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Introduction and Curriculum Overview |
The intent of the CE3 spiral curriculum is to help students learn about plate tectonics in an authentic and active manner, as a scientist would. Using their own observations, measurements, calculations, and reasoning abilities, students embark on a Google Earth journey of discovery that culminates in an understanding of the underlying causal mechanisms of volcanoes, earthquakes, and plate tectonics.
This approach is designed to increase students’ observational, critical thinking, technology, and communication skills, as well as their geographical awareness. The curriculum employs a Learning-for-Use pedagogical framework (Edelson 2001) where students are first motivated to learn, then challenged to construct and refine knowledge (Table 1).
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Step |
Design Strategy |
Student Experience |
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Motivate |
Activities create a demand for knowledge when they require that learners apply that knowledge to complete them successfully. |
Perceive need for understanding |
| Activities can elicit curiosity by revealing a problematic gap or limitation in a learner’s understanding. |
Experience curiosity |
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Construct |
Activities that provide learners with direct experience of novel phenomena can enable them to observe relationships that they encode in new knowledge structures. |
Experience or observe phenomena |
| Activities that provide learners with direct experience of novel phenomena can enable them to observe relationships that they encode in new knowledge structures. |
Hear, view, or read about phenomena |
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Refine |
Activities that enable learners to apply their knowledge in meaningful ways help to reinforce and reorganize understanding so that it is useful. |
Apply understanding |
| Activities that provide opportunities for learners to retrospectively reflect upon their knowledge and experiences retrospectively provide the opportunity to reorganize and re-index their knowledge. |
Reflect upon experiences or understanding |
Table 1: Outline of the Learning-For-Use pedagogical framework.
The CE3 curriculum consists of three modules (Table 2) with three investigations. At the end of each investigation, student understanding is assessed by a “challenge activity”.
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Introduction to Volcanoes |
Introduction to Earthquakes |
Introduction to Plate Tectonics |
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Volcano Hazards and Benefits |
Earthquake Hazards |
Continental Drift
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How Volcanoes Work |
Geologic Faults |
Sea Floor Spreading
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Predicting Eruptions |
Seismic Waves |
Tectonic Plates
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Table 2. Curriculum modules.
Just as scientists do, students will maintain a record of their Google Earth observations, measurements, and calculations using a Field Notebook. Students are encouraged to use their field notebook in class discussions and assessments. A field notebook symbol is included throughout the Google Earth placemarks to indicate important data collection points for students.
 Field Notebook Symbol
Using the data they collect, students are asked to practice developing scientific arguments. The scientific argument framework used in the CE3 curriculum is the Claims, Evidence, and Reasoning Strategy (MacNeill and Krajcik 2006) and contains three components (Table 3).
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Claims, Evidence, and Reasoning Strategy (CER) |
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Claim |
Students make a testable statement in response to the question or problem posed. |
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Evidence |
Students outline the data that supports their claim. |
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Reasoning |
Students provide a justification that shows how the evidence they selected supports their claim.
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Table 3. Scientific argument framework.
Students’ ability to construct a scientific argument will take time, practice, and support. It is recommended that after each investigation students receive feedback on the scientific arguments they develop in their field notebooks using the CER grading rubric.
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Materials Needed to Use this Curriculum |
This curriculum requires computers with internet access and Google Earth 5.2 installed. Google Earth is a free program accessible at http://Earth.Google.com.
Computers must be able to connect to http://www.SpatialSci.com in order to access online resources including the on-line glossary, references, embedded video, and assessments.
Students may work individually at computers or in pairs as needed, but having more than two students per computer is not recommended.
All kmz files and the student’s field notebook in pdf format are available at http://www.SpatialSci.com. The Adobe PDF Reader is a free software available at http://get.adobe.com/uk/reader/otherversions/.
Each investigation and Google Earth tour includes whole classroom “talking points” to stimulate student interest and highlight learning targets.
To further support student knowledge construction, it is recommended that you create classroom “storyboards” (large format poster board) to chronologically record student ideas as they develop across the three modules. This technique will help students recognize and appreciate their own learning progress.
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