Effective Virtual (and In-Person) Learning in Science (part 2)

Based on current research, effective science instruction looks a bit different than what I often did as a teacher. In fact, there is more to it than having students engage in the three dimensions of the Wisconsin Standards for Science (or NGSS). Students must do more than go through a series of activities or labs (whether in person or virtually) to learn concepts. They need to be actively making sense of meaningful phenomena and solving problems, where their thinking develops over time. To illustrate what I mean, I am going to share four science activities, how I would modify them, and what assessment might look like. In each, my goal is that students become more active creators of knowledge and understanding, rather than only going through the motions pre-determined by the teacher. The grade levels of these activities are a bit flexible, generally middle or high school, though they could be modified for upper elementary. 

Activity 1 - Cells: Students go through a series of Google slides, watching video clips, filling out blanks for parts of a cell, and doing an embedded PearDeck quiz at the end.

Modification: Student groups brainstorm what critical aspects are of a family living space (home) on a Jamboard. They review each other’s ideas, then the teacher leads a class conversation to combine the ideas (goal of getting to ideas such as outer wall protection, energy, waste, water). The teacher uses the language of “systems thinking.” Students then go back to their group Jamboards, add class ideas if they’re not there, and mark which of those functions an individual cell would need to do—also adding other cell ideas as needed. Then, the teacher provides a listing of organelles and their functions, asking students to individually complete a diagram that matches organelles with the functions their group has discussed. When they come back together, they share their ideas and add new ones to the previous Jamboard about important cell and household functions.

Assessment: Students receive one of several types of cells, such as heart cells or neurons (differentiation). They are asked which function will be most likely needed by that cell, and therefore which organelles will be more abundant. Throughout their work, the discussions and explanations will help the teacher make sure students aren’t hiding a lack of understanding behind memorized terms and definitions. 

 Activity 2 - Rocks: Students find a rock outside and have to identify whether it is sedimentary, metamorphic, or igneous, creating a CER that builds on their observations and learning about these rock types. Either in small groups using shared Google docs/slides, or through Flipgrid, students then react to other students’ claims and evidence, noting whether they agree or not and why.

Modification: A key thing missing here is a “why.” What’s the phenomenon students are making sense of or what’s the engineering problem they’re solving? A purely classification task like this shouldn’t be an end in itself—it’s not that important (and you’ll notice that they don’t exist in the NGSS). Instead, it should be part of larger sensemaking or engineering work. How about have groups explore rocks for different building tasks, making a claim for using a particular rock based on properties and costs. Then, they’d look at some actual rocks/crystals under the microscope and create models based on those images to help explain how these rocks were formed and why certain rocks are better for particular purposes.

Assessment: MS/HS – individually model internal structures of different rock types to explain why one type is good and one type not as good for a new building task. Create pics in Google and write up (or Flipgrid) explanation. Could also connect to chemical properties.

Activity 3 - Chemistry: In introductory chemistry, students learn about properties of acids and bases and their chemical formulas. They identify a substance as an acid or a base by its properties. They balance equations for simple acid and base reactions.

Modification: Student start with the phenomenon of the “alkaline diet” trend. Through an inquiry-based and student-centered process, they build up an understanding of acids and bases specifically to evaluate their claims.

Assessments: Create a website using Canva that shares an evaluation of alkaline diets, including designing an investigation to model how the pH of foods affects the pH within our bodies. They could also write a detailed, evidence-based letter to the editor of health websites or magazines.

Activity 4 - Dissection: The teacher virtually dissects a fetal pig (or, if in person, students do). The students see and memorize body parts.

Modification: Why is memorizing body parts and functions important? Instead, the phenomenon could be plastics pollution. A local DNR scientist could virtually join students and cut open a fish, together looking for plastics accumulation with students making claims for where that might happen and why. Is it in brain, liver, heart, muscles, blood, stomach, or intestines? Where and why do we find plastic and chemicals from plastics breaking down? The partner DNR or university scientist could use a gas chromatograph to test student ideas.

Assessment: A choose your own adventure lab! The teacher records a series of videos that students can choose from to do a virtual necropsy on an animal that had been showing particular symptoms. Students have to explain why they decide to look at videos highlighting particular organs/systems and what they might see in relation to particular causes of death. They use evidence from videos and research to make a claim for a particular cause of death and explain their reasoning.  

Admittedly, we are in a strange and challenging time for learning. What may have engaged students in the past might not work now. I hear teachers saying that students are sitting with videos off and remain silent even in breakout rooms. There are no easy answers, but I do believe that some shifts to more student-centered and phenomenon-based learning might help. I continue to make the assertion that quality matters over coverage!