Making sense of societal issues.When Green (Ohio) Middle School's 350 sixth graders learn about China's construction of Three Gorges Dam Three Gorges Dam, 607 ft (185 m) high and 7,575 ft (2,309 m) long, on the Chang (Yangtze) River, central Hubei prov., China, 30 mi (48 km) W of Yichang. The largest concrete structure in the world, the dam was constructed from 1994 to 2006. , their teachers want to be certain they don't just scratch the surface of this deep current event. In fact, they'll learn about all aspects of the project itself and its consequences for the people of China. When completed, Three Gorges The Three Gorges (Simplified Chinese: 三峡; Traditional Chinese: 三峽; Pinyin: Sānxiá [ will be the world's largest hydroelectric dam, producing 18,000 megawatts of electrical energy. Yet, its 250-mile reservoir will "drown drown v. drowned, drown·ing, drowns v.tr. 1. To kill by submerging and suffocating in water or another liquid. 2. To drench thoroughly or cover with or as if with a liquid. 3. " more than 100 towns and displace dis·place tr.v. dis·placed, dis·plac·ing, dis·plac·es 1. To move or shift from the usual place or position, especially to force to leave a homeland: 1.2 million or more people. >From the environment and the spread of disease to the federal budget, understanding and acting on an issue often involves interpreting numerical data Numerical data (or quantitative data) is data measured or identified on a numerical scale. Numerical data can be analysed using statistical methods, and results can be displayed using tables, charts, histograms and graphs. and statistics. To help students make sense of" societal issues that rely on quantitative data, Green's sixth grade math and social studies teachers are piloting the Thinking with Data initiative. They're collaborating with researchers at the independent research institute SRI International (company) SRI International - One of the world's largest contract research firms. Founded in 1946 in conjuction with Stanford University as the Stanford Research Institute, they later became fully independent and were incorporated as a non-profit organisation under U.S. and Kent State University's Research Center for Educational Technology on the 18-month project. "Data is the big word now," says Russell Chaboudy, Green's principal. He's referring to the importance that districts have placed on helping teachers, administrators and students to use data effectively. Because Thinking with Data is "real life learning, students buy into that and grow from that," he adds. The interdisciplinary part of the project also appeals. "What we've been trying to teach kids all along is that what's in one subject isn't isolated," Chaboudy says. This means that data being introduced in social studies class will be graphed in math class. The project offers a technology integration opportunity, too, as students use the Internet, handheld computers A computing device that can be easily held in one hand while the other hand is used to operate it. The Palm devices are a popular example. See Palm, smartphone and palmtop. and wireless Dana devices to collect and share data. The project team plans to design Web-based educational tools that can boost student interest and capabilities in analyzing data as a basis for thinking about societal issues. www.ctl.sri.com/projects/ displayProject.jsp?Nick=thinkdata |
|
||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion