1. Molo Advisory Board Meeting Modeling at CC
Robert Tinker
The Concord Consortium
Jan. 9-10, 2004
Molo Advisory Board Meeting

2. Molo Advisory Board Meeting
Modeling in General
“Modeling” as we use it:
Computational models
Real-time visualizations of the computations
Variables under user control
Why we like models
Can match mental models
Educational use is like experimentation
Kids experience new environments
Can link to macro-scale phenomena
Student can transfer understanding
Less to memorize, more to reason out
Jan. 9-10, 2004
Molo Advisory Board Meeting

3. Models Under Development
BioLogica: Classical genetics
Dynamica: Classical dynamics
Molecular dynamics
Basic model
Additions for chemistry
Additions for biology
Connections to BioLogica for evolution
Jan. 9-10, 2004
Molo Advisory Board Meeting

4. The Need for Scaffolding
Model use in education
Require activities
Exploration is hard to manage in the classroom
Online activities have many advantages
Models can be too complex, w/ too many options
Students can get lost and waste valuable instructional time
Jan. 9-10, 2004
Molo Advisory Board Meeting

5. Molo Advisory Board Meeting
Scaffolding Means
Framing and guiding inquiry
Providing just the right options and displays
Noting student actions and reacting accordingly
Creating targeted learning activities
Linking pages of activities into a standards-based modules
Jan. 9-10, 2004
Molo Advisory Board Meeting

6. Molo Advisory Board Meeting
Molecular Dynamics
Defined
Computing the motion of collections of atoms using Newton’s Laws
Using atomic forces
Van der Waals
Coulomb forces
Elastic bonds
Boundary conditions
Jan. 9-10, 2004
Molo Advisory Board Meeting

7. Molo Advisory Board Meeting
Molecular Dynamics
Emergent behavior
Energy conservation
Temperature
Phases of matter
Solubility
In general
Thermodynamics
Nano structure
Jan. 9-10, 2004
Molo Advisory Board Meeting

8. Molo Advisory Board Meeting
Pedagogica
Provides scaffolding for models
The combination of Pedagogica and a model is a hypermodel
Controls the page, model, and other objects on a page
Can link multiple applications on a page
Can link pages together
Can gather data from students
Is itself programmed by a script: JavaScript
Jan. 9-10, 2004
Molo Advisory Board Meeting

9. “Pedagogicizable” Objects
Molecular viewer
Probeware
Portfolio
Any Flash animation
Any Quicktime object
Any NetLogo program
Any Java program
Jan. 9-10, 2004
Molo Advisory Board Meeting

10. Qian’s “TeacherScreen”
An alternative scaffolding solution
Model, controls, and displays embedded in a word processor
Launched and linked with WebStart
Less flexible than Pedagogica
Far smaller and easier to author
Jan. 9-10, 2004
Molo Advisory Board Meeting

11. Molo Advisory Board Meeting
Embedded Assessment
Explicit
Ask questions, return text, choices, and numbers
Implicit
Observe time, options used
Derive information from models made
New research methodology
Can return data to Pedagogica, students, teachers, and researchers
Jan. 9-10, 2004
Molo Advisory Board Meeting

12. Molo Advisory Board Meeting
Problems
Implementing “heavy” applications
Using networks requires school networking sophistication that seldom exists
Using CD-ROMs is sometimes not possible or not allowed
School computers
Generally in a computer lab, which is disruptive
We must test all combinations of OS, browser, and computers
Jan. 9-10, 2004
Molo Advisory Board Meeting

13. Molo Advisory Board Meeting
The Hope
Computationally heavy applications are compelling
The combination of scaffolded models and embedded assessment overcomes the problems
The new learning opportunities created by models support new curricula
Jan. 9-10, 2004
Molo Advisory Board Meeting

14. Molo Advisory Board Meeting
Jan. 9-10, 2004
Molo Advisory Board Meeting