| On Your Spark, Get
Set, Go ! Spicing Up Your College Science Curriculum ! volume 3
An important mission of the Saut quantique is to
promote the exchange of innovative pedagogical activities between
collegial science teachers. To accomplish this mission, compendiums
of pedagogical scenarios are produced. French versions of these
compendiums are called « Coffre
aux trésors pédagogiques en sciences au collégial
» and « Étincelles
pédagogiques en sciences au collégial ».
The Saut quantique is pleased
to provide the compendium of pedagogical scenorios ON YOUR SPARK,
GET SET, GO ! SPICING UP YOUR COLLEGE SCIENCE CURRICULUM! (translated
from Étincelles pédagogiques en science au collégial,
volume 3, published in 2005).
This compendium includes eleven pedagogical activities
designed and tested by science teachers in the Quebec cegep network.
More specifically, these activities include information about:
- Targeted
student population;
- Competencies
or objectives;
- Relationship
between the activity, supporting course and study program;
- Educational
support;
- Stages in
conducting the activity;
- Required
material;
- Evaluation
;
Moreover, you can download an overview and a pedagogical
analysis for each activity.
The CD-ROM provided with the compendium includes
these activities in PDF format as well as appendices referred to
by authors.
Among the pedagogical activities in this compendium,
some were awarded a prize in the Getting Off the Beaten Path
2004-2005 contest, organized by the Saut quantique
with the collaboration of Merck
Frosst Canada Ltée. This contest aims at honouring innovative
science teachers in the cegep network, and finding activities that
target the general goals of the Science program (see section
Concours et prix
for more information).
The authors know how difficult it can be to integrate
a new activity into your teaching schedule, and therefore authorize
you to modify their documents as long as you mention the originating
source. Thus, appendices are also available in Word, Mapple
or Excel formats as applicable, on the CD-ROM. You can also contact
authors for questions or comments. They will be happy to answer.
If you would like to publish an activity in the Pedagogical
Treasures section and in our next compendium On your Spark,
Get Set, Go! please fill the form formulaire
de présentation and send it to the Web site responsible
(see Nous joindre).
How to download PDF files
Activities are available in PDF (Portable Document
Format) format. This format allows publication of files in their
original presentation and preserves their integrity.
To visualize and print you must use a visualisation
software such as Adobe's Acrobat Reader. You can download Acrobat
Reader 4.0 software for free from Adobe's Web:
http://www.adobe.com/prodindex/acrobat/readstep.html
To install and configure this software, please follow
Abode's instructions.
On Your Spark, Get Set, Go ! Spicing Up
Your College Science Curriculum ! volume 3
| 1. |
Biodiversity
: Beyond Conventions
By Hélène
Lalancette
Cégep de Granby Haute-Yamaska
Award-winning activity in the Getting
Off the Beaten Path contest
As part of the course Evolution and Diversity
of Life, students are invited to further examine the concept
of biodiversity through familiarization with contents of the
Convention on Biological Diversity, which resulted from the
Earth Summit held in Rio in 1992. |
Overview
Pedagogical
analysis
Pedagogical
guide
Appendices
File
related problems ? |
| 2. |
Controversis
in Human Biology
By Sébastien
Paradis
Cégep de Sainte-Foy
The teacher presents a controversy for each
of the four topics in the course curriculum (male reproductive
system, female reproductive system, sexual relation and muscular
system). Two teams work on each controversy for two weeks.
They must learn about the subject, understand how the system
works, and take a position on the controversy. The members
of each team then present their positions and arguments, and
explain the contents of the issue to their class colleagues,
using a poster. Presentations are followed by a discussion.
|
Overview
Pedagogical
analysis
Pedagogical
guide
Appendices
File
related problems ? |
3. |
Levers
and Muscle Action
By Lucie
Morin
Cégep de Sainte-Foy
Each team of four people must analyze five
simple movements to identify various parameters: the joint
involved, the muscle chiefly responsible for the movement
(agonist) and its anatomical position (point of origin and
insertion). Afterwards, it must specify the type of lever
and make a schematic drawing of the lever system involved,
clearly identifying the fulcrum, load and force (e.g.: elbow,
weight of forearm and hand, biceps brachii, etc.).
After completing the exercise, the teams are invited to address
two problem issues that stimulate their reflective thinking
process and the reinvestment of newly acquired learnings.
|
Overview
Pedagogical
analysis
Pedagogical
guide
Appendices
File
related problems ?
|
| 4. |
Computer-Assisted
Chemical Kinetics
By Gilles
Sabourin
Collège Gérald Godin
In this activity, students will track the
rate at which the colour of phenolphthalein changes in alkaline
solution, using a spectrophotometer connected to a computer.
Students use varying concentrations of NaOH for the same concentration
of phenolphthalein. They compare their results against the
theoretical aspects presented in class. During the laboratory
session, the teacher hands them a scientific article about
this experiment, and invites them to compare their results
to those in the article. |
Overview
Pedagogical
analysis
Pedagogical
guide
Appendices
File
related problems ? |
| 5. |
Synthesis
and Analysis of Nifedipine
By David Perelle
and Claude Bordeleau Collège Ahuntsic
This activity describes the synthesis of
nifedipine. This compound belongs to a group called calcium-channel
blockers, used to treat angina and hypertension. It was developed
and patented by Bayer (famous for Aspirin) over thirty years
ago.
|
Overview
Pedagogical
analysis
Pedagogical
guide
Appendices
File
related problems ? |
| 6. |
Peer
Instruction
By André Blais
Collège André-Grasset
Award-winning activity in the Getting
Off the Beaten Path contest
The activity essentially consists of presenting
formative multiple-choice tests on physics concepts, to provide
some meaning to what students learn. These tests are often
related to everyday life situations, or to an application
in medicine or engineering. Students must first think on an
individual basis, and then discuss in small groups to find
the appropriate answer. The approach puts an emphasis on understanding
the concepts in order to achieve the course competency.
|
Overview
Pedagogical
analysis
Pedagogical
guide
Appendices
File
related problems ? |
| 7. |
The
Rocket: Up, Up and Away !
By Christian
Héon
Cégep de Victoriaville
This activity consists in a long experimentation
process, which is spread over just about the entire semester,
and is divided into three phases: building a rocket, measuring
the rocket’s trajectory and simulating the flight.
|
Overview
Pedagogical
analysis
Pedagogical
guide
Appendices
File
related problems ? |
| 8. |
For
or Against the Implementation of a Nuclear Power Plant
By France Garnier
Centre d'innovation pédagogique - Le
Saut Quantique
The teacher presents the situation scenario
For or Against the Implementation of a Nuclear Power Plant
to the class. The students then choose a topic for further
study and divide themselves into teams. The teacher acts only
as guide/facilitator. The students take part in discussions
to shed some light on the topic based on bibliographical research
done between classes.
|
Overview
Pedagogical
analysis
Pedagogical
guide
Appendices
File
related problems ? |
| 9. |
Excel-Based
Stereograms
By Vincent
Papillon
Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf
Students divide into teams of two to design
and digitize one or more 3D objects, and use Excel to calculate
their 2D central projections from which they will obtain perspective
drawings for each eye.
|
Overview
Pedagogical
analysis
Pedagogical
guide
Appendices
File
related problems ? |
| 10. |
Astronomy
News
By Bruno
Martel
Cégep de St-Félicien
In science courses, teachers are always looking for ways to
get students interested and involved. They also try to integrate
learning and to give some meaning to their teaching. It is
in this perspective that we came up with Astronomy News. |
Overview
Pedagogical
analysis
Pedagogical
guide
Appendices
File
related problems ? |
| 11. |
Planing
a City with Matrices
By Robert Bilinski
Collège Montmorency
The activity introduces students to an application
of matrices in urban planning. Indeed, matrices may be used
to study possible travel routes between two locations, or
to assign one-way traffic to different streets, when planning
a city. This can be achieved by representing all street corners
and streets in a graph. The graph is then modeled with its
incidence matrix and various powers thereof.
|
Overview
Pedagogical
analysis
Pedagogical
guide
Appendices
File
related problems ? |
|
