graham.davidson » Science

The Dreaded Reports

Graham Davidson — Mon, 05 Feb 2007 09:11:20 +0000

Having now been using the authoroties “Click and Go” for writing reports for the last few years, I was amazed to hear recently that some schools are only now beginning to use this feature of the system.

Personally speaking, I think it is brilliant. It makes writing the reports much easier as well as quicker. I have been playing around with the “Comments banks” which are a bit fiddly, but once they are set up, they can be used as a foundation for getting the report written.

Another big PLUS for ICT.

Good Software

Graham Davidson — Tue, 16 Jan 2007 15:28:27 +0000

I was recently fortunate enough to be allowed to purchase a piece of software which allows you to make up good quality online test resources. I have placed an example here for you to have a look at. It was made using software from www.articulate.com which is very user friendly. I also have other samples available such as credit level, intermediate 2 and Higher Biology questions. If anyone would like more info, please feel free to ask me.

“Interactive” Software

Graham Davidson — Wed, 10 Jan 2007 09:44:17 +0000

Is it just me, or is everyone else being inundated with colourful brochures from companies selling “interactive” software? This would seem to be the bandwagon to be on at the moment. £100 here, £250 there, etc. and some of them a lot more expensive than that. I would like to know who is actually buying this stuff and where they are getting the money from, because it is these people who are keeping the prices out of certainly my price range. I have no doubt that some of this stuff is very good and would enhance learning and teaching, but until the prices come down, we will just have to make do with what we have at present.

Ah well!!! Dream on!!!

Smart Boards

Graham Davidson — Mon, 06 Nov 2006 09:55:52 +0000

The latest upgrade to the Smartboard software (9.5) is now available as a download from http://www.smarttech.com/support/software/index.asp

The actual notebook software is slightly improved, but the biggest improvement has to be in the gallery. The gallery now contains excellent resources for everyone and they are now including many interactive Flash resources which are very simple to use but make education fun for all those involved. You must try “dissecting the frog” – it’s brilliant.

One new feature of the latest offering is the ability to import Powerpoint files into “Notebook” as well as export “Notebook” files into Powerpoint. Very useful.

When to Use ICT??

Graham Davidson — Wed, 04 Oct 2006 10:35:26 +0000

I was recently doing some graph work with my new S1 Science class (S1 Graphs.doc), and it sparked some thoughts on the use of ICT to do this.

They can use Microsoft Excel to produce the graphs using the data that I supplied, and indeed, most of the pupils are very, very good at this.

On the other hand, if they are asked to draw the graphs on graph paper using “old fashioned tools” such as rulers, pencils, colour pencils, pens, rubbers, etc.., they were very, very poor at it.

So what does this tell us?

It suggested to me a number of things:

1. Most of them are very confident when it comes to using spreadsheets to draw graphs.

2. They are not used to the discipline of sitting with a piece of paper and having to use a ruler to draw lines, measure accurately, label the axes of graphs, put the proper scales on the axes and plot the points or draw the bars accurately. And yet most of them will be required to do this in whatever “Science” exam they take at Standard Grade, Intermediate 1 or 2, and so on. In fact, it is a fair bet that it won’t just be in a Science exam.

3. Perhaps we are going over the top at times in trying to incorporate ICT into our lessons and we should be standing back a bit and thinking about it.

I am definitely NOT saying that we should NOT be using ICT in lessons, but perhaps it is time to stop and think where exactly we are going with this, what we are teaching the pupils and why we are teaching it. There is a time and a place for ICT, but there is also a time and a place for the good “old fashioned tools”.

Another Brilliant Use of ICT in Biology

Graham Davidson — Sat, 09 Sep 2006 18:33:00 +0000

Today S1 Science were introduced to the light microscope and using it to look at plant cells – in particular, onion cells. In order to demonstrate this we set up a microscope attached to a “Visiview” video camera which in turn was attached to the Smart board. This allowed the whole class to become involved and see the cells on the large screen. By doing this the pupils are then much more aware of what they should be seeing through their own microscope when they do it individually. It also made it easier for me to teach them what the different parts of the microscope do as they could all see what was happening at the one time. A fantastic lesson for all, particularly me, the teacher, as this is quite difficult to teach normally. Another plus for ICT as a “tool”. The attached photo shows the onion cells as they appeared on the Smart board.

Onion Cells on the Smart Board

“Visiview” camera attached to the Smart board and the microscope.

Using ICT with the new S1 Science class

Graham Davidson — Fri, 25 Aug 2006 09:31:51 +0000

Today the new S1 Science class were being introduced to some of the basic science apparatus. This involved using a bunsen burner to heat some water in a beaker. They were to measure the temperature of the water every 30 seconds for 10 minutes and record their results. Once the water reached 100 oC they were to turn the burners off. Working in groups of 3, they each recorded their own results and next lesson they will be asked to draw a line graph of their results.

However, I have prepared a simple spreadsheet in Excel into which they will enter their group’s results. This will them average all the groups results together and convert them into a line graph. They will be using the Smart board to do this and they will all see the results instantly.

I tried to attach the spreadsheet to this post but it won’t allow it. If anyone would like a copy, please email me and I will forward it.