Why I joined MEd in STEAM Education ?

 

Integrated teaching and learning should be the focus of the present educational system.

The educational system in the ’90s focused on the students to prepare them to work in factories. As per the need of the decade, the students have to focus on their studies to prepare themselves to work in the factories as a worker. Later with the evolution of the education system and technology, the robots took place of the workers so if robots can do that work then why a human being is needed for the same. After this, the whole concept of the education system changed and worked towards developing the students as holistic people so they can have the balance of IQ and EQ both along with soft skills. So having a balance of all these concepts the need for integrated teaching and learning is focused in the present educational system.

Let’s talk about something regarding integrated learning – In the education system previously we had different subjects like English, Social-Science, Math’s, Nepali, etc. so students are taught on a subject basis while talking about integrated learning all the subjects will be integrated into one concept. For E.g. If we are teaching student Letter A then we can integrate some of the above subjects in one exercise – math’s logic of standing and sleeping lines, English- alphabet knowledge, etc.

My understanding of STEAM and STEAM Education is as follows:

The full form of STEAM is

            S-Science

                                    T-Technology

                                    E- Engineering

                                                                    A-Arts

                                                                                     M-Mathematics 

Reflection on 5-E Instructional Model

The 5 E Instructional Model:

A Learning Cycle Approach for Inquiry-Based Teaching

Inquiry-Based Teaching

The term INQUiRY in a way is understood as a process of getting to know about the details about something by the questions which are rising at our conscious and unconscious state of mind. Being a STEAM Scholar this term has opened up the way for me to understand the link between the questions which children have for anything new they come across that may be termed as their curiosity, which leads to many questions in their minds.

In this regard, I want to share my story when I was just 10 years old I was always fascinated about the fact of how we evolved as human beings in my childhood I heard from my grandparents that our ancestors are monkeys and slowly and steadily we evolved as a human being. While asking I only got one answer i.e our ancestors were monkeys and nothing more than that. This question striked my mind many times later in my class my science teacher explained this with the pictures which made this concept clear. The one thing which made me upgrade my knowledge was my curiosity backed by the questions and a strong desire to get the answer. Now we will understand conceptually what it really means and go through the sharings of the many researchers in this field to deepen the understanding. I hope when you will reach the end of this content you will have a glimpse of what exactly is INQUIRY based learning and how it can be implemented in the classroom by designing a lesson plan based on learning cycle -5E - Instructional Model

An inquiry may be referred to as a technique that encourages students to discover or construct information by themselves instead of having teachers directly reveal the information (Uno, 1999).

A shift from Traditional Pedalogical approach to Inquiry-based pedagogy

The Shift to inquiry-based pedagogical practices in the classroom may necessitate a transition from textbook dependency as the main resource of scientific information to a more hands-on approach, where students are central to the learning episodes.

            The use of a learning cycle approach in the classroom differs greatly from traditional teaching methodologies. For example, learning cycles focus on constructivist principles and emphasize the explanation and investigation of phenomena, the use of evidence to back up conclusions, and experimental design. In contrast, traditional pedagogical approaches stress the progression of skills and techniques, the delivery of ready-made information, and knowledge of the outcome of an investigation prior to it being conducted (Abraham, 1997).

The Standards describe the inquiry process as follows:

Inquiry is a multifaceted activity that involves making observations; posing questions; examining books and other sources of information to see what is already known; planning investigations; reviewing what is already known in light of experimental evidence; using tools to gather, analyze, and interpret data; proposing answers, explanations, and predictions; and communicating the results (p. 23)

The 5E Instructional Model

The 5E Instructional Model (Bybee & Landes, 1990) can be used to design science lessons and is based upon cognitive psychology, constructivist-learning theory, and best practices in science teaching.

Engagement 

In this first phase of the cycle, the teacher aims to assess students' prior knowledge and/or identify possible misconceptions. This student-centered phase should be a motivational period that can create a desire to learn more about the upcoming topic. Students may brainstorm an opening question or ask themselves: “What do I already know about this topic?” Discrepant events, demonstrations, questioning, or graphic organizers such as KWL charts may be included to create interest or generate curiosity. A KWL chart asks students to brainstorm and record what they Know, Want to know, and (eventually) have Learned about the topic. The KWL chart is used to pre-assess students' prior knowledge and is oftentimes referred to throughout the duration of the lesson. The instructional task is identified.

Exploration

This phase is student-centered and incorporates active exploration. Students are encouraged to apply process skills, such as observing, questioning, investigating, testing predictions, hypothesizing, and communicating, with other peers. This phase of the learning cycle tends to incorporate the main inquiry-based activity or experience, which encourages students to develop skills and concepts. The teacher’s role is one of facilitator or consultant. In addition, students are encouraged to work in a cooperative learning environment without direct instruction from the teacher. This phase is also unique because the students are given a “hands-on” experience before any formal explanation of terms, definitions, or concepts is discussed or explained by the teacher.

Explanation

A “minds-on” phase follows the exploration phase, and this is more teacher-directed and guided by the students’ prior experience during the exploration phase. The teacher attempts to provide an explanation, the students must first have the opportunity to express their own explanations and ideas. Thus, the initial part of the explanation phase is a time for the teacher to serve as a facilitator and ask the students to describe and discuss their exploration learning experiences. This phase includes clarification of student misconceptions that may have emerged during the engagement or exploration phases

Elaboration

Students are encouraged to check for understanding with their peers or to design new experiments or models based on the new skills or concepts they have acquired. The goal of this phase is to help develop deeper and broader understandings of the concepts. Students may conduct additional investigations, develop products, share information and ideas, or apply their knowledge and skills to other disciplines. This is a great opportunity to integrate science with other content areas. Elaboration activities may also integrate technology, such as web-based research or WebQuests

Evaluation

During an inquiry-based lesson, assessment should be viewed as an ongoing process, with teachers making observations of their students as they apply new concepts and skills and looking for evidence that the students have changed or modified their thinking. Students may also have the opportunity to conduct self-assessment. or peer-assessment. However, the evaluation may also include a summative experience such as a quiz, exam, or writing assignment.

Although the 5E Model has just been explained in serial order, it is often necessary to reverse back into the cycle before again going forward. For instance, numerous explore/explain rotations may need to occur before the students are ready to transition to the elaboration phase. The teacher may move back and forth several times within the Es' or may include an additional engagement prior to starting an elaboration phase. The cycle is very flexible and dynamic. It may take many days to complete the lesson or unit. It is not necessary to complete one learning cycle each day that science is taught. The model is designed to facilitate conceptual change and contribute to more consistent and coherent science instruction (Bybee, 1997).

Effectiveness of the 5E Model

Let us go through the sharing from the teachers of some of the projects which is based on the theme that The 5E Model is an effective way to design inquiry-based science lessons that enhance student learning.

By following the 5E Model, I will be able to assess the students’ knowledge before the exploration activity starts so that their evaluations will be appropriate for their academic ability level. (TAPESTRIES teacher)

The 5E planning guide enables teachers to personalize lessons according to student needs. Educators often teach chapters or units from the order that is presented in the book. However, various and flexible teaching enable children with attention problems to stay focused. A 5E Model is a tool for teachers to engage the students with topics they may not have much interest in or prior knowledge about. (Project ASTER teacher)

Conclusion

A national vision of science teaching and learning is being promoted that accentuates the need to restructure education. The 5E Instructional Model serves as a flexible learning cycle that assists curriculum developers and classroom teachers create lessons that illustrate constructivist, reform-based, best teaching practices.

References

Abraham, M. R. (1997). The learning cycle approach to science instruction (Research matters - To the science teacher, No. 9701). Columbia, MO: The National Association for Research in Science Teaching.

Bybee, R., & Landes, N. M. (1990). Science for life and living: An elementary school science program from Biological

Sciences Improvement Study (BSCS). The American Biology Teacher, 52(2), 92-98.

Bybee, R. (1997). Achieving scientific literacy: From purposes to practices. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann Publications.

TAPESTRIES (n.d.). Retrieved February 20, 2004, from http://www.tapestries.ut-bgsu.utoledo.edu/. (Follow the Science Kits & Resources link.)

Uno, G. (1999). Handbook on teaching undergraduate science courses: A survival training manual. Independence, KY: Thomson Custom Publishing.

DESIGN THINKING - A Human Centered Approach

Design Thinking is one of the innovative pedagogy used in the field of education to solve complex problems. 

Design Thinking is a HUMAN-CENTRED approach to innovation that draws from the designer's toolkit to integrate the needs of people, the possibilities of technology, and the requirements for business success. (Tin Brown, CEO of IDEO )

It is HUMAN-CENTERED DESIGN, as it is based on a philosophy that empowers an individual or team to design

• PRODUCTS 

• SERVICES 

• SYSTEMS  and

• EXPERIENCES 

that address the core needs of those who experience a problem. 

The process of Design Thinking has 5 key phases. These are detailed below in simple words to apply this process in your own setting. 

1. Empathize 

Empathy is about understanding the problem by immersing yourself in the community that will be affected by your design. Designers spend time talking directly with those who are experiencing the problem and observing how their environment works. This stage and design process as a whole is about asking questions instead of making assumptions about why things are the way they are. 

2. Define 

This step helps set up the rest of the process. In this step, the problem is defined by focusing on the key activities that you want to accomplish. Most often people try to define problems as a mix of problem and solution. The statements defining the problem should always be asking why. For eg. why do we need more qualitative resources in the field of pre-school education?  What are we really trying to accomplish? The answer might be something like, " we need a way to foster the qualitative learnings in the children from childhood ". That's the real problem you want to focus on. The way we define the problem is important and should be phrased in a way that allows creativity in how it could be addressed. 

3. Ideate

This stage is brainstorming time. In this stage, we will come up with as many solutions to the problem you defined as possible. This is best done in a team. Each member writes down the ideas they have one at a time and place them on a board for everyone to see. One key thing to consider at this stage is that we should never judge the ideas are good or bad, practical or outlandish. often an impractical idea scaled back slightly can become exactly the type of novel solution that we are looking for. 

4. Prototype

Typically in this stage, the designers put ideas into action by creating low-cost experiments to test them. The goal in this stage is to create something you can test with those who live with the problem in order to see if it works.  In the case of products, this is often a model of the designs you have in mind while in the case of services, build out a model with actionable steps and a workflow that can be simulated either in the real world or through role play .

5. Test

The person who lives with the problem is asked to test the model or prototype to see if it address all aspects of a problem, this is where the designers identify the flaws, weaknesses, and gaps in the design, improving it along the way.

While this may seem like the end, the design process is meant to be dynamic and cyclical. It is often not linear, but you will only realize what your next step is once you are in the mid of the process. 

Everyone is a DESIGNER,
whether we LIKE it or not,
our CHOICES create the SYSTEMS we live within