Transcript Visualizing and discovering materials science concepts

Visualizing and discovering materials science
concepts: Creating an engaging pedagogy
with spreadsheets
Scott A. Sinex
Department of Physical Sciences and Engineering
Prince George's Community College
Joshua B. Halpern
Department of Chemistry
Howard University
Presented at the 238th ACS National Meeting, Washington, DC, August 16-20, 2009
Why interactive spreadsheets?
• Easy access for students and useful for them
to know
• Easy for instructors to develop – see
Developer’s Guide to Excelets
• Creates an engaging pedagogy
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…more why?
• Addresses topics conceptually, while
camouflaging mathematics
– Students have to think:
predict - test - analyze
• Allows for mathematical modeling and
studying errors
– More science process
– Mathematics resurfaces!!!!
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What is the difference between an isotropic and
anisotropic material?
Obvious to us but not to all of our students
Easy to develop background sheets
http://academic.pgcc.edu/~ssinex/excelets/thermal_expansion.xls
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How does the size of an atom vary
on the periodic table?
Simple data bases for students
to discover relationships
http://academic.pgcc.edu/~ssinex/excelets/radii_comparison.xls
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Are bond lengths constant?
Simple animations add value
http://academic.pgcc.edu/~ssinex/excelets/vibration_solid.xls
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How do you determine ionic radii?
Immediate, visual feedback to students
http://academic.pgcc.edu/~ssinex/excelets/FCC_ionic_compound.xls
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MatSci Excelets
• Interactive concept
exploration
• Supports Mathematicians'
“Rule of Four”
• Mathematical modeling
• Supports national standards in engineering,
mathematics, sciences, and technology
http://academic.pgcc.edu/~ssinex/excelets/matsci_excelets.htm
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What do students like most?
For use in general chemistry (Spring 09; n = 28 students):
predict - test - analyze
http://academic.pgcc.edu/~ssinex/excelets/assess.htm
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Student feedback…
Which do you prefer:
static graphs in textbook
dynamic graphs in Excel
both
Spring 07
Spring 09
21%
76%
3%
7%
89%
4%
(6)
(22)
(1)
(2)
(25)
(1)
Using Excelets does not require that you be familiar with Excel.
most definitely
I think so
just barely
not at all
don’t know
7%
38%
34%
14%
7%
(2)
(11)
(10)
(4)
(2)
25%
36%
32%
7%
All Student Survey results
http://academic.pgcc.edu/~ssinex/excelets/assess.htm
(7)
(10)
(9)
(2)
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more feedback…
Excelets offer a more visual experience with graphs instead of
using just the mathematical equations.
most definitely
I think so
just barely
not at all
don’t know
66%
24%
10%
(19)
(7)
(3)
75%
14%
11%
(21)
(4)
(3)
Excelets make it easier to grasp or learn a concept.
most definitely
I think so
just barely
not at all
don’t know
55%
31%
14%
(16)
(9)
(4)
43%
54%
4%
(12)
(15)
(1)
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…like least?
• “Make it less voluminous with fewer
questions. Less stress on brain and less time
spent on it. ”
• “These activities require too much brain
energy. However, I appreciate the challenge.”
• Stop doing this and just lecture
The “How to” resources...
Developer's Guide to Excelets: Dynamic and
Interactive Visualization with "Javaless"
Applets or Interactive Excel Spreadsheets
<http://academic.pgcc.edu/~ssinex/excelets>
Tutorial, instructions, and a variety of interactive
Excel spreadsheet examples
Resource list for mathematics and science
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Contacts:
Scott Sinex
[email protected]
http://academic.pgcc.edu/~ssinex
Josh Halpern
[email protected]
http://www.coas.howard.edu/chem/jhalpern
http://www.coas.howard.edu/PREM/Education/Index.html
This work is supported by the
Howard/Hopkins/PGCC Partnership for Research
and Education in Materials (PREM), funded by NSF
Grant No. DMR-0611595
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Where will Excelets work?
• Since we are using the forms toolbar tools, they
function on both PC and Mac!
• Most all with function in Open Office Calc (open
source) with a little cosmetic clean up! Option
buttons have a slightly different syntax in Calc.
• Some of the conditional formatting has an Excel 2003
to Excel 2007 problem (switch tabs back and forth to
correct).