based learning activities or data collection activities. These tools are webcam, voice, documents, audio, and images.
- Glogster – provides four methods of communicating content knowledge through interactive posters using images, videos, music, and documents.
- Prezi – allows students to embed videos, vocabulary, websites, mind maps, graphic organizers, and images to provide supporting evidence regarding their knowledge and understanding of concepts.
- One approach is allowing students to create their Prezi throughout a science or math chapter/unit. Then present their Prezi presentation at the end.
- Wall Wisher – students demonstrate their understanding of math concepts through a collection of images or present a reflection of their understanding scientific concepts by showcasing their research.
- Podcasts – used to create a “how to” or instructions for solving a problem in science and math.
- math problem and solution which requires proof the answer is correct or wrong
- environmental issues in science
- developing step by step procedures for completing a scientific investigation
- writing a series of questions or statements using a term in proper context
- draw pictures to explain a math of science term
Non-Technology Based Assessments
As with technology, they are only used as a means for students to demonstrate their concept knowledge. Weight of alternative assessment must be on application of concept(s)
Mental Math – students must have the opportunity to solve problems without the use of pencil, paper, or technology (computers/calculators). This ability is becoming a lost art for many students today. I have come across few students who can add, subtract, multiply, or divide without the aid of calculator or pencil and paper. Mental math activities not only apply to mathematics, they also apply to areas in science which rely heavily on math. Provide students with activities on a regular basis, for example two days a week, in which they solve problems using mental math techniques.
Problems – task students to create a problem related to a concept and then present ways to solve the problem.
Math and Science Terminology – students write a story which includes vocabulary words in the proper context. Application I do not recommend total reliance on these assessment techniques to evaluate your students. However, I do not support of using traditional methods as the only method for student evaluation. I recommend a mixture of both alternative and traditional assessments to develop a learning community in your classroom.
These are only five examples of alternative assessments you can use to accurately understand your students understanding science and math concepts. Naturally there are many more.
Your Turn. Do you have additional recommendations?
Posted by David Wetzel
Project Based Learning
Project based learning offers a dynamic approach to teaching and learning science and math. Students use this learning strategy to explore real-world problems and challenges. The following is an overview of the three online resources which have already developed projects for your use in the classroom.
Technology Enhanced Learning in Science (TELS)
This online project based learning (PBL) resource is primarily focused on math and science through simulations, research, opportunities to collect data, reading and comprehension, interactive graphs, data displays, and online chats with other students and educators.
TELS units use Web-based Inquiry Science Environment (WISE) software and provide your students with the opportunity to:
- address in-depth science topics across all grade levels.
- practice science by creating arguments using their scientific evidence.
- investigate scientific ideas using visualizations, probe-based activities, and virtual experiments.
- make connections across multiple scientific ideas, concepts, theories, and laws.
- use a variety of communication skills for science investigations including collaboration, reading, writing, representing ideas visually, and complex visualizations.
Intel Projects
This site provides a comprehensive resource for you to design effective PBL projects. This online resource goes into detail regarding how to invoke metacognition opportunities in projects. Another unique insight which Intel provides is a lens for students to view through when completing PBL work.
Intel provides over 300 classroom PBL projects for science and math, along with other content areas and all grade levels. The PBL resources on this website do not follow a cookie cutter approach, which permits adaptation to most science and math classroom situations.
You will also find research-based resources regarding how PBL learning takes place, how to schedule PBL work, performance-based assessments, and encouraging your students to learn using critical thinking skills.
Intel Projects focus on thinking skills in the four following areas:
- Thinking Frameworks – follow the framework of Bloom’s Taxonomy, Marzano’s Taxonomy, and Howard Gardner’s Learning Styles.
- Higher Order Thinking Skills – for developing a deeper understanding of science and math content through analysis, knowledge, and metacognition.
- Beliefs and Attitudes – make the connection emotions and thinking.
- Teaching Thinking – the use of best practices for critical thinking and problem solving.
Multimedia Educational Resources for Learning and Online Teaching (MERLOT) MERLOT has thematic units which allow students to complete project based learning and problem solving activities. This site offers over 10,000 science and math units covering the scope of these two content areas. This resource also offers opportunities for you to share advice and expertise with colleagues. MERLOT assists in posing PBL investigations for your students, along with providing online resources for their research. This is a leading edge online resource which is continually updated through interaction with educators and students from around the world.
Additional Resources for Project Based Learning
Science Case Studies and Problem Based Learning – engages students in case studies designed to develop problem solving skills in science within a real world context to support their internalization of science knowledge.
Math Teaching Strategies the Challenge Students – four techniques are discussed regarding their ability to connect math concepts and challenging students through cases studies, applications of virtual manipulatives, writing, and interactive math tools.
Project Based Learning Viewed through a Digital Lens – giving students the opportunity to complete and present their project through a digital lens has one great advantage – student engagement. This in turn causes students to develop a more in depth understanding of concepts. When students are engaged in learning science or math which is personal to them (real world problem solving), they become more engaged in the learning process. Project based learning situations in science and math increase opportunity for students to internalize and make connections.
