More on the Harding Science Fair...
I didn't use the RPC exactly, but I did lay out a schedule of due dates from the day the project was assigned. We had a due date for each of the following:
* Brainstorm of possible topics
* Final research question
* Procedure
* Background research write-up with references
* Preliminary data
* Final data
* Draft layout of poster board
I had students turn in a copy of each of the above. I started a spreadsheet to track their progress, but I didn't keep up with it as much as I would like. I had a hard time tracking my 165 students. So I didn't chase down students who were behind as much as I would like. I reminded students of due dates and most kept themselves on track. But some were still running experiments the day before it was due.
I reserved the computer lab ahead of time and put all those dates on their due date calendar. That helped quite a bit. It also kept my stress down, so that I was not scrabbling for computer time at the last minute. I also felt like I gave my students access to the resources they need. On our first trip to the computer lab, I directed their research to the Grolier Encyclopedia Americana. I spent some time exploring all of SPPS's on-line learning resources the night before and found that Grolier gave the most appropriate information at the appropriate level for the background info on their science projects.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
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