NetLogo - Technology and Models

For the past week we have been learning about Ecology.  I have a number of old resources that I have been asked to use in the classroom.  With the recent talk of NGSS and STEM I was looking for ways to integrate some sort of meaningful technology into the classroom.

As I was poking through several videos on the Bozeman Science website, Paul Anderson briefly mentioned NetLogo as resource he uses in his classroom.  NetLogo is a piece of software that creates computer models of all sorts of scientific or statistical situations.  The software helps model everything from basic traffic patterns to game theory.  I found a model that helps visualize relationships between predator and prey and I was able to use it in class with great success.

The need in the classroom:

1. To quickly visualize the relationship between predator and prey over generations.
2. To quickly visualize the results of messing with the balance of predator/prey relationships.
3. To visualize and analyze the results of the corresponding data.

Gathering this type of data to has been a lengthy process in the past.  It ends up usually being too general or too painstakingly lengthy to make the exercise meaningful.  And, generating data where one of the variables changed is hypothetical and equally time-consuming.  NetLogo provided a way to quickly generate data for the situations we were looking at.

The Old Way.  *sigh*

Downloading and installing NetLogo was pretty simple.  It's a Java based program so it can be installed almost anywhere and I was impressed that it ran so smoothly on my lightweight laptop.

Here's a screenshot of the Wolf Sheep Predation model.

Shiny!

Now, here's what I'm most excited about.  The model produced data that really helped scaffold good questions.  The students were interested in the modeling and were mostly impressed at how fast data could be generated.  The data allowed me to assess the students' understanding of the principles we've been talking about in the last 4 class periods.

In each class we ran a basic simulation and we talked about the ebb and flow of both predator and prey but we were also able to play with the variables.  In one instance we had a situation where the number of sheep dipped too low and the wolves went extinct within our digital biome.  I got a reaction from a lot of the students!  I was surprised and very excited at the empathy!

After the demonstration we moved on to other classwork, but I continued to get questions about the predator/prey relationships, what-if questions, and questions about running the software themselves.  For a small investment of classroom time and an hour of my personal time I got quite a satisfying result.

Squeezing In Points: Academic Purgatory

Here's a note for Future Dan: better planning reduces student stress.

This week will be a stressful week for the students.  5 Week Grades are due on Thursday, and there is a pressure to finish the unit on evolution before starting the next 5-week session.  The pressure is only coming from a planning calendar loosely based on the effectively defunct California Science Standards.

This week: The Perfect Storm:

1. Tuesday: Quiz on Chapter 17
2. Wednesday: Essay Exam on Unit 5 - Evolution
3. Thursday: Multiple Choice Exam on Unit 5 - Evolution

I am growing increasingly skeptical of the massive unit exam typical of science courses.  The ability to assess the students' higher level learning in an intense examination in 90 minutes seems counter-productive.  Unit exams seems to promote cramming and really hinder long-term understanding.

Unit exams may have their place, but they should be more application, synthesis, or evaluation-type assessments.  

I would like to find or develop a system where there's a capstone assignment for the unit rather than a massive exam.  The capstone project would be supported by better assessments during lesson delivery. All assessments would involve an activity or a section of reading from something that piques students' interests. 

Better planning before a unit built on better assessment types can avoid cramming and the test anxiety common with antique testing methods.  Sadly, these methods are perpetuated by the always dangerous mindset of "that's always the way we've done it."

Grading Style: Hard but Fair

There are a good amount of written analysis questions asked of students in our honors biology class, and before I give an assignment, I usually answer the first question with the students.  I outline my expectations and have a discussion before turning the students loose on the rest of an assignment.  When papers are collected, I grade according to those expectations.

Before grading, my master teacher and I get together to calibrate expectations, and then I show her my grading after I've finished a stack.

Despite the hours of grading, I have really enjoyed the process.  I admit that it's frustrating to see students rush through questions and miss major pieces of the question.  I take off points and make comments about what they missed.

I was glad to hear from a student.  He said, "Mr. Davis, you're a hard grader."
"Fair?" I asked.

"Yeah.  But, hard."

I was happy.

Mr. Davis' Lab Notes: A Few Ideas

After tens of hours leading a high school biology lab, here are a few things I've learned:

1. A lab worksheet should have clear instructions.  Just because it's clear to me doesn't mean that it'll be clear to a student.  If you have a student service, ask them to do the lab.  Adjust the instructions as needed.  When a lab is over, go through the lab worksheet and change things for next time.
2. A teacher should only need a minute or two to set the lab in context of the course content and issue safety warnings before turning the students loose.  If it takes you more than a few minutes to do this, then either your expectations or the lab design must be changed.
3. A good lab takes time.  Students need time to read the instructions and even to visualize the process. Students need a few attempts at tying things out before they're actually getting good data.  In my experience, severe time constraints inhibit the value of a lab; when teachers eliminate problem-solving, labs turn into a paint-by-number assignment.
4. Students must be taught to read instructions.
5. Use the lab to walk around and ask good questions.  Even with 40+ students in a classroom, I have managed to get to each group several times over a period and be available for questions or to point students in the right direction.
6. There's an art to asking analysis questions.  I am certain that the quality of the question determines the quality of the answer.  I'm no good at this yet, but this will be one of those things I will try and continually improve.  A good question points students to the right answer without giving it to them; they'll need to make the jump themselves.

It seems to me that a lab should be organized chaos and the teacher's role is to ask guiding questions.

I would love to get to the point where I can teach content, present students with an overarching question, give the students resources to answer the questions, and then set them loose.  To that end, I improve my labs.

Grading Your Assignments: No, You Can't Use Pink Ink

I've successfully graded two periods of labs!  I have another period to do today, but here are a few thoughts.

• Pink ink is nice...if you're 7.  And drawing unicorns.  Pink ink on a lab report is not nice.  Ever.
  Plus, it clashes with my Stipula Calamo Red Fountain Pen Ink I'm using to grade.
• There is an obvious connection between the quality of the question to the quality of an answer.
  There was another variable that I hadn't considered.  The questions I asked in class are very different than the questions asked on the lab and this changed caused confusion.  There's a middle ground somewhere; I need to be able to ask better questions, but questions on the lab need to be modified to be a bit more user-friendly.
• As I grade the students, I grade my own instruction.
• Writing is a window to the mind.  Mostly.  A majority of students demonstrated a clear grasp of the information; some demonstrated a clear misunderstanding.  However, there were some students that I know understand the content but performed poorly on the response questions.  I think that modifying the questions a bit will help these students communicate what they know.  

Possible Solutions

At the beginning of the year, I do plan on spending extra class time to prepare the students for the year, and even the rest of their education.  I can think of two ways that may help.  First is to show students how to examine a question.  If they understand the question, they can better answer it.  Second is to set expectations for some of the repeated things we'll do in class.  Glitter gel pens: bad.  Bic Blue: good.  One-word answers: bad.  Thorough answers in complete sentences: good.

A Final Note

It seems like students are used to answering low-level questions or receiving completion grades on assignments in the past.  Spending a few periods at the beginning of the year may help show students that comprehension is good, but we'll also need to learn how to analyze, make connections, and communicate their knowledge.