MITE6024 - Individual Assignment - Introduction

Topic:

Activities with and through technology
                            —— Learn About Earthquake

Introduction

1. Objects

In this article, a series of technologies will be used in five linked activities under the theme of earthquake. The purpose is to make study both fun and easy by utilizing a variety of existing technologies. In fact, it is also an example to reveal how to get information from different medium. It aims to use a range of available Web 2.0 applications to allow children to discover, discuss, participate, and design relevant learning contents about earthquake.

2. Relevant Web 2.0 Applications in these Five Activities
YouTube, Blog, Wikipedia, Learning Objects (Animation and Simulation), Google Docs, as well as Windows Movie Maker. In these applications, Blog is the core tool to connect all elements.

3. Preparation for Activities

At first, a collective blog and Google Docs On-line Document will be created to share children’s comments and opinions. (This Blog-"Angie in IT Education")

Before these activities conducted, the children were asked to have some prior experiences in using Blog, Google Docs, and Windows Movie Maker. In fact, there are some relevant instructions firstly provided in order to assist the children to master basic skills, such as how to comment in the Blog, how to participate the on-line discussion in the Google Docs, and how to make a digital story by the Windows Movie Maker with translating PPT and utilizing some image processing software.

Individual Assignment - Activity1:A Rudimentary Knowledge of the Earthquake

Pre-activity Question:  What is your opinion about Earthquake?

Step 1: Please watch the following video ( Video is from YouTube.)
( Video Description:  A massive 8.9 magnitude earthquake shook Japan and triggered a tsunami that crashed into coastal cities on March 11, 2011. Tsunami warnings have been issued for the entire Pacific region, including Hawaii and the west coast. )



Step 2: Please look at these photos:
"the Satellite Photos of Japan, Before and After the Quake and Tsunami".

Tip: The left is Satellite Photos of Japan Before the Quake and Tsunami.

( These Photos are first discovered in the Diigo. http://diigo.com/0g9bc )
You can also click the Hyperlink (Visiting the original website) to see these photos http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/03/13/world/asia/satellite-photos-japan-before-and-after-tsunami.html

Now, every students post your comments in our collective Blog about the Pre-activity Question: What is your opinion about Earthquake?

Individual Assignment - Activity2:The Basic knowledge of Earthquake with Online Quiz

Warm-up Exercises: : Could you answer the following questions?

l         What is an earthquake?

l         What causes earthquakes and where do they happen?

l         Why does the earth shake when there is an earthquake?

l         How are earthquakes recorded?

l         How do scientists measure the size of earthquakes?

Step1: If Not, please read the “Wikipedia-Earthquake”.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earthquake

Step2: After you finishing read this webpage, please click the following Hyperlink and complete the “Earthquake Quiz”.

http://www.quizplz.com/science/earth/earthquake-quiz.htm

Step3: After you finished the quiz, please post your score in the collective Blog.

Individual Assignment - Activity3:Further Recognize the Earthquake with Animation and Simulation

Key Point: visual representations of Earthquake

Step1：Understand the Cause of Earthquake

Please watch the Flash “Animated Guide of Earthquake” as the following hyperlink.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7533950.stm

(Tips: Every one can control the playing-speed as their reading speed. )

Step 2: Realize the Relationship between Earthquake and Tsunamis

Watch the “Animations of Earthquake with Its Consequent Tsunamis”

Description: This animation shows the earthquake cycle for a thrust margin. Note that elastic strain is built up in the rocks for a long period of time and is then released suddenly by an earthquake. Tsunamis are generated by the rapid uplift of the continental plate that occurs during the earthquake.  (The description is from http://www.jclahr.com/science/earth_science/animate/)

(The source is from http://www.jclahr.com/science/earth_science/animate/, which is a QuickTime Movie Demo, and uploaded by Angie-Fu)

Step3: A Fun Science Simulation Game about “Make a Quake”

It is a simple simulation game to assist children to understand which building is comparatively strong when the quake happens.

The player can choose the different items of the Ground and technological Prevention method, and the level of earthquake Intensity to simulate a quake.

Please click the following website and play it!

http://tlc.discovery.com/convergence/quakes/interactives/makeaquake.html

Is it really quite interesting?

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Additional Simulator —— the Shock Wave Simulator

Play the simulator of “The Earthquake Reader”, which was from Scratch and run by Java.

Description: This project simulates the earthquake shock wave. Users can observe the different representation of shock wave through adjusting the earthquake scale.

Learn more about this project

You are welcomed to give your comments on the Blog.
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Other Interesting Animation/Simulation:

Savage Earth Animation: Earthquake

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/savageearth/animations/earthquakes/index.html

Interactive Animations by Incorporated Research Institution for Seismology

http://www.iris.edu/hq/programs/education_and_outreach/animations/interactive

Elastic Rebound Animation (By Java)

http://projects.crustal.ucsb.edu/understanding/elastic/rebound.html

Individual Assignment - Activity4: Knowledge Review and Consolidate

This activity will use Google Docs. Thus, everyone needs to enter the online discussion page at first.
Then please answer the following questions on the Google Docs page.

Tips:

1-  After you give the answers; you can participate in the on-line discussion.

    Please comment your classmates’ answer as much as possible.

2- Please specify your name at the end of your answer.

    For example: Earthquake is about ……. (Your Name)

Question	Answer	Comments
1. Are there more earthquakes under the sea than land?
2. If there was an earthquake in your house what should you do?
3. If you fell into a crack caused by an earthquake where would you land?

If you have any other questions, you can paste your questions in the following table.

Questions	Teacher’s Answer

You can directly paste your feedbacks or comments on the Blog.

Feedbacks:

Following is the Outcome of this activity.

The hyperlink is for your reference.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1V1l-RPV1cic9F4vgVoYHgoa5XqmytmVVESUSL9m7F68/edit?hl=en_GB&authkey=CKWHk4IP

This is a screenshot for the outcome.

Individual Assignment - Activity5:Synthesize the Relevant Resources and Make a Digital Story

Topic: Do a video related to the Earthquake.

There are many different ways to get learning materials. In this activity, every one was asked to make a digital story by synthesizing all kinds of data.

Tips:

1.        Collecting data from Internet

2.        You can put your data into a PowerPoint and then outputting pictures, or use Image Processing Software to produce composite pictures by inserting or inputting your data.

3.         Using Windows Movie Maker to make a digital story.

4.         Uploading your video into Vimeo and Share your story on the collective Blog.

5.         Giving your feedback on the collective Blog.

Following is an Example By Angie—— Earthquake Preparedness.


Activity5-Earthquake Preparedness-By Angie from Angie Fu on Vimeo.

Individual Assignment- Learning outcomes and Evaluation

Learning outcomes and evaluation

1. Learning outcomes

After these five activities completed, students should be able to identify the basic theories and some assumption of earthquake by applying digital resources. Then they can describe the types, cause, and effects by doing some simple quizzes. Next, students could analyze and integrate instances by relating and contrasting different simulative environment. After that, students will reflect their own opinions about the fixed topic. At last, students can generalize and transfer their own understandings then demonstrate them by selecting and implement the appropriate information search channels, tools and software to generate a concrete product.

In other words, Students’ outcomes “can be assessed by evaluating the level of complexity displayed in their work and how well that aligns with the course objectives” (“Structure of the Observed Learning Outcome (SOLO)”, n.d., para. 3).

2. Evaluation

In fact, the Structure of the Observed Learning Outcomes (SOLO) taxonomy is used throughout the whole process of design and assessment.

Table1 Overall assessment of these five activities by SOLO taxonomy

	Different levels of understanding	Characteristics in different levels	Assessment
Activity 1	Pre-structural	Incompetence	Students can not complete answer the question.
Activity 2	Uni-structural	One relevant aspect	Students can identify the basic theories.
Activity 3	Multi-structural	Several relevant independent aspects	Students can combine the concepts and simulation in to reality.
Activity 4	Relational	Integrated into a structure	Students can analyze, justify and criticize the questions by previous knowledge and their own opinions.
Activity 5	Extended Abstract	generalized to new domain	Students can create a concrete product which reflects their own understands of the topic.

(This Table is based on “SOLO TAXONOMY” from

http://www.johnbiggs.com.au/solo_taxonomy.html)

The above table presents a simple assessment system by SOLO taxonomy. In details, Activity1 is the first stage of these activities, and students do not form a concrete idea about the topic. In fact, their views are one-sided and poor. Then with introduction the concepts and quiz, students can gradually identify the basic theories. As a result, they can get a clear direction of the further study. Next, by specific simulation, students would build the combination between the abstract concept and reality, and then enumerate the examples. Following is that students can analyze, compare, and explain the specific causes and build relationships. Finally, students can utilize a variety of searching channels which was provided in the previous activities, and create a concrete product that reflects their own understands of the topic.