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Newsletter Volume 3 |
Spring 1999 |
Patterns-In-Nature Internet Course
Steve Beeson
Faculty Associate
Arizona State University
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Newsletter Volume 3 |
Spring 1999 |
Last spring semester Jim Mayer (ASU engineering faculty) and I developed an on-line version of the Patterns in Nature course following the inquiry-oriented educational innovations in ACEPT courses. Designed for both pre-service students and in-service teachers studying from home, the new course applies the same principles of exploration and inquiry used in the standard Patterns class: Students are expected to design simple yet engaging home experiments to explore concepts of light, optics, astronomy, and microscopy. The course readings are posted on the Web site and contain useful photographs, diagrams, and figures to help explain the relevant topics. Students submit multiple-choice exercises pertaining to that particular weeks subject matter. These exercises are graded automatically using a script developed by the ASU Distance Learning technology group. We are currently working on more interactive exercises as the technology for on-line evaluation and assessment develops.
In the first semester of the course, five students enrolled and completed the course. As these were our "test subjects" we received plenty of useful (though not always complimentary) comments about the site. Over the summer we made some major revisions to the course, including the addition of an on-line Bulletin Board in which students could communicate among themselves or with the instructor or both. We also further developed the Saturday Lab Session which students attend to participate in hands-on experiments and activities that are impossible from home, such as doing electron microscopy and X-radiography. This fall 15 dedicated students have enrolled and are busy finding every ghost in the machine. Overall, however, response has been overwhelmingly positive: Students enjoy learning physics at a relaxed pace and using tools they often build themselves. We have had some challenges with the on-line grading system, especially with exams, but we expect these to be ironed out as the technology comes apace with our ideas. and the ASU Distance Learning group incorporates these innovations into their courses. We hope that more students enroll next semester and look forward to collaborating with the ASU Center for Solid State Science in developing interactive microscopes which students will control remotely using the Web. It is an exciting time in distance education and we are thrilled to be leading the way.
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