I recently had the opportunity to perform this demonstration in my mentor teacher's AP Chemistry classes. It was performed as a "flipped demo" in which the students were asked to predict the amount of heat being given off in a combustion reaction of 20mL of a volatile alcohol. Believe it or not, this reaction went on its merry way with the simple prompting of a smoldering match! (By the 3rd time around, the wood splint, which was taped to the end of my meter stick and was used in the demo to introduce the flame source, was in sorry shape, but the reaction worked wonderfully even then!)
Sample video of the Whoosh Bottle Demonstration
(repeated again and again for your viewing pleasure)
(repeated again and again for your viewing pleasure)
It's in situations such as these that the school's BYOD policy really comes in handy! While none of my students (as far as I know) captured my demonstration with their phones, why not invite them to do so the next time? Having a record of the event would give them an opportunity to access the event, as well as the related content, in the future. Even if the student went back even once to re-watch the demo, wouldn't allowing them to whip their phones out in class be worth it? Or even better, what if they went home, showed their little sibling the video of the demo and tried to explain their understanding of the phenomenon to said sibling? How many more learning opportunities could this 5 second demo provide if captured on video?
So, my question becomes... what online tools or apps could students access on their phones? In particular, which of these tools would provide support for students without being cumbersome or difficult to manage. Some interesting tools that I have come across personally in the last few days and am interesting in exploring more include:
1. Zydeco (Science to go)- Data collection and Claim/Evidence/Reasoning portal
2. TodaysMeet- The "backchannel"- not sure what that means yet!
3. Padlet- Create a website wall quickly!
4. Common Craft- building videos?
5. inClass- app for class notes and collaborative work.
Has anyone tried any of these or found other tools that make good use of cell phones in the classroom?
So, my question becomes... what online tools or apps could students access on their phones? In particular, which of these tools would provide support for students without being cumbersome or difficult to manage. Some interesting tools that I have come across personally in the last few days and am interesting in exploring more include:
1. Zydeco (Science to go)- Data collection and Claim/Evidence/Reasoning portal
2. TodaysMeet- The "backchannel"- not sure what that means yet!
3. Padlet- Create a website wall quickly!
4. Common Craft- building videos?
5. inClass- app for class notes and collaborative work.
Has anyone tried any of these or found other tools that make good use of cell phones in the classroom?
Laura,
ReplyDeleteI am so glad to hear that your demonstration went well! I enjoyed watching the video during your rehearsal, but I also would have liked to see a short video of you conducting the demo and how it played out in real time. I really like the idea of students being able to use their cellphones for purposes such as this. Why not allow them to use technology to share what they have done in class? I think especially in a science classroom there are many opportunities for students to take pictures and videos. I have not explored any of the tools you have listed, but thanks for posting them. I look forward to trying them out!
Laura,
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting the video and the online tools. I look forward to exploring them. As for your idea of promoting information sharing, I think it has a lot of potential uses in the classroom. I like the idea of having students film classroom experiments. I think that having a visual artifact is important for sharing an experience such as this combustion reaction. Further, I share in your desire to explore feasible tech apps that promote student learning. I think these devices should incorporate a blend of being both academic and fun. Overall, I'd also being interested in hearing how you thought the demo went in your classroom? What would you do differently if given the opportunity?
Hi Ben,
DeleteThanks for taking the time to read and respond! I appreciate your question about how the demo went and how I would modify it in the future! As I think back over the 3 iterations of the Whoosh Bottle demonstration, I think it presented good soil for my learning and my students' learning. I had used the demonstration as a "carrot" in a way, because I worked with the students to answer the big question, "How much heat will this give off?" and then performed the demonstration for them to see just what 450 kJ of heat energy looks like! However, this sense of suspense needs to utilized and not drawn out for too long. By the time we go to the demonstration, I wondered if some students had lost interest, because the calculation process took a while. In the future, I would like to pace the students' work better, such that they have a sense of building up to a big event and are prepared for it. This might be where cell phones come in. Inviting them to pull out their phones and to think about why a record of a phenomenon would be helpful may set a greater sense of purpose to plugging and chugging through numbers. The need to weave wonder, fun, mathematics and purpose with content is helping to concertize what pedagogy looks like on the ground. Have you had any similar experiences in Social Studies lesson planning/implementation?
Laura,
ReplyDeleteI think it's wonderful that you were able to recognize value in maybe having students use their phones to record it in class next time. You made a great point when thinking about what the students would potentially do with the video - teach it to others! I feel like some students naturally go home and share what they did in school that day (or their parents ask them about it), but I'm sure there are plenty that never share and never get asked. I'm also thinking about those students that try to be "too cool for school," or don't want to talk about class outside of school because it's not what's popular. Your post made me think that students who could record experiments like this easily on their own technological devices, may be engaging in discussion outside of school when they wouldn't normally be. Maybe a student will share something with a parent or friend that they wouldn't normally. I think you made some great points about this when reflecting on your day at your placement!