Something Is Moving

1. Something Is Moving • Challenges and Successes of CASTLE Karen Jo Matsler kmatsler@mac.com

2. Personal Perspective • Used in HS and university courses • First used in Spring 1997 in HS classroom • Began semester with CASTLE in Fall 1998 • Advantages • UIL Contests, AP exams • Eager to be in physics on day 1 • Parental support • Female confidence lasted entire year • Nonthreatening

3. Disadvantages • Teachers need training or support to implement concepts • Appropriate pacing • Monitoring of student progress • Initial $$$ investment • very little replacement needed • Amount of copying • use lab manuals and class sets

4. Teacher Comments (Obstacles) • It takes quite a bit of time to do. I have tried to condense it to give my physical science classes an overview of thethe basics of electricity in a little over a week. • The CASTLE curriculum requires materials. My school was unwilling to buy the materials. I was able to borrow the materials • It takes a lot of time to do as it is written. I streamlined some of the wordiness and rotated demonstrations (with Elmo) and student activity to compress instruction. I used science journals to focus on key concepts in each "chapter". • I needed to supplement with homework assignments, etc for Ohm's Law. It was hard to keep students at the same pace. Hard to devise grading. • It takes more time -- and there's no way to make more of that -- but it's worth it, even if it means leaving something else out. • Student groups working at different pace from one another. Not a major obstacle; just had to convene them on a regular basis. • This program does not actually do enough with solving series and parallel circuit problems. Plug and chug does have its place in the curriculum. • t takes longer than most teachers have time. Most of the teachers I worked with wanted to spend much less time than it really takes to develop understanding.

5. Just need to make sure, as an instructor, that you actually do the activities first so you can proactively intervene in possible problematic areas. • There are places in the color coding that a more difficult example is placed before a less difficult. I think more color coding examples are needed.....especially where you must use the half steps. • Electrostatics usually covered before circuits. • It takes a very long time to complete all sections. I believe I could have completed these same objectives in a traditional method faster, but their would have been some student casualties. • Students are somewhat resistant to a 'non-traditional' style of learning. It is not a major obstacle. It quickly becomes fun, not work.

6. Survey on Usage • In a recent survey of over 80 respondents • 77.8% implemented CASTLE the first year they were taught the curriculum, 17.5% implemented it the second year, 4.8% took 3 years • Over 95% learned the curriculum in a workshop/institute • 3 taught themselves the curriculum • 71 of the survey participants were trained since 2004 • 70 of the respondents have actually used the curriculum.

7. Teacher Comments • The students had a better understanding of what the formulas meant rather than just manipulating variables. • only used small sections due to time restraints but helped students comprehend the concepts very well. • Students grasp concepts of electricity and magnetism much faster and I believe they will retain the knowledge much longer • It set the tone for my physics students to investigate and make predictions. I used it at the beginning of the year and when we returned to electricity at the end of the year (more traditional activities) they REALLY remembered the CASTLE methods. • Their understanding is so great that you can give them just about any problem even if they haven't seen it before and they can work it out. Retention of material is extremely high! Several years I taught it in the fall and then tested them if the spring with around 85 % RETENTION RATE. • Much more comprehensive understanding. One major advantage is in helping to eradicate misconceptions.

8. Much better student understanding. I had one student who was a third year electronics student. When asked after completing through section 8 of CASTLE if it was valuable to him he said;"I knew how to do everything before, but now I understand it!" • The second year I used CASTLE, I walked into the Science Office and one of my students from the previous year asked what we were doing. I started to tell her and she immediately started telling me what she remembered. I was amazed at the detail understanding she showed a year later. She was not one of my better students • Students like the kits and are initially excited. Activities are hands-on. Lights provide a visual feedback of success. • students have evidence to support their learning. Many of my students, after covering electricity with CASTLE, have asked why other units weren't handled the same way. They really appreciated the scaffolding of the curriculum. • Students seem to have a better conceptual understanding of the concepts of current, voltage, electricity, etc. THey also seem to retain their knowledge better. • The students remember the concepts and are able to apply to AP physics. The students are able to retain info so a quick review and the teacher is able to move on. • I like the conceptual storyline developed by CASTLE. • Students understand the concept of electricity better, especially the girls who had a harder time before CASTLE.

9. There are many advantages for using CASTLE in your electricity unit: one is the well constructed progression throughout the curriculum. Students can move as quickly as needed and on an individually needed bases. At any point in time I could have two groups working on the beginning of a concept while two or three other groups are a few steps ahead without complication. CASTLE allows the teacher the freedom to help out students individually without leaving any one else behind or slowing others up. • CASTLE helps students gain a solid understanding of the basic principles of current, voltage, resistance, etc. It provides good visual and physical analogies to help understand electricity. Advantages: introduces concepts in logical (but not necessarily traditional) order; students do not need to have any background knowledge; fairly inexpensive equipment; good visual representations • Students had many "Aha!" moments using the hands-on approach CASTLE uses. The advantage is that it is hands-on and actively engages students. When students are actively engaged, not only are there fewer behavior problems, but student understanding increases. Traditional curriculum is less hands-on and does not adequately address the need for multiple learning style lessons. • My students can answer complicated district assessment questions with color coding as opposed to loop and junction rules. Really helped my special education students in my inclusion classes • I'm not sure if students know more, but I know what they know with much greater detail.

10. CASTLE Curriculum • Implemented as part of the curricular options for C3P • Revised in 2005 to be easier to complete in 6-8 weeks • Introduced to PTRAs in 2000 • Used as part of the rural workshops during the third summer institute • Gave pre and post content tests to participants • Gave pre and post content tests to students of both participants and non participants

11. PTRA Implementation • 2005 • 8 sites, 116 HS teachers, 22 MS teachers, 15 unidentified • 2006 • 11 sites, 264-276 teachers, 220 HS, 51 MS, 2 Elem, 3 unidentified • 2007 • 6 sites, 118 teachers

13. 2005,2006,2007Participant Content

16. 2005,2006,2007Participant Content

17. Low Gain Questions • #17. The following diagram is a circuit consisting of a battery, a switch, two identical light bulbs, and the connecting wires. The battery provides an electric potential difference or voltage of 6.0 volts between its terminals. In the arrangement shown, the switch is open so the light bulbs are off. The voltage between points A and B will be approximately • a. 6.0 V c. 1.5 V • b. 3.0 V d. 0 V

18. Low Gain Questions • 6. A 10-ohm resistor has a 5.0-A electric current through it. What is the voltage across the resistor? • a. 5.0V • b. 10V • c. 15V • d. 50V • 27. A small charged plastic ball is lying on a desk. An oppositely charged plastic pen is held directly above the ball. No effect is noticed. The probable reason for this is that the • a. pen has a negative charge. • b. ball acts as an insulator. • c. ball does not intersect with field lines. • d. electric force on the ball is less than the gravitational force on it.

19. High Percent Gain Questions • 1. When electric "charge" moves in a wire, the amount of charge per second passing through is called "electric current". The mobile charge whose movement makes up an electric current is originally present in • I. the wire(s) • II. the battery or batteries • III. the bulb(s) • a. II only • b. III only • c. II and III only • d. I and III only • e. I, II, and III • 13. In the following diagram, bulbs A, B, and C are identical. Bulbs A and B are both lit, and are of equal brightness. After the switch is closed, then bulb A • a. becomes brighter. • b. becomes dimmer • c. goes out • d. stays about the same brightness.

20. High Hake Gain Questions • #4. Which of the bulbs will light in the • diagram to the right? • a.bulb 1 • b.bulb 2 • c.bulbs 1 and 2 • d.neither bulb • #25. The diagrams below show 3 circuits. All bulbs have the same resistance and the voltage is the same across the batteries. Which of the following statements would be true concerning the brightness of the bulbs? • a. A>B>C • b. A=B=C • c. B>A>C • d. C>A>B

21. 2006 & 2007Student Content (HS)Pre Assessment

29. Large Student Percent Gains • 5. In the circuit shown, bulb A glows brighter than bulb B. If the locations of the bulbs are switched, what can be said about the bulbs in their new locations? • a. Bulb A will still be brighter than bulb B. • b. Bulb B will become brighter than bulb A. • c. The bulbs will have the same brightness. • d. Cannot be determined from information given. • 8. If all the bulbs in the circuit below are similar, what could you conclude about the brightness of the bulbs? • a. The top bulb is brighter in circuit 1 than circuit 2. • b. The top bulb is brighter in circuit 2 than circuit 1. • c. The top bulb is the same brightness in both circuits. • d. The brightness of the top bulb cannot be determined.

30. 19. In the circuit shown below, there is a 6 V battery connected to two 2 ohm resistors as shown. The total resistance of the circuit is • a. 4 ohms. • b. 2 ohms. • c. 1 ohm. • d. 0.5 ohm. • 22. Which circuits have the greatest equivalent resistance? • a. A and B • b. B and C • c. C and D • d. D and A

31. 7. In the diagram to the right, which of the bulbs will light? A. bulb 1 only B. bulb 2 only C. bulbs 1 and 2 D. neither bulb

32. Low Student % Gains • 2.Consider the diagram on right. Which statement is true? • A.The electric current through wire 1 is greater than the electric current through wire 2. • B.The electric current through wire 1 is equal to the electric current through wire 2. • C.The electric current through wire 1 is less than the electric current through wire 2. • d.There is not enough information to compare magnitudes of electric current through the two wires. • 3. Both resistors in the diagram to the right are 30 . When the switch is open as shown, what is the potential difference or voltage difference between points A and B? • A.0 volts • B.4.0 volts • C.6.0 volts • D.12 volts

35. Large Student Hake Gains • 4. Which statement is correct about a complete electric circuit? • a. Charge flows in a closed circuit. • b. Voltage flows through a circuit. • c. Resistance is established across a circuit • d. Electric current flows perpendicular to a wire • 12. In the following diagram, bulbs A and B are identical and both are lit. What happens to bulbs A and B when a wire is connected across it as shown? • a. Both bulbs are lit, but bulb B gets much brighter than bulb A • b. Both bulbs are lit, but bulb B gets much dimmer than bulb A • c. Both bulbs stays about the same brightness. • d. Bulb B goes out, while A gets brighter.

36. Small Student Hake Gains • 10. The following diagram is a circuit consisting of a battery, a switch, two identical light bulbs, and the connecting wires. The battery provides an electric potential difference, or voltage, of 6.0 volts between its terminals. In the arrangement shown, the switch is open so the light bulbs are off. The voltage between points A and B while the switch is open will be approximately • A. 6.0 VC. 1.5 V • B. 3.0 VD. 0 V • 18.The voltage across a DC circuit is 110 V. • Which of the following are true of that circuit? • A. 110 coulombs of charge flow through a section of the circuit each second. • B. 110 joules of energy are converted to other forms of energy each second. • C. 110 joules of energy are transferred by each coulomb of charge flowing in circuit. • D. 110 joules of energy are shared among all the charges in the circuit at any instant.

37. 15.The four bulbs in the actual circuit shown are identical. Which schematic diagram is equivalent to the actual circuit shown below? • E. None of these schematic diagrams is equivalent to the original circuit shown.

40. Confidence • Overall confidence increased in both participants and students • Confidence chart was done for each question, pre and post for all participants and students.

41. Questions • Karen Jo Matsler • karenjo@texasptra.com