Writing Project #1
Another Day Another Class Janelle Blue and Ryan Cook English 367C.01 23 January 1997: I.Summary In their article, "Making the Invisible Visible," Fred Goldberg and Sharon Bendall discuss different measures used in a class to help students gain a better understanding of physics and to rely more on themselves for knowledge than relying on the teacher. Goldberg and Bendall both state that students simply view physics as just formulas and equations which they just have to memorize. They feel that this is a vast reason why students do not want to take a physics course: they view it as boring and a subject that they don’t have much fun in. Throughout the course of the article, Goldberg and Bendall show us many different ideas and approaches which all are focused on getting the students more involved on their own. These ideas range from getting students more involved in the activities, which could be as simple as using a computer program allowing students to create activities that the class can participate in as a whole. Give students an opportunity to be involved in something that they enjoy. Throughout the article Goldberg and Bendall show us why students need to be taught how to reorganize their original notions. What teachers want students to do when they enter a classroom is to not come into it thinking that they know all the answers. For example, a student may enter a physics class thinking that a rock falls of a building at a certain speed because it is heavy. To an everyday person this may sound logical, and it is up to the teacher to overcome this way of thinking and encourage the student to apply the principles of physics. This can be done using many different methods of interactive instructional strategies: classroom dialogs, laboratory activities, daily journals, learning commentary, homework assignments and reading, and interactive computer programs. The goal of each strategy is to promote powerful ideas, which are closely aligned with the fundamental principles of physics. II.Learning Theories 1. Students who take more of a hands on approach to a class and do most of their work on their own without relying on the teacher tend to do better on average than students who simply rely on what the teacher has prepared for them. This is because they are more involved with the subject matter and are able to better absorb the in formation through participation. 2. Students respond to different types of feedback. It is important that students get various types of feedback from many different sources because many times a teacher’s feedback to the student is not enough to alter a misconception or to provide insight to a difficult problem. 3. If a student is asked to write down what he or she learned then it will get them to think more in depth about the subject because they will be forced to recall information that may otherwise been quickly forgotten. In addition, writing allows the student to actively process what he or she has learned and articulate it in a manner that will be helpful to that student. 4. Students learn by being exposed to many different points of view during class discussions. This activity gives the student the opportunity to hear more than one possible solution to a problem and encourages the student to think about the possible solution. 6. Students learn by being exposed to a myriad of contrasting points of view. When they get feedback from peers they may learn something, but not take it as serious as if it came straight from the teacher. When students get feedback from their peers they may ask questions they would not ask the teacher because they felt that they were dumb questions. 7. Students learn through guided experimentation. If a teacher walks them through an experiment, then the student will be able to better understand the importance of certain things throughout the experiment. Experiments are great learning tools because they give students many different ways to approach problems. Students not only learn the scientific method, but learn how to form hypothesis questions which can lead them towards the answers to their questions that they might otherwise ask the teacher. III.Responses Janelle Blue This essay outlined various methods and strategies to enhance learning for students enrolled in a physics course. These strategies encouraged student expression and interaction which are not activities that I would normally associate with this course. I think that the teaching methods described in the essay can also make the teaching function more enjoyable and satisfying for the instructor. One point that I found to be especially true is that students’ prior ideas and beliefs influence what and how they learn. I think that students commonly enter into courses with preconceived ideas of how the course should be taught, what they will need to do to succeed in the class, and students may already have or feel they have a considerable amount of knowledge about the subject. This realization requires that the teacher interact with the students in a way that modifies prior ideas and enables the student to build on existing knowledge in the correct way. I often go into a class on the first day and find that my expectations are usually met and rarely exceeded. I feel that sometimes teachers become creatures of habit. If they have taught a subject one way for 20 years than they will continue to teach it that way. You can almost sense the direction the class will take within the first five minutes. Of course I learn the material for the tests and quizzes, but it is quickly forgotten. It is great to learn that there are teachers who are willing to abandon the conventional way of teaching physics such as relying heavily on textbook material, endless lectures, and copious note taking, and try new approaches by using writing exercises, classroom dialog, and interactive computer programs. If more courses were taught in such a way that relies more on student involvement, I think that most students would retain more information. It should be noted that the methods of teaching physics introduced in this essay were applied to prospective elementary teachers. I feel that choosing this particular group increases the chances that these students will adopt this teaching style and maybe teach physics in a similar manner. I view physics as a difficult subject. I would be reluctant to enroll in the course unless I had no other choice. I would presume that I am not the only individual who sees physics this way. If teachers were taught how to learn and teach physics with confidence, then they would be likely to produce students who have a better understanding of the subject. These strategies could open doors for many people who were afraid of physics, and we would probably see a substantial increase in the number of people who enjoy the subject. I agree with the idea of using interactive computer programs for some classes, but I think that actual laboratory experiments may have a more dramatic effect on the learning experience when demonstrating phenomena. I realize that computer technology is becoming increasingly advanced, but from my personal experience, there is nothing like being able to experience a real world phenomena through the five senses. I do not feel that a computer evokes such splendor. Computer programs may enhance the learning experience and provide convenience, but I would rather see teachers using real world examples or models when demonstrating phenomena. Overall I thought the strategies for teaching introductory physics presented here were ideal. I would probably do much better in a course taught in this way than one taught the traditional way because I would be actively involved in learning. Ryan Cook I think that the idea of integrating technology into the classrooms is very beneficial to students as well as teachers. It not only gets them out of the boring regiment of just sitting in a classroom taking notes the whole time. It gives students a chance to involve school work and technology together, not just one or the other. If teachers would give students a tool such as a computer or a computer program they might not only relate to it better, but it might make the activities seem more fun. We should incorporate this new technology into the classroom because the students will gain knowledge of computers and the subject they are used for at the same time. I know that technology helped me tremendously, especially in my English 110 class. When I came into English 110, I wasn’t a real big fan of English. This was probably due to my past experiences with lousy teachers. But English 110 was a totally different experience to me because of the technology. This technology not only gave me the ability to do much of my work outside of class, but keep in touch with the professor over weekends. I could literally send him drafts of my papers through e-mail and he would respond back with his comments. This gave me an opportunity to gain feedback on papers when I otherwise could not have. Computers have made writing English papers for me less stressful because they have helped me with things like spelling and grammar. People who are not great spellers like myself love to use the easy spell checks on most computers. Along with spelling and grammar, computers also taught me how to become better organized, If students get on a computer and are disorganized then most students will find that they are always looking for files and never typing. That takes time, time most students do not need to waste. I also found that it was easier to correct your mistakes on a computer. When I would write papers in my English classes in high school, I would have to proofread the papers for mistakes. Every time I would turn in a paper it seemed like there was always one word I forgot to correct. So as soon as I got the opportunity to use computers in the classroom, I took full advantage of their options. I knew that they would aid me in proofreading my papers. With all of this new technology I was able to use, I felt that English would become more fun. I was right, as soon as I started typing it was like nothing I had felt before. I could not believe what I was telling myself: English was fun! The computers made English fun because I found myself wanting to use the computer constantly, this meant that almost every time I was on the computer I was typing or adding to my English papers. I also found that this technology could be used almost anywhere. This meant when I went away to my aunt’s or uncle’s I could work on my projects there. The computer became a part of my writing process not only because of convenience, but because of the different features it brought to me. I could jot down an idea on the computer save it to disk and when I needed to work on that idea I could simply load it up. This meant that any idea that I had, I could store and not have to worry about remembering it weeks later. Without the computer I would have been searching everywhere for my drafts of papers, and constantly looking for spelling errors. But because I can let the computer fix most of my spelling errors, I can spend much more time just sitting down at the keyboard punching out sentences. Before I started using computers I would just sit in front of the screen looking up and down for spelling errors. But with the click of one button, they are simply brought to my attention and can be fixed just as easy.Writing Project #2
To Learn or Not to Learn Ryan Cook English 367C.01 13 February 1997: Every day in schools across the country, students are asked to complete projects, labs, and various other academic activities to enrich their knowledge about a particular subject. But what educators fail to see that in these activities, the actual process can become learning material. Instead of asking students to do activities on their own, many teachers should put their students into small groups to complete work on projects. Many teachers have found that "we all have strengths and weaknesses. Working as a team, we can maximize our strengths and shore up our weak areas." (Vermette) Students who work together in small groups will gain a better understanding of a project, because of the many ideas they have to think about. Cooperative learning is an approach where a teacher will take his or her students, place them in small groups and allow them to work together on an assignment. This type of a group allows students to discuss the problem that they are given. Students then receive input from everyone in the group, and work to put all of their feedback together. By manipulating all of their feedback together students can then formulate an answer the group can agree on. Cooperative learning enriches the learning process in many different ways. It first allows students to gain information from many points of view. Each student brings his or her own experiences to the group. Since no two students think the same they must put their ideas together in order to complete the assignment. Different students combine their methods of solving a problem to work out the solution. Furthermore, cooperative learning is beneficial because it makes students responsible for their own learning. If a student wants to learn, then he or she must actively participate in the group in order to facilitate learning. Because of this the teacher is not left to spoon feed his or her students the information anymore. This allows the teacher to spend a great deal more time focusing his or her attention to formulating rigorous tests and quizzes to push the students in their learning process. Cooperative learning is also very beneficial because it allows both active and audio students to learn about the same subject matter without leaving out the needs of one specific group. When teachers place students in small groups, some will do better than others with the task they are given by just simply listening to what their peers have to say about it. Yet some students will benefit from this group because they can actually physically create or play around with the task. By putting students into small groups students benefit from both types of learning at the same time. Many teachers can not work with both groups during a simple lecture period. Eduaction Digest states that students who participate in interviews and other assignments where students have to talk to someone about an issue gain more beacause, interviewing is a great cooperative learning task. Teachers giving their students this type of assignment force their students to work in groups, collaboratively with others. Most students view this type of project as fun. When a student is given an assignment which allows them to conduct an interview, they are going to interview someone about a topic that they know or find interesting. For example in English 110 students were asked to write a postioned essay on an issue within a community. In order for students to complete this essay they had to interview two autorities within the particular community. This meant that students would pick a community that was of some interest to them. When a student is given this type of project that they are interested in, the student will generally be more productive. When students are becoming more productive they are having more fun. Student involvement in a project shows that it is of intrest to students. Many teachers will find that with this new approach to projects many students will not only change their whole mindset about the class but to the assignment as well. And teachers will then find that that their entire class will benefit from this change in attitudes. When the attitudes of individuals in a class change, they change the attitude of the class as a whole. Teachers won’t find students coming to their classes with negative attitudes instead they will see students with good attitudes. This will allow teachers to approach the class with a positive outlook, instead of an apprehensive approach. In Tabitha Fetter’s classroom at Upper Sandusky, Students are given different kinds of hands on activities on a daily basis. These different activities get students in small groups working together. A good example of a cooperative learning experience her students take part in, is a math skills game. Before the game starts, students are broken up into four groups of three. The groups are asked to sit at different tables which contain different note cards with math formulas written on them. Students are given bottle tops from two litter bottles with different numbers and mathematics signs written on the top. The students have to look at their cards and actually reconstruct the problems with the caps that they are given. The only difference between the cards and the caps is that the cards don’t have the answers written on them. The students have to work together to come up with the answer and put the correct bottle cap at the end of their problem. Most of the students seem to enjoy this, some students laugh and giggle at each other. But the students, at least the majority of them seem to work diligently at solving the problems assigned. (Fetter) Goldberg and Bendall show how kids are put into groups of two and three to work on a computer program that is interactive and pertains to the subject they are studying. Students who use computer programs that are interactive are given a series of questions and ideas that they must work out in the course of this computer program. But in order to do this they must work together. This program has ponder questions which are built into it. These ponder questions are designed to force students to think about what methods they will use to solve a problem, and then are then asked to explain exactly the steps they used to solve this problem along with how they arrived at this particular method. (148-149) most of the students who used this program seemed to come out with more of an understanding about the assignment than they did when they attempted to do the work on their own. This can be attributed to the fact that many students who work together can benefit greatly from input received within their group. This type of input is often not available to students who are working on their own. Therefore, many of the experiments done in group learning can not be recreated, because of the spontaneity. In Biology 101 we take part in many laboratory experiments in lab and mini lab experiments during the lecture period. Most of these experiments that we do in our designated lab period are done usually in groups of three or four. Along with the lab assignment we receive a set of questions to go along with the lab. The labs are structured so that everyone usually has to do something for it to be successful. In our last lab, two people were measuring the difference between the weights of bags of glucose. The questions we were then asked to answer after we completed the experiment required all of the members in our group to put our information together to come up with a correct answer. By structuring the question this way, we were all forced to pay close attention to the material during the labs and after in our discussions. This allowed me to see the lab from many different points of view along with how some of my classmates observed the same problem. From this I believe that we all walked away from this lab with more knowledge about diffusion and how it works, than we thought we would get out of our lab period. Cooperative learning is very beneficial to students. Sure some people would argue that it is just a fancy name for cheating. But it’s not. If you look at the examples mentioned above, teachers will begin to see that the students are asking for more than just an answer, they are asking how a student got their answer and why. Cooperative learning is the biggest tool available to students, especially for feedback. Every student has a different way of seeing how something is presented. And when everyone gets together to explain this. This allows student to come up with ideas that are generally more effective. Works Cited Fetter, Tabitha. Personal interview. 11 February 1997. Goldberg, Fred and Bendall. Sharon. "Making the Invisible Visible : A Teaching/Learning Environment that Builds on a new Frontier of the Physics Learner." American Journal of Physics 63 (1995): 978-91. Vermette, Paul. "The Right Start for Cooperative Learning." Education Digest Sept 1994.Writing Project #3
Technometry English 367-C Ryan Cook Didi Fahey Tisha Hamilton For the past thirteen years, I have enjoyed playing and watching the game of golf mostly because of its unpredictability. At times it seems that no matter what I do, change my grip, loosen my stance, or hold my head differently, that little white sphere refuses to follow my direction. While it is true that the technique of the golfer determines the quality and consistency of the shot, it is also true that the design of the ball itself contributes to the play. A non-golfer might not realize the importance of the funny looking dimples on the golf ball, but the experienced player knows that those patterns result in different paths of flight. In order to improve a golfer's game, engineers have worked in wind tunnels, applying non-Euclidean theorems to perfect the now-familiar surface design of golf balls. The rest is up to me. When I was a little girl, I loved to watch my grandmother peel apples before baking a pie. In my opinion, her ability to peel an entire apple into a continuous strip without any breaks or tears exemplified perfection of both my grandmother's skill and of the apple skin itself. I would often play with the apple peels while she finished her baking. At first I would allow the skin to fall back into its natural shape, creating the "empty apple" which was relatively easy to do. But then I would try to lay the peel out flat, attempting to form a miniature road across the kitchen counter made of fine yellow apple skin. Unfortunately, and to my frustration, I was never able to accomplish this feat. Those obstinate peels would retain their curl, or split and break into miniature smiles and frowns when too much pressure was applied. My understanding of geometric concepts was years away, but even then, I was aware that a different standard existed when manipulating curved objects and expecting them to behave as though they were flat. Basketball is just a game. Yeah, whatever, not to me it wasn't and still isn't. For the last 11 or so years that I have been playing I have used it hundreds of thousands of times and never really thought about the ball itself, except as a prop that I used to play a game that I love. I have bounced this little round ball, slammed it into a wall (making a bad pass), shot it through a little circle for one, two, or three points more times than I could ever begin to count. But I have never really thought about how the ball was put together and without the ball, the game of basketball would and could not exist today. The pieces of leather that make up a basketball have to be cut a certain way, with a certain curve in each piece, so that all of the pieces will fit together. When the leather is first cut, the pieces are laid flat, but when they are put together and blown up, they take on a whole different shape. Students measuring the surface area of a globe, then measuring the area represented by a flat map, will discover the problematic signatures present in Euclidean geometry (Kline 178-83). Elementary schools are replete with Mercator Projection maps and globes alike; however, no explanations are offered for the rather large discrepancies in sizes of certain land masses. For example, a globe shows Greenland being roughly the same size as the Mediterranean Sea, but a Mercator map shows it as being larger than South America. Non-Euclidean or elliptical geometry, working in tandem with Euclidean or plane geometry would effectively demonstrate to students the differences in mathematical and geometric techniques required when dealing with curved surfaces over flat ones. Non-Euclidean geometry has its practical applications and should be taught to elementary school students in addition to plane geometry. Children need to be given the opportunity to apply learned mathematical, physical or engineering techniques to actual situations in order to complete their understanding of a particular concept (McElroy). In short, students learn best when allowed to explore the world as it exists, with all three physical dimensions accurately depicted. Limiting students to problem solving using only two dimensional representations results in a substandard education. Width, breadth and height are all necessary components of daily life and should be included in educational formats. Unfortunately, most curricula is primarily concerned with teaching Euclidean geometry using the standard two dimensional pedagogy, consisting of chalk boards, books and work sheets. Interestingly enough, the two dimensional computer screen possesses the capability of producing and maneuvering precise representations of multi-dimensional figures (Softkey 4:1-15). Furthermore, technology allows for the same interactive educational presentation to occur even though participants have been separated by either time or distance (Microsoft 930-60). Hands-on, Minds-on Learning was a recent presentation project that dealt with the application of different learning theories. It concerned itself with the issues of accurate geometric education at the elementary level, kinesthetic learning approaches, and the use of technology as a learning tool. Unit preparation for the targeted fifth grade class included a brief introductory on-line discussion regarding a fundamental geometric phenomenon. The children were required to access the classroom website where their instructor had already posted two discussion type questions. Students were asked to give both a personal definition and a working example of parallel lines. This was not a realtime conversation, but rather an open forum consisting of a systematic listing of responses. Use of Internet technology enabled the students to compare and contrast their opinions with those of their classmates, and allowed the instructor to gently guide the students toward individual explorations of their natural world. It also set up a cooperative learning environment, effectively eliminating the traditional competition so crippling to American education. Furthermore, the students were at liberty to complete this assignment at their leisure, either at home or during down times at school one week prior to the planned presentation date (Harrison). Testing the viability of the project, Hand-on, Minds-on Learning, a group of adult participants from the OSUM faculty and student body acted, in good stead, as the targeted group of fifth grade students. Once prepared for a geometric investigation, the lesson called for the participating students to measure the angles of various different triangles, and add these measurements together. This adequately proved the Euclidean triangulation theorem which states the sum of the angles of a triangle will result in an exact measurement of 180 degrees (Fuch 27). Corresponding worksheets were available to allow further investigation into the mathematical proof and application of this axiom as it exists in plane geometry. Satisfied that project participants were comfortable with this theorem, the facilitators distributed large blown-up balloons and three large rubber bands. Working in groups, students were instructed to mark the equator and two squared, longitudinal lines. They were then asked to measure and add the angles of one wedge, or triangle of their sphere. This resulted in a sum of 270 degrees, well over the established 180 degree limit previously learned (Fuch 210-13). Continuing with this exploration, participants were encouraged to draw more free form balloon triangles, and then measure and add those angles. No matter the size or shape of these triangles, the sum of their angles will be greater than the Euclidean 180 degree theorem allows (Turner). Following these investigations, the participants were asked to speculate, in writing, the significance of their results. After a comparative discussion session, where all were expected to provide well-reasoned explanations for these discoveries, the facilitators presented practical applications of both types of geometry. Written notes and line drawings on a Power Point program shown in tandem with pictures, slides or overhead projector, allowed for the instructor to simultaneously provide actual examples of geometric principles. A masterful reproduction of the Sydney Opera House with its distinctive design was paired with several Power Point slides progressing through a developing series of curved triangular geodesic wedges. Slowly, a framed, cartoon-like representation of one of the "sails" from the opera house took shape. Using technology in this manner enabled participants to study various mathematical aspects of architecture and engineering, demonstrating the practical necessity of learning geometric functions and theorems. After learning one geometrical theorem, as it exists in the Euclidean and the non-Euclidean realm, participants were then encouraged to discover other geometric principles. The study of parallel lines as they are portrayed in plane geometric measure were contrasted to their behavior in an elliptical situation. Placing cutout figures on a geodesic grid, then maneuvering and distorting this grid demonstrated the ultimate effects of gravity, relative to dimensional physics (Calder 45-52). Realizing time constraints of the adult subjects, the presentation ended at this point. However, this kinesthetic approach could be coupled with a technological Power Point presentation of a topological survey of the Rocky Mountains, forcing fifth grade students to consider problems encountered by cartographers, surveyors and navigators (Farrone). As with the previous geometric explorations, students would be asked to cooperatively evaluate their findings via the classroom web-site. The effective use of technology, such as in the example above, presents an opportunity to instructors to develop unique lesson plans for their students. With the help of user-friendly programs like Microsoft Power Point for in-class demonstrations, teachers would be able to create colorful, aesthetic articles for classroom presentation. An instructor need only transcribe a standard set of notes in order to create the individual slides which can then be enhanced with clip-art, pictures from internet sources, or graphic drawings. The entire presentation could be saved for future use, giving students an opportunity to recover class lectures lost to illness, for example. Furthermore, last minute changes are relatively easy to make in that one need only modify the slides in question. This would enable teachers to maintain an up-to-date lesson plan. Additionally, using technology to access the World Wide Web could be a very effective learning tool. Through the use of the Internet and Microsoft Front Page, teachers could design and create websites that would allow students to complete homework assignments and work collaboratively with one another at times convenient to the individual, thus acknowledging the hectic lifestyles of their students' personal lives. Cooperative analysis of classroom projects, as previously described, would greatly enhance the children's learning ability by extending the lesson into another discipline, namely, writing. Moreover, technology enables the instructor to vary the students' relative positions as it concerns either time or space. Double and single elliptical geometry deals with spatial relationships as it pertains to the very small or the extremely large. Being able to intentionally distort spatial perimeters and either increase or decrease the passage of time substantially contributes to students' understanding of these specific types of non-Euclidean concepts. Additionally, the use of technology allows for the unorthodox presentation of common disciplines. Students can configure and manipulate computer generated representations of multi-dimensional objects for further examination, measurement, or experimentation (Geometry Center). Students participating in a non-Euclidean presentation could measure a wedge of a computerized globe, or attempt to create an accurate two dimensional map of the world. However, it should be carefully noted that technology is to be considered merely a part of a complete educational experience. Physical participation, or kinesthetic learning, encourages students to actively and attentively pursue a given concept. Students learn best by engaging as many of their physical senses as possible in the learning process. Sensory perception allows for individuals to create a truly personalized store of information. Manipulating objects to achieve an accurate measurement in a non-Euclidean study forces participants to look and think about their world in all three physical dimensions. While technology can alter relative positions in time and space, there exists no comparative substitute for actual, hands-on experiences. Exposing elementary aged students to non-Euclidean concepts will enhance their comprehension and view of the world. Even though most scientific theories and concepts apply to all three dimensions, students are rarely treated to experimentation within the elliptical realm. This results in a stunted view of mathematical and physical concepts. Engineers, astronomers and cartographers are but a few professionals that use non-Euclidean geometric models as a matter of course. Unfortunately, most students do not encounter these theorems until they reach the post-secondary educational level. Furthermore, many people have difficulty seeing multi-dimensional representations on two dimensional surfaces. Perhaps a researched study into children's developmental windows and how this translates into visual perspective as an adult would yield some valuable information. Additionally, it might be interesting to discover if two dimensional depth perception plays a vital role as it concerns an individual's choice of academic study, or even a lack thereof. As it stands, introducing non-Euclidean concepts to elementary aged students can only add dimension to their education and perspective to their world. Works Cited Calder, Nigel. Einstein's Universe. New York: Viking, 1979. Elman, Donald ed. Microsoft Word For Windows 95 Step by Step. Washington: Catapult, Inc., 1995. Fuchs, Walter R. Mathematics For the Modern Mind. New York: Macmillan, 1967. Farrone, Michael. Telephone interview. 24 February 1997. Harrison, Sandy. Personal interview. 4 March 1997. Kline, Morris. Mathematics: The Loss of Certainty. New York: Oxford, 1980. Geometry Center. "The Geometry Center." University of Minnesota. 1997. http://www.geom.umn.edu:80. (18 March 1997). McElroy, Cris. Personal interview. 5 March 1997. Microsoft. Microsoft Windows 95 Resource Kit. Redmond: Microsoft, 1995. Softkey International Inc. KeyCad Complete for Windows. Cambridge: SoftKey International, 1994. Turner, Randy. Telephone interview. 20 February 1997.