Download Editors - Odysseus

“Engage and Inspire
the European Youth in the
Space Exploration
through a Scientific Contest”
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Contents
Scope of the document
6
Introduction
6
The Inquiry Based Science Education approach
7
The Resource Based Learning methodology
9
How to prepare in order to support your team effectively
13
Presenting the project: The Project worksheet
18
Tips for success
22
ELLINOGERMANIKI AGOGI
Τips for the coach-teacher
22
Tsourlidaki Eleftheria
Tips for the students
23
Editors
Dr. Sotiriou Sofoklis
EUROPEAN PHYSICAL SOCIETY
Lee David
Huchet Benedicte
Example educational courses
25
Educational course for the theme category “Solar System”
25
Educational course for the theme category “Co-evolution of life”
32
Educational course for the theme category “Spaceship – Global Cooperation”
37
Extra Resources for teachers
42
Online laboratories and digital libraries
42
Educational software
45
References
Design
ELLINOGERMANIKI AGOGI
Pentheroudaki Sylvia
The Odysseus project is supported financially by the European Commission within the
Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013). This document reflects the views only of
the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of
the information contained therein.
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Scope of the document
The Inquiry Based Science Education approach
This document aims to provide coach-teachers with materials and guidelines that will facilitate them in supporting their
teams while implementing their projects. It provides short descriptions on the Inquiry Based Science Education (IBSE)
teaching approach as well as the Resources Based Learning (RBL) teaching methodology that aim to prepare teachers in
setting up lesson plans in order to facilitate their students’ efforts and guide them as effectively as possible following modern
teaching techniques. The document also includes a series of example educational courses on the themes of the contest
which will allow the teachers to understand how they may set up their own lesson plan based on their students selected
subject, guide them through their inquiry and facilitate them in producing an appealing and interesting project based on the
project worksheet.
Inquiry based learning has been characterized in a variety of ways over the years (Collins, 1986, De Boer, 1991, Rakow, 1986)
and promoted from a variety of perspectives. Some have emphasized the active nature of student involvement, associating inquiry with “hands-on” learning and experiential or activity-based learning. Others have linked inquiry with a discovery
approach or with development of process skills associated with “the scientific method.” Though these various concepts are
interrelated, inquiry based learning is not synonymous with any of them.
Introduction
The Odysseus contest gives teachers a unique opportunity to help students wonder about space exploration, experience
and observe interesting objects and phenomena, explore meaningful theoretical ideas, and grow in scientific understanding.
Initiatives like the Odysseus contest can enhance students’ interest in science, their knowledge of concepts and procedures
and their knowledge of important tools and skills that can help them develop a new understanding over scientific matters.
Students will engage in learning experiences during which they will learn to collaborate with their peers, interact with materials or with sources of data to observe and understand the natural world.
Teachers, who act as coaches have a key role in the making of the project as they will facilitate their students through their
inquiry and through this procedure they will help them develop a better understanding of the scientific phenomena they
come across, enhance their searching and thinking skills and ultimately help them become effective problem solvers. The
coach-teacher’s role is to orchestrate the team’s efforts as they realize their projects. In order to be appropriately prepared
for this role, the coach-teacher needs to prepare a lesson plan that will help him/her to briefly outline the course of the
project. Thus he/she will be ready at any moment to guide the students and lead them towards the right direction, propose
to them important sources and tools as well as help them avoid dead ends and complicated paths of exploration. In order
to facilitate coach-teachers into supporting their students effectively we focus on discussing the IBSE teaching approach as
well as the RBL teaching methodology and how they me deployed within the context of the contest.
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Inquiry based learning has been officially promoted as a pedagogy for improving science learning in many countries (Hounsell & McCune, 2002, NRC, 2000, Rocard et al., 2007). Inquiry can be defined as “the intentional process of diagnosing problems, critiquing experiments, and distinguishing alternatives, planning investigations, researching conjectures, searching
for information, constructing models, debating with peers, and forming coherent arguments”(Linn, Davis, & Bell, 2004). It is
often touted as a way to implement in schools the scientific method: “The crucial difference between current formulations
of inquiry and the traditional “scientific method” is the explicit recognition that inquiry is cyclic and nonlinear.” (Sandoval &
Bell, 2004).
Ask
Investigate
Reflect
Discuss
Create
Figure 1. The Inquiry Cycle
The inquiry based teaching methodology aims to tackle specific educational problems like the theoretical and abstract teaching
that is widely used in classes today and the teaching that is mostly based on textbook instructions that fails to target students’
misconceptions. The educational objectives of this approach are to allow learners understand specific concepts and the analogies between them. Students develop skills of exploring the research procedures themselves and making research efforts using technology and mathematics in the frame of organized teaching. They learn to design and conduct scientific investigations,
formulate and revise scientific explanations and models using logic and evidence as well as recognize and analyse alternative
explanations and models. This procedure helps students acquire an appreciation for basic scientific matters through the exposure in similar topics and learn to communicate and defend their opinion using scientific arguments.
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However, we use inquiry based learning in a more specific manner, referring to a specific teaching model, an iterative process of:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Question eliciting activities
Active investigation
Creation
Discussion
Reflection
Reflection may in turn lead to new and refined questions (1) and the process goes on for another cycle. The word research in
the model description reveals its aim to help students explore the research procedures themselves while the word “guided”
emphasises that this research effort will take place as a structured discovery within the frame of organised teaching. This
teaching model includes five teaching stages (bringing up the phenomenon to a problem, suggestions for confrontation
with the problem, implementation of a suggestion, abstraction of the finding, consolidation) which are divided in several sub
stages (Schmidkunz & Lindemann, 1992). Still the implementation of this approach is also realised in a liner way in school
practice. These 5 steps can be put together in to an educational scenario template as described below:
Table 1. The IBSE approach template
Following the IBSE approach
Questions Eliciting
Activities
Active Investigation
Creation
Reflection
The Resource Based Learning methodology
During recent years, the definition, role and uses of recourses have undergone a metamorphosis. The changes have transformed how we think about resources, the distributed production of and access to digital resources, and how, when, and for
what purposes we create and use them. The metamorphosis has been propelled by the exponential growth of information
systems such as the internet and the web, and the ubiquitous presence of enabling technologies in classrooms, libraries
museums, homes and communities. While increasing the numbers of and access to resources is energizing, realizing
the educational potential of these breakthroughs may prove daunting. This is particularly true in formal learning settings
(schools and universities) where current practices do not emphasize optimizing available resources or preparing individuals to learn in resource-rich environments. Teaching focuses on established curriculum goals, sequences, resources, and
activities. Subjects like space exploration provide an opportunity to exploit Resource Based Learning (RBL) alternatives, expanding both the materials and the methods used in teaching and learning. Resource based learning “…involves the reuse
of available assets to support varied learning needs” (Beswick 1990). Several factors make RBL viable: 1) increased access
to resources (print, electronic, people) in a variety of contexts not previously available; 2) resources are increasingly flexible
in their manipulation and use; and 3) economic realities dictate that resources become more readily available, manipulable,
and shareable across a variety of contexts and purposes.
Exhibit curiosity
The teacher tries to attract the students’ attention by presenting/showing to them appropriate material.
Components of Resource Based Learning
Define questions from current knowledge
Students are engaged by scientifically oriented questions imposed by the teacher.
RBL features four basic components: enabling contexts, resources, tools, and scaffolds. Taken together these components
enable educators to create and implement learning environments of considerable diversity and flexibility. The key characteristics of these components are presented below in table 2.
Propose preliminary explanations or hypotheses
Students propose some possible explanations to the questions that emerged from the previous
activity. The teacher identifies possible misconceptions.
Plan and conduct simple investigation
Students give priority to evidence, which allows them to develop explanations that address scientifically oriented questions. The teacher facilitates the process.
Gather evidence from observation
The group of students formulates and evaluates explanations from evidence to address scientifically
oriented questions.
Explanation based on evidence
The teacher gives the correct explanation for the specific research topic.
Discussion
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Consider other explanations
Each group of students evaluates its explanations in light of alternative explanations, particularly
those reflecting scientific understanding.
Communicate explanation
Each group of students produces a report with its findings, presents and justifies its proposed explanations to other groups and the teacher.
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Table 2. Components and Characteristics of Resource-Based Learning
RBL
Components
Key Characteristics
Enabling
contexts
Imposed: Teacher or external authority determines goal.
Induced: Learner or learner and teacher
determine the goal.
The entire team along with the coach decides upon the subject of
their project.
Resources
People, things or ideas that support the learning process.
A rich pool of digital resources is offered to the students and the coachteachers to facilitate the realization of the projects. Moreover the forum of
the contest allows for the exchange of ideas among students.
Tools
Scaffolds
Odysseus Alignment
A selection of remote and virtual labs as well as simulations and
Objects used to help facilitate the learning prorelative software is offered to the teams in order to assist them in
cess. Range from processing to organization
implementing their project. Organization tools are also proposed in
to communication tools.
order to facilitate the procedure.
Includes conceptual, metacognitive,
procedural and strategic scaffolds
The “Project worksheet” offers assistance to the teams and facilitates
the learning process in terms of processing and organization as it
provides a very clear strategic scaffold for the teams to work in.
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Enabling Contexts
Tools
Enabling contexts supply the situation or problem that orients learners to a need or problem, such as recognising or generating problems and framing their learning needs. By creating and enabling contexts, meaningful learning can occur with
and through the resources provided or obtained. Enabling contexts can be imposed, induced or generated. Imposed contexts
clarify expectations explicitly and guide teacher and student strategies implicitly. Teachers may use determined objectives
(e.g. National Curriculum, University Curriculum). Induced contexts introduce a domain where problems or issues are situated, but not specific problems to be addressed. A typical scenario enables multiple problems or issues to be generated or
studied based on different assumptions, topical relevance, and the context of use. In generated contexts, specific problem
contexts are not provided; rather, the learner establishes and interpretive context based on his or her unique needs and
circumstances.
Tools enable learners to engage and manipulate both resources and ideas. Tool uses vary with the enabling contexts and
user intentions; the same tool can support different activities and functions. Eight types of tools are used in RBL: processing,
seeking, collection, organisation, integration, generation, manipulation, and communication.
Processing tools help students to manage the cognitive demands associated with RBL. Processing tools, such as selfdirected learning systems, for example, enable learners to work with ideas, extending their cognitive abilities and reducing
the need to “remember” or engage in unnecessary mental manipulation (see Jonassen and Reeves, 1996 for a discussion
of cognitive tools).
Seeking tools (e.g. keyword searches, topical indexes, search engines) help to locate and access resources. Seeking
Within the framework of the contest it is best to follow an induced approach; the teacher may introduce some initial project
ideas that are connected to the school curriculum, however it is best that the final objectives of the project are mainly determined by the students.
tools can also be specific to a particular context. For example “Sustainable Table” provides an educational portal that offer
access to numerous resources, activities and games and promotes the positive shift toward local, small-scale sustainable
farming. Sustainable Table was created to educate consumers on food-related issues, and to help build community through
food. (http://www.sustainabletable.org/intro/).
Resources
Collection tools, ranging from paper-based worksheets to high-end PDAs, aid in amassing resources and data for
Resources are “raw materials” that support learning, such as electronic databases, textbooks, video, images, original source
documents, and humans. Resources maybe provided by a more knowledgeable other (e.g. teacher) to assist others in
extending or broadening knowledge or understanding. Resources may also be gathered by the learner as questions and/
or needs arise. Given varying contexts of use, the utility of a resource may change dramatically from situation to situation.
The web for example, enables access to millions of resource documents, but their integrity and usefulness is judged by
the individual and in accordance with the context of use. As resources become both increasingly relevant to the learners’
need and accessible, they assume greater utility. The students should be encouraged to use as many resources as possible during their inquiry. They need to be guided to cross-check and compare the information they have found on the same
subject from different sources instead of being based on just one. Resources like websites, original source documents and
discussions with experts on the field can be very helpful in gathering information and in enriching certain parts of the project.
Especially in the part that students need to search for background theory and the latest achievements on the subject at hand
this kind of resources are most helpful. Through this active search of relevant information students will learn how to gather
information, cross check their sources and evaluate the quality of the information they have gathered and thus develop their
problem-solving and critical thinking skills.
In terms of setting up their project, it is vital to include references to bibliography in their project. Videos and images are also
very valuable resources as in many cases they contribute a lot in comprehending facts and phenomena while they are also
useful for enriching the project.
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closer study. Learners might use collection tools as they explore a learning space or after completing a tour. For example
the MEATRIX site (http://www.themeatrix.com/interactive/) which includes an animated, 360 degree interactive industrial
dairy farm scene, provide an entertaining way to give students an overview of the problems associated with factory farms.
Organisation tools are used to represent and define relationships among ideas, concepts, or “nodes”. Like collection tools,
organisation tools range from electronic to non-electronic devices. Concept mapping tools (e.g. http://www.inspiration.com/ or
https://bubbl.us/) are powerful devices that enable users to demonstrate relationships and links between and amongst ideas.
Integration tools help learners to relate new with existing knowledge, which helps to both organise and integrate ideas.
Integration tools might range from a word processing program to a web site. The depth and breadth of what is represented
by a single tool or set of tools vary according to the needs and abilities of the user.
Generating tools as simple as a web site or as sophisticated as a modelling tool (e.g. SimEarth), help learners to create
“objects” of understanding.
Manipulation tools, which also range in their complexity, are used to explore beliefs and theories-in-action.
Communication tools (both synchronous and asynchronous) support efforts to initiate or sustain exchanges among
learners, teachers, and experts.
Different kinds of tools may be used by the students on different parts of the project. Processing and seeking tools may be used
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in the first steps of the project during the team’s initial inquiry and search for background information. Collection and generating
tools may be of use during the gathering of data part of the project and the analysis of the findings. The other kinds of tools (communication, organization etc) are apt for use throughout the project in order to facilitate the procedure. For example students may
use concept mapping tools to organize their roles or communication tools like forums or chats in order to be able to communicate
and record their ideas and comments even when they don’t work physically in the same place.
Scaffolding
Scaffolding – support provided to assist learners and subsequently faded (Vygotsky, 1980) – varies with problem(s) encountered and the demands of the enabling context. Four types of scaffolding could be useful in exploring ways for the introduction of RBL in formal learning environments: conceptual, metacognitive, procedural and strategic.
Conceptual scaffolds guide learners in what to consider, identifying knowledge related to a problem or making organisation readily apparent. Worksheets have traditionally been used in formal learning settings to help guide students as they
explore a new concept or a topic. Conceptual scaffolding might be extended through communication tools in the form of
leading questions or scenarios that set a context for the learners on a web site. Problem based learning makes considerable use of conceptual scaffolding to help guide learners as they explore new areas and build understanding (Knowlton and
Sharp, 2003).
The scientific questions posed by the teachers at the very beginning while students still try to seek and determine their project’s subject act like the conceptual scaffold of the project as they set an initial context for the students.
Metacognitive scaffolds support the underlying cognitive demands in RBL, helping learners to initiate, compare, and
revise their approaches. Scenarios or cases are often used to focus and guide the learners as they explore and attempt to
understand. Scenarios or cases can present ideas for learners to consider as well as checkpoint where learners examine
their understanding, seeking to uncover what they do and do not know or understand (Kolodner, 1993).
The coach-teacher also sets the metacognitive scaffold by guiding the students while doing their research. Guidance at this
point may not only be in the form of verbal instructions; it can also be provided through diagrams representations or presentations that demonstrate to students who they may work.
Procedural scaffolding aids the learner while navigating and emphasizes how to utilize a learning environment’s
features and functions. WebQuests, for example, use procedural scaffold extensively and have been used in a variety of
contexts and content areas. According to Bernie Dodge, the primary creator, “WebQuests are designed to use learners’ time
well, to focus on using information rather than looking for it, and to support learners’ thinking at the levels of analysis, synthesis and evaluation”. By focusing on “how to”, procedural scaffolds free up cognitive resources for other important learning
activities (e.g. problem solving, higher-order thinking).
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Procedural scaffolding basically outlines the course of actions that will be undertaken while analysing and evaluating the
data gathered during an inquiry. It is provided by the coach-teacher in order to help the team organise and carry out the
analysis of their data.
Strategic scaffold provide ways to analyse, plan and respond, such as identifying and selecting information, evaluating
resources, and integrating knowledge and experience. Several models have been particularly useful in selecting and evaluation resources. The I-Search process (Joyce and Tallmann, 1997) strategic scaffolding focuses on integrating knowledge in
an experience. I-Search enables learners to select a topic of personal interest, then guides through the process of finding
and using information and developing a final product.
The “Project Worksheet” that is proposed to be used as the main deliverable of projects represents the strategic scaffold. It
provides a clear plan of action for putting together the project, followed by guidelines and tips for finding and using information effectively. It is proposed in order to facilitate the teams in producing a final project that is properly organized and the
different parts are presented in a well-structured and coherent way. Its main aim is to introduce to students the procedure
of scientific inquiry, help them organize their thoughts and actions while they work on their project as well as learn how to
communicate their results and findings effectively using sound scientific arguments.
How to prepare in order to support your team effectively
Although students carry out all parts of the project on their own, guidance by the coach-teacher is essential in their every
step. The IBSE template can be used in the framework of the contest to help the teachers prepare for their role as coaches
during the implementation of their team’s project. The teacher can create a lesson plan that will be his/her main line of
guidance throughout the project.
Creating a lesson plan will allow the coach-teacher to make a preliminary research on the subject at hand in order to be in
position to guide the students and point them towards the right direction. It will facilitate him/her in getting an overall idea of
how complex the project is, find out upfront its challenging parts, identify what difficulties the students are possibly going to
face and find ways for them to work around these problems and finally, if the whole attempt is doable by the students or if
there might be some parts at a later stage that the students won’t be able to deal with on their own. While putting together
the lesson plan the coach-teacher also has the opportunity to gather resources and tools for the team and thus facilitating
them in retrieving information.
The coach-teachers lesson plan can be based on the IBSE template where all the features of RBL are integrated. Table 3
presents the IBSE template adjusted to the teachers’ needs for the Odysseus Contest including the features of RBL:
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Table 3. The Odysseus IBSE-RBL template
Phase 1: Questions Eliciting Activities
Phase 2: Active Investigation
Exhibit curiosity
Propose preliminary explanations or hypotheses
Make an initial search for possible subjects that might interest the team and try to find subjects that are related to the school curriculum.
This way the project will facilitate the formal in-school teaching procedure and it will also allow the students to make a connection of
what they learn at school with real scientific matters and everyday life. Make a small presentation of each subject so as to find out which
excites the students the most.
Guide the team so that through discussion and relative questions the students may make some preliminary predictions and propose
some possible explanations about the subject at hand. Guide the students so as to be precise and record all their ideas thoroughly.
Identify any misconceptions that might come up and clarify them.
Define questions from current knowledge
Introduce questions that will help you understand the theoretical background of the students on the subject. Make sure that the amount
of knowledge required for the project is within their reach. Based on the subject they have selected, propose a series of initial research
questions for them to begin their research with. These scientific questions will guide their preliminary inquiry towards the right direction. Based on their preliminary research help the students set their own research questions that they will set out to investigate. Their
research questions must be clear and distinct.
You may also need to introduce the theory related to the subject. Check for the relative theory in the school book and make suggestions
to your team as to where they might find additional footage. Discuss with the team the background theory and introduce to students the
idea and the importance of references. Explain to them how they may keep track of them and how to incorporate them in their project.
By the end of this part of the course the students must have determined with clarity the subject of their project and they must also have
concluded in its specific goals (research questions).
Plan and conduct simple investigation
Help the team make an investigation plan that will allow them to develop explanations that address the scientifically oriented questions they have set about the problem under investigation. The team may note down all the aspects of their investigation as well as
which members are going to be responsible for each task. It is also of vital importance to have a timeframe so as to make sure that
delivery of the project will be on time. Make sure to save some time for the proofreading and the overall fine-tuning of the project.
When the team is planning their investigation you may facilitate them by proposing to them interesting tools and software or experimental procedures that will help them carry out their inquiry.
By the end of this part of the course the teams should have made clear predictions about the subject at hand and have a very clear
plan about how they are going to carry out their investigation or experiment.
RBL components
Context
Induced: The students alone propose their preliminary explanations and set up the plan of their investigation. The
coach-teacher facilitates the procedure guiding the students to set-up their experiment and helps them to take into
consideration all aspects of the problem.
Resources
Websites including news, videos, articles and hand-on experiments and related manuals or books with experiments
about the subject at hand. Depending on the country students could derive information and ideas from a visit to a science museum or science centre.
Tools
Seeking tools: search engines, Odysseus website, repositories
Organization tools: Encourage your students to use a concept mapping tool to help them organize their research or experiment
effectively and get a clear overall idea of what each member is responsible for and in what order should each step be taken.
Integration tools: Guide your students to set up ways of recording and describing their activities.
Communication Tools: As soon as the students start working on a specific subject they need to find the communication tools
that are most convenient for them to use from then on. The communications tools could be e-mails to a mailing list that includes
all team members, skype or instant messaging tools, a forum or a working space where they can also store all the materials.
Encourage students to set a communication line that will help them work easily even when they are not together.
Scaffold
Procedural scaffold: Guide the team to set up a procedural scaffold that will outline their course of action and it while help to plan
their investigation. The scaffold could be done in a working diagram form or using a concept mapping tool. This scaffold will allow
students to identify the roles of each member and thus help them work in a more organized manner. It might also be helpful if the
coach-teachers appoints the roles to each students based on their individual skills and competencies.
Metacognitive scaffold: It is highly important, especially at this part of the project, for students to understand how
they should record their actions and present their observations. Metacognitive scaffolding will prepare them for
recording their action and data efficiently while implementing their research or experiment. In this contest a team
notebook could be prepared.
It is best that propositions and guidance about setting up the experiment or research come not in a verbal form but in
a diagram form. Thus students will be able to refer to that at all times more easily.
RBL components
Context
Induced: The team selects the subject and the scientific questions addressed based on their preferences. The coachteacher facilitates the procedure by proposing some curriculum-related initial subjects and guides the students towards selecting a subject that is within their grasp.
Resources
Websites including news, videos, articles etc. about current achievements in space exploration and space in general.
Open Educational Resources repositories and digital libraries. There are repositories and digital libraries that include
numerous lesson plans that could be relevant to the subject selected by the team. Searching among such lesson
plans could be a useful source so at to find out what other teachers have done on similar educational courses and
what scientific questions they have focused on.
Tools
Seeking tools: search engines, Odysseus website, educational portals
Integration tools: presentation of candidate subjects and scientific questions using PowerPoint presentations, videos
or websites
Scaffold
Conceptual scaffold: Each subject presented should be followed by a brief description of the overall idea and the target
goal so that students may understand clearly what each subject is about. Integrate to the presentation of each subject
some research questions that could be the starting point of the project. These questions will help you understand what
students already know on the subject and they will also set the grounds of the project for the students. Try to keep the
research questions simple and related to the school curriculum. Encourage the students to adapt the questions and
tailor them to their preferences or come up with their own. Help them understand their importance and how they will
build their project around these research questions.
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Phase 3: Creation
Gather evidence from observation
Through the implementation of this investigation the group of students will gather their evidence; they will formulate and evaluate
explanations based on this evidence in order to address the scientifically oriented questions.
Help the team record and describe the steps they followed during the investigation. Make sure they are detailed in the recording of the
activities. Note down any difficulties, any ideas that might come up and why the team followed each step of the investigation. Record
all the data the team has gathered in an organized manner. Be sure to offer a brief description for any instruments or e-tools you may
use. Experiments, hands-on activities and demonstrations can be very helpful to make your project appealing. You may even make
your own videos and integrate them in your project.
By the end of this part of the course, students must have completed their investigation or research and they must have gathered and
recorded all their data and observations.
RBL components
Context
Induced: The students analyze the data that have been gathered in order to answer their research questions. The
teacher facilitates the procedure.
Resources
Websites including news, videos, articles, scientific papers, data banks (e.g. space image galleries), digital libraries.
Tools
RBL components
Context
Resources
Tools
Scaffold
Induced: The team carries out the whole investigation or experiment. The teacher facilitates the procedure by answering questions and making suggestions about possible sources of information.
Scaffold
Procedural scaffold: This will help the team utilize all the resources and tools that have at their disposal. Help the
students stick to their plan, make sure they understand the procedures they need to follow and that they keep record
of their actions and observations
Communicate explanation
Help the students fill in the project worksheet and present their findings that justify the proposed explanations successfully. Guide them so as to
provide sustainable explanations. Help them keep their texts simple. Help them enrich their project by using photos, diagrams and other materials
as much as possible. At all times encourage them to use their imagination and inventiveness as much as possible.
In order to keep the presentation of the project as neat as possible, students my keep some of its parts on separate files. If for example the students have data files or if they have created a diary of their actions in PowerPoint, these may be kept separately. In the
case that students have such accompanying files, make sure they are included in the project worksheet through references on the
respective parts of the project so that the reader may understand at which part of the project each accompanying file belongs to.
This is the final part of the educational course. The final product of this part is the final version of the project which includes everything
that the students have done and the materials they have gathered presented in a coherent and organised manner.
RBL components
Phase 4: Discussion
Explanation based on evidence
Guide the team to make an analysis of the data collected and exploit each piece of information gathered. Propose different methods
for their analysis. Encourage the students to use graphs, images and multiple digital resources. Help them to point their analysis
towards the right direction and target the initial problem/ideas and scientific questions at hand as well as their initial hypotheses. All
initial explanations must be revised and commented upon based in the analysis and the new findings. Encourage them to write down
in detail their ideas, their thoughts and their explanations.
Context
Resources
Tools
Consider other explanations
Try to find and suggest other alternative explanations for the subject at hand. Have the students search for alternative explanations (in
the case the teams has carried out an experiment or has built a construction, this part could include suggestions for further refinements) about the problem at hand that could be taken into consideration. Are there any other ways of handling the subject at hand?
Are there any aspects they haven’t taken into consideration?
By the end of this part of the course the students must have finished analysing their data and revising their initial hypotheses. They
must have reached their conclusions and answered the research questions they have set.
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Conceptual scaffold: Help the students recall their research questions and their initial hypothesis and help them
related them to their research.
Phase 5: Reflection
Websites including news, videos, articles, data banks (e.g. space image galleries), digital libraries.
Seeking tools: search engines, Odysseus website
Integration tools: data and observation recording tool (e.g. notebook, MS office, internal space), video editing tools,
image processor.
Collection tools: Robotic telescopes, simulations, remote laboratories, science laboratory tools, tools and parts for
building constructions
Seeking tools: search engines, Odysseus website
Integration tools: data and observation recording tool (e.g. notebook, MS office, internal space), video and image
maker tools
Organization tools: Encourage your students to keep using their concept mapping tool to help them record the
progress of their research or experiment and have a clear overall idea of what each member has done and what are
their pending issues.
Processing tools: image processing tools, MS office tools e.g. excel for making diagrams), mathematical tools (e.g.
mathematica), simulations
Scaffold
Induced: The team produces the final project including their preliminary research, the initial hypotheses, their research or experiment, the analysis of their data and observation and their conclusions. The coach teacher facilitates
the process.
Websites including news, videos, images etc.
Seeking tools: search engines, topical indexes, Odysseus website
Integration tools: presentation of overall project using the “Project Worksheet” as a reference point.
Metacognitive scaffold: Support the students in presenting their project in a neat and simple way making sure they
have answered their research questions.
Strategic scaffold: The “Project Worksheet” that is proposed to be used as the main deliverable of projects represents the strategic scaffold. Guide the students to use it as their main template for presenting their project. Guide
them to make it as appealing as possible including images, photos, graphs, print screens as well as all the links to
the websites they have used throughout the project.
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Presenting the project: The Project Worksheet
All the different parts of the template that have been described above are in agreement with the different parts of the “Project
Worksheet” that the students are asked to use in order to put together their project (Figure 2). Thus, each part of the course
that the coach-teacher has prepared upfront using the Odysseus IBSE-RBL template will help him/her guide the students
effectively in filling each part of the worksheet and compose a well-organized project.
Supportive Material for Educators
The “Project worksheet” is based on the structure of scientific papers and it is in agreement with the IBSE teaching approach. It aims to help students understand how scientific research is carried out by having them follow the same steps
that scientists follow while doing their research. Moreover, the worksheet aims to facilitate the students in organising their
thoughts more effectively and in presenting their overall work in an organized way. The table below present the “Project
Worksheet”. Each part is followed by the guidelines that are communicated to the students along with an extra set of guidelines for the coach-teacher.
Table 4. The “Project Worksheet”
Abstract
Guidelines for
students
Please write an abstract that concisely summarizes the contents of your project. It should clearly explain to the
committee the idea of the project and what information they may expect to find in the project. The most essential
issue is the project’s topic and the actual contribution of the described work. A brief description of your conclusions
should also be included. The abstract should be self-contained, which means that the reader should be able to
understand the essence of the project without having to read the whole form.
Tip: It is best to write the abstract last, after you have an overall idea of your project.
(maximum length 200 words)
Guidelines for the Ask the students to fill this part in the end. Make sure they include their research questions and the conclusions they
coach-teacher
have come to. What they write in the Abstract will also give you a clear overall idea of how clear the project is to them.
Introduction – Description of the Problem
Guidelines for
students
The introduction should consist of two parts (as paragraphs, not to be structured into multiple headings): The first
part should elaborate on the general problem statement, presenting its present status and current knowledge,
perhaps including references to literature the reader can use to familiarize himself with the subject. The second
part should describe the focus of the project and the questions it aims to address or the goals it aims to reach.
(maximum length 200 words)
Encourage the students to write a few things about why they chose this subject (what problem does it tackle) and
set clearly their research questions. Including some background theory (using references and definitions) could
Guidelines for the be useful as it would demonstrate that the student did a sufficient preliminary research.
coach-teacher
Connection to the Odysseus IBSE-RBL template: Questions Eliciting Answers – Define Questions From current
Knowledge
Hypothesis – Initial Ideas
Guidelines for
students
Figure 2. The connection between the Odysseus IBSE-RBL template and the “Project Worksheet”.
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The section of hypothesis and initial ideas should introduce the preliminary hypothesis on the project’s subject
based on your current knowledge. It should also elaborate on the terms and concepts that are needed to understand the problem at hand and describe a suggested set of ideas or actions that lead to a solution.
(maximum length 200 words)
Encourage the students to use their background knowledge and imagination in order to come up with some
hypotheses. Usually students are skeptic towards making predictions because they are afraid that they might
Guidelines for the make mistakes. Encourage them to make predictions and explain them that making mistakes is a part of the
process. Clarify and misconceptions you identify during the process and ask them to rethink their ideas.
coach-teacher
Connection to the Odysseus IBSE-RBL template: Active Investigation – Propose preliminary explanation or
hypotheses
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Supportive Material for Educators
Project Methodology
Guidelines for
students
The project set-up typically describes the procedure you followed in order to reach your goals. Describe the
methodology you followed in order to investigate the hypothesis and the initial ideas you described above in
order to reach your goals. If your project involves any kind of experiment you will also need to describe the
equipment you used and the experimental set-up.
(maximum length 500 words)
Have the students describe the procedure they will follow in order to do their research. It is a nice idea to begin
by making a diagram out of the actions they plan to realize (a mapping tools would be excellent to use but even
a diagram on a big piece of paper could work). At first they could start using bullet points to outline the main
action-line of their research and then work their way on refining the different tasks, making them more detailed
Guidelines for the and appointing roles to the team members. The final work-diagram could even be included in this part as an
coach-teacher
image.
Propose to them different tools that could be useful to them. It is always a good idea to mention what kind of
means and tools one uses to implement his/her research.
Connection to the Odysseus IBSE-RBL template: Active Investigation – Plan and conduct simple investigation
Discussion of the Findings
Guidelines for
students
In this part, the team must make a clear connection between their findings, the original hypotheses (cross check
if the hypotheses was correct or not and why) and the research questions. Have the students crosscheck what
they have done. Does their analysis and findings answer their research questions? Are there any theories that
Guidelines for the support their findings? It is vital to underline that all their conclusions must be accompanied by sound scientific
coach-teacher
arguments.
Connection to the Odysseus IBSE-RBL template: Discussion – Explanation based on evidence and Consider other
Explanations
Conclusions
Conduction of Research
Guidelines for
students
This section includes the analytical description of your research. Describe in detail how you conducted your
research explaining the reason behind every step of your research and how it connects to the next one. List the
data sets, information and all resources you used and describe how each of them was utilized.
(maximum length 500 words)
All team members should record their actions and describe what they did with the task they have undertaken.
Guidelines for the Help the students in using the tools efficiently. Remind them that they should always keep their research questions in mind.
coach-teacher
Connection to the Odysseus IBSE-RBL template: Creation – Gather evidence from observation
Guidelines for
students
Guidelines for
students
Encourage the students to use their imagination as much as possible and keep their research focused on
answering their research questions. Creating graphs, images and other representation is very useful for preGuidelines for the senting their results elegantly but they must always keep in mind to explain why and how they did every one of
coach-teacher
them. Especially in diagrams it is important to describe the figure.
Connection to the Odysseus IBSE-RBL template: Discussion – Explanation based on evidence
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The conclusion section should briefly summarize the problem statement and the general content of the project.
This section should be self-contained, which means that the reader should be able to understand the essence of
the conclusion without having to read the whole project. The conclusions typically end with an outlook of possible
extensions of the presented approaches and perhaps suggested future work.
(maximum length 100 words)
The conclusion must briefly summarize the whole project. To test the efficiency of the conclusion, it is a good
Guidelines for the idea to have a person outside the team read it and comment on whether he/she gets the idea of the project.
coach-teacher
Connection to the Odysseus IBSE-RBL template: Discussion – Explanation based on evidence and Consider
other Explanations
Analysis of Data
In this section you may present your data and measurements and make all the necessary data process and
analysis. Use graphs and tables to present your results and make sure your analysis is presented in such a way
that is clear to the reader without any loss of content. Ensure that it follows the described line of thinking and fits
to the structure of the project. Each figure and table should be numbered (e.g. Figure 1 or Table 1).
(maximum length 500 words)
Present your observations based on your findings and comment on your results. You may explain and evaluate
your findings and connect them to your original hypotheses and initial ideas. Moreover (if applicable) compare
your findings with current bibliography. Structure your discussion based on the questions you posed in your
introduction. Check how complete and satisfactory your answers are.
(maximum length 350 words)
References
Guidelines for
students
All sources of information should be listed at the end of the project. If the source is a website, the link should be
added in this section. In case the source is a book the reference should contain its title, author and publication
company. Add your references in a uniform way (Name of author, title, publication or URL) and in author alphabetical order. Every listed reference should appear in the text and every reference in the text should be included
in the reference list.
Reminding the students to keep track of their sources at all times. Each student can keep his/her own record
Guidelines for the
making sure they note down for which part they use each source. Once the research is done gather all the refercoach-teacher
ences and organize them accordingly.
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Supportive Material for Educators
Tips for success
•
While organizing the project make a time frame of actions. Always keep track of time making sure that the progress of
the project is within the time frame you have set.
In order to further facilitate the work of the teacher we have also put together a list of general tips. Below you may also find
some tips for the students.
•
Ask clarifying questions to the organizers by sending emails to [email protected].
Tips for the coach-teacher
Tips for the students
•
•
As coach, your role is to guide the students. In order to learn more, students have to find the answers themselves.
Focus on giving advice and suggesting tools and references.
Students could start working using the “Project Worksheet” or they can start working on separate files and put all the information in
the worksheet in the end. Either way, it is vital to have a common workspace while implementing their project so everyone is aware
of all the work that has been done and the coach-teacher may easily check on the progress of the project. Online team collaboration
tools like http://moodle.org/, http://pbworks.com/ or https://www.dropbox.com/home could be very helpful in facilitating the team in
their work. Choose whichever tool you fill most comfortable with and introduce it to the students from the very beginning.
•
Encourage the students to make a diagramme of their work which the will keep updating as the go along. At first they could list their
research questions, then add the actions they will undertake in order to answer each of these questions and note down the most
important parts of their research. They could start their diagram with bullet points and then add information as they go along.
•
Encourage them to keep taking photos of themselves while working on the project which they will later use to enhance
their project. A blog created by the students could also serve as a diary where they record their project by posting updates of their work.
•
Point out that they should not take anything for granted. When explaining what they have done they must always keep
in mind that they people reading their project have no idea what their project is about.
Understand the Contest
•
Read the contest overview and components carefully. Do you understand the spirit of the contest? Make an initial research on different topics before suggesting topics of your project.
•
Try to find subjects that are exciting, currently popular and within the grasp of your knowledge.
•
Make sure your topic is aligned with one of the contest topics.
Focus your effort to respond to the specific evaluation criteria
The Scientific Committee consists of professional scientists, researchers and educators. They evaluate each project against
the specified evaluation criteria for that competition. Content, including science accuracy, will guide their decisions.
•
Read carefully the evaluation criteria, it will help you to understand the spirit of the contest.
•
Try to be specific and do not write something you have not previously verified its accuracy and most importantly do not
write something you do not understand.
•
Use diagrams and charts to help you analyse your data according. Insert relevant illustration to your report.
•
Find helpful websites on space and sources of relevant material for the project. Note them to not lose any reference.
•
Keep a small journal, recording the performance of your students. This will help you evaluate what they have learned
and how much they have progressed.
•
Use search words to cruise the Internet for relevant information but stick with reputable and trustworthy sources (e.g.
ESA or NASA websites and sites with an .edu suffix).
•
Encourage them to enhance their project as much as possible by creating their own images, videos or by taking photos. It is
also a good idea to have some part in separate files and give a reference in the worksheet. For example, they could keep a
small journal of their experience in a separate file and refer the reader to it in the project methodology part of the worksheet.
•
Focused projects are most likely to be successful as they are more thorough and explicit.
•
Try to create an attractive layout. Ultimately it may become a tie-breaking factor between two excellent entries. Entries
•
Focus on helping the students use scientific terms correctly both during their discussions and when writing their project. Make sure to correct spelling and expression mistakes.
•
Do not be afraid to say, “I don’t know”. Do not avoid the opportunity to learn with your students. Contact researchers or
other teachers that might help you.
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don’t win by default; excellence must be demonstrated to be a winner.
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Supportive Material for Educators
Work on the basics
Example educational courses
•
Keep the provided project worksheet as the main document for describing the project and link all other files to it. Although your team will not be eliminated if you choose not to use it, you seriously limit your chances of winning. Study
the guidelines in the project worksheet and the examples provided so you may get a good overall idea of how to put
together a successful project.
In the section below a series of educational courses is presented. These courses are examples that will help you understand
how a project can be set-up and how the lesson plan created by the coach-teacher may facilitate the process. For each
theme category you will see the lesson plan created by the coach-teacher.
•
The physical appearance of an entry is often an indicator of serious effort by the students. Neat, well edited, readable
entries, without spelling errors, make any entry a better competitor. Every project should be looked over by someone
other than the creators. Every entry created on a computer should be spell-checked.
Educational course for the theme category “Solar System”:
•
Allow time for reviewing and revising prior to submission. You don’t need an expert to review your entry. Anyone willing to read can point out misspellings, gaps in logic, confusing sentences, missing information, speakers who are not
understandable, etc.
Calculation of the Sun’s Effective Temperature
General Information: This project is about providing information and material about the experimental study of the Sun’s
effective temperature. Students will carry out an organized research to find out information about terms essential for understanding what effective temperature is. They will perform an experimental activity in order to gather data that are used
to calculate the effective temperature and then use MS Excel spread sheets to do their calculations.
Review the Project
Primary objective of the project: Calculation of the sun’s effective temperature based on an experiment.
Have someone else check that the form is complete and that everything - including your name - is legible.
Learning Objectives:
• Practice in using and combining numerous mathematical equations.
Plan ahead
• Learn about effective temperature and how to calculate it.
•
Take time at the beginning of the project to plan ahead every step with specific deadlines. Make a blueprint of your
project, outlining your main course of action and what each member is going to be responsible for.
•
Manage your time so that your work schedule allows time for reviewing and revising your entry. That step can be the
difference between participating and being disqualified.
• Learn about Wien’s law and Stefan – Boltzmann’s.
• Learn how to use Ms Excel spread sheets.
Phase 1: Questions Eliciting Activities
Exhibit curiosity
• Do those pictures show the same object?
• What temperature do you suppose the object in each picture has?
CREDIT: SOHO (ESA & NASA)
CREDIT: NASA / JAXA
All these images depict the Sun. Based on the filter used during the observation
we can see different features and different layers.
Suggested materials:
http://www.amnh.org/education/resources/rfl/web/sunscapes/sunscapes.xml.html
http://brierleyhillsolar.blogspot.gr/2012_01_01_archive.html
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Supportive Material for Educators
Define questions from current knowledge
Phase 2: Active Investigation
Discuss with the students the pictures that have been presented. Show the students videos demonstrating solar activity
and ask them some preliminary questions:
Propose preliminary explanations or hypotheses
Ask the students to make an estimation of the photosphere’s temperature. In order to make this estimation suggest
them to study the following issues:
• What do you see in each picture and the videos?
• Are there different layers in the Sun?
• What affects the photosphere’s temperature?
• Where does the light we see on Earth come from?
• Is the photosphere’s temperature homogeneous or not?
• What does effective temperature mean?
Ask them to do some preliminary research on these matters.
During this preliminary research students get acquainted for the first time with some new terms like ‘effective temperature’
or ‘solar constant. Make sure they understand the new terms the have learn and insist on using them in the future. It is a
nice task to have them list the new terms they found out along with their explanation.
• What simplifications should be taken into consideration in order to be able to measure the effective temperature
through a simple experiment?
• What is the relation between temperature and the heat received by Earth.
• What is the solar constant?
After their initial research is done, inform the students that they should set specific goals (research questions) which they
will set out to answer. You may introduce some research questions of your own.
Earth
Our study:
r=1AU
• What is the effective temperature of the Sun?
Surface Area
of Sun
• Can we calculate it?
S=solar
constant
=Energy
flow at
earth
Ro
Suggested materials:
Sun
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EATDvxnLXyc&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvxpha1_FjI&feature=related
http://www.astronomynotes.com/starsun/s2.htm
Surface Area
of sphere
of radius 1 AU
http://bartonpaullevenson.com/Albedos.html
Eo=Energy flow
at sun surface
http://planetfacts.org/temperature-of-the-sun/
http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/home.html
Suggested materials:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_constant
http://www.ehow.com/how-does_4566644_earth-receive-heat-sun.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effect_of_sun_angle_on_climate
http://fusedweb.llnl.gov/cpep/chart_pages/5.plasmas/sunlayers.html
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Plan and conduct simple investigation
Ask the students set up their plan. They should try to find what quantities are connected to the effective temperature of the
sun and what kind of mathematical equations are involved. Can we measure any of these quantities?
The path of their investigation should include the following points:
• The effective temperature (Teff) of the Sun is associated to the total amount of energy (L . ) emitted from the Sun:
L . =4πR . 2 · σΤeff4
L.
• The total amount of energy emitted from the Sun is related to the Solar Constant S. = --------2
4πr
(r is the distance from the Sun’s surface to the Earth’s surface)
Q
• The Solar Constant can be calculated if we know the radiation received from the Sun per unit of area (Q):S. = -----Aeff·X
where Aeff is the effective area and X is the transmission factor X which can be calculated using
a diagram like this below:
Supportive Material for Educators
• The radiation received from the Sun per unit of area (Q) be calculated using the specific heat formula Q=m∙c∙ΔΤ if
we can measure the change in the temperature of a substance in a specific time interval.
• Can we set up an experiment to measure the change in a substance’s temperature?
The experimental part of the project involves heating up a flask full of water and measuring the change in the water’s
temperature.
• The team will prepare the set-up of the experiment. They will put a flask of water in the sun and for a time interval
of 20 minutes, check the temperature of the water (once every minute) and write it down along with the time on
their data sheet.
• Than they will use these data to calculate the Solar Constant. After they are done they will use the Solar Constant
to calculate the total amount of energy emitted from the Sun and then the sun’s effective temperature.
The can start by making a diagram to outline their main course of action which basically is the exact opposite path of the
one described above:
Heat up a flask of water
and measure the change in
temperature (ΔΤ)
Measure the required
energy for this change in
temperature (Q)
Q=m∙c∙ΔΤ
Use the solar luminosity
(L . ) to calculate the effective temperature (Teff) with
Stefan-Boltzman’s Law
Using the solar constant
calculate the solar
luminosity (L . )
L=4πR ∙ σΤ
2
4
L.
Se= S . = ----------4πr 2
Suggested materials:
http://www.eaae-astronomy.org/WG3-SS/WorkShops/SunLuminosity.html
http://bartonpaullevenson.com/Albedos.html
https://www.math.duke.edu//education/prep02/teams/prep-15/index.html
http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/thermo/spht.html
http://www.ehow.com/info_8715383_projects-water-heating-earths-surface.html
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Measure the total Solar
Constant (S . ) based in the
measured energy
Q
S . = ----------Aeff · τ
Supportive Material for Educators
Supportive Material for Educators
Consider other explanations
Phase 3: Creation
Encourage the students to comment about other factors that might have effected their experiment:
Gather evidence from observation
• Flask heating
The team performs the experiment and records the change in the temperature in a time interval of 20 minutes. They also need to measure:
• Reflection effects
• Latitude
• The flask’s diameter
• The water’s volume
Suggested materials:
• The average temperature difference
http://www.kidsgeo.com/geography-for-kids/0074-latitude-effects-temperature.php
• The shadow length
http://www.kidsgeo.com/geography-for-kids/0067-heat-reflection.php
Phase 5: Reflection
Phase 4: Discussion
Communicate explanation
Explanation based on evidence
The team gathers the data and performs the required calculations using the mathematical equations mentioned above.
You may advise them to create an excel file that will calculate automatically the solar constant based on the mathematical
equations.
The students gather together all the footage (research results, images, graphs, photos, screenshot, texts) and put
together their project using the “Project Worksheet”.
Once the students calculate the effective temperature ask them to compare it to their original hypothesis and to the real
theoretical value. It is also interesting to calculate the error factor.
Encourage the team to come up with imaginative and fun ways of presenting their project.
Mean Temperature
Rise (οC)
Mean time duration
(sec)
Flask Radius (m)
Water Volume (cm3)
Transmission factor
specific heat of water
(J∙cm-3∙oC-1)
3
600
0.035
100
0.71
4.2
Stick Length (m)
Shadow Length (m)
Ζenith angle (degrees)
Flask Area (m )
Effective Area (m )
1000
1000
45
0,00385
0,00272
AU (m)
AU area (m )
Power (Watt)
Solar Constant S (W/
m2)
Solar Luminosity (W)
1,5Ε+11
2,826E+23
2,1
1087
3,07E+26
2
2
2
Sun Area (m2)
Solar Output (W/m2)
Sun Effective
Temperature (οΚ)
Sun Effective
Temperature (οC)
Wavelength of peak
emission
6,1544Ε+18
49934033
5443
5170
532,406
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Supportive Material for Educators
Supportive Material for Educators
Define questions from current knowledge
Educational course for the theme category “Co-evolution of life”:
• How can we detect and exoplanet?
A Simulation for detecting exoplanets
General Information: This project is about creating a methodology of detecting exoplanets that are fit to host life.
Students gather information and material about the parameters they should take into consideration. They design a program using Scratch and perform experiments that allow them to detect exoplanets and determine their temperature
and radius so as to find out if they may host life.
Primary objective of the project: Identification of exoplanets that are suitable for hosting life.
• Even if we detect an exoplanet, how can we find out if it can host life?
• Which method is best?
Ask the students to search and find what kind of methods can be used for detecting exoplanets. Help them decide which
could be best to deploy.
• Can we set up an experiment of our own to detect exoplanets?
Learning Objectives:
• Introduce the idea of using ‘Scratch’ for setting up an experiment.
• Learn about exoplanets.
• Practice in using and combining numerous mathematical equations.
During this preliminary research students get acquainted for the first time with some new terms like ‘parent star’ or ‘radial velocity’. Make sure they understand the new terms the have learn and insist on using them in the future. It is a nice
task to have them list the new terms they found out along with their explanation.
After their initial research is done, inform the students that they should set specific goals (research questions) which they
will set out to answer. You may introduce some research questions of your own.
• Practice using Scratch
Phase 1: Questions Eliciting Activities
Exhibit curiosity
What are we going to study?
Introduce the subject to students by presenting a relevant video
and ask some intriguing questions:
• How can we detect an exoplanet using the transit method?
• How can we determine its main characteristics and decide whether it is appropriate for hosting life?
• People have always been searching for life beyond our planet. Do you think there are other planets out there that can
host life?
At this point the team can start putting together a work plan.
• Have you ever heard about such planets?
Suggested materials:
• What are they called?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methods_of_detecting_extrasolar_planets#Transit_method
http://www.planetary.org/explore/space-topics/exoplanets/
During your first session with the students, you may present some more
subjects in a similar way. In each part of the lesson plan you may add
links to supporting materials that could be introduced to the students.
http://scratch.mit.edu/
CREDIT: NASA
Suggested materials:
http://www.brighthub.com/science/space/articles/94867.aspx?cid=parsely_rec
http://www.brighthub.com/science/space/articles/102693.aspx?cid=parsely_rec
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sil1TZhMxBg
http://www.brighthub.com/science/space/articles/43500.aspx
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Phase 2: Active Investigation
Propose preliminary explanations or hypotheses
After the students conclude in the method they want to use, in this case
a computational simulation using Scratch, ask them to make predictions
about what they expect to find with their simulation. Have them check if
their idea works.
Supportive Material for Educators
- The program will produce data stored in a .txt file. The team will process the data using Excel in order to produce
light curves. The light curves will demonstrate the drop in the parent star’s luminosity during the transit of the
planet for different planet radii.
• Main experiment:
- The students will explore which other parameters should be taken into consideration:
• What kinds of stars do exoplanets orbit around?
• What mass, radius and temperature would the parent stars have?
If there is an exoplanet orbiting around a star we expect to find a drop in the
luminosity of the star. The drop in the luminosity will help us define the orbit
and size of the planet and understand its temperature. The programme that
will be developed will record the luminosity of the parent star during the
exoplanets transit.
Suggested materials:
• How do we choose the characteristics of the exoplanet?
• What is going to be radius of the exoplanet and what is going to be the distance from the parent star?
• How are the parent star and the exoplanet going to be depicted?
- Based on these parameters they will improve the simulation and make it more scientifically accurate.
Suggested materials:
http://www.hao.ucar.edu/research/stare/hd209458.html
http://fysikapeiramatika.blogspot.gr/search/label/Scratchboard
http://planetquest.jpl.nasa.gov/
http://exoplanets.org/
Plan and conduct simple investigation
Ask the students set up their plan. The can start by making a diagram to outline their main course of action. They will
develop their scratch programme and test it with a preliminary experiment:
• Preliminary experiment using a PowerPoint simulation and a scratchboard
- The PowerPoint simulation is a transit simulation. During the few seconds that the simulation is running, the
team will record the data given by the light sensor of the Scratchboard using the scratch programme they created.
Phase 3: Creation
Gather evidence from observation
After having done their preliminary experiment to check if their ideas work, the
students move one to the main part of their work.
First they make a research on the parameters mentioned above that should be taken
into consideration for upgrading their simulation.
The students do a research of their own to find out what parameters they should
take into account and note them down in two their diagram. The coach-teacher
makes suggestions so as to guide them towards the right direction. Each team
member takes over studying one of these parameters.
Students finalize their simulation by integrating the parameters they decided and perform their experiment.
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Phase 4: Discussion
Educational course for “Spaceship – Global Cooperation”:
Explanation based on evidence
Coronagraph for the observation of the outer solar corona
Students use the data from their experiment to measure the period of the planet’s
orbit and its radius. The teacher helps them use the correct mathematic formulas.
• The programme informs the students about the time interval for collecting the
data. Based on that information and the graph produced by the programme, the
student calculates the orbit period of the exoplanet using proportional quantities. The student insert the orbit period in the programme and the programme
calculates the distance of the exoplanet from the parent star (D).
Lin - Lmin
• They calculate the percentage in the luminosity (L) drop due to the planets transit: ΔL= ------------------Lin
πR2planet
· 100%
And based on that, the radius of the planet: ΔL= -------------πR2
Rstar
and then its temperature: Tplanet = Tstar · -------------2D · 214
General information: This project is about constructing a coronagraph that will be able to observe the outer corona. Students will carry out a research to gather information about the solar corona and coronagraphs and they will create the
design of their coronagraph. In sequence they will use this design in order to build this piece of equipment.
Primary objective of the project: The primary objective of this project is to design and construct a coronagraph for studying the outer solar corona. This coronagraph could be the prototype for a device that will be integrated in a spaceship
designed to go on a mission for studying the corona of the Sun.
Learning Objectives:
• Learn about the Solar Corona and the Sun in general
• Practice with mathematical formulas.
• Work on designing and constructing machinery
star
Phase 1: Questions Eliciting Activities
(the 214 factor is present due to the conversion of the star’s radius from solar radii to astronomical units (AU).
Based on their calculations and their initial research the students answer their research questions and write down their conclusions:
Exhibit curiosity
• Is the exoplanet an appropriate candidate for hosting life?
Consider other explanations
Students should consider if their methodology has considered all parameters or whether other parameters should also be
considered:
• The mass of the planet cannot be determined by the simulation.
• What kind of error factors are there?
Phase 5: Reflection
Communicate explanation
The students gather together all the footage (research results, images, graphs, photos, screenshot, texts) and put
together their project using the “Project Worksheet”.
Encourage the team to come up with imaginative and fun ways of presenting their project.
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CREDIT: MILOSLAV DRUCKMULLER / SWNS
CREDIT: F. ESPERAK
Ask the students to have a look at these images of the Sun.
• Which part of the Sun do you see?
• What kind of differences do you observe?
• Why does the solar corona have so many different shapes?
• Are there ways to observe the solar corona besides eclipses?
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CREDIT: NASA
Supportive Material for Educators
Supportive Material for Educators
During your first session with the students, you may present some more subjects in a similar way.
Suggested materials:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inCkOHzwCrs
http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr162/lect/sun/corona.html
http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/science/mysteries_l1/corona.html
http://hypertextbook.com/facts/2000/CCoraThomas.shtml
http://nineplanets.org/sol.html
Define questions from current knowledge
Phase 2: Active Investigation
Propose preliminary explanations or hypotheses
They main idea is that students will construct a coronagraph that will have an occulting disk that will not only cover the solar disk, it will also gradually cut off light from
the inner corona so that the outer corona will be more easily observable.
Ask students to see the shape of classic coronagraphs and imagine alternatives that
will allow the gradual cutting off of the inner corona’s light.
One idea is to create an occulting disk with two identical slits that will be able to cut off
the light of the inner corona while rotating.
• What temperature does the solar corona have?
• How does the solar corona affect Earth?
• The inner corona is much more luminous than the outer corona? How can we study the outer corona?
Ask the students to do a preliminary search in the solar corona and coronagraphs.
During this preliminary research students get acquainted for the first time with some new terms like ‘photosphere’ or ‘occulting disk’. Make sure they understand the new terms the have learn and insist on using them in the future. It is a nice
task to have them list the new terms they found out along with their explanation.
After their initial research is done, inform the students that they should set specific goals (research questions) which they
will set out to answer. You may introduce some research questions of your own.
• Can we construct an instrument for observing the outer corona?
Suggested materials:
http://solarscience.msfc.nasa.gov/corona.shtml
http://www.earthzine.org/2011/10/10/what-does-a-solar-geomagnetic-storm-mean-for-the-earth/
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/stereo/news/solarstorm-tracking.html
http://www.esa.int/esaSC/SEMLC2T1VED_index_0.html
http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr162/lect/sun/corona.html
http://www.zam.fme.vutbr.cz/~druck/Eclipse/Ecl1995i/Outcor/0-info.htm
http://www.aviationweek.com/
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Students will need to:
• Carry out a research to find out the shape of the two slits based on the luminosity if the corona.
• Construct the coronagraph.
Suggested materials:
http://www.lyot.org/background/coronagraphy.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coronagraph
http://www.scribd.com/doc/51097825/72/DESIGN-OF-A-LYOT-TYPE-CORONAGRAPHΣ
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CREDIT: SOHO (ESA & NASA)
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Plan and conduct simple investigation
The team should produce a blueprint of their construction which they will later use. Team members may work separately on different parts of the design.
The methodology followed by the team can be summed up in the following sections:
a) Designing the occulting disk
The team will need to perform a research based on the light curves of the solar corona in order to produce the correct
shape of the occulting disks’ holes.
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Phase 3: Creation
Gather evidence from observation
After completing their design, the team will need to identify what kind of materials they will need to use and gather all
the materials for the construction.
Once they have gathered all their materials they can begin their construction. Make sure the record down all their actions explaining what they did in every step. During the construction the team may need to visit a workshop that has
tools that can handle metals.
Make sure the team takes a lot of pictures and videos during constructing their coronagraph so as to present vividly.
Phase 4: Discussion
Explanation based on evidence
They team should explain how they concluded to their design:
b) Designing the coronagraph
After finalizing the occulting disk’s design the team will need to proceed with doing research so as to make a design for
the coronagraph. The main part would be to design a mount taking into account the following parameters:
• How did they conclude to the shape of the slit
• On what basis did they choose their materials
• How they concluded in the design of their construction.
• The undisturbed rotation of the disk
• Αvoiding any kinds of mount solutions that would affect the images produced.
Their prototype can only be tested on a telescope. To this end, when putting together the design of the coronagraph they
should calculate the size of the occulting disk’s central disk and at what distance should the occulting disk should be put
based on the telescopes focal length.
c) Constructing the Coronagraph
After finalizing the design of the coronagraph the team will build the instrument which will be a prototype for a later
construction in the framework of a space mission for studying the Sun.
Suggested materials:
http://photographingtransitofvenus.wordpress.com/2012/05/31/venushowbig/
http://www.eclipse-chasers.com/Photo4.html
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Corona_Brightness_Profile.png
http://www.stsci.edu/hst/acs/documents/handbooks/cycle19/c06_pol3.html
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It is also good to comment on what difficulties they have faced and how they overcame them.
It is advisable that they test their construction and comment on the results of their tests.
Consider other explanations
Based on the tests of the equipment ask the students to propose some refinements for the coronagraph.
They may also propose alternative designs or ideas for designing such a coronagraph.
Phase 5: Reflection
Communicate explanation
The students gather together all the footage (research results, images, graphs, photos, screenshot, texts) and put together their project using the “Project Worksheet”.
Encourage the team to come up with imaginative and fun ways of presenting their project.
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Extra Resources for teachers
Online laboratories and digital libraries
The Discover the COSMOS portal (http://www.discoverthecosmos.eu/)
The Discover the COSMOS portal is an experimental laboratory for students and teachers that
brings together resources, virtual experiments and online labs from the field of Astronomy and
High Energy Physics. It aims to improve science instruction by expanding the resources for teaching and learning in schools, providing more challenging and authentic learning experiences. The
Discover the Cosmos portal includes numerous educational materials; educational scenarios and
lesson plans, students’ projects, animations, online tools and laboratories guidelines for interactive experiences with Astronomy an HEP Resources).
The Faulkes Telescope Project (http://www.faulkes-telescope.com/)
The Faulkes Telescope Project (FTP) offers access to two 2-metre telescopes, one in Hawaii
and the other in Australia. FTP is a partner of the Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope Network, which operates a network of research class robotic telescopes. These telescopes (and their data archives) are available to schools and other educational groups, to
use as part of their curricular or extra-curricular activities. The FTP education programme
is fully supported by a range of free online materials, and a team of educators and professional astronomers.
The National Schools’ Observatory (NSO) (http://www.schoolsobservatory.org.uk)
The National Schools’ Observatory (NSO) is a major educational website, established by Liverpool John Moores University, to allow schools to make their own observations alongside
professional astronomers with the world’s largest fully-robotic telescope - the Liverpool
Telescope. The NSO also provides educational resources to help with the challenging task
of teaching science, technology and mathematics in the classroom environment. It has long
been known that astronomy creates a sense of excitement and wonder in pupils of all ages.
The NSO taps into that interest to further the pupil’s knowledge of science and mathematics,
while at the same time improve computer literacy and communications skills, strengthen critical thinking and provide experience the real-world application of science and technology. Using astronomical telescopes is the most important feature
of this website and schools registered with the Schools’ Observatory have the opportunity to make their observations us-
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Supportive Material for Educators
ing the LT. Over the past 12 months, 9151 observations have been taken for schools. Once the observing request has been
completed, pupils are able to download the telescope data and use special Image Processing software (LTImage) to analyse
the resulting images.
Observing with NASA (http://mo-www.cfa.harvard.edu/OWN/)
NASA’s space science researchers control some of the world’s most sophisticated space probes and orbiting telescopes to get amazing images
of objects in space. Teachers and students can join them by operating
your OWN ground-based “MicroObservatories” real robotic telescopes. MicroObservatory is a network of automated telescopes that can be controlled over the Internet. The telescopes were developed by scientists and educators at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and were designed to enable youth
nationwide to investigate the wonders of the deep sky from their classrooms or after-school centers. They are located and
maintained at observatories affiliated with the Center for Astrophysics, including the Harvard College Observatory in Cambridge, MA and the Whipple Observatory in Amado, AZ. Their website also includes numerous projects and activities as well
as tools for processing images and training materials.
The Microsoft World Wide Telescope (www.worldwidetelescope.org)
The WorldWide Telescope (WWT) is a Web 2.0 visualization software environment
that enable the user’s computer to function as a virtual telescope—bringing together imagery from the best ground and space-based telescopes in the world
for a seamless exploration of the universe. WorldWide Telescope is a recently
launched system (2007) created with the Microsoft® high performance Visual
Experience Engine™ and allows seamless panning and zooming around the
night sky, planets, and image environments. View the sky from multiple wavelengths: Users have the opportunity to see
the x-ray view of the sky and zoom into bright radiation clouds, and then crossfade into the visible light view and discover
the cloud remnants of a supernova explosion from a thousand years ago. Users are also capable to switch to the Hydrogen
Alpha view to see the distribution and illumination of massive primordial hydrogen cloud structures lit up by the high energy
radiation coming from nearby stars in the Milky Way. These are just two of many different ways to reveal the hidden structures in the universe with the WorldWide Telescope. Seamlessly pan and zoom from aerial views of the Moon and selected
planets, as well as see their precise positions in the sky from any location on Earth and any time in the past or future with
the Microsoft Visual Experience Engine. WWT is a single rich application portal that blends terabytes of images, information,
and stories from multiple sources over the Internet into a seamless, immersive, rich media experience. Kids of all ages will
feel empowered to explore and understand the universe with its simple and powerful user interface.
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Supportive Material for Educators
Supportive Material for Educators
Sun4all (http://www.mat.uc.pt/sun4all/index.php/en/)
Educational Software
The project “Sun for all”, funded by Ciência Viva aims to promote science in general and astronomy
in particular, among students. The project rests on the asset of over 30000 Sun images (spectroheliograms) that are kept in the Astronomical Observatory of the University of Coimbra, as a result of a
work of over 80 years of daily solar observations that started in 1926.
LTImage (http://www.schoolsobservatory.org.uk/astro/tels/ltimage)
Presently there are about 15000 digitised images that are available to the general public due to another project, also funded
by “Ciência Viva”, which was developed from 2002 to 2004. The solar observations collection has an enormous scientific
value. Thus, this project aims to make this collection available in a digital way via WWW to Portuguese and foreign students,
as well as a set of activities that enables them to use these images, in order to introduce them to the scientific method, having the Sun and its atmosphere as the background.
Federal Resources for Educational Excellence (http://free.ed.gov/subjects.cfm?subject_id=48&toplvl=41)
FREE offers a large pool of educational resources on numerous subjects. In includes
more than 120 resources on Astronomy, Aeronautics and Space Sciences in general. These resources include lessons plans and collections of educational tools.
Astronomy Teaching & Education Resources (http://www.phy.duke.edu/~kolena/astroteach.html)
Astronomy Teaching & Education Resources offer a large set of resources for astronomy teaching. Among its materials
teachers can find image processing tools and other software, animations.
Science Fair Projects and Experiments: Astronomy & Space Exploration
LTImage is a simplified image processing tool designed especially for students. It is developed by the
National Schools’ Observatory and it aims to facilitate educational activities that require analysis of image
data from astronomical telescopes. LTImage works with FITS image format thus making it suitable for
analyzing images from most professional telescopes.
SalsaJ (http://www.euhou.net/)
SalsaJ is a student-friendly astronomical images analysis tool. It works with
FITS image format thus making it suitable for analyzing images from most
professional telescopes. SalsaJ is designed to be easy to install and use. It allows students to display, analyse, and explore real astronomical images and
other data in the same way that professional astronomers do, making the
same kind of discoveries that lead to true excitement about science. SalsaJ
is available in 25 European languages and it is widely used from teachers in
many European countries.
Stellarium (http://www.stellarium.org/)
Stellarium is a free open source planetarium for your computer. It shows a realistic sky in 3D, just like
what you see with the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope. It is being used in planetarium projectors.
Stellarium enables you to explore any part of the sky at any given time.
(http://www.juliantrubin.com/astronomyprojects.html)
Science Fair Projects and Experiments is a digital library that includes numerous science projects for both primary and
secondary education. Teachers may find numerous projects and experiments that involve simple constructions, conduction
of research and the deployment of several tools and simulations.
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Supportive Material for Educators
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