ScienceLearnification

Teachingandlearninginthescienceswithafocuson
physicseducationresearch(PER)fromthetrenches

TheDAQnessMonster

Posted:June26,2011|Author:JossIves|Filedunder:AdvancedLaboratory,Arduino,
LabVIEW|8Comments
I

USB6009(left)andArduino(right).Theyarebothaboutthesizeofthepalmofyourhand.

spentanicechunkoftimelastweekplayingwithdifferentcombinationsofhardwareand
softwaretolookatDataAcquisition(DAQ)optionsformyAdvancedLaboratorycourse(the
namegiventostandaloneupperdivisionphysicslaboratorycourses).Iwillfirsttalkaboutthe
twomainhardwaredevicesIwastryingout(NationalInstrumentsUSB6009MultifunctionDAQ
andanArduinoUnomicrocontroller)andthenlookatsomecombinationsofsoftwareand
hardwarethatIplayedwith,oratleastwantedtoplaywith.

IntheendusingoneoftheNationalInstrumentsUSBDAQdeviceswithLabVIEWisprobably
theeasiestthingtodothankstothevarietyofwaysthatLabVIEWallowsyoutoquicklycreate
DAQsoftwareonthecomputerside.Butthankstothehugenumberofsoftwareoptionsthatyou
havetotalktotheArduinoandhowcheapitis,itisveryreasonabletouseanArduinoasyour
generalpurposeDAQdevice.
AnexampleDAQtask

Incaseyouarereadingalongathome,butnottoosurewhatImtalkingabout,Iwillgiveyouan
exampleDAQtaskthatusessomeofthefunctionalitythatisdiscussedinthispost.Letssayyou
wanttodoan(admittedlyboringexperiment)oftryingtofigureoutwhichcolourofcoffeecup
keepsyourcoffeewarmthelongest.Thisisatediousexperimentbecauseittakesalongtimefor
thecoffeetocool,youwanttodomultiplerunsforeachcoffeecupandyoudontwanttohaveto
justsitthereandheatthecoffeeupoverandoveragain.Soyoubuildacircuitwithalittleheater
thatcanbeturnedonandoffbysendingadigitalsignaltoit.Youhaveathermocouplewith
whichyouwillmeasuretemperature.Andyouwillhavethecomputerrecordyourdataevery10
secondsandwriteyourdatasetstofile.

Soyouhookyourthermocoupleuptoathermocoupleampandthatoutputgoestooneofyour
analoginputchannels.Oneofyourdigitaloutchannelsisusedtoturnthelittleheateronanoff.
Andyouwillhavesomesoftwarethatdoesafewdifferentthings:

Requeststhetemperatureofthecoffeeevery10secondsfromthethermocouple(amp);
Oncethecoffeegetsdownto50degrees,itturnsontheheateruntilthecoffeeisbackat90
degrees;
Itwritesallthecollecteddatatoafile.

Sotorunthisexperimentyoujuststickthethermocoupleandheaterinthecoffeecup,pressgo
andwanderoffforawhile.Youcomebackeveryonceinawhiletomakesureeverythingis
runningsmoothlyandtochangetoadifferentcoffeecuponceyoufeelyouhaveenoughruns.
Withfairlysimplesoftwarerunningonthecomputer,allthehardware/softwareDAQcombosI
mentionbelowwillworkjustfine.

NationalInstrumentsUSB6009MultifunctionDAQ

This(anditscheapercousintheUSB6008)seemliketheyhavebeenthestandardlowcostUSB
DAQdevicesforalittlewhile,andareusedmostoftenwithLabVIEW.Theanaloginputsare14
bitand48ksamples/second.Ithas5VoutandabunchofdigitalInput/Outputchannels.

ArduinoUnoMicrocontroller
 ArduinoUnowithonehookedupanaloginputchannel(potentiometer)andthreehookedup
digitaloutchannels(threeLEDs).

ArduinosareteenycomputerswithabunchofanaloganddigitalInput/Outputchannels.You
writeprogramsforthemandsendthemviaUSBtothedevice.Withtheappropriateprogram
(firmware)youcanhaveyourArduinoduplicatethefunctionalityoftheUSB600x,butwith
muchlessimpressiveresolutionandsamplerate.TheArduinoanaloginputsareonly10bitand
mybestestimateofthesamplerateisroughly100samplespersecond(edit:youshouldbeabletodo
betterthanthisifyoutemporarilystoredatainArduinosmemoryandthensendittothecomputerin
chunks).KeepinmindthattheArduinosonlycost$30comparedto>$200fortheUSB600x(andin
myexampleDAQtaskIonlyneeded1sampleevery10seconds).Thatresolutionandsamplerate
arealsomorethanadequateformonitoringandcontrollingalotofexperiments.Youcanalsouse
theArduinoasaremotedataloggerandcontrollerwiththehelpofwireless/bluetoothchips,SD
cardreadersandallsortsofotherfunthings.

Thehardware/softwareDAQcombos

NationalInstrumentsUSB6009andLabVIEW

ThiscombinationseemstobeaverycommonDAQsolutioninrecenttimes.Ithinkthestandard
isabouttobecomeLabVIEW+NIMyDAQ,wheretheMyDAQisalsoaMultifunctionUSBDAQ
device.IthasfewerchannelsthanaUSB6009buthas16bitanalogchannels,200k
samples/secondandanoutputvoltageof15Vasopposedtothe5VoftheUSB6009.Italsohas
someneatreadytogofunctionalityasaDigitalMultimeterandonlycostsabout$200.Ithinkthat
myprosandconsbelowfortheUSB6009+LabVIEWcombinationalsoappliesequallywelltothe
MyDAQ+LabVIEWcombination.

Pros:

LabVIEWhasalotofbuiltinandquicktogetupandrunningfunctionality.Graphing,
 LabVIEWhasalotofbuiltinandquicktogetupandrunningfunctionality.Graphing,
writingtofile,signalprocessingandInput/Outputtasksareallquiteeasytodoonceyoulearn
howtodothem.AsImentioninthecons,youstillhavetogetusedtothevisualprogramming
environmentwhichisahugeshiftinparadigmformany.
LabVIEWhasaDAQassistantthathelpsyoubuildDAQsoftwarequickly.They(National
Instruments)alsohaveaprogramcalledLabVIEWSignalExpressthatismeanttomakeDAQ
(andcontrol,liketurningontheheater)taskswithouthavingtodoanyactualLabVIEW
programming.Ihavenotactuallytriedit,butitcomesbundledwitha$60suiteversionofthe
studenteditionofLabVIEW.

Cons:

LabVIEWiscrazyexpensive,butthestudenteditionofLabVIEWisonly$20(or$60forthe
suite)soifyoucangetthestudentstobuytheirowncopiestoputontheirlaptopsthecost
becomesprettynegligible.
TheUSBdevices(USB6008/9orMyDAQ)arequitereasonablypriced($200$300),butnotas
cheapasa$30arduino.
LabVIEWhasasteepishlearningcurve.IttakesafewweekstobecomefluentusingitandI
stillcantrememberhowtodohalfthethingsIwanttodo(Iamprobablyatthefewweeks
mark).Visualprogramming(inthiscaseLabVIEW)isquiteadifferentparadigmthantext
basedprogramming.

Arduinoandfreesoftware

Letsassumeforthisdiscussionthatyouwanttoduplicatethehardwarefunctionalityofthe
NationalInstrumentsmultifunctionDAQdeviceswiththeArduinoinsteadofprogrammingthe
DAQtaskdirectlyontotheArduino.TodothisyouwriteyourownArduinosketch(thenamefor
aprogram/firmwarethatyouwritetotheArduinosmemory)thatcanreadtheArduinosanalog
lineinsandsendoutadigitaloutputsignalwhentoldto.Therearesomeexistingfirmwares(is
thatthepluraloffirmware?)suchasFirmata(whichcomesbundledwiththeArduinosoftware)
andafirmwarethatcomeswiththePythonArduinoPrototypingAPI.YoucanthenusePython
(foreitherfirmware)orProcessing(forFirmata)tocollectdataandsendcontrolsignalstothe
Arduino.

IdidnothavegreatluckgettingaDAQtaskupandrunningusingPythonandFirmata,butwas
delightfullysuccessfuldoingsousingthePythonArduinoPrototypingAPI.WithalittlevPython
intowImsureyoucouldfigureoutsomeprettyfunstufftodowiththedatacominginthrough
theArduino.

IdontknowtoomuchaboutProcessing,butitisacomputerlanguageanditseemstobequite
easytouseittomakegraphsbasedontheexamplesIplayedwiththatcomeincludedwiththe
Arduinosoftware.Therearesomelibrariesthat(Iunderstand)makeitveryeasytotalktoan
ArduinowiththeFirmatafirmwareusingProcessing.

Pros:
Pros:

Thisisthecheapestsolution.PythonandprocessingarebothfreeandtheArduinois$30.

Cons:

FormyexampleDAQtask,thesamplerateandresolutionoftheArduinoismorethan
adequate,buttheNationalInstrumentsUSBDAQdevicesarereallymuchhigherperformance
whichmightbeneededforexperimentsmoreexcitingthanwatchingcoffeecool.

Unsure:

IdidntdomorethantrytoreadsomethinginandsendoutasignalwiththePythonArduino
PrototypingAPIsolivegraphingthedata(easyinLabVIEW)maybesimpletogetdoneusing
matplotliboritmaybequitetedious.Imreallynottosure.
SimilarlyforProcessingIonlygraphedsomedatacominginandsentoutsomesignals(to
turnonLEDs),butsinceitisaprogramminglanguageitshouldbeverystraightforwardtodo
thingslikewritedatatofileortelltheArduinototurnontheheateroncethetemperature
beingreaddropsbelowsomecertainvalue.

Note:thereareabunchofothersoftwareinterfacingoptionsforArduinobutIjustmentiontheones
thatseemedeasiestforme.Mathematica(whichisnotfree)isdiscussedbelow.

ArduinoandLabVIEW

LabVIEW and Arduin...

MyversionoftheDancingLEDexampleincludedwiththeLabVIEWInterfaceforArduino.

EarlyinMaythisyeartheLabVIEWInterfaceforArduinowasreleased.Ifounditeasytoinstall
everythingneededandtheexamplesthatItriedworkedonmyfirsttry.Itcomeswithacustom
firmwarethatyouputontheArduinoandthenyoucangetinputandoutputsignalsjustlikeyou
wouldwiththeNationalInstrumentsmultifunctionDAQdevices.
Pros:

Easytoinstalleverythingneeded.
 Easytoinstalleverythingneeded.
CheapifyouareusingthestudenteditionofLabVIEW.
Theresanicetutorialandlotsofexamples.

Cons:

YoucantbuildtasksforinterfacingwithArduinousingthingslikeLabVIEWSignalExpressor
DAQassistant,butyoucanbuildyourownVIsandtheincludedexamplescanserveasagood
template.

ArduinoandMathematica

ForthosethatarealreadyfamiliarwithMathematica(andperhapsnotfamiliarwithsomeofthe
softwaresolutionsabove),youjustneedtheM$.NETframeworkinstalledandthenyoucanchat
withtheArduinoviaserialI/OcommandsfromwithinMathematica.Imnotsureifyoucanget
MathematicatoplaynicewithapreexistingfirmwarelikeFirmata.IhaventusedMathematica
muchsinceearlyingradschoolsoIamverymuchatanovicelevelandcanprettymuchonlydo
thingsthatrequiremodificationofexistingcode.Ididhavesometroublegettingthiswholething
upandrunningeventhoughAndyRundquistbasicallygavemeallthecodeIneeded.Thiswas
probablymostlyduetomynoviceskilllevelusingMathematica.

Pros:

Mathematicaisverygoodatdisplayingdata(andthendoingfunstuffwithitafter).
ForthosealreadyfamiliarwithMathematica,thereisverylittlelearningcurve.

Cons:

Forthispurposetherearemuchbetter(andcheaper)softwareoptionsoutthere.

Otherinterestingstuff

VernierSensorDAQ:ThisthingcostsaboutthesameasaUSB6009withsimilar
performance,butlessanaloganddigitalI/Ochannels.Whatitdoeshaveinsteadis3analog
and1digitalconnectionsforVerniersensorsandprobes.Iaminterestedingettingoneof
thesetoplayaroundwith.
LabProtoolkitforLabVIEW:VernierprobesusuallyconnecttothecomputerviaaLabPro
whichhasabunchofconnectionsfortheprobesandtheninterfaceswiththecomputervia
USB.ThecomputerrunsVernierLoggerProtoreadtheprobesandrecordthedata.The
LabProtoolkitallowsyoutouseyourprobes,attachedtoyourLabPro,directlyinLabVIEW.I

couldntgetallofthistowork,butIdidntreallytrythathardeither.
 couldntgetallofthistowork,butIdidntreallytrythathardeither.
PascoScienceWorkshopProbewareandLabVIEW:Thisseemstoworkwithonlytheolder
ScienceWorkshopprobesandnotthenewerPassportprobes.Thereisanadapter,butIdont
knowifthatwillthenletthePassportprobesworkwithLabVIEW.
NXTSensorAdaptor:ThisletsyouuseVernieranalogprobeswithLegoMindstorms.The
firstthingthatcomestomindistouseaforceplateasagaspedalforaMindstormRCcar.
Thatwouldbeveryfun

TheScienceLearnification(Almost)Weekly
June19,2011

Posted:June19,2011|Author:JossIves|Filedunder:Arduino,Clickers,FlippedClassroom,
LearnificationWeekly,ScienceJournalism,Screencast,StandardsBasedGrading|2Comments
Thisisacollectionofthingsthattickledmyscienceeducationfancyinthepastcoupleofweeksorso.

ReflectionsonStandardsBasedGrading

LotsofendofyearreflectionsfromSBGimplementers

SBGwithvoicerevisionsAndyRundquistonlyaccepts(re)assessmentswherehecanhear
thestudentsvoice.Whentheyhandinaproblemsolution,itbasicallyhastobeascreencastor
pencast(livescribepen)submission.Thepostishisreflectionsonwhatworked,whatdidnt
andwhattodonexttime.
StandardsBasedFeedbackandSBGReflectionsBretBeneshhastwoSBGpostsoneafter
theother.IwasespeciallyfondoftheoneonStandardsBasedFeedbackwhereheproposes
thatstudentswouldnotreceivestandardsbasedgradesthroughoutthetermbutwould
insteadproduceaportfoliooftheirworkwhichbestshowedtheirmasteryforeachstandard.
Thisonegotmymindracingandmyfingerstyping.
ASmallTweakandaFeedbackInequalityDanAndersonpostsaboutprovidingfeedback
onlyonthefirstassessmentinnerdform:Feedback>Feedback+Grade>Grade.Thisishis
takeonthesameissuewhichleadBretBeneshtothinkingaboutStandardsBasedFeedback,
whenthereisagradeandfeedbackprovided,thestudentsfocusalltheirattentiononthe
grade.Healsohasaneatsystemofcalculatingthefinalscoreforanassessments.
ReflectionsonSBGRogerWistar(computerscienceteacher)discusseshisSBGjourneyand
thegoodandbadofhisexperiencesofar.
Modeling

ModelingWorkshop:Week1(FearandRespectTheHestenes)ShawnCornallytellsus
abouthisfirstweekatasummermodelingworkshopandheseemstobelovingit.

Flippedclassroomsandscreencasting

Lecturing,Screencasting,FlippedClassroomsMylenepostssomethoughtsaboutlecturing
afterattendingarecentwebinaronflippedclassrooms.Greatconversationensuesinthe
comments.
HowImakescreencasts:ThewhiteboardscreencastRobertTalbertcontinuesonwithhis
howtoscreencastseries.

PeerInstruction

WhyshouldIusepeerinstructioninmyclass?Peterusesastudyonstudent(non)learning
fromvideobytheKansasStatePhysicsEducationResearchGrouptohelpanswerthis
question.TheshortanswerisBecausetheygivethestudentsandyoutoabilitytoassessthe
currentlevelofunderstandingoftheconcepts.Current,rightnow,beforeitstoolateandthe
houseofcardsyouresocarefullybuildingcomecrashingdown.

Thetaleofsciencegeekgirlscareer

HowaScientistBecameaFreelanceScienceWriterStephanieChasteen(sciencegeekgirl)
talksabouthowsheearnedherphysicsPhDwhilealsodevelopingasasciencewriter.

Gettingthemtodostufftheyareinterestedin

TheFutureofEducationWithoutCoercion(Video)ShawnCornally(ThinkThankThunk
blog)talksabouthowtorethinkwhatexactlyproductivestudentworkis.Anditallstartswith
gettingthemtodostuffthattheyreinterestedin.
AngryBirdsinthePhysicsClassroomSpeakingofthingsmostpeopleareinterestedin,
FrankNoschesepostsaboutsomephysicsbasedinvestigationsstudentscandousingAngry
Birds.
 Birds.

JohnBurkgetsbusy

JohnBurk(QuantumProgressblog)hasbeenaverybusybloggeroverthepastcoupleof
weeks.HighlightsincludeacoupleofRhettAllainesqueGoogledoodleanalyses(hereand
here),someArduinofun(staytunedformypostonDAQsystemswhichincludesarduino),
Thetimehascometostopplayingdefenseandchangeeducation(letsnotjustsitthere
andcriticizeKhanAcademy,letsgooutandshowwhatcanbedonethatisbetter),andafirst
vPythonassignmentforhighschoolstudents.

TheScienceLearnification(Almost)Weekly
May30,2011

Posted:May30,2011|Author:JossIves|Filedunder:Arduino,FlippedClassroom,Homework,
LearnificationWeekly,OralAssessments,ScienceJournalism,StandardsBasedGrading|Leavea
comment
Thisisacollectionofthingsthattickledmyscienceeducationfancyinthepastcoupleofweeksorso

Facilitatingstudentdiscussion

FacilitatingDiscussionwithPeerInstruction:Thiswasburiedsomewhereinmytopostpile
(thepostisalmostamonthold).ThealwaysthoughtfulBrianFrankdiscussesacoupleof
thingsthatmostofusendupdoingthatarecounterproductivewhentryingtofacilitate
studentdiscussion.Buriedinthecommentsheaddsanicelistofnoncounterproductive
thingsthefacilitatorcansayinresponsetoastudentspointtohelpcontinuethediscussion.

DearMythbusters,pleasemakeyourdataandunusedvideos
availableforpublicanalysis

AnopenlettertoMythbustersonhowtotransformscienceeducation:JohnBurkshareshis
 AnopenlettertoMythbustersonhowtotransformscienceeducation:JohnBurkshareshis
thoughtswiththeMythbustersonthegoodtheyaredoingforscienceeducationandthe
publicperceptionofscience(andscientists)andthengoesonestepfurtherandasksthemto
sharetheirrawexperimentaldataandvideoforalltheirexperimentsandtrials,failedand
successful.WorthnotingisthatAdamSavageisveryactiveintheskepticalmovement,a
groupoffolksthatconsiderscienceeducationtobeaveryhighpriority.

Endofyearreflections

Wellitisthattimeoftheyearwhenclassesarewrappingupandfolksarereflectingontheyear.Herearea
coupleofsuchposts.

TimeforNewTeachingClothes:SBGReflections:TerieEngelbrechthadahandfulof
reflectionpostsoverthepastcoupleofweeks.Inthispostshedoesanicejobofremindingus
thatforanysortofunfamiliartostudentsinstructionalstrategythatweneedtocommunicate
tothestudentsWHYwehavechosentousethisstrategy.Andthiscommunicationneedsto
happenearly(asinfirstday)andberecommunicatedoften(sincethefirstdayisamurkyblur
tomostofthem).OnapersonalsidenoteIspendmostofmyfirstdayofclasscommunicating
tomystudentsthattheinstructionalstrategiesIusewerechosento(thebestofmyabilities
andknowledge)besthelpthemlearnbecauseIcareabouttheirlearning.EarlierthismonthI
hadaparenttellmethatafterthefirstdayofclassherdaughtercamehomeveryexcitedabout
myclassbecauseofmymessageaboutmycaringaboutherlearning.Icouldnthavesmiled
bigger.
Thoughtsonthecultureofaninvertedclassroom:RobertTalbertdiscusseswhatis
essentiallyabuyinissue,withhisendoftermfeedbackshowing3/4ofhisstudentsseeingthe
valueofhisflipped/invertedclassroomapproach.Thisnumberisprettyconsistentwithmy
ownexperience,whereIamjudgingthebuyinbythefractionofstudentsthatcompletetheir
prelectureassignments.Hemakesanicepointattheendthatstudentsusedtoaninverted
classroomwouldprobablybemuchmoreappalledwitharegularlecturecoursethanvice
versa.
EvenourbrighteststudentsPartII:MichaelReeswritesabouthisown(student)
perspectiveonStandardsBasedGrading.Weneedmoreofthesestudentperspectiveon
educationblogs,theyarefantastic.

Anexperimentinnotusingpointsintheclassroom

Pointslessness:AnExperimentinTeenagePsychology:ShawnCornallyranabioethicsclass
wheretheirworkforalmosttheentireyeardidnotcounttowardtheirgradeandthey
discussedreadingsandmovieswhichwereinteresting(notsurewhatwasusedtoqualify
thesethingsasinteresting,butwhenlookingthroughthelistImprettysureIwouldfindmost

ofthosethingsinteresting).Withoutthemarksattachedthestudentsengagedinthe
 ofthosethingsinteresting).Withoutthemarksattachedthestudentsengagedinthe
discussionsforthesakeofengaginginthediscussionsandthosestudentsthatusuallytryto
gleanwhatisgoingonfromonlytheclassroomdiscussions(insteadofdoingthereadings
themselves)wouldoftengoanddothereadingsafterthediscussions.

Effectivecommunicationofphysicseducationresearch

Getthewordout:Effectivecommunicationofphysicseducationresearch:Stephanie
ChasteenpostsanddiscussesherfantastictalkfromtheFoundationandFrontiersofPhysics
EducationResearchPugetSoundconference(FFPERandFFPERPSarebyfarmyfavorite
conferencesbtw).Thetalkdiscussedthegenerallypoorjobthatphysicseducationresearchers
doofcommunicatingwiththeoutsideworldanddiscussedsomestrategiestobecomemore
effectiveinthiscommunication.

Afewmorepostsofinterest

Itisjustfinetogiveaquizbasedonthehomeworkthatsduetoday:Agreed!Idoittoo,but
Iuseonlinehomeworkthatprovidesinstantfeedbacksotheyshowupinclasshavingalready
receivedsomefeedbackontheirunderstanding.
WhySchoolsShouldEmbracetheMakerMovement:Imhopingtodevelopanupperyear
electronicscoursebasedonArduino,andrequiringonlyintrocomputerscienceandphysicsas
prerequisites.GoMakers!
ProbingpotentialPhDs:Oneofagradstudentsresponsibilitiesistypicallytobeateaching
assistantandsomefolksatStonyBrookaretakingthisintoaccountwheninterviewing
potentialnewgradstudentsbyaskingthemtoexplain,atanundergraduatelevel,theanswer
toconceptualchallengeproblems.IthinkIwantthiscollectionofchallengeproblemsformy
ownuse.

TheScienceLearnificationWeekly(March
6,2011)

Posted:March6,2011|Author:JossIves|Filedunder:Arduino,FlippedClassroom,
LearnificationWeekly,Screencast,StandardsBasedGrading|2Comments

Thisisacollectionofthingsthattickledmyscienceeducationfancyinthepastweekorso.Some
Thisisacollectionofthingsthattickledmyscienceeducationfancyinthepastweekorso.Some
ofthesethingsmayturnouttobeseedsforfutureposts.

Screencastingineducation

LastweekIpostedlinkstoacoupleofpostsonscreencastingaspartofacollectionofpostson
flipped/invertedclassroomsinhighereducation.WellthisweekImgoingtopostsomemoreon
justscreencasting.

Imentionedthislastweek,butRobertTalberthasstartedaseriesofpostsonhowhemakes
screencasts.
Inthefirstpost,heiskindenoughtospelloutexactlywhatascreencastisamongother
things.
Inthesecondpost,hetalksabouttheplanningphaseofpreparingascreencast.
RogerFreedmangoesallmetaonusandpostsascreencastaboutusingscreencasts(well,its
actuallyabouthisflippeda.k.a.invertedclassroomandhowheusesscreencastsaspartof
that).
AndyRundquisttalksaboutusingscreencastingtogradeandprovidefeedback.Healsogets
hisstudentstosubmithomeworkproblemsorSBGassessmentsviascreencast.Hehasatonof
otherpostsonhowheusesscreencastingintheclassroom.
Itsunofficiallyofficialthat#scastisthehashtagofchoicefortalkingaboutscreencastingon
twitter.
AddedMarch10:MylenefromtheShiftingPhasesblogtalksaboutsomeofthenutsandbolts
ofpreparingherscreencastsincludingpointingouthowtheimprovedlessonplanninghelps
herremembertodiscussalltheimportantlittlepoints.

Itaughta3rdyearquantummechanicscourselastyearandencouragedthestudents,usinga
verysmallbonusmarksbribe,toreadthetextbeforecomingtoclass.Ithinkthatduetothedense
natureofthematerial,theirpreparationtimewouldbemuchmoreproductiveandenjoyableifI
createdscreencastsforthebasicconceptsandthenhadachancetoworkonderivations,examples
andsynthesisinclass.Withthereadingassignmentstheywereforcedtotrytodealwithbasic
concepts,synthesis,derivationsandexamplesontheirownwhichwasaskingquitealotfortheir
firstcontactwithallthosenewideas.Imprettyinterestedtotryoutscreencastingand

Arduino

IhavebeenschemingforawhiletobringtheArduinomicroprocessor(a.k.a.verysmallopen
sourcecomputer)intomyelectronicscoursesstartingwitha2ndyearlab.Arduinoisafavoriteof
homehobbyistsandthegreatermakecommunity.

PhilWagnerfromtheBrokenAirplanebloggetsinevenearlierthanIamplanningtoand
talksaboutteachingModernElectronicstohighschoolstudentswithArduino.Heeven
 PhilWagnerfromtheBrokenAirplanebloggetsinevenearlierthanIamplanningtoand
talksaboutteachingModernElectronicstohighschoolstudentswithArduino.Heeven
hassometutorialsifyouwanttotrythefunoutforyourself.

Thisisacollectionofthingsthattickledmyscienceeducationfancyinthepastweekorso.Some
ofthesethingsmayturnouttobeseedsforfutureposts.

Standardsbasedgradinginhighereducation

Standardsbasedgrading(SBG)isaprettyhottopicintheblogosphere(SBGgala#5)andon
twitter(#sbar).Theresaniceshortoverviewofstandardsbasedgradingatthechalk|dustblog.

Iamveryfondoftheideaofbasingastudentsgradeonwhattheycandobytheendofthe
courseinsteadofpenalizingthemforwhattheycantdoalongthewaywhentheyarestillinthe
processoflearning.Ialsolovethehugepotentialtosidesteptestanxietyandcramming.

Folksusingthisgradingscheme/philosophy(a.k.a.theSBGborg)aremostlyfoundatthehigh
schoollevel,buttherearesomefolksinhigheredimplementingitaswell.Iamstrongly
consideringtryingoutSBGinoneofmyfutureupperdivisioncourses,suchasQuantum
Mechanics,buttherearesomeimplementationissuesthatIwanttoresolvebeforeIcompletely
sellmyselfontryingitout.Iaminthemiddleofwritingapostabouttheseissuesandlook
forwardtodiscussingthemwiththosethatareinterested.

SpecialthanksgotoJasonBuellfromtheAlwaysFormativeBlogforbringingmostofthese
higheredSBGfolkstomyattention.HehasagreatbunchofpostsonSBGimplementationthat
forkoutfromthismainpage.

SBGimplementationsinhighered:

AndyRunquistisusingcollaboarativeoralassessmentsaspartofhisSBGimplementation.
ThisistheonlyhigheredPhysicsimplementationthatIhaveencounteredsofarandIhave
beenchattingAndyupatonaboutwhatheisuptoinhisfirstimplementation.
AdamGlesserfromtheGL(s,R)bloghastonsofSBGposts:HeisinhisfirstyearofafullSBG
implementationinhisCalculuscourses.Hegetsbonuspointsforbeingaboardgamegeekand
playingZeldawithhis4yearoldson.
SueVanHattumtalksaboutwadingintothewaterassheslowlymovesintoSBG
implementationsbywayofamasterylearningimplementation.SearchherblogforotherSBG
posts.
BretBeneshcomesupwithanewgradingsystemforhismathcourseswithhelpfromthe
SBGborg.
AddedMarch10:Myleneteachestechnicalschoolelectronicscoursesandreplacesthe
achievementlevelsforeachstandardwithasystemwherethestandardsbuildoneachother
andareassessedusingthebinaryyupornopesystem.

Thatsitforthisweek.Enjoytheinterwebseverybody.
RobertTalbert

ScienceLearnification
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