NGSS criteria C and D in EE1 engineering lessons - Sam Shaw

I'll be evaluating the suite of EE1 activities through the criteria of C) Integrating the Three Dimensions for Instruction and Assessment, and D) Relevance and Authenticity:

For a lesson to satisfy criteria C, students have to produce some product that shows that they're accessing the three dimensions throughout their learning process. I think that science and engineering practices (SEPs) are heavily emphasized in this group of lessons, particularly in the wind column workshop. CE1 may be lacking a little in SEP development, since the product the students produced is proscribed and there isn't much problem-solving occurring. Injecting more creativity for older students, like giving them multiple ways to produce parachutes of the same area, would make SEP use more relevant. All of the lessons do a good job in producing student artifacts using disciplinary core ideas (DCIs), particularly in physical science. In order to succeed in creating a product that floats, falls slowly, or hovers, students have to integrate their understanding of forces, buoyancy, and materials generally. I think that the pennyships CE2 activity could be more explicit in the forces that students have to account for in making their boats. Finally, the products of the lessons do a great job in demanding cross-cutting concepts (CCCs). The concepts of scale and proportion are key in producing parachutes that hover or boats that float.

Some lessons in the suite of EE2 do a better job of satisfying criteria D than others. One that does best, especially here in southern California, is the wind column workshop, which explicitly frames the activity in creating an engineering solution to a major local problem. CE1 may need a little more focused inquiry or questioning to find relevant connections in students' everyday lives. This might be most effective during the time when students share their predictions on which parachute would fall fastest. The facilitator could ask students if they've observed anything like this before. They could talk about falling leaves or toy parachutes. The facilitator could push discussion in this direction.

-Sam S.