Читать книгу Called to Teach - Группа авторов - Страница 10

Trey Cade

Science can be boring. I say that as a scientist who loves science. But sometimes it can be boring. Very often science classes (especially in my world of physics) devolve into memorizing equations and solving those equations for situations that have little resemblance to anything practical (like a block sliding down a plane). However, there is no reason why this has to be the case in our classrooms, because science can also be full of wonder, discovery, amazement, and downright really cool stuff.

The Course and Pedagogical Approach

I teach Space Weather. It’s a topic I have spent most of my professional career working in, and I think it’s tremendously interesting. After all, it’s fun to teach about solar flares, space radiation, and all the ways the sun is trying to kill us and destroy our technology. It’s also a topic that is typically only taught to physics and engineering students, because the science of space weather is grounded in space physics and it can be very complex. So when I decided I would teach a space weather course, I set a goal of broadening exposure to space weather beyond the typical physics and engineering students, which meant teaching to a larger audience that may not have a strong science or math background that would match how a course like this would typically be taught. This presented a unique challenge in teaching this topic; however, I was determined to open up this course to any student from across the university, which meant I had to assume absolutely no background knowledge or math skills beyond what a typical high school graduate would have. In presenting to these students the concepts, physical processes, and technology impacts involved in space weather phenomena, there was also a secondary goal of introducing these students to fundamental physics concepts they would need to know, as non-scientists, in understanding what we would talk about.

In determining how to teach the class, it was clear that a traditional lecture-type course would be inadequate. Studies show that “teaching by telling” is the least effective way to teach anyway, so another approach was needed.7 I decided a storytelling approach would work well for this class. My idea was that my students would learn space weather the way humanity learned space weather. The story of space weather is a fascinating tale encompassing thousands of years of human history and includes names that many people would recognize—Aristotle, Halley, Galileo, Celsius, Herschel, Kelvin, and Marconi. From early observations and theories of the aurora, to the invention of the telescope that led to realizing the sun is a dynamic object, to the first recorded solar flare in 1859, to modern-day space weather impacts, this story has the potential to capture the students’ imaginations and stir interest in a phenomenon that can significantly impact their lives. By beginning with humanity’s first interactions with space science—observing the aurora and discovering magnetism—I can lay the foundation from which a more complex science can emerge. This teaching strategy then leads to scaffolding of learning that builds from foundational to higher-level understanding by the end of the course. Another benefit of using this approach is that the first third of the course unfolds like a mystery novel. This generates and maintains student interest as they follow along in key discoveries and gain some insights, which then lead to more questions that need to be answered, a cycle that repeats as you move through time and in fact very often leads to each class ending on a “cliffhanger.” As one student stated, “I wish you would just skip to the end and tell us the answers. I have to come to class so I can find out what happens next!”

In further considering the method of instruction to complement this storytelling approach, and through investigating the latest pedagogical research, I decided to adopt an inquiry-based technique called Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL).8 POGIL is based on research indicating that students who are part of an interactive community are more likely to be successful and that, ultimately, knowledge is personal—students develop greater ownership over the material when they are given an opportunity to construct their own understanding. The essence of POGIL is that students learn best by:

1. Following a cycle of exploration, concept formation, and application

2. Discussing and interacting with others

3. Reflecting on their progress in learning

4. Assessing their performance

To help meet these requirements, classroom activities should be developed that allow students to work in small groups on manageable problems where they can explore, analyze, and discover concepts for themselves. This turned out to be quite a natural fit with historical storytelling, as I could present the students with actual observations, data, and experiments used to create some of the initial theories and speculation about the nature of space weather. They could then explore these observations, data sets, etc., for themselves, perform their own analyses, and come to their own conclusions. This would then help fill in gaps in their knowledge and inevitably lead them to new questions that we needed to answer.

Measurements and Calculations

In one of these in-class activities, I provide the students with examples of measurements of magnetic storms at various locations around the world. These magnetic signatures are different in different parts of the world, and by examining these measurements the students gradually realize that storms at low latitudes look very different than storms in the polar regions. This dual nature of storms is discussed further but then leads to the question of “Why?” What is going on and what are the physical processes that cause these regional storm differences? This eventually leads to seeing that there are actually two types of storms, with each type measured and characterized differently.

Another example is solar rotation. Shortly after the invention of the telescope, Galileo and other observers noticed that sunspots moved. After some sometimes-nasty disagreements over whether sunspots were actually on the sun (in one graphic exchange, Galileo referred to Christoph Scheiner as a “pig” and a “malignant ass”) this led to the eventual realization that the sun rotated. I then give them two pictures of the sun, three days apart, and ask them to determine how fast the sun is rotating. I could just tell them that the sun rotates once an average of every 27 days, but figuring this out for themselves increases the likelihood that the information will be retained.

Hands-On Activities

Two of the more hands-on activities I use are worth mentioning, as they turned out to be much more effective than I initially anticipated. Early in the semester, we simulate the Oersted experiment, which involves connecting a wire to each end of a battery and holding it over a compass. The compass needle deflects, not only showing that electric currents create a magnetic field but also allowing students to determine the shape and orientation of the magnetic field of a line current. This experiment becomes beneficial later as we talk about possible sources for compass deflections during a magnetic storm. Another experiment later on is very simple, involving a rubber band that is pinched together in the middle, clipped with binder clips, and then cut into two sections, simulating the release of energy in magnetic fields that power solar flares.

Student comments on course evaluations have clearly shown the importance and effectiveness of these in-class activities:

The hands-on work really helped solidify the topics in the lectures.

The in-class group work was incredibly useful.

The group work where we did experiments such as the rubber band and clip demonstration and the battery/compass experiment were a very cool way to learn the concepts explored in class.

It would’ve been nice to do more hands on projects like the magnetic reconnection theory [rubber bands] project.

Experiments with the compass, and the rubber band with the clips caught my attention and helped me learn much more.

Student Learning Objectives

Throughout the course, students are given the opportunity to reflect on their progress and assess their performance through the use of Student Learning Objectives. Each lesson has a set of learning objectives that tell them what they need to know coming out of each lesson. They also know the exam test questions will be based on these learning objectives. Here is an example of the Student Learning Objectives for the lesson on the earth’s magnetic field:

1. Explain why a compass points north.

2. Describe the difference between the earth’s rotation axis and magnetic axis.

3. Know the scientific theory put forth by William Gilbert in his book De Magnete.

4. Explain what produces the earth’s magnetic field.

5. Describe what happens to the earth’s magnetic field during a field reversal.

6. Describe the three primary ways the earth’s magnetic field changes over time and the characteristics of those three changes.

To achieve synthesis and application of all the material we cover throughout the semester, I implemented a capstone final exam scenario. In the scenario, the students are placed in the role of members of a Space Weather Consulting Company. They have been called to provide expert testimony before Congress regarding potential federal budget cuts to space weather services within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and they must submit a written statement to Congress addressing their opinion on the matter. As a take-home project, the written statement gives them time to synthesize their knowledge and articulate convincing arguments based on their knowledge of space weather phenomena, technological impacts, past events, and space weather services. Depending on the size of the class, during their final exam time they must then also appear before Congress (simulated by me) to answer questions regarding this topic. Since they do not know what will be asked during the congressional hearing, they must adequately prepare for all Learning Objectives with written notes. The key here is that in the process of preparing written notes to support their questioning, they are in effect participating in synthesis and application through the process of organizing the course material into reference material.

Students’ Perspectives

Since being first offered in 2012, over eighty students have taken the class, representing the following majors: business, accounting, marketing, entrepreneurship, journalism, psychology, literature, history, education, international studies, medical humanities, aviation science, astronomy, chemistry, geology, environmental science, mechanical engineering, and computer science. Overall, students have responded very well to the course, and here is what some of the students have had to say on the course evaluations:

The class was engaging because he made it exciting, and I came into class every day anxious to know what would come next.

How the material was presented piqued my interest. I really enjoyed how the class read like a novel, and each lesson built on the last one, with some cliff hangers.

Structural design of the course was actually what made this class so interesting. To me it was like showing up for a TV episode because I felt like every time I was getting closer to more answers I had even more questions until the end of the course and I realized I learned stuff all along the way.

Liked the use of groups and working on what we learned in class. Always kept you interested in the next lesson to come.

It was taught in a very interesting way and it was so different than the rest of my classes.

Students are also given the opportunity to follow up the course with undergraduate research experiences in my Space Weather Research Lab. In this setting, they get to work with space weather data and participate in data analysis to support research outcomes. So far, ten students have worked as student researchers, with one student presenting a research poster at the 2017 Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union, the largest earth and space science conference in the world.

As the student comments above attest, when we strive to push ourselves beyond the norm and work from a mindset of constant learning and growth, we can connect to students and achieve true learning. Since starting this class, there have certainly been times where I have tried to do some things that haven’t worked so well. I would urge educators, however, not to fear failure; if you are inspired to try something new, try it. If it doesn’t work, don’t do it again, or figure out how to make it better. Ultimately, that is one of the ways we grow and develop as teachers, and in the end that will benefit our students more than we realize. When we acknowledge that our own learning never ends, we are much more likely to ignite the spark of learning in our students. And we can make science not so boring.

References

Freeman, Scott, Sarah L. Eddy, Miles McDonough, Michelle K. Smith, Nnadozie Okoroafor, Hannah Jordt, and Mary Pat Wenderoth. “Active Learning Increases Student Performance in Science, Engineering, and Mathematics.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 111.23 (2014) 8410–15.

Hanson, David M. “Designing Process-Oriented Guided-Inquiry Activities.” In Faculty Guidebook: A Comprehensive Tool for Improving Faculty Performance, edited by Steven W. Beyerlein and Daniel K. Apple, 281–84. Hampton, NH: Pacific Crest, 2007.

———. Instructor’s Guide to Process-Oriented Guided-Inquiry Learning. Lisle, IL: Pacific Crest, 2006.

Kober, Nancy. Reaching Students: What Research Says About Effective Instruction in Undergraduate Science and Engineering. Washington, DC: National Academies Press, 2015.

POGIL. pogil.org.

7. Kober, Reaching Students; Freeman et al., “Active Learning,” 8410–15.

8. https://www.pogil.org; Hanson, “Designing Process-Oriented Guided-Inquiry Activities,” 281–84; Hanson, Instructor’s Guide.