Making Thinking Visible: Lecture Quizzes

 My school runs a lecture tutorial system for our Physics Cohort.  (We have about 400 to 500 students ....alas....we used to have 800+.....before they stop making Physics a prerequisite for Engineering in Singapore Universities....but that is another story.)

To let the students pay more attention and consolidate their learning after each topic, we would often give them a lecture tests, not based on complex calculations, rather to assess their basic understanding of the topics.

The lecture quizzes are traditionally about 5 - 10 multiple choice questions requiring the students to finish in 10 - 15 minutes before the start of the next topic's lecture.  The lag is give the students time to read up and consolidate (and actually before the tutorials to make life easier for tutors).  They are questions that also require very little calculations.

Results of lecture quizzes will be given to individual tutors teaching the tutorial classes and the tutors will then run through the problematic areas in class.  Tutors traditionally run through the answers before start of the tutorial to just warm up the students and do a quick summary of concepts.

This year, I decided to try something different. 

1.  I did the tutorial questions with my classes first and  used the results of the lecture quizzes only at the end of the whole set of tutorial questions (related to the topic)

2.  I captured the responses of all the quiz questions and the final grade separately and did not put them into the original scripts to be returned.

3.  At the last tutorial for the topic, I returned the lecture quizzes (with no ticks or crosses) or grades.  Then I gave them 5 min to look through their responses again and pen in their new answers on a separate answer sheet.  At this time they are not suppose to discuss with their friends.

4.  Then I gave them 2 min to discuss with their friends where their area of difficult was and write down the new responses again.  Finally, think of questions they would like to ask and pen it down.  I then collected back the new responses.

5.  The questions were shared in class and discussed together with the answers as a wrapping up activity.


After conducting it for a few sessions, I think I will continue to use it in my classroom, cause:

1.  I like the reflective component the activity have.

2.  It did surprised me that there were still concepts the students could not internalise even after going through the tutorials.  E.g. for the case of E-field.  I realised that Potential concepts were still weak and an area of difficulty even after we have gone through and discussed them.  (Remember, I collected the new responses?)

3.  Students through the activity was more aware of where their key areas lie and of course they can allow them to focus more in that particular area.

4.   The activity is also more engaging and promotes active learning, not knowing how well they have done, let's them think more about their answers. 

5.  Sharing with their friends, let them learn insights from their friends.

6.  After one or two times, I also find that they start telling me that they realise that getting the concepts is very important, not just focusing on the calculations.  Apparently, they thought that if you focused on the calculations in tutorials, the concepts will be internalised naturally.  Some reflected that they realised that they need to be aware and be clear on what concepts they are applying or why they are applying it else they could be easily confused by themselves. -  This is a leap which I feel was great for me.

7.  The questions being easy and not too complex (in terms of fact that they do not require multiple steps need in calculations) concentrating on simply assessing understand focused key concepts also allow tutors to clearly identify problem areas even after tutorial.  Students were truly truly surprised that they could not answer what deceptively looked like straight forward questions that assessed only understanding.  (Actually they are the trickest....cause you often cannot plug and chug numbers cause there aren't any.)

8.  Options were carefully designed to identify preconceptions and common misconceptions and hence through the wrong answers, you can tell where should be the area of focus when you revise the topic again or teach this topic again.

2 Swf to Movie Converter Reviewed

As part of the home-based learning project, I was asked to convert some swf files to movie files so that we could use it for our learning resource.

In my search on Google, I found two particular ones which some people may use.

• The first is called SWF to AVI
• The second is called SWF to AVI MPEG Converter

I installed both on my computer and tried them.  Since I have used both of them, I thought I could quickly review them.

SWF to AVI 

(At http://swftoavi.com)

Pros:

• Generally, the software was easy to download, very easy to install.
• It was relatively straightforward to use.
• The swf I had was interactive, so I managed to capture the clicks the moved on ahead.
• Download site was relatively clear and give some instructions on possible problems for sound capture and solution.

Cons:  

• It could only output in AVI format.
• I was also visibly disappointed in the poor resolution file it generated.
• I read through the sound problem, could not follow through as I could not find the "Wave Mix On" thingy it was describing even after I right clicked.  So when I recorded, it seemed to be simply recording what it could of the internal built in microphone.  And as there is a construction near my place.  I do find it frustrating to hear the background construction noise being recorded as well.  But I guess it would be good when you want to record your own voice over the movie file. On hind sight, it could be a configuration problem as I am using a tablet which has a built-in microphone as it has speech to text recognition enabled.

Conclusion:  This could not really served the purpose I wanted as it meant me running through the swf files (since I wanted to capture the clicks) in a sound proof room and it meant me only doing the work in a sound proof room in school, so I abandoned it in the end.



SWF to AVI MPEG Converter (Highly Recommended)
(http:// www.lumixsoft.com)

Features:

1.  Supports export to AVI, MPEG, MP4 and many other formats.
2. As with above, it supports action scripts, movie clips and sound.  What I really like is it really captures the narration of my clips but not from the output speaker, cause the sound was clean.  For action script, you have an option of clicking, typing the interactive parts of the swf and capture the actions or alternative set to the auto mode which you can set the swf file to advance after the side time if there is no action.
3. You can customise the output format (stated above), the parameters (e.g. the frame rate, the size of final video screen.) It does give advice e.g. the screen size, the output platform like ipod, apple TV, DVD that the final file is intended for.  Or it can be set entirely automatic.
4. The quality of the movie is much better than the above.
5. Yes, for ease of use, it is easy to fiddle around, took me about 5 min to figure out how to work through the files.

Tip:  The pause button does not pause the capture, but rather the screen, it was good for me as mine was a Q & A type of swf and so I could control the pause for students to think and then reveal the answer in good time and pausing a longer for the answer if I think my students will need time to digest.

Cons:  Not any serious one I can think of for the moment.  But yes, there are more settings to make than the top, so you need to play around with all the settings for about less than 5 minutes, capture a few trials before you are good to go.  Free, bit a logo shows up at the top hand corner of software.  But does not really bother me.  You can pay and register to get it removed for the export.

Conclusion:  This is the one I am using, and it is definitely a keeper in time to come.

Lesson Activity in Moodle

I have just been arrowed a task that was not assigned to me end of last year - to design and build an elesson on the topic of "electricity" for our school's home-based learning.

Hm...so what is home based learning.  It is an initiative that is started by Ministry of Education (Singapore) in response to an incident many years back.  In 2003, because of the SARs outbreak, the schools where given sudden notice to close for two weeks.  These left the schools in flurry and especially the JCs, as lost in two weeks of precious curriculum had a great impact as the students were expected to sit for the A-levels in two years time.  The A-levels was deemed as an important milestone as it meant entrance to university of choice and the subsequent career path that the child would take.  So the schools set up contingency plans to get lessons, worksheets and notes delivered to students without face contact.

The schools in Singapore had been on e-learning bandwagon for some years, but it never really took off as students and teacher still feel it is the face-to-face interaction that is important.  Questions and lessons can be modified on the spot based on students' problems and understanding, unlike in the case of elessons, which tend to take a fixed path, and it afterall difficult, even for the most experienced teacher to anticipate every question the children are going to ask.

Anyway,  I have a dateline to meet, was just assigned the task yesterday and I have to get the lesson up by last week of January and first week of Feb, so I am as well get to it.

Resources for Learning to Build Moodle Lessons:

I have been using Moodle for the last two years and there is one feature that I would very much like to explore.  However, as it does take more than a few minutes to learn, so I have never got to learning it.  I guess it always boils down to this, there are so many things that we need to do, so we will only go about doing it or learning it when there is a need to.  (And that students will only learn things if they find it useful and when they need it.  It is the same with upgrading and teaching the skills to teachers,  JIT (just in time) teaching are the best.  At least, this is what I found that works for staff development in my department. Sharing are just for exposure to ideas and gives you an inkling who to approach. )


So first things first is to look at the possible resources on the Web that allows me to learn Moodle Lesson.  Below are some of the ones I really like:


 1.  "More Moodle - Lessons" by La Trobe University. (Last Accessed: 5th Jan 2012)
http://www.latrobe.edu.au/lms/assets/downloads/moodle/guides/user-guide-lessons_v1.0.pdf

I really like this one, as it explains clearly every step and what every setting the term means though I had a little problem following through as my school is currently using Moodle 1.9 and this version of guide is for Moodle 2.0.  We are upgrading to Moodle 2.1 in March....but that would be too late for me.

Behind this document also states some useful references for learning lessons.  I particularly like the videos listed. So I am also linking it here.

2.  YouTube Videos on "Creating a Lesson in Moodle" by LMikowychok

Ah....the wonder of Youtube.  You can now find so many video guides to doing so many things and so it is really no wonder.  These are a series of 3 videos which will guide you to create lesson in Moodle.  It is also good to view it through first to have a rough inkling and overview of what you can do.



Happy Moodling!

On Nuclear Radiation Part 3: Effects of Different Radiation

This is a third part to a series of FAQs which I received from my friends and family after the Nuclear Accident in Japan Fukushima.  Note that most of the notes came from a set of lecture notes that I compiled 2 years ago.  The lecture notes were integrated from various sources which was used for lecturing Nuclear Physics for A-levels. 

(Picture from Reuters:  The No.3 nuclear reactor of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant is seen burning, March 14, 2011. REUTERS/Digital Globe.)

Question:  Of the Types of Ionising Radiation, which is the most harmful?  How do they affect the human body?

This is a complex question, as each type of ionising radiation impacts the body differently. In general, the effect of ionizing radiation on the human body or any other living things depend on three things:

1. The type of ionizing radiation which was absorbed,
2. The number of cells affected, the number and
3. The amount and the rate at which ionizing radiation was absorbed.

  Let us look at the effect of each type of ionizing radiation

• Alpha-particles:

Even though alpha-particles have a short range in air and can be stopped by the skin or a sheet of paper, it will still pose a danger if it gets into the body through ingestion and inhalation.

Alpha particles are the largest of the radiation and carry a charge of (+2e) - hence possessing the greatest ionization power, the particles will deposit their energy over a smaller volume (possibly only a few cells) if they enter the body and cause more damage to these few cells.

Radon gas (one of the key sources of lung cancer in US) is an example of an isotope that radiates alpha particles during of its course of decay and hence, there has been suggestions for buildings to be tested for Radon gas.

•   Beta Particles:

Beta-particles have a longer range than alpha-particles, but ionise much less strongly. Therefore, they do around 1/20 th of the damage done by the same dose of alpha particles.  But with greater penetrating power, affect a greater number of cells.

•   Gamma Rays, X-rays :

Gamma and x-ray are pure energy (photons) and have no mass.  They are however very penetrating and can easily pass through the whole body, and hence will still interact with many atoms in the body as they pass through.  Both X-rays and gamma rays spread their energy over a large volume, which causes less damage per collision. Of course at very high levels of exposure, they can still cause a great deal of tissue damage. Furthermore, because of their penetrating ability, they can easily reach internal organs and bones which is why large doses can be used to damage cancer tissue.

Interaction of Radiation and Cells
So how do the radiation affect the cells and human body?
The effects of the radiation can be characterised as:

• Direct effects
• Indirect effects

Direct Effects
For direct effects, the radiation interacts with the atoms of the DNA molecule, or some other cellular component critical to the survival of the cell.

Such an interaction may affect the ability of the cell to reproduce and, thus, survive. If enough atoms are affected such that the chromosomes do not replicate properly, or if there is significant alteration in the information carried by the DNA molecule, then the cell may be destroyed by “direct” interference with its life-sustaining system.

Indirect Effects
However, the probability of the radiation interacting with the DNA molecule is very small since these critical components make up such a small part of the cell. The radiation has a higher probability interacting with the water that makes up most of the cell’s volume.

When radiation interacts with water, it may break the bonds that hold the water molecule together, producing fragments such as hydrogen (H) and hydroxyls (OH). These fragments may recombine or may interact with other fragments to form toxic substances, such as hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), which can contribute to the destruction of the cell.


In general, the following are possible effects of radiation on the cells:
1. Cells are undamaged.
Ionisation may form chemically active substances which in some cases alter the structure of the cells. These alterations may be the same as those changes that occur naturally in the cell and may have no negative effect.


2. Cells are damaged, but the damage is repaired and they continue to operate normally.
Some ionizing events produce substances not normally found in the cell. These can lead to a breakdown of the cell structure and its components. Cells can repair themselves if the damage is limited. Even damage to chromosomes is usually repaired.


3. Cells are damaged, repaired but is mutated.
When cells divide to reproduce, an exact copy of the cell's chromosomes are created for the new cell. If the DNA of the chromosome is damaged, the instructions that control the function of the cells and reproduction are also damaged.

If the cells reproduce instead of die, a new mutated cell may be produced. In many cancers, the instruction that turns off cell growth are somehow damaged causing cells to reproduce out of control, creating tumours.

Ionizing radiation, along with many other substances such as some chemicals, heavy metals and intense e.m. waves can damage cells in this manner.

Radio-Sensitivity of Cells:
Not all cells in the human body respond in the same way to radiation.  The most radiosensitive cells are those which :

*have a high division rate

*have a high metabolic rate

*are of a non-specialized type, and

*are well-nourished.

Examples of radio-sensitive cells :

*reproductive cells

*Blood forming tissues

* Epithidium of skin

*Epithidium of gastrointestinal tract.

This is why when people go on radiotherapy, their alocepia (hair loss) tends to occur as hair is a fast growing cell.  This also why young children/babies and foetuses carried by pregnant mothers are especially susceptible to radiation. This is because children/babies are growing rapidly, with more cells dividing and thus a greater opportunity for radiation to disrupt the process.

Related Links  and Previous Related Posts:

1)  On Nuclear Physics Part I :  What is Radiation?  Does a person continue to radiate radiation after he has been irradiated?

2) Can we therefore make the radioactive isotopes non-radioactive by chemical reactions etc.?

3)  Japan's Nuclear Concerns Explained by CNN

4)  Why do the Spent Fuel Rods Need to Be Cooled Down?  What happens If they are Not?  - External Blog :  Fukushima's Spent Fuel Rods Pose Great Dangers.

5) Scientific American Article : Radiation's Complications: Pinning Health Problems on a Nuclear Disaster Isn't So Easy