Download The CONNECT system is designed to

Designing the classroom of tomorrow by using
advanced technologies to connect formal and
informal learning environments
Eleni T. Chatzichristou
Ellinogermaniki Agogi
Research and Development Department
The CONNECT project builds upon:
•Importance of visualisation and of hands-on experience as vital
components to the learning process
•Learning as an active process of discovery and participation based on selfmotivation rather than on more passive acquaintance with facts and rules
•Collaboration and joint construction of knowledge
The aim is not solely to produce more scientists and technologists.
But to produce citizens who are scientifically literate in a world that is
increasingly influenced by science and technology
The CONNECT project
• Aims to create a learning environment, using advanced ICT to
connect informal learning strategies and formal curricular
activities in science education
• Integrates everyday “free-choice” activities with the formal
science curriculum.
• Makes the shift from the teacher-directed learning and the
dissemination of knowledge, to learner-centred curricula that
promote the development of life-long learners
Ellinogermaniki Agogi – R&D Department
The CONNECT project will run for 36 months.
It will be advanced through a continuous interplay between
technological and pedagogical developments.
Field trials and observations
Implementation and validation of educational activities in
different learning environments (schools, science museums,
science thematic parks).
Students are eager to learn in informal settings such as
museums/science centres
• freedom of leaving the formal setting of the classroom
• positive motivation towards learning in real life settings
The CONNECT project has built a network of schools, science
museums and science thematic parks in four countries
(originally) that will act as a pilot group.
A series of field experiments (tangential to the curriculum) will be
performed, including pre- and post-visit curricular activities.
The students will follow individual pathways of learning, the teacher
(rather than being the focus) helping students to work
independently, co-operatively and in an increasingly self-organized
way.
The CONNECT system is designed to
Provide 3D graphics superimposed on the user’s field
of vision together with other multimedia information, thus
allowing to “extend” the real exhibits with virtual objects.
This is particularly powerful for visualizing complex
concepts in physics that are fundamental yet imperceptible
(such as electric or magnetic fields, forces, etc)
Ellinogermaniki Agogi – R&D Department
Lorentz Force
on an electron beam q
moving inside a magnetic field B
Ellinogermaniki Agogi – R&D Department
Nature and
Propagation of
Electromagnetic
Waves
Point the light beam to different
area of the EMS (change λ or v).
Change the intensity of the field.
Rotate the view angle.
Visually appreciate the results!
3D visualization of the oscillating electric and magnetic
fields as the EM wave propagetes in space (animated).
Sun
Sky-Galaxy
Supernova
Virtual Science Thematic Park
An advanced learning environment
- Database
system
and available in the CONNECT
Acts as the
main hub
of for
allstoring
resources
the multimedia knowledge data
network retrieving
of
science
museums/centers.
scenarios that consist of text, images,
Serves asvoice
distributor
and video of information, organizer of educational activities.
creation
and browsing
tool
Facilitates- Content
the virtual
visits.
Interconnects
the members of the network.
- Mechanism for uploading (or selecting
from the database) media objects
Application server provides connection
between the platform and mobile AR
system through wireless network
Mobile AR System
The CONNECT system is designed to:
Promote student interactivity allowing for remote
classes to observe, either on-line or off-line, the
activities during the visit to the science museum/park
Ellinogermaniki Agogi – R&D Department
Educational Scenarios
Each pathway will include:
- pre-visit activities (mainly at school environment)
- visit activities (during conventional or virtual tours by using the
CONNECT system)
- post-visit activities (at school environment or at another science
center or museum).
Students and teachers will be involved in repeated cycles
of tests with the project advanced tool in the framework of
their normal curriculum in order to demonstrate the
qualitative upgrade of science teaching and learning.
Systematic Evaluation:
-
Usability of the integrated learning environment and its
components – are user needs met?
-
Pedagogical (framework, quality of learning, ethnological
study) - impact of the proposed educational approach?
TEST RUN
The first cycle of the pilot applications, the Test Run,
will have a three-month duration and students',
teachers’ and museum staff’s reactions to the
proposed pedagogical approach will be monitored
and analysed in detail.
Ellinogermaniki Agogi – R&D Department
AirFoil
For horizontal fluid flow, an increase
in the velocity of flow will result in a
decrease in the static pressure.
The equation describing this effect is
known as Bernoulli’s law.
The most practical example of this is
in the action of an airfoil:
The shape of an airplane wing is such
that air flowing over the top of the
wing must travel faster than the air
flowing under the wing, and so there
is less pressure on the top than on the
bottom, resulting in lift.
Hot Air Balloon
Since air pressure decreases with height, air presses
harder against the bottom of a balloon than against
its top. This difference in pressure creates an
upward push. As long as this upward force is
greater than the balloon's weight, the balloon will
rise. But as it rises, the density and pressure of the
air around it decrease, so the buoyant force
decreases too. When the balloon reaches a height
where the buoyant force equals the balloon's
weight, it stops rising.
Hot-air balloons use heated air to provide
buoyancy, because warm air is less dense and thus
lighter (it has expanded and occupies more space)
than cool air . The difference between the weight of
the hot air and of the cold air that it displaced, is
what pushes the balloon up
Air track
FINAL RUN (PHASE A)
With the experience gained during the Test Run and after the
appropriate modifications for improvement and optimization of
the educational tools, the augmented reality hardware (tracking
system, personal displays) and the didactical approach, the
partnership will implement the project in real environments
during a second five-month cycle, the first phase of the Final
Run. These two first pilots with the users will be performed with
scenarios that will be developed by the project’s pedagogical
team.
Ellinogermaniki Agogi – R&D Department
FINAL RUN (PHASE B)
Teachers and museum staff collaborate in order to create their
own pathways and to motivate their students.
They develop their own methods for making the most of the
field trips in the virtual science thematic park.
Students learn the scientific method, design and conduct
scientific experiments, collect and display data, and write a
report of their results. Students also examine how the
scientific method can be used to solve real-world problems.
Ellinogermaniki Agogi – R&D Department
Ultimately, a greater number of science centres and schools will
join the virtual science thematic park in order for a panEuropean network to be created and for the CONNECT
approach to be validated.
Consortium
More info:
http://www.connect-project.net
The project is co-financed by: