The Hidden Skills of Academic LiteracyResearch Based StrategiesFigure 2: Research Based Strategies (Silver, et al., 2004).Mastering ContentModeling CycleThe Thoughtful Classroom Curriculum DesignFOYERWORKSHOPLIBRARYPORCHKITCHENWORKSHOPKITCHENPORCHConclusionGraphical ShapesDifferencesWritten RelationshipModification Required to LinearizeAlgebraic ExpressionAnalyzing a Modeling Physics Unit on Graphing usingThe Thoughtful Classroom Curriculum Design Marcy Reynard, Department of Physics, State University of New York- Buffalo State College, 1300 Elmwood Ave, Buffalo, NY 14222, [email protected]. This paper describes the similarities and differences between The Thoughtful Classroom andthe Modeling Method of Physics instruction. This paper attempts to analyze The Modeling Method viaThe Thoughtful Classroom Curriculum Design. The idea is to integrate both methods of instruction to maximize the benefits of both. In the lesson described students develop graphical models through steps in the modeling cycle by exploring the period of a pendulum. This is further enhanced using tools and strategies from The Thoughtful Classroom, like Compare and Contrast. Acknowledgement: This manuscript was prepared in partial fulfillment of requirements for PHY690: Masters Project at SUNY Buffalo State College under the guidance of Dr. Dan MacIsaac.The Thoughtful Classroom is a professional development program designed to help teachers to be more “thoughtful” in the classroom in terms of adhering to the needs of all students (Silver, Strong, Perini, & Tuculescu, 2004). The main goals for The Thoughtful Classroom are for all students to learn thoughtfully and well, to have thoughtful teaching in every classroom, and to have thoughtful leadership within schools and school districts. The Modeling Method of Physics instruction shares similar goals. The Modeling Method aims to make learning physics more meaningful for students by correcting weaknesses that are ignored by a more traditional lecture method (Hestenes, 1996). Modeling guides students in the development, and use, of basic models that help to explain scientific phenomena. The Thoughtful Classroom is designed around the concept of keeping teaching and learning simple and deep which is what the Modeling Method does. This paper will try to incorporate the Modeling Physics Unit Scientific Thinking in Experimental Settings into The Thoughtful ClassroomCurriculum Design. The development of graphing skills and the understanding of how equations are derived will be the main focus and what is used to show similarities and differences between the two methods of teaching. The Hidden Skills of Academic LiteracyStrong, Silver, and Perini have compiled a set of 12 skills that they believe underlie student success (2001). They have grouped these skills into 4 categories: Reading and Study Skills, ReflectiveSkills, Thinking Skills, and Communication Skills. They have found that teachers who have designed instruction around the acquisition of these skills had more time and flexibility to select content and develop assessment tools. These skills can be developed while students are kept actively engaged in learning (Silver & Strong, 2006). Many of these skills are very similar to the skills that Modeling Physics tries to develop in students to better help them understand physical concepts (Figure 1). The Modeling Physics Unit that will be analyzed in this paper (U1, U1-GMsummary) is designed to build skills such as reading and interpreting visual displays of information. This can be done by engaging students in a hands-on activity that has them exploring the variables that affect the period of a 1pendulum. This seemingly basic activity teaches students fundamental skills that will help them to construct scientific models in all topics of physics.Figure 1: The Hidden Skills of Academic Literacy (Strong, et al., 2001).Reading and StudySkills Reflective Skills Thinking Skills Communication Skills- Collect and organize ideas through note-taking.- Use abstract vocabulary.- Read and interpret visual displays of information.- Plan effectively.- Critique performance.- Persevere when work becomes difficult.- Make reasonable inferences, formhypothesis and test them.- Analyze and apply models.- Conduct comparisons.- Construct well-formed explanations.- Write effectively in many different genres.- Write effectively about readings.Research Based StrategiesThe Thoughtful Classroom uses a set of instructional strategies that help to build critical thinking skills, engage students, and increase knowledge of content (Marzano, Pickering, & Pollock, 2001). Strategies that correlate well with Modeling Physics are listed in Figure 2. Modeling Physics also focuses on engaging students through a series of steps organized into the modeling cycle (Wells, Hestenes, & Swackhamer, 1995). The modeling cycle (Figure 3) is a student-centered instructional design. It is broken down into two parts: model development, where students begin to develop a model through experimentation, and model deployment, where the model is put into practice and extended upon by the teacher (Dukerich, 2006). Each part will be discussed in more detail as it is analyzed within The Thoughtful Classroom Curriculum Design. Figure 2: Research Based Strategies (Silver, et al., 2004).Mastering Content Reasoning andCritical AnalysisExploring andSynthesizing IdeasCollaborating andPersonalizingLearning- Interactive Lecture- Compare and Contrast- Inquiry/Mystery- Metaphorical Expression- Cooperative Learning Figure 3: Overview of the Modeling Cycle (Dukerich, 2006)Modeling CycleModel Development Model DeploymentA. Qualitative DescriptionB. Identification of VariablesC. Planning for the ExperimentD. Laboratory ExperimentE. Analysis of ExperimentF. Presentation of Experimental ResultsG. Generalization A. Extrapolation and ReinforcementB. Refinement and Integration2The Thoughtful Classroom Curriculum DesignSilver and Strong have developed their own model for designing thoughtful units (2008). This model for unit design takes into account the importance of the previously mentioned hidden skills of academic literacy and research based strategies (Figures 1 and 2). The Thoughtful Classroom Curriculum Design arranges specific lessons or activities into a “blueprint” format, which uses the functions of different rooms in a house as a metaphor for specific aspects of a unit (Figure 4). Most
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