Physics

Submitted by Janelle Bitter on October 9th, 2019
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Short Description: 

This think-pair-share activity in which students compare a popular and scholarly source will help them progress from answering observable questions (type of language and format) to analytical questions (intended audience). As a class, students will discuss their answers and talk about whether the popular source accurately represented the scholarly source.

Attachments: 
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Step-by-step instructions on using this activitydisplayed 920 times19.2 KB
The worksheet to be used in this activitydisplayed 920 times14.17 KB
PowerPoint presentation given at a conference about this activitydisplayed 1021 times1020.35 KB
Learning Outcomes: 

Students will describe the information creation process for popular and scholarly sources, compare and contrast the type of information disseminated by each, and explain the ways in which authority and accuracy are contingent upon information need. Therefore, students will evaluate the accuracy and authority of a source based on discipline and information need and recognize and select appropriate resources for academic research.

Individual or Group:

Course Context (e.g. how it was implemented or integrated): 
Additional Instructor Resources (e.g. in-class activities, worksheets, scaffolding applications, supplemental modules, further readings, etc.): 
Potential Pitfalls and Teaching Tips: 

Using technology can unnecessarily complicate this activity, so printing articles and using the Post-it Note option would be better for a low-tech option.

Suggested Citation: 
Bitter, Janelle. "Scientific research in popular sources classroom activity." CORA (Community of Online Research Assignments), 2019. https://projectcora.org/assignment/scientific-research-popular-sources-classroom-activity.
Submitted by Pascal Martinolli on July 24th, 2018
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Short Description: 

Comment envoyer une minorité d'étudiants surmotivés sur des objectifs pédagogiques intégrés et connexes dont le parcours est structuré ?
1) Faire une courte introduction engageante (15min.)
2) Identifier la minorité surmotivée et leur distribuer un parcours.
3) Assurer une supervision mininal avec un suivi distant et ponctuel au besoin.
Avec 2 exemples de parcours: une auto-initiation en 5 niveaux pour contribuer à Wikipédia; et un programme de 12 semaines pour démarrer un blogue sur un sujet de recherche.

How to get the few really motivated students involved? By asking them to fulfil « side-quests » learning activities in a structured itinerary :
1) Present a short but engaging initiation [sur quoi?] (15 min.) ;
2) After identifying the motivated students, give them a formal checklist [pour quoi?];
3) If needed, provide minimum mentoring and follow-up
Here are two examples : 5-steps self-initiation on how to contribute to Wikipedia and 12-weeks program to start a blog on research topic.

Learning Outcomes: 

Contributing to Wikipédia and starting a research blog.

Individual or Group:

Course Context (e.g. how it was implemented or integrated): 
Additional Instructor Resources (e.g. in-class activities, worksheets, scaffolding applications, supplemental modules, further readings, etc.): 
Potential Pitfalls and Teaching Tips: 
Suggested Citation: 
Martinolli, Pascal. "Missionner les étudiants surmotivés sur des objectifs connexes / Self-driven side-quests with minimum mentoring." CORA (Community of Online Research Assignments), 2018. https://projectcora.org/assignment/missionner-les-%C3%A9tudiants-surmotiv%C3%A9s-sur-des-objectifs-connexes-self-driven-side-quests.
Submitted by Pascal Martinolli on July 24th, 2018
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Short Description: 

The purpose of this activity is to inspire students to adopt structured methods when they explore and retrieve information. It is based on lab notebooking methods and on managing and documenting the flow of references in Zotero, a reference management software.

The first principle is based on a tree of collections to manage the references arriving in the Zotero library. Some basic methods are suggested and the students are invited to create their own. The second principle is based on standalone notes to document all the research process through online database, libraries and experts.

Attachments: 
AttachmentSize
Description of the activity (in English)displayed 1783 times587.94 KB
Description de l'activité (en français)displayed 1754 times753.58 KB
Learning Outcomes: 

Adopting structured methods when exploring and retrieving informations;
Managing and documenting the flow of references in Zotero.

Individual or Group:

Suggested Citation: 
Martinolli, Pascal. "ZotLog: Inspiring students to adopt structured methods in Zotero." CORA (Community of Online Research Assignments), 2018. https://projectcora.org/assignment/zotlog-inspiring-students-adopt-structured-methods-zotero.

Teaching Resource

This website provides several subject-specific guides to ICT literacy resources (bibliographies, websites, articles, learning activity ideas) to help faculty incorporate ICT literacy into their curriculum.

Teaching Resource

Science NetLinks is a dynamic Website connecting K-12 teachers, students, and families to STEM resources produced by the American Association for the Advancement of Science including les

Teaching Resource

Amazon Inspire is a service that provides educators a place to discover, manage, rate, review, and share educational resources. Search by title, subjects, grade levels, resource types, publishers, and standards.

Submitted by Laura Massa on January 5th, 2017
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Short Description: 

In small groups students give a presentation examining how the popular media reports scientific findings.

Attachments: 
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Science in the Media presentations assignment & rubricdisplayed 1588 times19.28 KB
Learning Outcomes: 

• Discriminate between scholarly and popular modes of knowledge through an understanding of the peer review process. • Engage critically and reflectively in scholarly discourse. • Exercise critical thinking in oral discussion and writing.

Individual or Group:

Additional Instructor Resources (e.g. in-class activities, worksheets, scaffolding applications, supplemental modules, further readings, etc.): 

Before I introduce the assignment I ask students to rate how accurately they believe that the popular media reports scientific findings. After all of the presentations have been given, I ask them to rate this again, and engage in a bit of reflective writing. I ask them explain why their rating has stayed the same or changed, how they will approach science in the media moving forward, and what they think the main take-aways from this assignment have been. We then discuss those take-away messages-- which usually results in a much broader and deeper understanding of information sources.

Suggested Citation: 
Massa, Laura. "Science in the Media." CORA (Community of Online Research Assignments), 2017. https://projectcora.org/assignment/science-media.

Teaching Resource

MIT OpenCourseWare is a web-based publication of virtually all MIT course content. 

Submitted by Carolyn Caffrey on August 25th, 2016
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Short Description: 

This group activity can be used in a variety of disciplines and contexts. Pass the Problem aims to have students provide feedback to other students on database and keyword selection. By having students critique each other it works to build critical self-reflection during the research process (it's also pretty fun!).

Attachments: 
AttachmentSize
Pass the Problem.docxdisplayed 4277 times24.33 KB
Learning Outcomes: 

Strategically select a database appropriate for their research topics Brainstorm keywords appropriate to a given research topic Evaluate the effectiveness of searching language

Individual or Group:

Course Context (e.g. how it was implemented or integrated): 

This activity was part of a larger class session focused on preparing students for their interdisciplinary research projects. At this point in the semester students did not yet have their own research topics. It also took place outside of a computer classroom where not all students had laptops. Students break up into groups of 3-4 students. You can make as many topics as you want. For a class of 25 I created 4 topic options. Each group receives 5-10 minutes to complete each segment. When the timer is up they switch with a group. No one should receive the paper they start with until the very end. At the end of the activity we come back as a class and discuss how it went and what strategies they might implement in their own research processes. (I first heard about the idea of passing a problem in an interactive way from Sarah Lucchesi and Jenn Sams from Michigan Tech at Lake Superior Libraries Symposium, this is inspired by their idea.)

Potential Pitfalls and Teaching Tips: 

Tips: Activity works well when paired with additional content. You can mix up the questions or add more. Pitfall: Choosing approachable topics with lots of keywords options. It can be hard to have students easily trade papers in classrooms set up with rows, you may need to facilitate the passing.

Suggested Citation: 
Caffrey, Carolyn . "Pass the Problem." CORA (Community of Online Research Assignments), 2016. https://projectcora.org/assignment/pass-problem.

Teaching Resource

Resources in science and engineering education from Richard Felder, Hoechst Celanese Professor Emeritus of Chemical Engineering at North Carolina State University. Topics include student handouts, learning styles, and papers.

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