Posted by Andrew Marcus on June 27, 1998 at 09:17:09:
In Reply to: One Idea posted by ken on June 27, 1998 at 09:03:29:
Encourage active learning/provide prompt feedback, emphasise time on task:
General concept: during the beginning of a semester in an introductory course, have students develop a hypothesis about the relation between runoff in a local stream, rainfall and temperature at the university (weather data collected by students). Have the students present their hypothesis in a graph form. At the start of each weekly lab:
1) chart up actual temperature and rainfall for the week;
2) have the students access the USGS flow record for the stream and chart the weekly flow;
3) plot their results against their predicted results to determine accuracy of prediction;
4) if prediction off, engage in analysis of why it was off. Revise future predicted runoff if appropriate.
The above requires students to gather their own data, think about the results, and revise their thinking in light of results (active learning). It requires them to revisit the concept each week to clarify it, thus alerting them to the amount of time required for science discovery and experimentation. And it provides prompt feedback each time they check their results against the new and incoming data.