The Use of Discrepant Events in the Science Classroom

1. The Use of Discrepant Events in the Science Classroom Denny LaBarge Physics Teacher Colegio Americano de Quito

2. My Presentation Objectives • The Students Who Walk Into Science Class • Teaching Philosophy in the Science Classroom • The Value of Discrepant Events • Demonstrations of Simple Discrepant Events • The Role of Discrepant Events as an Instructional Strategy • Discrepant Event Resources

3. Students Are Confused and Distrustful of Science

4. Students LackCritical Thinking Skills

5. Do These Sound Familiar? “No matter how complex the problem, you can bet there will be a simple solution.” “I hate when teachers discuss problems instead of just giving the answers.” “If my belief is truly sincere, evidence to the contrary is irrelevant.” “I don’t waste time looking things up.” “Critical Thinking: What It Is and Why It Counts” Published 2010 Dr. Peter A. Facione Senior Researcher with Insight Assessment

6. They Carry Baggage “Students come into the classroom with prerequisite knowledge (existing schemas) and, as they progress through their education, these schemas are progressively (or sequentially) built upon.” “In order to teach science successfully, it is vital to ensure that existing schemas are sound and to modify any misconceptions that will compromise them……” “An Exploration of Common Student Misconceptions in Science,” 2006 Fiona Thompson and Sue Log School of Education, University of Adelaide

7. “I am among those that think science has great beauty. A scientist in his laboratory is not only a technician: he is also a child placed before natural phenomena which impress him like a fairy tale.” Madame Marie Curie Physicist – Chemist 2 Time Nobel Prize Winner

8. Let’s Make it to the Dinner Table

9. The Value of Discrepant Events

10. “A discrepant scientific event is a surprising occurrence – such as corn growing faster in the dark than in the light – that challenges learners’ preconceptions.” Emmett L. Wright, PhD Academic Curriculum, Science Education, Environmental Biology Pennsylvania State University

11. “One way to challenge students’ naïve ideas is to apply the conceptual change model of science learning. This model proposes making students aware of the inadequacies of their own explanations by exposing them to evidence that directly contradicts their ideas, thereby creating cognitive conflict.” K. Appleton “Students’ Responses During Discrepant Event Science Lessons” Annual Meeting of the National Association for Research in Science Teaching - 1996

12. Successful Discrepant Events • Simple • Accessible • Tested • Understandable • Use Everyday Objects Whenever Possible • Possible for Students to Recreate • Make Sure They Work Before Trying With Students • Be Sure You Can Explain them

13. Today’s Discrepancies If I Told You – That Would Spoil The Surprise, Now Wouldn’t It?

14. I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand. • - Confucius

15. - Discrepant Events -Part of a Larger Instructional Strategy • Discrepant Events to Introduce New Concept • Conundrums • Problem-of-the-Day • Inquiry Driven Instruction • Inquiry Labs to Introduce New Concepts • Design or “Discovery” Labs • Independent Research

16. Discrepant Events - Resources - • Websites • http://www.mcrel.org/whelmers/index.asp • http://bcramond.myweb.uga.edu/home/DiscrepantEvents.htm • http://www.plu.edu/~vedrosr/discrepant.html • http://www.csun.edu/scied/

18. I do not teach my pupils. I only attempt to provide the conditions in which they can learn. - Albert Einstein