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A M A G A Z I N E F O R S E C O N D L E V E L T E A C H E R S O F P H Y S I C S A N D C H E M I S T RY
January 2009 Issue 11
Dublin chosen as European City of Science 2012
Also in this issue:
• Differentiation: Supporting the Spirit of Investigation • Mentoring • Research and innovation in mathematics and science education • Developing Creativity through Science
plus lots more! Supported by
PHYSICAL
This issue of the Physical Sciences contains updates on support courses available, articles from colleagues sharing their classroom experiences, feature articles and lots more. We thank all who contributed articles for this issue and invite you to submit comments on our website forum and let us know what you think. We would also like to invite you to submit an article to the Chemistry or Physics Co-ordinator for the next issue of the magazine. We look forward to working with you and wish you and your students every success throughout the academic year. Brendan Duane, Chemistry Co-ordinator SLSS Tim Regan, Physics Co-ordinator SLSS
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• Regional Network Meetings to support local identified needs will be facilitated.
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• Details of courses on offer are contained inside.
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• The physics and chemistry support websites; http://physics.slss.ie/ and http://chemistry.slss.ie/ are regularly updated and contain useful resources and news of upcoming in-service and events
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SLSS Physics & Chemistry Support • The magazine ‘Physical Sciences’ is published twice yearly, September and January. • A consultation service by phone, fax or email is available. • A limited number of school visits will be provided, resources permitting.
MAGAZINE
Contents
Dear Colleagues, We wish you a Happy New Year and hope you will enjoy your teaching experiences in the year ahead.
SCIENCES
Intel Celebrates Excellence in Science Physics Support September - December 2008 Chemistry Support September – December 2008 Research and innovation in mathematics and science education Mr Symmer and his stockings—a highly charged affair Delivering New Medicines & Nanochemistry ChemEd-Ireland 2008, Challenges in Chemistry Teaching; Content, Context and Assessment Kathleen Lonsdale 1903 – 1971 Frontiers of Physics 08 Teaching Heat at Leaving Certificate Dublin chosen as European City of Science 2012 International Science Medals for Irish Juniors Differentiation: Supporting the Spirit of Investigation Transition Electronics Module – ‘Traffic Lights’ Teachers Promoting Active Learning: The TL21 Project in NUI Maynooth and Leinster Schools Let There be Light Research into Innovation in Science Teacher Education in the University of Limerick Physics Video Project Fisic tri mhéan na Gaeilge IOP Course for Physics Teachers Leaving Certificate Chemistry Exam Feedback 2008 Physics of Open and Closed Pipes: The Overtone Pipe Developing creativity through science Using Images To Stimulate Student Memory New website at www.physicsslss.com Life without Electroscopes Web Resource Massive €60.2m Investment in Science and Tech Centres Leaving Certificate Physics Exam Feedback 2008 How Radar Works Physics SLSS ICT Questionnaire 2008 BT Young Scientists of the Year 2009 How Science and Scientific Principles can help us get through the latest Credit Crisis- Invest in People Global IT giants work to bring 21st-century teaching to schools Telescope Challenge for schools is launched as part of the International Year of Astronomy 2009 Physics Support January – June 2009 Chemistry Support January – June 2009 Calendar of Events 2009
Contact Information Physics Support
Chemistry Support
SLSS Science Postal Address
Co-ordinator Tim Regan timregan@slss.ie Mobile: 087 231 4090 Fax: 064 71999
Co-ordinator Brendan Duane brendanduane@slss.ie Mobile : 087 6375863 Fax: 045 442521
Limerick Education Centre Park House, Parkway Shopping Centre, Dublin Road, Limerick. Tel: 061 437999 Fax: 061 419907
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Intel Celebrates Excellence in Science On the 17 October 2008 the Minister of State for Science, Technology and Innovation, Dr Jimmy Devins T.D. launched Intel’s SciFest 2009 with a ‘Celebration of Excellence in Science’ in the Innovation Centre in Intel Ireland, Leixlip, Co Kildare. Sixteen second level students were awarded Intel Excellence in Science medals in recognition of their achievement in SciFest 2008. Each of the sixteen students had been either an individual or group winners of the ‘Best Project’ awards at SciFest 2008. SciFest is a local one-day science fair held in Institutes of Technology and open to all second level students. The project was launched nationwide in September 2007. The aim is to encourage a love of science through project-based learning and to provide more opportunities for students to present and display the results of their scientific investigations. Since its launch SciFest has been more successful than anyone thought possible with over 1700 students exhibiting over 680 projects in 2008. Nine Institutes of Technology: Athlone, Carlow, Cork, Dublin, Limerick, Sligo, Tallaght, Tipperary and Waterford participated in SciFest 2008. Dundalk, Blanchardstown and Tralee have already been added to the list of participating institutes for 2009.
Intel Excellence in Science Award Winners Back L to R: David Hanevy (Athlone Community College), P.J. O’Donoghue (St Colman’s College, Fermoy), Peter Wilson (Skerries Community College), Gerry Nolan (Intel Ireland Education Specialist), Dr Jimmy Devins T.D. (Minister of State for Science, Technology and Innovation), Sheila Porter (SciFest National Coordinator), Robert Kenny (Athlone Community College), Alex Carey and Jane Aston (Christ King Girls Secondary School, Cork). Front L to R: Ciara Stein (Presentation Secondary School, Tralee), Robert Neary and Raafay Shehzad (Lucan Community College), Fergal Roue, Sean Walsh and Thomas Quinn-Bailie (St Gerald’s College, Castlebar), Adrian Shannon (Colaiste Bhride, Carnew, Co Wicklow) and Mary Prendergast (Blackwater Community School, Co Waterford).
SciFest is jointly funded by Intel and Discover Science and Engineering and is supported by a number of other partners in the Institutes of Technology. The project thus creates a valuable link between the second and third level education sectors and between education and industry. SciFest has been well received by science teachers who see it as an opportunity for their students to use their SciFest projects as a major part of their practical assessment for their Junior Certificate Science Examination. Preparations for SciFest 2009 are already underway.
Teachers and students are invited to visit the website www.scifest.ie where they will find more information about this new exciting science festival.
Dr Jimmy Devins presents an Intel Excellence in Science medal to P. J. O’Donoghue, St Colman’s College, Fermoy, Co Cork (Best Project Award Winner - SciFest 2008 Tipperary Institute)
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Sheila Porter (SciFest National Coordinator) SciFest IR2-1-T22, Intel Ireland, Leixlip, Co Kildare Tel. 01 606 8949 Email: sheilax.m.porter@intel.com Website: www.scifest.ie
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Physics Support
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September - December 2008
SL0849 Induction Course for Physics Teachers This 3 –day modular course supports teachers who are new to the teaching of physics. The first 2 days have already taken place during school time while day 3 will be arranged on a Saturday in a school laboratory. The Cork, Dublin West and Galway Education Centres hosted the first two days of the course. Day 3 will focus on practical physics laboratory work in local schools and participants will be notified of dates and venues. Feedback from the participants included: ‘I found the experiment practice- time to complete, study and get to know pitfalls most helpful’ ‘Finding out about all the different resources was most helpful’ ‘Practical hands-on is invaluable especially with experiments other than the mandatory expts that support teaching the theory’ ‘Had time to get notes and figure out errors’ ‘I found the talk on how to ask good questions was extremely helpful’ ‘I found talking with other teachers and swapping ideas most useful’ Induction at Dublin West Education Centre
SL0851 Using ICT to enhance learning in the physics classroom This 3 –day modular course focuses on communicating some of the difficult concepts with the use of ICT tools such as PowerPoint, CD-ROMs, Internet Applets and Datalogging to engage the learner. Day 1 of the course has already taken place in each of the following venues; Athlone, Blackrock, Laois and Wexford Education Centres. Day 2 which has been arranged during Spring includes an opportunity where participants share their best practice classroom experiences and update the group on their Action Research progress. It will review the work undertaken and give an opportunity for participants to share their work with contributing colleagues. Last year all the physics classroom resources evaluated and generated were compiled and distributed in a CD-ROM to participants. It is planned to do the same this year. Using ICT at Blackrock Education Centre
Feedback from the participants included: ‘I am starting off using more ICT in the classroom so it comes at a great time. The range of topics covered was good and made simple for us to use’
‘Fantastic atmosphere’, ‘It is very enjoyable’ ‘Very helpful, simple short animations to enhance the teaching of most topics’ ‘Use of computers is still relatively new to me. Am amazed at resources available’ ‘One of the most useful inservice courses I’ve attended’
SL0850 Teicneolaíocht an Eolais a úsáid chun chur le múineadh agus foghlaim na fisice. Tá an cúrsa seo dírithe go speisialta ar mhúinteoirí fisice atá ag múineadh trí mhéan na Gaeilge. Bhí lá amháin ar siúl in Ionad Oideacheas na Gaillimhe ar hAoine, an 28ú lá Méan Fhómhar, 2008 agus tá obair ar siúl taobh amuigh d’am scoile chun acmhainní trí mhéan na Gaeilge á ullumhú agus á riaradh i measc na muinteoirí seo. ‘Ag obair le chéile chun achmhainní a chur le chéile ar mhaithe muinteoirí fisice uilig’ ‘Caint mar gheall ar choiste a dheanamh chun achmhainní Gaeilge a fhobairt’ ‘Videos a dhéanamh, Eolas ar achmainní atá ar fáil’ ‘Nuair a bhí gach duine ag tabhairt obair a bhí deanta acu’ Muinteori Fisice i nGaillimh ‘Gach uile cuid – turgnaimh, aiseanna a d’ullmhaigh muid, obair áiseanna agus smaointe a roinnt’ ‘Bhí an lá go h-iontach go háirithe na turgnaimh’ ‘A bheith in ann caint le daoine faoi acmhainní atá le fáil ar an idirlíon agus freisin a buaileadh le daoine leis na fadhbanna ceanna, ag lorg rudaí as Gaeilge’ PAGE
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September - December 2008
SL0852 Flash Animations in Classroom Physics This modular course focuses on communicating some of the difficult physics concepts using flash animations. Day 1 of the course has already taken place in the Cork and Galway Education Centres. Day 2 which has been arranged during Spring includes an opportunity where participants share their best practice classroom experiences and update the group on their Action Research progress. It will review the work undertaken and give an opportunity for participants to share their work with contributing colleagues. Last year all the physics classroom resources evaluated and generated were compiled and distributed in a CDROM to participants. It is planned to do the same this year.
Labday, Galway
Feedback from the participants included: Talking to colleagues is one of the best things about the day’ ‘Very useful day, will add to my physics teaching’ ‘Excellent course, well worth doing’
Leaving Certificate Physics Experiments This one day course was hosted by UCG and the Presentation Secondary School Milltown, Co Kerry and focussed on participants getting a hands-on experience on the experiments listed in the physics syllabus. It gave teachers the opportunity to perform their selected experiments and discuss the results obtained. Feedback from the participants included: ‘I found the variations of ways to carry out experiments most helpful’, ‘I found the experiments demonstrated and the discussion on what was going on most helpful’, ‘Finding out how to use equipment, I found the fact that it was in a school location and Labday, Milltown, Co. Kerry everything was ready and all ‘hands-on’ most helpful’, ‘Demo of static electricity especially seeing coulombmeter and capacitance also the sound demos and use of the signal generator’, ‘Excellent day, hands-on and setup invaluable’, ‘I found clarifying aspects of experiments that I had difficulty with and getting ideas from other teachers most helpful’
SL0858
Implementing Current Teaching and Learning Strategies in Science Classrooms
This course was organised in collaboration with Science SLSS support services. It explores current research on teaching and learning strategies including assessment for learning. Participants experience learning and commit to exchanging resources in a Virtual learning Environment.
Participants at Cork course
Venues: Cork and Galway The first day of this course has taken place in Cork. Day two will be held before Easter. Participants will be informed of the exact date.
Physics Datalogging Induction
Network Meetings
A one-day workshop on the use of datalogging to enhance practical work in physics was organised in the Kildare Education Centre. It was facilitated by a colleague who has experience using datalogging in the classroom.
A series of local evening network meetings were organised in collaboration with the Education Centres, the ISTA and the IOP to support identified needs during first term. The most popular topics requested included ‘The Virtual Physics Lab’, ‘Science on Stage Demonstrations’, ‘An insight into the marking of LC Physics’ and ‘Sound Harmonics’.
Feedback from the participants included: ‘The resources and the practical activities were most helpful’ ‘I found doing experiments that I am not familiar with yet helpful’ ‘The informative advice was most useful’ ‘Liked the practical experience and discussion of ideas’ ‘Excellent worthwhile, fulfilling day’
If you would like support in a particular topic please contact the physics co-ordinator.
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Chemistry Support September – December 2008 SL0853 Induction course for Chemistry Teachers This modular course consists of three days inservice one of which is outside school hours. Two of the days are devoted to hands on practical work on a selection of experiments while the remaining day familiarizes teachers with syllabus content, exam layout and available resources. Three venues were used this year; these were NUI Maynooth, Limerick University and Athlone IT. All three venues were well attended. Day two of each of these courses took place just before Christmas. This day allowed teachers carry out most of the organic preparations and they were given the advice of experienced teachers on safety precautions and best practice. Two of the days have now been completed and Day 3 for each venue will take place after Easter. Participants will be notified by text. Participant feedback included:
‘I now have a clearer understanding and increased competency in the mandatory experiments.’ ‘Great to see alternative ways of doing the experiments.’ ‘Getting hands-on experience and overcoming some fears attached to practicals.’ ‘For me exchanging ideas was the best part.’
SL0854 Using IT in the Teaching of Chemistry (Beginners) In keeping with the demand to provide instruction on the use of data projectors and presentations in the classroom this course is taking place in six venues around the country. It caters for the very beginner and those with some knowledge of computers. The course helps teachers overcome the fear of this new technology and all participants agreed that within a very short while they could master a short presentation. Samples of PowerPoints covering a wide range of topics including areas which students find difficult to visualize are used. Teachers comments:
‘The resource CD contains so much useful applications and I was able to make a PowerPoint with confidence.’ ‘The pace of the class suited me, not too fast.’ ‘Step by step procedures were excellent.’ ‘Learning how to animate objects within a slide.’ ‘Shown very useful websites and how to use the resources we found there.’
SL0855 Using IT in the Teaching of Chemistry (Advanced) This course caters for those teachers who have a working knowledge of computers or who have already completed the beginner’s course. Teachers work with video animation and digital media and utilize the ability of SwiffPoint player to embed these file types into their presentations. Video and screen capture software are used to collect images from the web. The course has something to offer all the participants and there is plenty of opportunity to share resources and explore the web. Advanced animation is demonstrated and stunning visual effects can now be achieved using custom animation in PowerPoint. Feedback:
‘Being able to use the internet to develop material for immediate use in my classroom.’ ‘Editing movie clips downloaded from youtube was fantastic.’ ‘Clarifying what was covered in beginners course now that I have had a chance to actually use IT.’
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Chemistry Support September – December 2008 Datalogging Induction There were two datalogging workshops organized for the school year 2008/2009. Both have already taken place in the following venues. • Manor House School, Raheny • Castletroy College, Limerick Comprehensive notes and an opportunity for hands on experience were provided on the day.
Chemistry Resource Day Athlone Education Centre
November 20th 2008
This one day course was held in Athlone Education Centre. Many IT applications were demonstrated on the day and teachers were given step by step instructions on how to get the best from PowerPoint from experienced ICT practitioners. Once again teachers went away with a bagful of useful resources which can be used immediately in the classroom. Teachers comments:
‘Excellent CD full of resources.’ ‘I really enjoyed the sharing of ideas. The websites were excellent.’ ‘I learned how to use IT effectively in my classroom.’ ‘Getting movie clips to embed into PowerPoints. So helpful.’
Laboratory management for Chemistry Teachers. Athlone Education Centre November 25th 2008 This one day course had been organised to meet the many requests from teachers looking for advice on best practice in laboratory management. Topics included were Chemical Stock Control, Chemical Storage, Safety in the Laboratory and Experimental procedures and preparations. Mary McGee, a chemistry technician from Athlone Institute of Technology, was on hand to give invaluable advice to teachers on how a school laboratory should be managed. Teachers were full of praise for her presentation and down to earth approach to a very difficult task. It is hoped to continue this event in the coming year. Feedback:
‘Information on the use of spill kits very useful.’ ‘Talk on storage of chemicals will help with WSE.’ ‘Have all the info I need to organise my lab to the best of my ability.’ ‘All the advice was practical and down to earth.’
AGM 2009 SCIENCE - ENERGISING OUR FUTURE Venue: University of Limerick and Castletroy Park Hotel Dates: Friday 20th, Saturday 21st & Sunday 22nd March 2009. • A major programme of events is planned which will include a series of concurrent lectures and workshops with over fifty different national and international facilitators/speakers involved, including Steve Spangler, Peter Douglas, Ronan McNulty, James Ring, Gary Walsh, John Breen, Peter Bowler, John Warner, Bob O'Brien, Sheila Porter • There will also be an exhibition of products by all the major school scientific suppliers. • The ABM of the ISTA and the annual dinner will also be part of the programme. For further details please consult the ISTA website at www.ista.ie or contact any of the following: Chairperson: Diane Condon, dicondon@eircom.net Publicity Officer: Marie Walsh, Marie.Walsh@lit.ie PAGE
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Research and innovation in mathematics and science education
Dr. Eilish McLoughlin, Director CASTeL
www.castel.ie
CASTeL – the Centre for the Advancement of Science and Mathematics Teaching & Learning –
Science Education Now: A Renewed Pedagogy for the future of Europe, EC Expert Group Report, (2007).
is a multidisciplinary research team involving scientists, mathematicians and educationalists from Dublin City University (DCU) and St Patrick's College, Drumcondra (SPD).
The key findings of this expert group were: 1. A reversal of school science-teaching pedagogy from mainly deductive to inquiry- based methods provides the means to increase interest in science. 2. Renewed school’s science-teaching pedagogy based on Inquiry Based Science Education (IBSE) provides increased opportunities for cooperation between actors in the formal and informal arenas. 3. Teachers are key players in the renewal of science education. Among other methods, being part of a network allows them to improve the quality of their teaching and supports their motivation. 4. In Europe, these crucial components of renewal of science teaching practices are being promoted by two innovative initiatives, “Pollen” and “Sinus- Transfer”, that are proving themselves capable of increasing children’s interest and attainments in science. With some adaptation these initiatives could be implemented effectively on a scale that would have the desired impact.
The expertise of the members encompasses the science disciplines and mathematics, in addition to education. CASTeL’s research has the aim of improving the learning of science and mathematics at all levels of the educational system. In addition to this research focus, CASTeL supports science and mathematics promotion activities in partnership with local and national organisations and specialised training and consultancy services for science and mathematics education are also available. CASTeL research is focussed on both ‘the classroom and the lab’ – on enhancing the impact of the full spectrum of teaching, learning and assessment activities in mathematics and science. This means that our research encompasses the teachers and the students, curricula and assessment, and the education and assessment systems. We draw also on research world-wide in cognitive science and related areas to inform the design and implementation of our research projects. Our current research activities are in the following areas: • Activity-based learning, including inquiry and problem based learning. • Teacher Education Strategies and Structures • Assessment in Science and Mathematics • Technology and E-learning in Science and Mathematics • Cognitive Science and related Disciplines
The key recommendations of this expert group were: 1. Because Europe’s future is at stake decision-makers must demand action on improving science education from the bodies responsible for implementing change at local, regional, national and European Union level. 2. Improvements in science education should be brought about through new forms of pedagogy: the introduction of inquiry-based approaches in schools, actions for teachers training to IBSE, and the development of teachers’ networks should be actively promoted and supported. 3. Specific attention should be given to raising the participation of girls in key school science subjects and to increasing their self-confidence in science. 4. Measures should be introduced to promote the participation of cities and the local community in the renewal of science education in collaborative actions at the European level aimed at accelerating the pace of change through the sharing of know-how. 5. The articulation between national activities and those funded at the European level must be improved and the opportunities for enhanced support through the instruments of the Framework Programme and the programmes in the area of education and culture to initiatives such as Pollen and Sinus-Transfer should be created. The necessary level of support offered under the Science in Society (SIS) part of the Seventh Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development is estimated to be around €60 million over the next 6 years. 6. A European Science Education Advisory Board involving representatives of all stakeholders, should be established and supported by the European Commission within the Science in Society framework.
In the past year there has been increased opportunity for EU funding for research in science and mathematics education through the new Framework7 Science and Society Funding Scheme “Supporting and coordinating actions on innovation in the classroom: Dissemination and use of inquiry based teaching methods on a large scale in Europe.” This call has been launched in 2008 in response to recommendations from the EC Expert Group Report, Science Education Now: A Renewed Pedagogy for the future of Europe (2007) which was followed by a Report to the Nuffield Foundation in the UK, Science Education in Europe: Critical Reflections (2008). These recent reports/actions are having an impact across Europe in driving change in science and mathematics curricula and CASTeL is actively involved in research collaboration at both national and EU level addressing these changes. CASTeL currently has a number of primary and second level teachers undertaking postgraduate research leading to an MSc or PhD and CASTeL members are involved in delivering taught postgraduate programmes: M.Sc in Science Education and M.Ed. in Education. For further information on CASTeL or postgraduate opportunities, please visit our website at www.castel.ie or email: castel@dcu.ie
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What are Inquiry-Based Science Education (IBSE) and Problem-Based Learning (PBL)?
Science Education in Europe: Critical Reflections, Report to the Nuffield Foundation (2008)
Extract from Science Education Now: A Renewed Pedagogy for the future of Europe (2007) p10-11.
This report identified six key recommendations: 1. The primary goal of science education across the EU should be to educate students both about the major explanations of the material world that science offers and about the way science works. Science courses whose basic aim is to provide a foundational education for future scientists and engineers should be optional.
Historically, two pedagogical approaches in science teaching can be contrasted. The first one, traditionally used at school, is the “Deductive Approach”. In this approach, the teacher presents the concepts, their logical – deductive – implications and gives examples of applications. This method is also referred to as ‘top-down transmission’. To be used, the children must be able to handle abstract notions, what makes it difficult to start teaching science before secondary education. In contrast, the second has long been referred to as the “Inductive Approach”. This approach gives more space to observation, experimentation and the teacher-guided construction by the child of his/her own knowledge. This approach is also described as a ‘bottom-up’ approach. The terminology evolved through the years and the concepts refined, and today the Inductive Approach is most often referred to as Inquiry-Based Science Education (IBSE), mostly applied to science of nature and technology.
2. More attempts at innovative curricula and ways of organising the teaching of science that address the issue of low student motivation are required. These innovations need to be evaluated. In particular, a physical science curriculum that specifically focuses on developing an understanding of science in contexts that are known to interest girls should be developed and trialled within the EU. 3. EU countries need to invest in improving the human and physical resources available to schools for informing students, both about careers in science – where the emphasis should be on why working in science is an important cultural and humanitarian activity – and careers from science where the emphasis should be on the extensive range of potential careers that the study of science affords.
By definition, inquiry is the intentional process of diagnosing problems, critiquing experiments, and distinguishing alternatives, planning investigations, researching conjectures, searching for information, constructing models, debating with peers, and forming coherent arguments (Linn, Davis, & Bell, 2004). In mathematics teaching, the education community often refers to “Problem-Based Learning” (PBL) rather than to IBSE. In fact, mathematics education may easily use a problem-based approach while, in many cases, the use of experiments is more difficult. Problem-Based Learning describes a learning environment where problems drive the learning. That is, learning begins with a problem to be solved, and the problem is posed in such a way that children need to gain new knowledge before they can solve the problem. Rather than seeking a single correct answer, children interpret the problem, gather needed information, identify possible solutions, evaluate options and present conclusions. Inquiry-Based Science Education is a problembased approach but goes beyond it with the importance given to the experimental approach.
4. EU countries should ensure that: • teachers of science of the highest quality are provided for students in primary and lower secondary school; • the emphasis in science education before 14 should be on engaging students with science and scientific phenomena. Evidence suggests that this is best achieved through opportunities for extended investigative work and ‘hands-on’ experimentation and not through a stress on the acquisition of canonical concepts. 5. Developing and extending the ways in which science is taught is essential for improving student engagement. Transforming teacher practice across the EU is a long-term project and will require significant and sustained investment in continuous professional development. 6. EU governments should invest significantly in research and development in assessment in science education. The aim should be to develop items and methods that assess the skills, knowledge and competencies expected of a scientifically literate citizen. 7. Good quality teachers, with up-to-date knowledge and skills, are the foundation of any system of formal science education. Systems to ensure the recruitment, retention and continuous professional training of such individuals must be a policy priority in Europe. PAGE
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Mr Symmer and his stockings—a highly charged affair Dr Philip Matthews, School of Education, Trinity College, Dublin 2
It is unlikely that the name of Robert Symmer will be known to many students, or teachers, of physics. He is a long-forgotten figure, but at one time he played a significant role in elucidating the nature of electricity. Before we discuss that role it is worth considering the only scientific work that Symmer put into the public domain. That work was the subject of a series of five papers he gave at meetings of the Royal Society in London during 1759. The papers were published in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society in the 1 same year. In common with many other contributions of the time, his papers were written in a ‘chatty’ style, quite unlike the de-personalised prose required for publication in modern journals. However, as we shall see, the degree of informality may have had unfortunate repercussions. He began his first paper with these words (see figure 1): I had for some time observed, that upon pulling off my stockings in an evening they frequently made a crackling or snapping noise; and in the dark I could perceive them to emit sparks of fire. I made no doubt but that this proceeded from a principle of electricity;…
He proceeded to discuss the conditions when the phenomenon was at its most intense: One of the things to be attended to, is the weather, which has an influence on all electrical experiments, but upon none more than those which relate to this branch of electricity. The most favourable weather is that which is dry and clear, and if a little frosty, so much the better. In his first paper Symmer described a number of experiments he performed with his stockings; but the most interesting phenomena were the subject of later papers. As has often been the way in parts of science, these later observations came about as a result of a chance happening but it was one that eventually brought about a marked change in the way electrical phenomena were explained. Indeed, Symmer’s stockings were the start of what is now regarded as the basis of the interpretation of electrical phenomena (of which, more later). On the sixth page of his first paper Symmer says: I was at that time in mourning, and of course changed the colour of my stockings… Actually he was in mourning owing to the death of his current mistress. However, the key point was that as a consequence he wore black silk stockings rather than the usual white/natural coloured silk. He discovered that the black and white stockings behaved in different ways when removed from his leg after they had been put on over an under-layer of worsted stockings. However, the most interesting series of observations followed from omitting the worsted stockings and putting on the black over the white silk stockings (or vice versa). I took a pair of white stockings, and having warmed them at the fire put them both upon the same leg. After I had worn them about ten minutes, I took them off, and pulled then asunder, but discovered no signs of electricity in either. I did the same with a pair of black silk, but to no other effect. I then proceeded to the decisive trial. I put a black and white stocking upon my leg, and wore them likewise ten minutes. I waited with some impatience to see the success of my experiment, and in return had the satisfaction of observing, upon their being pulled asunder, that each of them had acquired a stronger degree of electricity than I had before seen: they were both inflated so much, that each of them shewed the entire shape of the leg, and at the distance of a foot and a half they rushed to meet each other.
Figure 1: The start of Robert Symmer’s series of papers presented to the Royal Society in 1759. 1
Actually Symmer presented his work in four parts, but the fourth was split into two, the last was read on the 20th December 1759. The first part was read on February 1st 1759. PAGE
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My notion is, that the operations of electricity do not depend upon one single positive power, according to the opinion generally received ; but upon two distinct, positive, and active powers, which, by contrasting, and, as it were, counteracting each other, produce the various phenomena of electricity; and that, when a body is said to be positively electrified, it is not simply that it is possessed of a larger share of electric matter than in a natural state; nor, when it is said to be negatively electrified, of a less; but that, in the former case it is possessed of a larger portion of one of those active powers, and in the latter, of a larger portion of the other; while a body, in its natural state, remains unelectrified, from an equal balance of those two powers within it.
In the following three parts of his series of papers, Symmer describes a large number of experiments and observations that he made on the behaviour of the stockings. These included some quantitative experiments. For example, he soon discovered that after removing them from his leg, the black and white stockings would adhere to each other with some persistence. He attached weights to one of the stockings to obtain a measure of the force of the attraction. In an experiment conducted in the presence of a Mr John Mitchell, the two men found that sometimes it took a mass of up to 10lb to separate the stockings. Symmer also reported this chance happening: While I was about some electrical experiments, having, without design, thrown a stocking, that was highly electrified, hastily out of my hand, I was surprised to find it some time after, sticking against the paper-hangings of my room. Thus, Symmer may have been the first to witness one of the most common demonstrations now used in schools (although not with stockings!) to illustrate what we now call ‘static electricity’.
Symmer’s ideas about electricity Of course, electrical phenomena had been known about for many years before Symmer started to investigate the electrical properties of his stockings. In England and America, the predominant theory used to explain electricity was the ‘single fluid’ model. Perhaps the most famous proponent of the model was Benjamin Franklin2. His name remains familiar to us mainly owing to his (highly dangerous) investigations of lightning rather than the details of his theories. However, the key to his explanation of electrical phenomena was that electricity consisted of a single fluid that could, in the right circumstances, move between substances. If a body gained more of the electrical fluid than it normally possessed it became electrically positive; if it lost the fluid it became electrically negative. Followers of Franklin talked of there being two ‘states’ of electricity with bodies being ‘positive’ or ‘negative’, and used the appropriate ‘+’ and ‘–‘ signs; but it is important to realise that these words and signs did not signify the same ideas that we now use to explain electrical phenomena. Symmer proposed that the single fluid model was incapable of explaining the phenomena that he observed, and put forward the competing idea that there were indeed two different ‘types’ of electricity. That is, there were distinct positive and negative varieties of electricity that were markedly different from one another, and did not represent just an excess or deficit of a single ‘fluid’. He was not alone in suggesting this model; but certainly he was in a minority. He put the matter like this (on p. 371):
The reaction to Symmer’s work has been described by Heilbron (see Sources below). Heilbron explains that Symmer’s ideas were dismissed by the burgeoning scientific community in England largely as a result of prejudice. Probably, Fellows of the Royal Society were not at all impressed by the rather naive, informal, way that Symmer presented his work; nor by the use of a gentleman’s stockings as the main ‘apparatus’ being investigated3. Perhaps Symmer appeared to be just too much of an amateur to be taken seriously. (This in spite of the fact that the eighteenth century was the age of the amateur scientist or, rather, natural philosopher.)
Figure 2: This advice given to those wanting to do their own experiments appeared in a footnote on page 370. Symmer felt he needed to provide advice because he had heard from people who had not managed to duplicate his observations and therefore doubted their veracity. Teachers of physics will be well aware of the soundness of the advice about dry conditions if not the direction of the wind!
However, another pertinent issue was that the English ‘electricians’ were almost to a man supporters of Franklin and the single fluid model. As is always the case in science, people do not immediately change their commitment to long-held theories in the face of new evidence or ideas. This was indeed the case among those investigating electricity in America and England. On continental Europe the situation was different. 3
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In the later papers in his series, Symmer described a large number of experiments, many of which did not make use of his stockings and that required some sophisticated apparatus. One can only speculate about the impact of his papers if his ‘stockings experiments’ had not been given so much early prominence.
Symmer and Franklin had several communications about electrical phenomena. Indeed, on at least one occasion Franklin visited Symmer’s house, at which they jointly conducted electrical experiments.
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Especially, in France and Germany Symmer’s work was taken seriously and the single fluid model fell into decline, with the two separate positive and negative electricities model becoming increasingly accepted. Eventually the latter model did become the dominant view, mainly because it proved to be capable of providing more elegant/simpler explanations than did the single fluid model. Indeed, it is now the one that we hope that students will understand and be able to apply when they learn about current or static electricity. However, it is unfortunate that, as is far too common in science education, students do not hear of alternative explanations of the phenomena they study. The presence of positive and negative charges is presented as if it were a simple fact that is the only possible explanation of what students observe. The history of Mr Symmer’s stockings shows that this is far from the case.
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Sources Symmer, Robert (1759). ‘New Experiments and Observations concerning Electricity’. Philosophical Transactions (16831775), 51. (1759 - 1760), 340-393. Heilbron, J. L. (1976). ‘Robert Symmer and the Two Electricities’. Isis, 67 (1) 7-20. Franklin was a remarkable man. To see the extent of his interests in science and politics, visit www.franklinpapers.org. Franklin’s mention of his visit to see Symmer can be found at: www.franklinpapers.org/franklin/framedVolumes.jsp?tocv ol=32 (Look for an entry for 3rd May 1780 “Answers to Queries from Dr. Ingenhousz”.)
5 New Profiles Added We have recently added 5 new profiles to the extremely popular 'Day in the Life' careers literature series: A Rocket Scientist, A Forensic Physicist, A Physics Teacher, A Games Developer and an Image Processing Researcher. The new versions have been printed with the old ones in an A4 booklet in perforated format so the individual profiles can be pulled out, laminated and also used as a small poster. Thousands have been sent to Physics departments for local distribution and hundreds were handed out at the RDS Higher Options Conference. You can view all these profiles on the IOPI website at http://www.iopireland.org/activity /careers/A_day_in_the_life /page_18953.html The pdfs of the printed versions are also available on the website if you follow the link on the RHS of each profile. If you would like to have a printed version posted to you please contact alison.hackett@iop.org PAGE
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Delivering New Medicines & Nanochemistry
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Prof. David K. Smith University of York http://www.york.ac.uk Astra Lecture Hall. UCD, Nov 2007 5th/6th Year Chemistry Trip
By Mark 0’Brien & Christina Taite, 6A1 Chemistry, Cabinteely Community School
Why bothering studying chemistry in school? The fact that we get to do cool experiments, the Methanol Bomb and the Howling Jelly Baby happen to be just a few attractions. The other is that Chemistry is in everything around us, the oxygen we breath, the clothes we wear (polyester), the deodorants we use, the oil we burn, even other energy alternatives, the list goes on and on.
Chemical Structure of Aspirin
This is how Aspirin is sold today
Coral Reefs
But chemistry alone is not enough, we need to know how these drugs interact with humans, this is how chemistry is linked with biology. The drug “Tamiflu” was designed to inhibit the flu virus from being actively infectious. Once the structure of the virus was known, scientists tried to find ways to turn on or off the virus with various molecules they had synthesised. “Tamiflu” is a drug which contains the molecules which can turn off the flu virus. This drug has received much attention in the media over the past few years because governments have being stockpiling the drug in case Tamiflu” Medication of a flu pandemic.
Professor Smith gave us another more imperative reason as he started off his lecture highlighting that the future of Science in Ireland depends largely on the applications of chemistry in today’s society and that nearly 45% of Ireland’s exports are organic products which have been synthesised by chemical processes. So an understanding of chemistry is a bonus for any student leaving school these days. All we have to do is look at the TV Programmes “House” and “Scrubs” and we see doctors perform miracles but they need the drugs and medicines to help cure these people. This is where the role of the chemist comes in: 150 yrs ago, the average life expectancy of a person was only 40 yrs but as a result of the advancements in chemistry, we can extend a persons life in Ireland to ~75yrs of year and that number continues to rise.
A major concern at the moment is Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA), a bacteria that is resistant to various antibotic’s hence it is known as the “superbug”. Vancomycin is one drug that has been synthesised to fight MRSA. It is traditionally been reserved as a drug of "last resort", and only used after treatment with other antibiotics have failed. Vancomycin, binds strongly to a molecule within the bacteria, this molecule is used to build the cell walls of the bacteria but because the vancomycin is bound to it, it can no longer build its own cell walls and reproduce. Unfortunately bacteria can adapt and overcome this problem by changing the structure of this molecule so vancomycin will not bind to it. In order to beat the bacteria Scientists hence will have to alter the structure of vancomycin so that it will once again bind to the bacteria. The job is never ending. Structure of Vancomycin
How do we know which drugs to make? It was known that if people were suffering from headaches or pain, they would make up a drink made from the bark of the willow tree. Chemists isolated the active agent in the willow tree, identified the molecule and then tried to recreate the molecule themselves. Aspirin was the 1st drug to be synthesised in 1899.Most drugs like aspirin are discovered from natural products, AZT (anti HIV Drug) is an example of another which is from the coral reef. This is also another reason we need to protect and preserve our environment as the cure for cancer could be in a small plant waiting to be discovered and we are destroying more and more species each and every day.
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Professor Smith also spoke of the new developments in chemistry. In particular an area called Nanomedicine, where scientists now can build scaffolding that is so small it is made out of molecules. He showed us a video of a blind hamster whose optic nerve was damaged. The scientists put nanoscaffolding around the optic nerve and it encouraged the growth of new cells in the optic nerve. After a few months the hamster regained his sight. Layers of Nanoscaffolding
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Another area of nanomedicine is drug targeting, which focuses on trying to deliver the drugs to the parts of the body where it is needed. If doctors are targeting a tumour on the liver, they need the drug to reach that part of the body without being used up. So chemists have designed a chemical envelope (e.g. cyclodextrin structure –ring of sugars) to put the drug into. This envelope can be addressed to the liver and will not be opened till it reaches the liver. Hence the drug is not wasted or used up by different parts of body and the patient will suffer from fewer side effects. A Nanobot in the bloodstream
Professor Smith gave a very entertaining lecture and you should check out his website and podcast “Nanotechnology in medicine” at http://www.york.ac.uk
ChemEd-Ireland 2008, Challenges in Chemistry Teaching; Content, Context and Assessment Secondary school science and chemistry teachers, lecturers and educators from across Ireland gathered in DCU for this year’s ChemEd-Ireland conference to discuss and debate the current challenges facing those in chemistry teaching including preparing for the proposed revisions to the LC chemistry syllabus. International speakers presented talks on a range of teaching topics; from dealing with the use of context-based approaches for the development of scientific knowledge to investigating ways to dispel the notion of learning the difficult subject of organic chemistry to understanding what it is that the current LC chemistry structure is asking the students in the examinations. Dr. Viktor Obendrauf amazed his audience with examples of micro-scale experiments often overlooked by teachers for safety reasons, but which he demonstrated to dramatic effect in the course of his presentation. Dr. Obendrauf also encouraged the teachers who attended the workshop on the previous Friday afternoon, to carry out such experiments during their teaching, by providing them with the materials and skills necessary to develop dynamic and engaging lesson plans. ‘The conference was organised by Odilla Finlayson and Sarah Brady (Centre for the Advancement of Science & Mathematics Teaching and Learning – CASTeL). It proved a great success with over 45 in attendance. Sponsors included the Second Level Support Services (SLSS) for Chemistry, Royal Society for Chemistry-Education Division of Ireland, Society for Chemical Industry, Institute for Chemistry in Ireland, and Dublin City University. PAGE
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Kathleen Lonsdale 1903 - 1971 Kathleen Lonsdale (nee Yardley) was born on the 28th January 1903 in Newbridge, Co. Kildare and died in England on the 1st April 1971. Although her name is not well-known outside her own subject, she played a fundamental role in establishing the science of crystallography and in her scientific career scored several important 'firsts'. Her contemporary and friend Dorothy Hodgkin, Nobel Laureate in Chemistry 1964, said of her: "There is a sense in which she appeared to own the whole of crystallography in her time." Kathleen Yardley was the youngest of
ten children, born to Harry and Jessie Yardley, in Newbridge, Co. Kildare. Her father was postmaster at Newbridge Post Office following a career in the British army. He married Jessie Cameron, a Scot, in 1889. Harry kept his wife short of money, and, overall, the family was poorly off. He read widely and Kathleen later said "I think it was from him that I inherited my passion for facts." Unfortunately he had a drink problem and the home wasn't happy, and in 1908 Kathleen's mother left him and brought the children to Seven Kings, Essex. He only visited them occasionally and died when Kathleen was 20. Her mother was a Christian of the Strict Baptist persuasion and Kathleen's earliest memories are attending Church of Ireland services and the Methodist Sunday School in Newbridge, and learning to count with yellow balls in the local school. She was the youngest of ten children, four girls and six boys. Four of her brothers died in infancy and Kathleen commented in later life: "Perhaps, for my sake, it was as well that there was no testimony against a high birth rate in those days.� From 1908-1914 she attended Downshall Elementary School, Seven Kings and won a County minor scholarship to the County High School for Girls in Ilford, where she went from 1914 to 1919. She was a good student and showed ability in Mathematics and the Sciences. She attended classes in Physics, Chemistry and Higher Mathematics at the High School for Boys (the only girl) as her school didn't offer these subjects. Her older siblings weren't allowed to stay on at school but had to go out to work to help support the family, as they were very poor. Her brother Fred Yardley became one of the earliest wireless operators and was the person who received the last signals from the Titanic in 1912.
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Kathleen was fortunate in being the youngest child and she stayed on at school and took the Cambridge Senior Examination and won a County Major Scholarship, with distinctions in six subjects. The local education authority wanted her to stay on and try for Cambridge (she was only 16) but she wanted to go to university as soon as possible. She went for an interview at Bedford College for Women, part of the University of London, and was allowed to enter despite her age. She started to read Mathematics, living at home, and after winning a university scholarship at the end of the first year, switched to Physics. Her old headmistress advised against this as she said she would never distinguish herself in Physics. However, Kathleen came top in the University of London honours B.Sc. examination in 1922, with the highest marks in ten years, and she was invited by Professor W.H. Bragg, one of her examiners and one of the pioneers of X-ray diffraction, to join his research school at University College, on a research grant of ÂŁ180 a year. W.H. Bragg was an inspiring supervisor and Kathleen wrote of him: "He inspired me with his own love of pure science and with his enthusiastic spirit of enquiry and at the same time left me entirely free to follow my own line of research." She chose to work on solving the structure of simple organic crystals, on Bragg's advice, and also started to collaborate with another research student, W.T. Astbury, on the theoretical basis of X-ray diffraction from crystals. In 1923 W.H. Bragg moved to the Royal Institution in London and Kathleen went with him. There Bragg set up an international team of young researchers, including John Desmond Bernal (born in Nenagh), and others who later achieved international recognition. Kathleen was the only woman at first, as at that time there were very few women scientists. However, W.H. Bragg was quick to take on women to do research and consequently he has many 'female X-ray descendants'. She met Thomas Lonsdale, also a research student at University College, but in engineering, and they were married in 1927. They moved to Leeds in 1927 where Thomas got a job in the Silk Research Association, based at the University of Leeds. Thomas encouraged her to continue her scientific work and she continued some successful work on X-ray diffraction in the Department of Physics. Professor C.K. Ingold in the Chemistry Department gave her some beautiful crystals of hexamethylbenzene to work on and this was the first structure she solved correctly. It showed conclusively that the benzene ring was flat, something that chemists had been arguing about for 60 years, and this was an important milestone in organic chemistry. She also applied Fourier analysis for the first time to analyse X-ray patterns in solving the structure of hexachlorobenzene. In the evenings Thomas did experiments in the kitchen for his Ph.D. and Kathleen did her calculations (by hand using logarithim tables!). In 1929 her first child, Jane was born
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and soon afterwards they returned to London, living first at Windsor and then at Harmondsworth. A second daughter, Nancy, was born in 1931 and a third child, Stephen, was born in 1934.
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She had very strong views on the need to encourage and support women who wanted to have a family and use their scientific talents, and she had this to say about it in 1970: "Any country that wants to make full use of all its potential scientists and technologists could do so, but it must not expect to get the women quite so simply as it gets the men. It seems to me that marriage and motherhood are at least as socially important as military service. Government regulations are framed that a man returning from military service is not penalised by his absence. Is it Utopian, then, to suggest that any country that really wants married women to return to a scientific career, when her children no longer need her physical presence, should make special arrangements to encourage her to do so?"
This move disrupted her experimental work again and she spent her time doing calculations at home, working out the structure factor formulae for all the space groups. In 1931 Sir William Bragg wrote to her: "A piece of good news! Sir Robert Mond is giving me £200 with which you are to get assistance at home to enable you to come and work here. Can you come and see me soon?" In fact she needed more than £200 and Bragg managed to get £300, which enabled her to move back into research at the Royal Institution with him where she stayed for the next 15 years, existing on short term grants and fellowships. For a time she occupied Michael Faraday's old room. W.H. Bragg died in 1942 but Kathleen stayed on to work with his successor Sir Henry Dale. She was awarded the D.Sc. by University College in 1936 for her work on the structure of ethane derivatives.
After the war she was encouraged to move into academic life and in 1946 she became Reader in Crystallography at University College, London. In 1949 she became Professor of Chemistry and Head of the Department of Crystallography. Only then, at the age of 43, did she start to build up her own research school and get involved in teaching undergraduates and postgraduates.
Kathleen Lonsdale was brought up as a Strict Baptist by her mother but as an adult she found its beliefs rather restrictive. She and her husband, having looked around for a suitable church to join, eventually joined the Quakers, or Society of Friends. Their strongly pacifist yet activist position appealed to Kathleen, whose abhorrence of war had grown since WWI when she lived near London under the Zeppelin flight path. At the beginning of WWII everyone was expected to register for war service of some sort, but Kathleen ignored the requests as she did not feel able to contribute in any way to the war effort. She was eventually summonsed and fined £2. When she refused to pay the fine she was sent to Holloway Prison for one month. While in prison she wore prison uniform and had to clean floors and do other jobs. However, she was allowed books and papers and managed to get seven hours scientific work done each day! This marked the start of a life-long interest in prison reform and she became a Prison Visitor for several women's prisons after the war. She visited many countries after the war including Russia and China, but she had trouble getting a visa to visit the USA. One embassy official told her: "You've been to the three most difficult places' Russia, China and gaol."
From 1943 to the end of her life she travelled around the world lecturing and visiting scientific colleagues. Her first trip abroad was in 1943 when Kathleen visited the Dublin Institute of Advanced Studies to lecture in the Summer School, chaired by Erwin Schrodinger and attended by the Taoiseach, Eamon de Valera. At that time she was in mid-career and already had an established reputation. In her time at the Royal Institution she worked in many areas related to X-ray crystallography, theoretical and experimental. In 1945 Kathleen Lonsdale and Marjory Stevenson, a microbiologist, were elected as the first women Fellows of the Royal Society, after the rules were changed to allow women to be Fellows! This was a singular honour and a mark of their scientific achievement in a man's world. Kathleen Lonsdale was to work in the area of X-ray crystallography from 1922, when she started as a young research student, to her death in 1971. She produced a steady stream of papers during that time, trained many students in the techniques and made contributions in many areas. Amongst the significant scientific contributions she made were as follows: • She established the long-disputed structure of benzene and showed that it was planar and symmetrical. Professor C.K. Ingold said of this seminal paper: "Ever so many thanks for your wonderful paper on hexachlorobenzene. The calculations must have been dreadful but one paper like this brings more certainty into organic chemistry than generations of activity by us professionals."
She was also involved in movements to promote peace and supported the foundation of the Pugwash Movement, and served as Vice-President of the Atomic Scientist's Association and President of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom. She was often invited to speak on non-scientific topics at home and abroad, including science and religion, and the role of women in science. She was a great advocate for the increased participation of women in science, and knew first-hand the difficulties of combining marriage and a family with a professional career. She once wrote: "Sir Lawrence Bragg once described the life of a university professor as similar to that of a queen bee, nurtured, tended and cared for because she has only one function in life. Nothing could be farther from the life of the average professional woman."
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"..there are many of her interventions in scientific research that are unpublished, in the memories of all of us who knew and worked with her. One such, I should record, involved my own research. It was Kathleen Lonsdale who encouraged Sir Henry Dale to send to the Squibb Research Institute for sodium benzylpenicillin for my researches. And the first test of the X-ray microscope developed by W. L. Bragg and Charles Bunn was actually made at the Royal Institution by Kathleen Lonsdale herself to assist structure factor calculations for the penicillin crystals - a pilot operation which was later successfully extended in the actual X-ray analysis that defined the penicillin structure."
• She was the first to apply Fourier methods to solving organic structures • She showed that sigma and pi electrons existed in benzene and provided experimental evidence for molecular orbital theory. • She helped to establish the theoretical basis of structure analysis by drawing up structure factor tables (with W.T. Astbury) and then editing the prestigious International Tables of X-Ray Crystallography, the crystallographer's bible. • She made important investigations into natural and synthetic diamonds and the mechanism of diamond synthesis. In 1966 a rare form of hexagonal diamond was named lonsdaleite in her honour. She replied in a letter to Clifford Frondel of Harvard, who had suggested the name: "It makes me feel both proud and rather humble that it shall be called lonsdaleite. Certainly the name seems appropriate since the mineral only occurs in very small quantities (perhaps rare would be too flattering) and it is generally rather mixed up!" (Julian, p. 356) • She did important work on thermal motion and diffuse scattering in crystals. • In 1962 she took up the study of kidney stones and other calculi, and loved to show an X-ray photo of Napoleon III's bladder stone (Lonsdale, 1968).
But Kathleen Lonsdale was the pioneer woman in this area and so she achieved many firsts, the most notable being: • One of the first two women elected as Fellows of the Royal Society (1945) • First woman professor at University College, London (1949) • First woman president of the International Union of Crystallography (1966) • First woman president of the British Association of Science (1968) In 1965, when Thomas retired, the Lonsdales moved to Bexhill-on-Sea, which meant 5 hours travelling each day to and from University College. Her husband had retired on his 60th Birthday and from then on he helped her with her voluminous correspondence. She retired in 1968 and became an Emeritus Professor at UCL, but she carried on working and publishing to the end of her life. She was ill for some time with cancer and in December 1970 she entered hospital. She was allowed out briefly for special occasions, and carried on working on papers and a book from her sickbed. Shortly after celebrating Thomas' 70th birthday she died from cancer, on April 1st 1971.
Kathleen Lonsdale was one of the women pioneers in a man's world, the world of professional scientists. She opened the way for other women and crystallography became an area of the physical sciences where women became prominent. This was due firstly to the influences of William and Lawrence Bragg, who encouraged many women to take up crystallography, and then to the influence of Kathleen Lonsdale, who was one of the most prominent women in science from the late 1930s to her death in 1971. Dorothy Hodgkin, although not a student of Kathleen Lonsdale, was influenced by reading one of her papers while an undergraduate. Dorothy Hodgkin went on to win a Nobel Prize in Chemistry for her application of crystallography to solving the structures of important biological molecules, and she also encouraged many women to take up crystallography as a career. Lonsdale generously gave scientific assistance and encouragement to colleagues and co-workers. For example, she encouraged and assisted Nobel Laureate Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin in the work on the structure of penicillin, one of the discoveries which led to her Nobel Prize. Professor Hodgkin wrote about Dame Lonsdale,
In 1981 the chemistry building at University College, London was renamed the Kathleen Lonsdale Building in her honour and in 1998 the new Aeronautical and Environmental Building at the University of Limerick was officially named the Kathleen Lonsdale Building, marking her Irish birth.
Kathleen Lonsdale Building at the University of Limerick
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Early Years and Education 1903 1908 1919 1922
Born in Newbridge, Co. Kildare on 28th January Family moved to Seven Kings, Essex Entered the University of London at the age of 16! B.Sc., Bedford College for Women Research years, mainly with W.H. Bragg 1922-23 Research Assistant to W.H. Bragg, University College, London (ICL) 1923-27 Research Assistant to W.H. Bragg, Royal Institution 1924 M.Sc., UCL 1924 First scientific paper (Structure of succinic acid etc.) 1927-30 Amy Lady Tate Scholar and part-time demonstratorship, University of Leeds 1929-34 Three children born; calculations done at home! 1934-1946 Royal Institution, London (various short-term grants and fellowships) 1936 D,Sc., University College, London 1943 Lectures in Dublin at the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies Summer School 1945 Made a Fellow of the Royal Society Academic years at UCL
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1947 1949 1956 1957 1960-61 1960-66 1966 1968 1968 1971 1971/2 1981 1998
Reader in Crystallography, UCL Professor of Chemistry and Head of Department of Crystallography, UCL Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire Davy Medallist of the Royal Society Vice-President, Royal Society Vice-President, International Union of Crystallography President, International Union of Crystallography President, British Association for the Advancement of Science Emeritus Professor, UCL Died of cancer, 1st April Last scientific papers (on urinary stones) Chemistry building at UCL named the Kathleen Lonsdale Building AET Building at UL named the Kathleen Lonsdale Building
Compiled from a lecture given by Dr. Peter E. Childs to mark the official opening of the Kathleen Lonsdale Building, University of Limerick 20th April 1998
Enhance your teaching . . .
Do you wish to enhance your teaching and learning skills? Do you wish to find out about the added value ICT can contribute to classroom teaching? Would you like to explore different teaching and learning styles with colleagues? The SLSS Chemistry and Physics courses on offer can assist you. See pages 44 - 47. PAGE
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Frontiers of Physics 08 Tracking stars with satellites, telescopes and gears from ancient Greece Gear mechanisms from ancient Greece, searching for the essence of matter and observing supernovae remnants were just some of the topics discussed at Frontiers of Physics-the annual Institute of Physics conference for physics teachers hosted by the UCD School of Physics at UCD on September 27. The day was attended by over 90 people from all over Ireland.
Large Hadron Collider (LHC) - at CERN (the European Organisation for Nuclear Research). Dr Vio Buchete, also from the UCD School of Physics, then showed how theoretical physics can be used to give us some insight into diseases such as Alzheimer’s.
Professor Mike Edmunds from Cardiff University opened the conference with a journey through classical Greece and his research into an ancient device found in a shipwreck off the Greek island of Antikythera. Surface imaging and x-ray tomography revealed some of the astronomical significance of this unique device which is believed to date around 100BC. With 30 intricate gears the device was capable of predicting eclipses and when the Olympic games should be held. Professor Edmunds concluded that his group would wait until more information was known before building a replica. Ms Alison Hackett from the IOP then showed some movies made by secondary school students for the Planet SciCast competition. It included entries from Irish students on illustrating how the central locking mechanism in cars works as well as a winning UK entry on the strength of friction. Teachers interested in getting their students involved in the competition can find out how to apply at http://www.planet-scicast.com/
Physics teachers Ms Veronica O’Donnell and Mr David Cullen at the UCD Science stand during the Frontiers of Physics conference hosted by the IOP and UCD School of Physics at UCD on September 27 2008
The research talks ended with Dr John Quinn a UCD astrophysicist who began by saying that “Nature has particle accelerators more powerful than the LHC.” Dr Quinn illustrated how his group examine the gamma ray sky for phenomena such as supernovae and gamma ray bursts. The audience also got a chance to hear some pulsars – one of the most impressive being the Vela pulsar, which was like listening to a star the size of earth spinning faster than a kitchen blender! Each year in December the UCD School of Physics hosts a week long TY programme. Professor Padraig Dunne gave an overview of some of the practical activities such as launching rockets and building telescopes. Students interested in applying can visit the UCD Science website at http://www.ucd.ie/science/outreach/011208_ty_week_physics. html
Physics teachers Ms Patricia Dwan and Ms Mary Hackett attended the Frontiers of Physics conference hosted by the IOP and UCD School of Physics at UCD on September 27 2008
The search for the essence of matter and particle physics was the theme of a talk by Dr Ronan McNulty from the UCD School of Physics. Dr McNulty explained how UCD researchers helped to build and test the VELO detector which is used as part of the 6 billion giant particle collider - the
The second half of the meeting began with demonstrations by Mr Rory Geoghegan from Froebel College of Education and a discussion on the New Leaving Cert Physics by Dr Michael Halton NCCA concluded the day. Congratulations to all the teachers who won prizes generously donated by sponsors.
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Teaching Heat at Leaving Certificate Noreen Gillies (Scoil Mhuire, Kanturk)
I have just completed a MEd Science (physics) having studied only Biology and Chemistry previously. I found it quite a struggle but one of the more useful aspects for me, as someone new to physics, was writing up the experiments, particularly the Introduction and STS (Science, Technology and Society) sections. I learned a lot from this and use the material in class to make physics more relevant and hopefully more interesting for the students. The rest of this article is edited from experiment notes (without the details of the apparatus and method for experiments, which are described in most text books).
Latent Heat The word ‘latent’ was first used by Joseph Black (1728 – 1799), a French-born Scottish chemist noted for his fundamental work on latent heat and specific heat as well as his discovery of carbon dioxide. Latent heat means ‘hidden’ or concealed energy, in the sense that it does not show up on a thermometer. The latent heat (L) of a substance is the heat energy needed to change its state without a change in temperature. Latent heat is energy used for loosening or breaking bonds between molecules and not for raising temperature. The symbol for latent heat is L. Its unit is the joule (J). The latent heat needed to change from a solid to a liquid is called the latent heat of fusion. The latent heat needed to change from a liquid to a gas is called the latent heat of vaporisation. When a solid substance changes from the solid phase to the liquid phase, energy must be supplied in order to overcome the molecular attractions between the constituent particles of the solid. This energy must be supplied externally, normally as heat, and does not bring about a change in temperature. In the case of changing from a solid to a liquid, energy is needed to increase the distances between atoms or molecules, pulling them apart and to reduce the number of bonds between neighbouring atoms or molecules so that they move farther apart and become a liquid. When liquid changes state to become a vapour, more energy is required. The term ‘internal work’ describes that work required to separate atoms and molecules. ‘External work’ is required in pushing back the surrounding atmosphere to allow space for the atoms/molecules to escape as vapour. The greater part of the energy is used in separating the molecules and only 10% is used in pushing back the atmosphere. Vaporisation requires more energy than fusion, and the figures bear this out; for example, for water, lF is only about 15% of lV. Much less energy is necessary to separate the molecules present in ice to form water than is required to liberate the molecules present in water as steam is formed. The diagram opposite shows how the uptake of heat by 1 kg of water, as it passes from ice at -50 ºC to steam at temperatures above 100 ºC, affects the temperature of the sample. Vaporisation requires more energy than fusion, for example, for water, lF is only about 15% of lV. This is illustrated by the relative sizes of the “B” and “D” regions of the graph.
Experiment 1 - To determine the specific latent heat of fusion of ice. SOURCES OF ERROR
REDUCING THE ERRORS
Heat loss/gain from calorimeter
Use warm water (10 degrees above room temp). Warm water allows ice to melt quickly and allows more ice to be used, which improves accuracy. Ice can be added until the temperature is ten degrees below room temp. Equal temperatures about and below ambient means the heat losses and gains for the calorimeter balance. Use insulation/lagging and lid.
Measuring temperature
Use a sensitive thermometer or temperature sensor. Mixture must be stirred to ensure that the temperature is uniform. Use computer graph to record the lowest temperature. A temperature change of at least 20 ºC improves the accuracy by reducing the % error.
Transferring ice to calorimeter
Ice must be at 0 ºC, crushed and dried (to match calculation assumptions). Ice must be added without splashing (to prevent loss of mass), with plastic tongs (thermal insulator). The mass of the ice is found by subtraction at the end of the experiment.
Calorimeter too cold.
Ice will melt slowly if the water is too cold, allowing time for heat to enter from surroundings. Water vapour in the air may condense on the calorimeter giving weight errors.
Measurements of mass
Use a sensitive electronic balance.
Repeat
The experiment should be repeated a number of times. PAGE
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Experiment 2 - To measure the specific latent heat of vaporisation of water SOURCES OF ERROR
REDUCING THE ERRORS
Obtaining dry steam
The calculation assumes that only steam is added. Steam was allowed to issue freely from the delivery tube until the tube had warmed up. Liquid on the end of the tube was wiped before being inserted into the calorimeter. A steam trap was used to collect any liquid. The delivery tube is sloped so that condensate will run back into the steam generator. The delivery tube could be insulated to prevent condensation. Anti bumping granules could be added to keep the water boiling smoothly.
Measuring temperature
Use sensitive thermometer or temperature sensor. Mixture must be stirred to ensure uniform temperature. Use computer graph to record the highest temperature. Temperature change of at least 20 ºC improves the accuracy by reducing the % error.
Heat loss/gain from calorimeter
Use cool water (10 degrees below room temp). Cold water allows steam to condense quickly and reduces heat loss, which improves accuracy. Equal temperatures above and below ambient mean the heat losses and gains for the calorimeter balance. Use insulation/lagging and lid. When steam is passed into the water in the calorimeter the delivery tube should be placed below the surface of the water to prevent evaporation of water from the surface.
Measurements of mass
Use a sensitive balance. When removing the delivery tube ensure that water from the calorimeter is not being removed with it. The mass of the steam added is found by subtraction.
Repeat
The experiment should be repeated a number of times.
STS There are many practical examples of latent heat in our everyday lives.
• It feels colder during a thaw since energy is extracted from the atmosphere to melt the snow or frost remaining on the ground.
• An ice-cube is more effective in cooling a drink on a summer’s day than would be an equal mass of cold water.
• Latent heat released during condensation is an important source of energy which drives atmospheric systems like hurricanes and cumulus clouds. Heat is added to the air when water condenses from vapour into the liquid phase. This energy heats the air, making it lighter and the lighter air rises. This is what powers thunderstorms and hurricanes.
• If one holds a wetted finger in the wind, the wind direction can be determined by the evaporation and subsequent cooling that takes place on the skin’s surface.
• A scald from steam is more painful than that from boiling water. The steam condenses on the skin, and releases the latent heat of vaporisation. This heat energy damages the skin causing pain.
• A dog does not perspire through its skin, so it cools itself by letting its tongue hang out! Latent heat is involved when the saliva evaporates.
• Aftershave or skin tonic contain alcohol, which evaporates quickly, and cools the skin. • A nurse or doctor, before giving a patient an injection, will rub the area with a volatile liquid. This acts as an antiseptic but also, as the liquid evaporates quickly, cools and anaesthetizes the skin.
• Large containers of water are sometimes left in a cellar in which apples, vegetables or tinned foods are stored. Vegetable sap contains salts and sugars which lower its freezing point to below 0 °C. If the temperature in the cellar falls to around 0 °C, the water in the containers freezes before the fluids in the food. As the water in the container freezes, the latent heat emitted may be enough to prevent the foods freezing.
• A device called the ‘Sizzle Stick’, claims to reduce significantly cooking times for roasting meat. The device is a hollow tube of metal, which contains a wick. Water is added and the stick is inserted into the joint of meat. Heat energy from the hot oven, raises the temperature of the water in the lower, wider end of the tube. Eventually the water boils and absorbs latent heat. This steam rises through the tube, and as it passes through the cooler interior of the piece of meat, it condenses. As this happens, the latent heat, which earlier was absorbed, is released, and helps to cook the meat. The liquid water runs back along the tube, where the process starts once more. The action is that of a mini heat pump. The increased effectiveness of this tube over a solid metal skewer (which heats by conduction) is due to the latent heat of vaporisation.
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• A refrigerator works using latent heat. A volatile liquid is pumped through a system of closed pipes containing a valve. A compressor maintains a higher pressure on one side of the valve than on the other. Because the pressure of the liquid is reduced when it passes through the valve it vaporises, and in so doing extracts the necessary latent heat from inside the cabinet. On the high pressure side of the valve the vapour liquifies once again, and in so doing releases the latent heat of vaporisation.
• Keeping the Greenhouse Warm: Placing large vats of water in greenhouses protects fruit from freezing; the heat liberated when the water freezes warms the air.
• It is more effective to wrap a damp cloth around bottles or cartons of milk to keep them cool, rather than placing them in a jar of water. The water evaporating from the cloth around the milk takes heat energy from the milk, thereby cooling it. The Egyptians realized that water could be kept cool by placing it in porous earthenware vessels. These containers allow sufficient liquid to escape and evaporate, and in so doing cool the water remaining.
• The cold feeling one has after emerging from a bath or shower is due to evaporation which extracts latent heat from the body.
• Perspiration acts as a temperature control mechanism in the human body. Evaporation of the sweat results in heat loss from the body surface.
• It is more effective, to sponge the forehead of a patient with a high temperature with tepid water. Because of its higher temperature, the tepid water will evaporate at a faster rate. It is then the latent heat absorbed from the body, which cools the patient down.
Dublin chosen as European City of Science 2012 Dublin has been chosen as European City of Science for 2012. It will host Euroscience Open Forum, a year-long programme of events culminating in a festival of science that is expected to attract 8,000 Irish and international delegates to the city in July of that year. Minister for Science and Technology Jimmy Devins T.D. said the decision was “recognition of the great strides that Ireland has made in the area of science technology and innovation”.He said the successful bid for the event would “provide a platform to showcase the best of science and research being carried out in Ireland across all disciplines”.It was also a unique opportunity to promote the value of investing in science with true consequences for the daily life of the citizen and to showcase modern Dublin to our international partners, he said. The government’s chief scientific adviser, Professor Patrick Cunningham, presented Dublin’s final bid to a 10-member international panel in Stuttgart. Vienna was the other city in the bidding.“It is fantastic – I was particularly pleased it was a unanimous decision,” said Cunningham. Lord Mayor of Dublin Eibhlin Byrne, who travelled to Strasbourg and Stuttgart with the delegation making Dublin’s bid for the event, said: “This event will allow us to showcase the best of Irish science and will make Dublin a living ‘science lab’ which can only encourage our young people into sciences.” The third such event, organised by the European Association for the Promotion of Science and Technology, took place in Barcelona this year. Turin will be European City of Science in 2010.
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International Science Medals for Irish Juniors http://ijso.or.kr/ Three Irish Students won bronze medals at the 5th International Junior Science Olympiad (IJSO) in Gyeongnam, Korea on December 6th - 16th 2008. • Thomas Hayes, Pobalscoil Inbhear Scéine, Kenmare, Co. Kerry: • Jack Hutchinson, Gonzaga College, Ranelagh, Dublin 6 • Darren McMahon, St. Macartan’s College, Co. Monaghan The competition involved 250 students from 51 counties. All students are under sixteen years of age (born on or after 1 January 1993). The six-student Irish delegation also included: Aidan Kelly, Drogheda Grammar School, Co. Louth: Srujana Vedicherla, Mount Carmel Secondary School, King’s Inn St, Leila Smith, Loreto College, Foxrock, Co. Dublin and these also achieved high scores In early October the principals of each post-primary school were asked to nominate students who achieved a minimum of six As, including Mathematics and Science in the 2008 Junior Certificate Examination. One hundred registration forms, representing nineteen counties were returned. The majority of the finalists achieved between nine and eleven A grades in the Junior Certificate. The Irish Junior Science Olympiad (IrJSO) took place in DCU on Saturday 8th November. The threehour test began at 12 noon and the closing ceremony commenced at 4.00 pm. All participants were presented with a certificate at the closing ceremony. The top three students received gold medals, the next three students received silver and the next three bronze. The gold & silver medal winners were invited to represent Ireland at the 2008 IJSO and the bronze medal winners were on the reserve list. (Luke Corcoran, Abbey C.B.S., Tipperary: Killian O'Dwyer, C.B.S., Ennistymon, Co. Clare & Stephen O'Brien, Colaiste Chriost Ri, Capwell Rd., Cork) The Irish team completed online assignments over the next three weeks designed by Dr. Paraic James. They attended an intensive three-day residential programme in DCU prior to departure to the IJSO. Dr. Paraic James, Pedagogical Leader and Michael A. Cotter, Delegation Leader accompanied the students. Dr. James is also the IJSO European Vice President and Michael A. Cotter is the treasurer. They both serve on the Executive Committee (EC) as well as being members of the International Board (IB). The IJSO included three days of competition involving an individual MCQ, a theory test and a three-member team practical test. Both Irish teams performed exceptionally well at the practical test. All tests included questions on Biology, Chemistry and Physics is equal proportion. The practical test involved the dissection of a squid. The Students also followed an education and cultural programme which included visits to museums, historic sites, temples, wildlife reservations and arboretum as well as attending lectures by Korean and visiting scientists. For further information contact: Michael A. Cotter, IrJSO Director & IJSO Delegation Leader Paraic James IrJSO Principal Scientist & IJSO Pedagogical Leader
http://www.euso.dcu.ie/ijso/irjso2008.htm PAGE
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Differentiation: Supporting the Spirit of Investigation Sean O’Leary, Deputy National Co-ordinator, Special Education Support Service (SESS), Cork Education Centre, Western Road, Cork.
The inclusion of children with special educational needs in mainstream settings is increasingly becoming a reality. This has created new challenges for us as teachers. Students can vary widely in ability in a single class and we must learn to cater for the diverse needs of all of our students. How can we support the inclusion of students with special educational needs in the science classroom? All students can benefit from an education in science. Furthermore, developing strategies to support students with special needs can empower teachers to be more effective for all students. Reinforcing material, such as safety rules or developing resources that utilise a variety of learning strategies benefits everyone. Learning, or at least classroom based learning is about engaging positively with students, providing a variety of stimulating activities and appealing to students’ interests and abilities. We can differentiate lessons for our students by adjusting the content being learned, changing the way students access the material and by coming up with different ways in which students can show what they have learned. Science is relevant to peoples’ lives and can become a tool for everyone’s benefit. The broad junior certificate programme experienced by students in our schools acknowledges the need for relevance by proposing that curriculum provision should address the immediate and prospective needs of young people, in the context of their cultural, economic and social environment. The junior certificate science syllabus extends this approach by promoting the development of scientific knowledge, skills, concepts and attitudes essential for the responsibilities of citizenship in today’s world. However, it does this through outlining learning outcomes ranging from simple recall of basic facts to classification, demonstration, explanation, understanding and investigation. How can I differentiate extremely complex learning outcomes, such as understanding that chemistry has an important role in pharmacy, medicine and the food industry? Similarly, how can I differentiate learning outcomes that involve investigation?
Investigations require the application of the scientific method. This can take students a considerable amount of practice to master appropriately. At what level are students expected to perform? Excellent guidance on investigations is provided by the junior science support service (www.juniorscience.ie) who outline the many steps of an investigation that students should learn. Students who struggle to learn and apply all the skills involved in the many steps of an investigation can still engage in an authentic and meaningful investigation when the process is differentiated for them. Skills pathways outline the progression of skills that students may experience as they learn to carry out an experiment or investigation. Table 1 shows the skills pathways that could be used with students to plan an investigation as well as obtain, analyze and evaluate evidence. Each individual pathway is independent. Some students progress further along one pathway than other pathways. Students can progress along each pathway in their own unique way. These pathways can be used to support students at any of the various stages of each pathway by gently prompting students to acquire the next skill along the pathway. The essence of using this approach is that all students are encouraged to extend their skills and knowledge by being provided with opportunities to progress along the skills pathway as appropriate. A skills pathway attempts to include all students in the learning process. It may form a focus for creating student roles during cooperative learning or for providing formative assessment for individual students. It could even be used for target setting in individual education plans. Whatever way we use skills pathways in teaching, there is no doubt that they can provide us with a practical tool for including all students in the science classroom.
Table 1: Skills Pathways for an Investigation
Skills
Progression
Planning
• Respond to questions • Brainstorm • Use concrete experience
• Use some scientific terms • Ask questions • Identify hazards • Make predictions
• Turn ideas into questions that can be investigated • Suggest variables • Use various sources to find information
• Use scientific terms regularly • Realise the limitations of investigations • Produce a detailed plan of an investigation
Obtaining Evidence
• Use equipment with support • Use everyday terms
• Use equipment safely • Attempt fair testing • Make simple measurements and observations
• Identify variables • Keep fixed variables constant • Take accurate measurements
• Use fair testing • Decide on the number of measurements • Use equipment appropriately
Analysing Evidence
• Draw/discuss work in everyday terms • Record (with support) in tables provided by the teacher
• Compare results • Record independently in tables provided by the teacher
• Use different ways to display results • Make statements about what the results show
• Present results clearly • Explain results clearly
Evaluating Evidence
• Make comments about the results
• Suggest how to improve an investigation • Recognise fair tests • Use some scientific terms
• Describe observations • Draw conclusions from results • Suggest further investigations
• Give reasons for improving an investigation or conducting further investigations • Evaluate results appropriately
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Transition Electronics Module – ‘Traffic Lights’ Margaret Stockdale – Carrignafoy Community College, Cobh, Co. Cork
For many students after the Junior Certificate, Physics is seen as a difficult subject and a challenge for Leaving Certificate points. With few students taking up Physics in my own school, I decided to put the books away for a while and go for a hands-on approach. My immediate task was trying to find a project that gave a bit of a wow for the students and was easy to construct. After many hours searching on the Internet I found the ‘Traffic Light’ project. These lights follow the British sequence of Green, Amber, Red, Red & Amber, Green. (You can find many other projects there at http://www.kpsec.freeuk.com/ ). As stated on the site, it is possible to buy the components as a kit but I opted to purchase them from a local electronic components supplier. I initially bought enough to make up one kit myself. It worked first time (surprise!).
separate breadboard (as I had some in the Lab) as they were shown separately in the diagram.
‘Traffic Light’ Layout for the Stripboard Obviously, a key point before beginning soldering is ‘Safety’. I had a Burn Spray at hand, just in case. Each pair of students was given a small plastic box and at the end of class, their work was stored away with their names on the outside.
‘Traffic Light’ Circuit Diagram Next step was planning for the group (20 students). I used a double class to go over the components starting with the colour code of resistors. To facilitate this and to ensure students could see I used my Data Projector with a Webcam attached to a retort stand. The Webcam was focused on components on my desk and students could see the colours of the different bands on the resistors. I swapped resistors until they were able to read the bands to find the different values. I then showed them the LED’s, pointing out the anode, cathode and showing their importance in relation to the circuit diagram in the project. [Note: As an aid I use the Webcam to quickly project a diagram from a book etc. You can then take a photo. Using a page under the webcam works just like a graphic tablet!!].
Overall, the students are really enjoying the hands-on approach. They are learning about electronics, the importance of polarity for some components, snipping wires and soldering skills. It has also been a surprise to see how dextrous some students are. More importantly they are seeing ‘Physics’ in action and its relation to electronic devices they are using every day!
Once the theory was complete, I gave a class over to soldering practise. I used one strip board cut to give ten small boards for the class. Students had to first strip wire, and with one holding the wire in place, the other student had to practise soldering. They swapped around once they were making the joints correctly. The biggest problem was trying to slow down their enthusiasm to get going. To begin the project I got the students to start with the IC sockets and using these as a guide they soldered in the remaining components. I planned the LED’s to be on a PAGE
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Teachers Promoting Active Learning: The TL21 Project in NUI Maynooth and Leinster Schools Pádraig Hogan, Education Department, NUI Maynooth
1. Gap between the demands of school administration and the necessities of educational leadership
The TL21 project (Teaching and Learning for the 21st Century 2003-07) is an action research initiative recently carried out by the Education Department at NUI Maynooth together with 15 post-primary schools in three regions of Leinster. In a nutshell, the many issues addressed by the project all concern the quality of teaching and learning in Ireland’s second-level schools. It should be stressed from the start that this question of quality is quite different from that of the effectiveness of teaching and learning in the schools. For instance, schooling – including third level education – can be an effective vehicle for advancing the interests of state or church, of party or economy, while at the same time doing less than justice to education itself as a distinct and fruitful human undertaking. The history of education is replete with examples of such distorted forms of quality, from ancient times to our own day. So quality in the best sense has been a key issue for us in this project. Indeed it becomes freshly important as an educational issue as a new utilitarianism in educational reform policies internationally tends to recast questions of quality as questions of indexed quantity (e.g. of grades, points etc). Viewed in comparative terms, educational reform in Ireland has escaped the worst of this new utilitarianism to date, though demands for outcomes that can be readily ranked in league tables are more in evidence here now than a decade ago. Against this backdrop, the two main aims of the TL21 project can be summarised as:
Inherited practices of leadership in Irish second-level schools – as elsewhere – have tended to create and maintain a rift between work that is essentially administrative in character and action that is essentially educational in character. Since the early nineties a number of surveys have shown that Principals and Deputy Principals are increasingly burdened with an administrative workload that absorbs most of their time and energy. This has serious consequences for their sense of professional identity. At bottom it comes to a question of whether schools are essentially places of learning or essentially places of production. Through participatory seminars for Principals and Deputy Principals the TL21 project sought to create opportunities –within existing constraints – that allow fresh insights on educational leadership to be profitably shared and that enable new professional thinking and new practices to grow. Some encouraging progress has been made on this path. But it has become increasingly clear that more adequate and more structured time will have to be available if such sharing and new forms of practice are to become features of the normal work of school Principal and Deputy Principal.
2. Conformist tenor of much teaching and learning
(1) to strengthen (post-primary) teachers’ capacities as the authors of their own work (2) to encourage students to become more active and responsible participants in their own learning. Launched in November 2003, the project ran a number of series of interactive workshops for teachers and for school Principals and Deputy-Principals over its duration. It completed its active phase in Summer 2007. Its final report, Learning Anew, was published in December 2007. Early in 2008 copies of this were sent to the national education agencies, and to each post-primary school in the country. It has also been published on the web (See www.nuim.ie/TL21). Arising from the TL21 project, the TL21 Transfer Initiative is now seeking to promote more widely the benefits the project’s workshops brought to participating schools and teachers. Five Education Centres are involved in the first stage of the Transfer Initiative. This short article can hopefully give some flavour of the project’s work and comment on a few of the significant issues that are dealt with more fully in the final report. Five such issues are selected here.
Inherited practices of teaching and learning in Irish secondlevel schools have characteristically ‘delivered the goods’ in terms of examination success. The schools are generally deemed successful in international comparisons, whether these are made by policy research bodies such as the OECD, or by the spokespersons of multinational corporations which choose to locate in Ireland. All too often however, the inherited practices have not prized imagination and originality in learning or in teaching, and have sometimes made the teacher a servant to predictable routines dictated by textbooks. One of the most promising findings of the project’s work has been the satisfaction experienced by participating teachers who have come to view their pedagogical approaches in new ways. The main reason for this is that the teachers can see evidence of richer and more engaged learning on the part of the students as new ideas for teaching and learning are tested in their own classrooms. Lively workshops for participating teachers and a strong emphasis on building interactive subject teams in the schools have proved crucial in bringing about such changes in classroom practice. It is significant however that
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evidence of these changes is strongest where nonexamination classes are concerned. Further success in this endeavour would be greatly helped if the certificate examinations were clearly seen by all (e.g. by teachers, parents, inspectors and the State Examinations Commission) to reward a wider range of learning accomplishments.
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perhaps, it is not widely appreciated that AfL, as a coherent repertoire of approaches, is essentially about the quality of students’ learning. It has much more to do with this than it has with assessment for certification purposes. Cultivating and reviewing a number of AfL strategies became a productive focus of our work with teachers, and of their work with students, during the project’s later activities.
3. Insulation and isolation of teachers Teachers in second-level schools have been largely insulated and isolated from their professional colleagues. International studies report that Ireland fares particularly poorly here compared to other OECD countries. Of course teachers’ relations with one another, and with Principal, Deputy Principal and even school authorities, are often informal in Ireland, but rarely enough in the past have these relations been informed in decisive ways by ideas of active professional collaboration on teaching and learning issues, or by practices of self-evaluation and peer review. In its early days the TL21 project tackled this issue by arranging for professional pairings (‘critical friends’ to use the jargon phrase) among participating teachers. Scheduled time would be set aside on a regular basis in the school for exchange of ideas and constructive criticism in each of the pairs. Where teachers got into the habit of doing this, the fruits encouraged the practice itself to become habitual, and to a large degree self-sustaining as an informal practice. But this kind of innovation creates some timetabling difficulties within schools in its initial stages. It requires a lot of leadership and support to get it under way and build it to the stage where it becomes self-sustaining as a normal feature of teachers’ professional culture. The project made substantial inroads in overcoming apprehensions about sharing with colleagues; especially sharing accounts of one’s progress on new initiatives that shift some of the burden of responsibility from teachers to students and that involve students more centrally in their own learning
In recent years there has been an increasing emphasis in school planning activities on teaching and learning issues, as distinct from the emphasis in earlier years on putting policies in place. In the project’s workshops and seminars much energy has been given to bringing together this new emphasis on planning for teaching and learning with the school leadership’s role in promoting the professional development of teachers. Two important points can be made about the consequences of this drawing together of educational planning and educational leadership. Firstly, it has become increasingly clear that in-service events of a once-off kind (e.g. the traditional format of staff days) are of limited value, compared to professional development initiatives that are essentially participatory in character and that are linked in a meaningful sequence. Secondly, this realisation highlights the case for viewing continual professional development, including regular scheduled provision for it, as an integral part of a teacher’s work, as distinct from an ‘add-on’. The integral view has been the accepted norm for many years in countries of comparable population and economic resources as Ireland (e.g. Scotland, Finland), with which relevant comparisons are to be drawn.
Conclusion: A word about the Transfer Initiative
4. Misconceptions about students’ understanding of themselves as learners Students all too rarely take an active and responsible hand in their own learning. This is not to say that the students don’t work. Some work very hard, but often bypass the real and enduring benefits of their studies as they become absorbed in a national preoccupation with extrinsic inducements, rewards and prizes. Significantly, many teachers share the students’ misconceptions about what counts as beneficial learning, and as a consequence find themselves pressed into forms of practice that place too heavy a burden of responsibility on the teacher. In the project’s work we have found that among the strategies that hold most promise for tackling this problem are those that come under the umbrella term ‘assessment for learning’ (AfL). Although elements of AfL are in use in very many classrooms already, the benefits often remain implicit and are rarely reaped in full. More significantly
5. Teaching and Learning as a focus in school development planning, in school leadership Activities and in continuing professional development for teachers.
The critical question for us now is to ensure that the insights, lessons and practices that the project’s participants have yielded are capable of being sustained and developed in Irish post-primary education It is important to stress that these insights, lessons and practices have been home-grown in Irish post-primary settings rather than simply borrowed from research findings elsewhere. They have also been home-tested, hopefully in sufficient measure as to be worthy of the earnest attentions of teachers, students and their parents, school leaders, managerial bodies and national policy-makers alike. The main purpose of the TL21 Transfer Initiative then, as distinct from the TL21 project, is to try to make available more widely in postprimary learning environments benefits of the kind cultivated by the project’s workshops. This won’t happen overnight of course. But we envisage that the provision of linked workshops in a series could become a more central feature of the work of the support agencies in the years ahead, and particularly of the Education Centres in the various regions of the country.
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Let There be Light by Alex Montwill and Ann Breslin The book devotes itself to the key role played by light and other electromagnetic radiation in the universe. Going one step beyond the popular level, it gives the sort of overall view of the subject, often missed by undergraduate and postgraduate physics students as they try to assimilate the technical details of their courses. The book, with its many novel features, should be of interest to students, teachers and to general readers with some science background.
Key features: • Written in the style of a textbook yet easy to read for enjoyment. • Many topics treated in an original way on the basis of fundamental principles. 2
• Well-known equations such as E = mc explained and derived in simple logical steps.
• Richly illustrated with diagrams and photographs. • Relevant questions asked and answered as illustrated in the This excellent book is available from Campus Books UCD or from www.worldscientific.com
sketch. • Most chapters feature a pen picture of the life and character of a central scientific figure.
David Keenahan, Alison Hackett and Paul Nugent
Prof Alex Montwill speaking at the launch Nov 25th, UCD
If you would like to contribute an article for the next issue of the magazine, or if you have tried different teaching techniques and would like to contribute to the next issue of the magazine
please contact us. Contact details are given inside the front cover
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Research into Innovation in Science Teacher Education in the University of Limerick Geraldine Mooney Simmie GIMMS/CrossNet IRELAND Coordinator Room DM-042, Department of Education and Professional Studies, University of Limerick 00-353-61-213029 Geraldine.Mooney.Simmie@ul.ie
The changing needs in the workforce of competitive knowledge economies across the western world has spawned a need for people with high self-efficacy and the ability to contribute within teams. The conception of teaching has changed and a new field of teaching for transformative learning has grown since the start of this century. The new paradigm is offering a real challenge to the continuing intellectual and professional development of the teaching force. This, coupled with the mass decline in interest in the physical sciences and mathematics among young people, is occupying the minds of the policymakers and forcing a global re-think about teaching and learning. Numerous research projects in teacher education are underway across Europe, Australia and the USA. One such project is the GIMMS research and development project, co-ordinated in the University of Limerick by Geraldine Mooney Simmie, a Lecturer in the Department of Education and Professional Studies. GIMMS is the acronym for Gender, Innovation and Mentoring in Science and Mathematics. The project is funded by the teacher education division of the European Commission and involves six countries: Ireland, Denmark, Germany, Austria, Spain and the Czech Republic. The project seeks to develop ways of teaching that are innovative and gender sensitive through developing mentoring and support relationships between teachers in collaboration with the University research team and the main policymakers, such as the Department of Education and Science (DES), the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA), the Second Level Support Service (SLSS), the Irish Science and Mathematics Teachers
Associations(ISTA/IMTA), the Association for Secondary Teachers of Ireland (ASTI) and the Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI). The GIMMS part of the project is concerned with the school-based part of the development while the connection to the main stakeholders is supported by another EU project, called CrossNet. CrossNet considers crossing boundaries in science education and in addition to the above countries, includes Portugal and Poland and is coordinated by Dr. Wolfgang Graber of the Leibnitz Institute of Science Education in Kiel, Germany. The first phase of the research study involved working with three or four case study schools to develop some new approaches to teaching some aspects of the junior cycle science and mathematics curriculum. The initial phase involved consultation and negotiation with the teachers themselves choosing the topic they were going to develop and the approach they would adopt. This development was continually supported by Sancha Power, a Research Associate in the University of Limerick. The schools developed the project through a reflective and reflexive process, where the teacher and pupils engaged in written reflection at critical stages in the project. The resources produced take into account the process as well as the product developed. The next stage of the project will involve some support and dissemination in the new year for experienced teachers who are interested in testing the resources in their classrooms. If you are a junior cycle science or mathematics teacher and you would like to find out more about the project or to take part in the test phase will you please contact the Research Associate Sancha Power on Sancha.Power@ul.ie or 087-9914042 or the Project Administrator Mairead Condon on Mairead.Condon@ul.ie or 086-4065371.
The photograph shows the science teacher educators, science teachers and policymakers with the CrossNet/GIMMS teams, research projects from the European Commission, meeting recently on the steps of Plassey House in the University of Limerick. The countries represented include Ireland, Germany, Denmark, Poland, Portugal, Austria, Spain and the Czech Republic. The group, including the CrossNet Coordinator Dr. Wolfgang Graber were welcomed to the University of Limerick by Professor Mary O’Sullivan, Dean, Faculty of Education and Health Sciences, Professor Marie Parker Jenkins, Chair of Education, Geraldine Mooney Simmie Coordinator of GIMMS/CrossNet, Mairead Condon, Administrator, Sancha Power, Research Associate, Michelle Starr, Administrator of the National Centre for Science Teaching and Learning and the science educators Dr. Peter Childs and Dr. George McClelland. On the far right of the picture is John Lucy representing the Second Level Support Service and the Irish Science Teachers’ Association. Science teachers in the picture, David Sadlier and Anita Mahon hail from Villiers Secondary School in Limerick. PAGE
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Physics Video Project Physics teachers Noel Cunningham, The King's Hospital, and Thomas Healy, Cabinteely Community School, have produced about 100 physics classroom video clips of demonstrations and experiments listed in the Leaving Certificate Physics syllabus. They range in duration from 2-10 mins and they are willing to share - Super, Thanks. These clips and some others will be included in a DVD for teachers willing to investigate their impact on the learning of physics. If you are interested in taking part please contact me at timregan@slss.ie . You will then be forwarded the DVD and be invited to try a few out a few relevant clips in class over a 4-5 week period in Spring 2009. You will be expected to write up a 1-2 page summary of your findings which would include when and where they were used, for what purpose, student reaction which might include some comment feedback, evidence of learning , etc. The feedback would then be returned for compilation. If you are unsure please have a look http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_M_336pDWoM .
at:
Fisic tri mhéan na Gaeilge Ag lá inseirbhíse in Ionaid Oideachais na nGaillimhe ar an 28ú lá Samhaine na bliana seo bhí plé á dhéanamh faoi chonas cás speisialta na múinteoirí atá ag múineadh Fisice trí mheán na Gaeilge a chur chun cinn. Moladh go mbunófaí coiste a noibreódh ar roinnt aidhmeanna faoi leith a bhaint amach. Déanfaidh an choiste iarracht ar:
• Gach múinteoir atá ag múineadh Fisice trí Ghaeilge a chlárú agus a choimeád ar an eolas faoi imeachtaí an choiste agus faoi ábhair shuimúla do mhúinteoirí mar iad.
• Cás speisialta na múinteoirí Fisice a chur chun cinn agus airgead a lorg chun acmhainní agus traenáil a chur ar fáil dóibh.
• Múinteoirí a spreagadh chun acmhainní a dhéanamh agus a riaradh lena gcomhmhúinteoirí, agus iad a chur faoin nasc cuí ar an suíomh idirlíon nua www.physicsslss.com
• Feidhmiú mar fhoinse tacaíochta do mhúinteoirí, go háirithe múinteoirí nua-cheapaithe.
• Aiseolas a chur ar fáil, nuair is gá, ar son múinteoirí fisice atá ag múineadh trí Ghaeilge.
Ruairí ó Céilleachair
Má tá suim agat bheith mar bhall den choise nó má tá moladh nó cabhair le tabhairt, chuir nóta sa Forum ar an suíomh idirlíon physicsslss.ie nó cuir do sheoladh ríomhphoist chuig 087 2860358 Chuireadh roinnt mhaith acmhainní ar líne ar an lá inseirbhíse seo agus deineadh taifeadadh ar roinnt videos gairid faoi leictreachas. Is féidir iad a fheiceáil ar an suíomh idirlíon physicsslss.com nó ar Teachertube. Bhí aistriúchán iomlán ar fáil ar leabhar Dan O’ Regan do na muinteoirí a bhí ann , buíochas do Bhróna Ní Cheallacháin a bhfuil éacht mhór críochnaithe aice d’á naistriú. Buíochas speisialta freisin do James Frawley a thug cead dúinn leagan Gaeilge a chur ar a shaothar faoi thorthaí na turgnimh Ard Teiste a grafáil. Tá súil againn go leanfaí leis na cúrsaí inseirbhíse amach anseo in aineoinn an gearradh siar atá déanta faoin mbuiséad. Tá sé tábhachtach go mbéadh deis againn teacht le chéile go rialta chun chabhrú lena chéile. Míle buíochas do na múinteoirí go léir a bhí ann agus a rinne sár obair ar an lá, agus freisin do Tim Regan a d’eagraigh an cúrsa agus a thug seans dúinn roinnt triallacha a dhéanamh i dteannta múinteoirí a bhí ar chúrsa eile san Ionaid.
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IOP Course for Physics Teachers
The Institute of Physics (IOP) designed a new course to support recently qualified, as well as returning Physics teachers. The programme was designed to suit those who have completed the SLSS Physics Teachers Induction course and who may be in their second or third year of teaching senior cycle Physics. The course was first run at UCD last autumn, in association with SLSS and UCD Physics. It was hoped that the course would be of value to all Physics teachers and indeed, some very experienced teachers attended and enjoyed it. The course placed the 24 mandatory experiments at the centre of the scheme and explored those physics concepts that impinge on the doing of these experiments. Accordingly, each session involved demonstrating the experiments and affording participants a “hands on” opportunity to do the experiments for themselves. The IOP are especially grateful to UCD for making a laboratory available for each of the four sessions. The sessions took place on Tuesday evenings (7 to 9.30pm) during October. The course promoted a variety of teaching methods that included demonstrations, and multimedia. As well as taking an in-depth look at the experiments and the related theory, participants received a printed course manual and many other useful resources in digital form. They were introduced to the Virtual Physics Laboratory suite of simulations (which is a fine new resource that is growing in popularity). On the last night participants were treated to a dazzling display of “Science on Stage” by Michael Grehan, Brian Masterson, Rory Geoghegan, Noel Cunningham, Damienne Letmon, and course tutors; Paul Nugent & David Keenahan. Participants have formed an informal support network to share teaching experiences and useful resources with each other. For further information on the next running of this course, please contact David, Paul or Tim as follows Mr David Keenahan Teacher Network Co-ordinator, Ireland Gonzaga College Sandford Road, Dublin 6
Paul Nugent Teacher Network Co-ordinator, Ireland St Dominic's High School Santa Sabina, Sutton, Dublin 13
Tim Regan Physics SLSS LEC Parkway House Dublin Road Limerick
Email: dkeenahan@gmail.com Phone: +353 - 87 - 6449278
Email: paulnugent@eircom.net Tel: +353 - 87 - 271 9349
Email: timregan@slss.ie Phone: 087 2314090
Rory Geoghegan demonstrating at one of the workshops PAGE
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Leaving Certificate Chemistry Exam Feedback 2008 The present revised Leaving Certificate Chemistry syllabi were examined for the seventh time in June 2008. These syllabi are offered at two levels (Higher and Ordinary) and are assessed by a terminal written examination.
Participation in Chemistry The percentage taking Leaving Certificate Chemistry has remained more or less constant over the past number of years. However, with the changes proposed in the pupil teacher ratio it is hoped that subjects like Chemistry and Physics with traditionally small Chemistry % of Total numbers will continue to be viable as an option at senior 16 cycle. This goes very 15 much contrary to the 14 DES policy of 13 promoting Science 12 subjects and may 11 lead in the future to 10 a large falloff in the 1990 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 number of students Year following a career in Science.
Year
Total sitting the LC*
Chemistry
Chemistry % of Total
1990
55,146
8,706
15.8
1999
62,844
6,963
11.1
2000
60,737
6,713
11.1
2001
56,670
6,356
11.2
2002
55,374
6,497
11.7
2003
56,237
6,698
11.9
2004
55,222
7,229
13.1
2005
54,069
7,366
13.6
2006
50,955
7,071
13.9
2007
50,870
6,926
13.61
2008
52,298
7,112
13.6
Higher Level The Higher Level examination paper was well received by candidates, teachers and examiners and also by teacher representative organisations. It was considered a fair test of candidates’ ability in Chemistry. The number of candidates getting an A has increased this year however there has been a slight increase in the failure rate also. Year
No.
A
B
C
D
E,F, NG
%ABC's
% fails
HL 2008
5,902
23.5
31.1
24.1
15.1
5.8
78.7
5.8
HL 2007
5,729
20.8
33.2
24.8
15.5
5.6
78.8
5.6
HL 2006
5,712
21.8
28.9
24.8
17.1
7.4
75.6
7.4
HL 2005
6,033
22.2
30.4
24.2
16.5
6.8
76.8
6.8
HL 2004
6,207
23
30.1
22.9
16.3
7.8
75.7
7.8
HL 2003
5731
26
30.0
22.8
15.2
5.8
78.8
5.8
HL 2002
5,565
22.7
29.7
24.4
16.0
6.9
77.0
6.9
HL 2001
5,215
22.3
28.6
24.0
17.4
7.6
75.0
7.6
It should also be noted from the table below that the organic questions rank three of the top five best scoring questions. A review of previous marking schemes is important in that candidates gain much from seeing the detail required in the accepted answers. Candidates should also note that after seven years of the exam very little of the syllabus has yet to be examined.
Higher level Chemistry examination – analysis of questions* Question
Percentage of attempts
Rank order in terms of popularity
Average Mark with (%)
Rank order in terms of mark
Topic
1
95.8
1
36.7 (73.4)
1
Volumetric
2
72.0
6
35.4 (70.8)
3
Organic
3
80.0
4
31.1 (62.2)
10
Rates
4
90.8
3
35.2 (70.4)
4
Short items
5
68.8
8
35.2 (70.4)
8
Atom
6
94.0
2
34.6 (69.2)
5
Organic
7
78.8
5
36.0 (72.0)
2
Organic
8
42.5
11
31.4 (62.8)
9
Acids/Water
9
48.3
10
25.2 (50.4)
11
Equilibria
10
69.0
7
33.7 (67.4)
6
General
11
55.3
9
32.7 (65.4)
7
General
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Leaving Certificate Chemistry Exam Feedback cont. Ordinary Level It is good to note that the failure rate for Ordinary Level has fallen significantly this year. The most popular questions are the titration question and question 4 and these are also the questions which rank highest in marks obtained. Year
No.
A
B
C
D
E,F,NG.
%ABC's
% fails
OL 2008
1,210
11.7
30.5
25.6
18.5
13.9
67.8
13.9
OL 2007
1,197
8.0
23.8
26.7
24.7
16.8
58.5
16.8
OL 2006
1,359
7.0
25.3
27.4
24.5
15.5
59.7
15.5
OL 2005
1,333
10.1
26.0
27.6
24.5
12.0
63.7
12.0
OL 2004
1,022
9.2
29.7
31.2
20.9
9.0
70.1
9.0
OL 2003
967
15.1
35.6
28.0
14.6
6.6
78.7
6.6
OL 2002
932
4.7
20.6
30.4
26.3
17.9
55.7
17.9
OL 2001
1,141
15.0
27.2
26.2
21.1
10.4
68.4
10.4
Ordinary level Chemistry examination – analysis of questions* Question
Percentage of attempts
Rank order in terms of popularity
Average Mark with (%)
Rank order in terms of mark
Topic
1
74.1
8
26.9 (53.8)
9
Organic
2
88.3
2
35.4 (70.8)
2
Volumetric
3
87.5
3
33.5 (67.0)
5
Flame tests
4
90.8
1
38.3 (76.6)
1
Short items
5
58.3
11
29.5 (59.0)
8
Atom & Bonding
6
80.0
7
32.9 (65.8)
6
Organic
7
72.5
9
23.1 (46.2)
11
Acids
8
70.8
10
24.9 (49.8)
10
Water
9
85.8
5
34.3 (68.6)
3
Organic
10
85.0
6
32.3 (64.6)
7
General
11
87.5
3
34.3 (68.6)
3
General
Participation trends in relation to gender. The percentage participation rate of females in Chemistry has gradually increased over the last few years. By 1996 48.3% of the Leaving Certificate cohort was female and statistical equality in terms of participation rate was reached in 1997 with 50.1% of the cohort being female. The pattern of gradually increasing participation rates for females has continued and by 2007 it peaked at 58.5. It is also worth noting that almost 800 girls and just over 600 boys got an A grade in 2008.
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Year
%Male
%Female
1996
51.7
48.3
1997
49.9
50.1
2002
46.5
53.5
2005
43.9
56.1
2007
41.5
58.5
2008
42.4
57.6
PHYSICAL
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Physics of Open and Closed Pipes The Overtone Pipe - What is an overtone pipe? Brian Masterson, De La Salle College, Churchtown, Dublin 14 While on holidays last summer I picked up a few items which have proved to be useful additions to the classroom in teaching sound. One of these was an overtone flute which amazed me as it could produce a number of notes even though it has only one hole i.e. it’s a whistle. After a little research on the net I discovered that it was probably a koncovka, a Slovakian shepherd’s flute. The interesting point is that it doesn’t employ a normal musical scale but instead uses the harmonics or overtones as notes (natural harmonic scale). The fundamental note is low, about 290 hertz, close to D, the next one above is 581 etc. It is really a pipe open at both ends as all the harmonics are present. You can, however, get each individual harmonic to be dominant by blowing into the whistle at different pressures i.e. blow progressively harder and you can hear about 5 overtones and then close the end of the pipe with your hand to get four or five new frequencies. This is consistent with a pipe in open and closed mode. I thought about how we might use it in the physics class. I looked at the overtones present by playing the whistle into a microphone using the Frequency Analyser in Virtual Physics Lab from IOP and could see clearly the different harmonics present. You can also use the Vernier Software Fourier analysis package by going into a preloaded experiment folder and going to physics-/mathematics of music. Also, there is a free download from the web called Oscillometer which works just as well and all you need is a microphone. Any of these physics IT packages will show clearly the frequencies of the fundamental and its multiples by clicking on the peaks and reading off the frequencies. You can also show the harmonics present on a guitar string, piano or any other instrument in similar fashion. It does work extremely well, however, using the overtone flute as you can move through the overtones enabling each individual note to be dominant in turn. I feel it is very useful as it brings to life a topic otherwise confined to textbooks and may also appeal to a students interest in music as you can expand the idea of quality or timbre for different instruments.
L is the length of pipe, you can use an end correction for both ends and measure Length from dowel to pipe end. See photo and sample results. Results are a bit low but consistent! Maybe end correction needs adjustment. Length
Wavelength
Frequency
Velocity
.54 fundamental
1.08
290
313.2
.54 1st overtone
.54
581
313.74
.54 2nd overtone
.356
874
311.4
581 hertz
874 hertz 290 hertz
Oscillometer analysis of waveform showing many overtones.
Where can you get one? Well, you can make your own using instructions which are on the web. Google youtube; How to make an overtone flute (koncovka) in 3 minutes!!
You can also calculate the speed of sound by multiplying the frequencies (read off the graph) by wavelength for each overtone using the following formulae for open pipes. Open pipe fundamental (1st harmonic)
= 2L
1st overtone (2nd harmonic)
=L
v = fx
2nd overtone (3rd harmonic) PAGE
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What next?
How to make an overtone flute
You can calculate the fundamental frequency or note you require by using the formula as above and/or by cutting the pipe by trial and error. The shorter the pipe, the higher the frequency will be. You could also use it as a Transition Year project and drill extra holes to turn it into a normal flute.
Material cost about €1 per flute, • 20 mm diameter pipe (electrical conduit from an electrical supplier) • 18 mm wooden dowel • Cut approximately 50 to 60 cm of pipe • Cut 3 cm of dowel and sand dowel to get smooth and angled ends • Cut 3 cm off pipe and split lengthways. • Drill 8 mm hole at about 35 mm from end of long pipe and cut section back to end. • Insert wooden dowel (this is known as a fipple) into pipe end with cut away section and cover with other split piece. • Adjust position of cover piece and fipple until the whistle sounds ok.
Vernier Fourier Analysis Results for same pipe showing many harmonics. Blow harder and the peak frequency moves up to the higher harmonic positions.
If you are interested in this topic checkout the following sites; • http://www.fujara.sk/about/about_koncovka.htm • see youtube PVC overtone flute in 3 minutes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXnAXsMyCFU
• Also PVC overtone flute improving the tone. Thanks to Paul Marshall from up north. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NI3mzfbvEYw&feature=related • Get oscillometer from; http://shmelyoff.nm.ru/ or google oscillometer free download • Physics of the didgeridoo discusses pipes formula and is worth a look http://www.didjshop.com/physicsDidj.html
“A Night of Sound” Network Workshop A joint Institute of Physics and SLSS Network Workshop took place in Blackrock Education Centre on December 2nd. The evening consisted of a number of presentations dealing with the teaching of Sound for LC Physics. These included Science on Stage demonstrations and the use of free software. Teachers made and took away an overtone flute for use in the classroom. Teachers also received DVD containing the presentations and resources.
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Developing creativity through science Peter E. Childs, Dept. of Chemical and Environmental Sciences, University of Limerick, Limerick. peter.childs@ul.ie colour was attractive and a potential dye, and went on to develop this chance finding into the first synthetic dye, mauve, set up a business to manufacture it and made a fortune. He was able to retire in his mid thirties and then went back to academic life and became a successful university teacher and researcher.
“The knowledge economy does not begin in the workplace. It begins in the classroom.” Irish Times, INNOVATION, Oct. 2008 For many people, including some science teachers, the idea of developing creativity through science is an intellectual oxymoron - in the popular mind they are incompatible ideas. Many people think that science is about learning facts, laws, and theories. They think it is about going down a straight tram track, not down a winding, scenic country road. Science is perceived as being about accepting things on authority, something like religious dogma, and then regurgitating the information in examinations. Why do most pupils come into science classes at second level enthusiastic about science, wanting to learn new things and excited by the idea of practical work? But after a year or so the predominant view of science among adolescents in most countries is that it is boring. Young people are turned off by school science and when asked their views about science, they often say it is all about learning facts, it is about dead men, and it has no relevance to their lives. Part of this is due to their age, it is due to adolescence and hormones, and a general reaction against school, and authority, but part of it may be due to the way science is taught in schools and their experience of it. Often young people are taught science as something which is black and white, totally objective, with predetermined answers, where there is only one correct solution to a problem. In fact science is taught as if it were mathematics, which it isn’t. There is no absolute proof in science, unlike in maths: all you can do is find evidence to support one idea more than another, or find evidence that contradicts a theory. Scientists disagree about the interpretation of data and come up with conflicting positions. The newspapers are full of such conflicts: on nuclear power, GM foods, fluoridation of water, climate change, stem cells etc. At the cutting edge of science it is imagination, creativity, open-mindedness, and thinking outside the box that succeeds and makes major breakthroughs. The way we teach science may actually discourage and fail to stimulate or identify the students with the potential to become great scientists. They may go on to become bean counters instead of people who count and make things happen. Much of everyday science is routine, plodding, predictable, monotonous - like many jobs, but at the cutting edge, in research, science is anything but. Research is what you do when you don’t know the answers. Many major discoveries have been made by accident, by serendipity, but only when minds are prepared to recognize and act on the unusual observation. Louis Pasteur famously said: “Chance favours the prepared mind”. How many of our teenage students would respond like William Perkin when he discovered mauve? He was in his late teens and was doing experiments at home to solve a problem presented by his teacher. He noticed an unexpected and attractive colour in his waste products. Perkin investigated further, saw that this
It is no good trumpeting the importance of doing science at school in order to underpin a knowledge-based economy, if the way we teach science actually puts off the creative pupils who could make a difference in the future. We need to encourage creativity through our science teaching, not just the ability to pass examinations. Sometimes the students who get high grades, particularly if they came through grinds schools, are not capable of independent thought and study and do not always do well at university. We need independent, creative, selfdirected learners to underpin a knowledge-based economy, the future scientists who will come up with new ideas not simply rehearse and repeat old ones.
How do we develop creativity in school science? We don’t develop creativity by slavishly following the syllabus or the textbooks and by shutting up those students who ask interesting questions. There are many good ideas and successful practices to copy and some teachers and some schools are doing a great job in getting their pupils excited about science and developing their creativity. The annual Young Scientist’s Exhibition (YSE) is a great showcase of creativity in science, and it is the same schools and the same science teachers who turn up again and again. Sadly many of the successful students at YSE do not end up studying science or engineering at university and we should ask questions why this is and do some research into this. How come so many students can be motivated by science and produce fantastic projects but not be interested in pursuing science as a career? But this stimulating view of science evidenced in the YSE is not true of all science teachers and all schools, and all second level science students do not get the same experience in science. For some students it is hands-on science all the way from first year and for others it is copying out experiments and learning from the book! The science curriculum can be a straitjacket on creativity, particularly when coupled with the demands of the examinations and the need to ‘cover the course’. You don’t always get high marks and high points by asking questions! Keeping your eyes down on the path often gives better results, than stopping to gather wild flowers, though it is not as much fun and ultimately may not be rewarding. The challenge to every science teacher is how to cover the syllabus and get good results (which the students and their parents demand) and also give a real, exciting introduction to science (which the subject and our student’s long-term career demand).
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Despite the demands of the syllabus and the examination, creativity can be developed through school science at Junior Certificate or Leaving Certificate level, but there are also opportunities outside the exam-orientated curriculum. I have long thought that the Transition Year Option (TYO) is a heavensent opportunity for science teachers to sell their subjects and to get students excited about science. This is why we are developing innovative science teaching materials for TYO at the University of Limerick through the TY Science project. But not every school and every student do TYO and so we need to inject a dose of creativity into Junior Science and into the LC science subjects.
Ideas for bringing creativity into science lessons There are many creative ideas out there in the science teaching literature, on websites, in books, in magazines. There is in fact no shortage of ideas, there is only lack of knowledge of what can be done and lack of commitment to implementing new ideas. I sometimes ask our science education students to come up with 20 different ways of assessing a particular science topic, other than simple question and answer (the default option in many classes). This is an interesting exercise you might like to do. Expanding our repertoire of assessment techniques would make our classes more interesting and they can be used to develop creativity e.g. instead of Q&A or a formal test, why not ask your students to write a short story which incorporates as much of the science that you have just covered? I also sometimes ask them to write down as many different activities they can think of that could be used to teach science, apart from the routine student experiments or teacher demonstrations. Here are some possible creative ideas: 1. 2.
Doing a project for a science project fair (mini YSEs.) Participating in science clubs e.g. the Salters’ Chemistry Clubs. 3. Producing a science magazine. 4. Writing a science-based short story. 5. Writing science poems. 6. Writing and performing a play e.g. on the discovery of gravity. 7. Producing a webpage on a science topic. 8. Writing a newspaper article on science. 9. Creating a poster or collage. 10. Using role play to illustrate the history of science. 11. Dramatising some scientific concept e.g. digestion. 12. Devising science-based dance e.g. molecular motion. 13. Making models (many possibilities here). 14. Running crime scene investigations (CSI in the classroom, a sure winner). 15. Drawing science-based cartoons. 16. Running ‘Who wants to be a millionaire?’ 17. Running table quizzes for revision. 18. Setting up a current affairs noticeboard with a science theme. 19. Starting up a mini-company to produce and market some science-based produce e.g. cosmetics. 20. Taking part in a debate on some controversial science-based topic. 21. Practising science magic and putting on a science magic show for younger pupils. Etc. Etc.
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Notice the active verbs and that in all cases it is the student who does things, even though the teacher directs, encourages, provides resources and advice. Doing some of these activities would make the science classroom more interesting, more active and more creative - in most cases the students have to research, devise, write and do things themselves!
Rewarding creativity We need to make sure that our assessment techniques allow opportunity for creativity and that we reward it. When a pupil comes up with a really good (and pertinent) question or brings in a newspaper cutting or an object from home that relates to science then this needs to be encouraged, rewarded and recognized as worthwhile. I always think that when students come up and ask questions: “Why does this happen?” or “How do you explain this?” then we have won the battle for their hearts and minds. It is more important to teach them how to ask questions i.e. how to think, than it is to teach them to recall information they don’t understand. Let us have prizes for the best science project, the best poem or short story, the best poster or play! Let us encourage team work and cooperation to solve problems as well as developing individual talent. If you have tried or developed some novel and creative idea or method for teaching science, why not share this with your fellow teachers? One of the most successful features of the chemistry demonstration workshops at UL is when teachers share their favourite demonstration with the others: everyone comes away enriched. When you hear about or see a good idea then you are more likely to try it and when you do you will almost certainly modify and adapt it and so make it your own. In a future article I will look at another important science teaching skill: the importance of improvisation. Some sources of ideas: Creativity in the science curriculum http://www.teachingexpertise.com/articles/creativity-in-thescience-curriculum-2234
Teaching for Creativity in Science: http://www.creativityatwork.com/articlesContent/teachingcreativity-science.htm
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Using Images To Stimulate Student Memory by Mark Jordan, Davitt College, Castlebar, Co Mayo It has been my experience that many students studying Physics have difficulty in communicating the orderly, meaningful and purposeful steps taken when carrying out an experiment. In a pressured situation (exam) this inability to communicate essential ideas coherently can lead to frustration, lost marks and lost time. Modern students exposed to a mishmash of disorganised information from many sources in their everyday lives have to determine what is of value and what can be discarded. Students will require guidance and support to insure that information they are exposed to in the classroom is processed and retained in long term memory. How can this be achieved? Cognitive psychologists, such as Reigeluth, agree human thought is composed of mental images. These images are constructed in sequence to create what could be described as a mental slideshow. Remembering is the process of retrieving that mental slideshow. When the storyteller says, "All the trouble started the day we hunted for buffalo just over the river and near the foot of the mountains," he is building a picture in the minds of his listeners to help them remember. Digital images can be used in the same way.
I tested this hypothesis in the classroom i.e. if images alone (without accompanying text) could enhance student memory. Mixed ability students in year 1 Physics Leaving Cert. class, were asked to use a mobile phone camera to record the steps taken, while carrying out the experiment to verify Snell’s Law. Three sets of useable images were produced and screen shots of the best are shown. The images were transferred to a PC and used to create a PowerPoint slide show used in class to stimulate students’ memory. As the first image was shown on a screen students were asked to describe how they carried out the experiment. In the beginning it was necessary to advance the slideshow to stimulate some students’ memories, but in a very short time this wasn’t necessary. A follow up written test showed that all students had an excellent knowledge of the experimental procedure. Whether students’ memory will benefit in the long term only time will tell. Student in year 2 Physics Leaving Cert. class found the slide show also jogged their memories of an experiment they carried out the previous year.
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New website at www.physicsslss.com The following services are provided as part of the package:
Our present website at http://physics.slss.ie has proven very valuable in keeping colleagues informed and up to date on all aspects of teaching physics in Irish post primary schools and will continue to do that. The forum on this site allows teachers to contribute to the information base and exchange ideas. There is also a facility for teachers to upload and share evaluated resources with colleagues.
Google Sites – Users have access to the site as ‘Collaborators’ which allows them to: • Create pages & add content • Edit, delete and move pages • Add attachments • Add comments
Our new pilot project website at www.physicsslss.com was set up using this package to support the sharing of draft physics teacher resources. There is no hardware or software to install or maintain, since everything is delivered through a standard web browser across all platforms (PC or Mac) all you need is an internet connection.
• Add/remove pages to the sidebar navigation • Subscribe to site and page changes No technical expertise required. The site will hopefully be used to bring together information to share with colleagues, including docs & presentations, calendars, photos, videos and attachments.
If you are interested in being signed up send your name and your school name, by email to timregan@slss.ie
Please note that the
physics.slss.ie website and the new physicsslss.com website are at present separate entities.
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Life without Electroscopes In this article I look at three Leaving Certificate Physics experiments where, traditionally, the gold-leaf electroscope is used. The electroscope, in one form or another, dates back to around the year 1600 so maybe its time to take a look at more modern ways of doing things. Jimmy Brophy, Our Lady's Secondary School, Castleblayney, Co. Monaghan
The electroscope can be unreliable and a bit confusing for students. We can use it as an indicator of charge or capacitance or potential difference. But what does it really measure? It measures the PD between the leaf and the case, maybe to the nearest 100V, if you are lucky. Granted, one of its advantages is that it’s got a very high resistance when dry and can detect the presence of small charges. The three experiments we look at here are: • The factors affecting the capacitance of a parallel plate capacitor. • The distribution of charge on different insulated conductors. • The photo-electric effect. In these experiments we use a capacitance meter, a coulombmeter and a charge sensor (part of a datalogging system).
The Parallel Plate Capacitor To demonstrate the factors affecting the capacitance of a parallel plate capacitor.
What do you do? • Set up the apparatus as in the photograph. • Make sure the multimeter is set to capacitance (pF or nF if possible). • Measure the capacitance of the parallel plate capacitor. • Change the distance between the plates and measure the capacitance again. • Change the common area between the plates, keeping the distance between them constant, and measure the capacitance. • Thirdly, place the polythene sheet (or other dielectric) between the plates and measure the capacitance. So what happened? • Your measurements should show that the capacitance of the parallel plate capacitor increases with common area and decreases as the distance between the plates increases. The capacitance should also show an increase with the presence of the polythene ( whose permittivity is greater than that of air). εA • These results are summarised in the formula C = d Where C is capacitance, ε is the permittivity of the medium, A is the common area of the plates and d is the distance between them.
What will you will need? Parallel plate capacitor, capacitance meter (multimeter which can measure capacitance down to pF or nF level), polythene sheet (or other dielectric).
What next? • Radios contain tuned circuits. When you tune in a station you are matching the frequency of the tuned circuit to that of the station you want to listen to. Older radios had parallel metal plate capacitors in them, whose common area changed as you adjusted the tuning control on the radio. Try and find an old radio and see can you locate this variable capacitor inside. Watch what happens as you turn the tuning control. • In modern radios (and TVs) variable capacitance (varicap) diodes are used instead of metal plate variable capacitors. They are cheaper, simpler, with no moving parts, and can be very useful in various radio and electronics circuits. The capacitance of a varicap diode decreases with increase of the reverse voltage applied across it. This widens the depletion layer, and so effectively increases the distance between the plates of the diode, thereby reducing the capacitance.
Figure 1. Parallel plate capacitor and capacitance meter
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The Photoelectric Effect
The distribution of charge on different insulated conductors
Background The photoelectric effect involves the emission of electrons from the surface of a metal by electromagnetic radiation. This radiation must be of a certain minimum frequency (threshold frequency) for the electrons to be emitted. This frequency depends on the work function of the metal. In this experiment we use a zinc plate. The work function of zinc is such that the threshold frequency is in the UV region of the electromagnetic spectrum.
What will you will need? Insulated conductors of different shapes, proof plane, coulombmeter, perspex and polythene rods, dry cloth.
What will you will need? Computer (running DataStudio), Pasco USB Link, Analog Adapter (needed if you have the older Pasco analog sensors), charge sensor, zinc plate, UV lamp, small sheet of glass, Perspex and polythene rods.
What do you do? • Charge one of the rods by rubbing it with the dry cloth • Use this charged rod to charge the pear shaped conductor by induction. (You could use the Van de Graaff generator to charge it). What do you do? • Use sandpaper to thoroughly clean the surface of the zinc plate.
• Make sure that the coulombmeter is discharged. • Use the proof plane to take a number of spoons of charge from the sharp end of the pear shaped insulated conductor to the coulombmeter.
• Set up the apparatus as shown. Clip the positive lead from the charge sensor to the zinc plate. You can clip the negative lead to a metal part of the retort stand. Make sure that the plate is insulated from its surroundings and that it is close to and directly in front of the opening on the UV housing.
• Measure the charge on the coulombmeter. • Repeat the experiment for the rounded end and for other insulated conductors. Use the same number of spoonfuls to make the comparison more valid. • Compare your results for the sharp ends and for the rounded ends of the conductors.
• Run DataStudio. When you plug in the USB lead with the analog adapter attached, a list of sensors appears. Choose Charge Sensor.
• Repeat the experiment taking the charge from the rounded end first and then from the sharp end.
• Double click on Graph in the displays section. It is now setup to show a graph of charge against time. Maximise this window.
So what happened? • The coulombmeter will show a bigger increase of charge when you take spoons of charge from the sharp end of a pear shaped conductor. This shows that the charge is more concentrated at the sharp end. The experiment will show that charge is evenly distributed round a spherical conductor. What next? • Because charge is more concentrated at sharp points, it is more likely to leak off there. Lightning conductors have sharp points at the top where you want charge to leak off. A Van de Graaff generator has a smooth, rounded dome so that charge does not easily leak off. Attach a sharp pin to the top of the Van de Graaff, switch it on and see what happens.
• Press the zero (discharge) button on the sensor. • You are now ready to collect data. Collecting Data • Switch on the UV lamp. (Do not look directly at the UV radiation, and leave the UV lamp on only for as long as is necessary.) • The graph will show the quantity and nature of the charge on the zinc plate. • Place the glass plate between the zinc plate and the UV lamp, being careful not to touch the zinc plate. • You can use the polythene or perspex rods to charge the plate negatively or positively and see what happens. • You can also vary the distance of the UV lamp from the plate and see how does it affect the rate at which the charge on the plate is changing.
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So what happened? • The graph shows when electrons are being emitted – charge increases in the positive direction. • When the UV lamp is moved away from the plate the graph shows a less rapid increase in positive charge (or less rapid decrease in negative charge). • The graph does not show an increase when the glass is between the plate and the UV lamp – UV does not penetrate ordinary glass. There are types of glass which allow it through. • It is easier to remove electrons from a negatively charged plate – they are repelled; but the experiment will work with an uncharged plate. • Visible light will not eject electrons from the zinc surface because it has not got sufficient energy to do so. Its range of frequencies is below that of UV. • Some metals have a higher work function than zinc and may not work with your UV lamp. What next? • Einstein won the Nobel Prize for Physics for his explanation of the photo-electric effect. This explanation describes electromagnetic radiation in terms of quanta (photons) whose energy depends on the frequency of the radiation. Further application of this idea to all forms of energy lead ultimately to the development of quantum physics. • The above experiment can also be carried out using the coulombmeter instead of the charge sensor and datalogging system.
Web Resource
www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/launchball Launchball is a clever interactive game from the Science Museum which supports teaching about sound, light, forces and motion, electricity and magnetism, energy transfer and materials. It’s great to use in the classroom or as a homework activity. What's more it's free to download from the Museum's website. The Museum has produced other useful classroom resources. There are activities relating to materials, forces and light amongst others. All the Science Museum’s classroom resources have been developed and tested with teachers and students to be practical, safe, low in cost and to require minimum preparation. Download and use them for free from:
www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/educatorsresources
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Massive €60.2m Investment in Science and Tech Centres By John Kennedy, www.Siliconrepublic.com
The Irish Government, through Science Foundation Ireland (SFI), has pumped 45.7m into world-class centres for science, engineering and technology (CSETs). The investment will also see an additional 14.5m of financing provided by industry. Three key centres will benefit from the five-year investment: the Digital Enterprise Research Institute (DERI) at National University of Ireland Galway, the Centre for Research on Adaptive Nanostructures and Nanodevices (CRANN) at Trinity College Dublin, and the Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre (APC) at University College Cork. The Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Mary Coughan TD, said the SFI CSET programme has been designed to facilitate the creation of internationally competitive, large-scale research centres that support high-quality collaborations between highereducation institutes and industry-based researchers. “These CSETs link researchers in partnerships across academia and industry to address crucial research questions, foster the development of new and existing Irish-based technology companies, attract industry that could make an important contribution to Ireland and its economy, and expand educational and career opportunities in science and engineering,” the Tánaiste said. “All three centres have been playing a pivotal role in contributing to the Government’s goal of building a world-class research base in Ireland, and developing our human capital to support economic competitiveness. Today is an endorsement of this achievement to date, and marks the beginning of the next chapter for each individual researcher and their respective teams.” Industry partners at DERI include: Nortel Networks, Cisco Systems, FISC Ireland, Storm Technology, Cyntelix Corporation and OpenLink Software. Partners for the CRANN CSET include Hewlett-Packard and Intel, while partners at the APC CSET include GlaxoSmithKline, Alimentary Health and Teagasc. Also attending the announcement was the Minister for Science, Technology and Innovation, Dr Jimmy Devins TD, who said: “A total of 12 distinct indigenous and multinational companies will partner with these
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CSETs, and SFI funding will be bolstered by these industry partners’ contribution of an additional 14.5m in the form of funding, personnel and equipment. The funding announced today will directly support almost 200 researchers, graduate students and others in a well-structured and wholly collaborative environment between now and 2013.” The director general of SFI Professor Frank Gannon said that the CSETs have led the agency’s portfolio of initiatives, which are steadily moving Ireland towards a truly knowledge-based economy. “These CSETs have been independently verified as playing an important role in building a world-class research system in Ireland, as well as linking successfully with major multinational companies and providing an attractor for multinational investment in research in Ireland.” Funding for the three CSETs was approved by the SFI board following a rigorous, multi-faceted assessment process. This encompassed international scientific peer review, with 31 international experts participating in the postal review process and 28 international experts participating in the four on-site reviews. In addition, a ‘Strategic Value to Ireland’ assessment was performed by key government agency stakeholders, including IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, Forfás, the Higher Education Authority and the Health Research Board.
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Leaving Certificate Physics Exam Feedback 2008 Higher Level
Ordinary Level
A total of 4926 candidates sat the Higher Level LC Physics examination in 2008.
A total of 2183 candidates sat the Ordinary Level LC Physics examination in 2008, which is an increase of over 7% from 2007.
The distribution of the grades was as follows:
The distribution of the grades was as follows:
Grade Numbers % of candidates
A B C D 981 1300 1201 931 19.9 26.4 24.4 18.9
E 391 7.9
F 100 2.0
NG 22 0.4
Grade Total Total %
General Comments
General Comments • “Graphs”, “Knowledge of Experiments” and “STS” were
• Feedback indicated that the 2008 Physics HL examination paper was fair and well-balanced, but at the same time, was challenging to all. • In general, definitions, laws, derivations and mathematical aspects, were well-answered. Candidates also displayed a good knowledge of graphing techniques. This was reflected in the rather large number of candidates who achieved very high marks in this year’s examination. • In Section A, candidates were not restricted in their choice of question, with 15% attempting an additional question and only 3% answering two rather than the required three questions. A datalogging approach was seldom used to answer any of the experimental items. • In Section B, 50% attempted an additional question and only 3% failed to answer the full complement of five questions. • Q4 was the best answered and least popular question in Section A while Q5 was the best answered and most popular question in Section B. • It was encouraging to see candidates score so highly in Q5 as it examined concepts embracing the entire syllabus.
candidates’ strongest areas while “Knowledge of arithmetic and units” was their weakest. • There was an increase in the number of candidates who answered experimental questions using datalogging in 2008, particularly in Q1, which examined the measurement of velocity and acceleration of a trolley. • 47% of candidates attempted more than the required number of questions while 66 % of A grade candidates attempted more than the required number of questions. • Nearly 60% of candidates who achieved an E, F or NG did less than the required number of questions. • Q1, was the most popular and best answered question in Section A. • Q5 was the most popular and Q11 was the best answered question in Section B.
Performance of candidates and popularity of questions in Higher Level Physics 2008 Question 1 2 3 4
Average mark 21.5 23.0 23.6 27.3
Average mark % 53.8 57.5 59.0 68.3
Rank order 4 3 2 1
Question 12 (a) (b) (c) (d)
Average mark 15.5 8.2 16.3 17.1
Average mark % 55.5 29.4 58.4 61.2
Rank order 3 4 2 1
Performance of candidates and popularity of questions in Ordinary Level Physics 2008
Response Rank rate(%) order 77.1 3 94.3 1 78.2 2 63.8 4
5 32.7 58.4 1 93.8 6 24.9 44.5 5 66.9 7 29.1 52.0 2 68.3 8 24.0 42.9 8 37.2 9 24.4 43.6 6 61.9 10(a) 24.8 44.3 6 61.3 10(b) 17.5 31.3 9 2.0 11 28.4 50.7 3 75.8 12 26.2 46.8 4 59.4 The mark shown for Q12 above is the weighted mean value. Response rate(%) 68.5 30.6 37.3 50.8
A B C D E F NG Total 339 692 575 374 144 45 14 2182 13.1% 30.8% 28.8% 17.6% 5.3% 3.3% 1.1% 100%
1 2 3 4
Average Mark 30.8 19.2 27.2 26.7
Average Mark % 77 % 48 % 68 % 67 %
Rank Order 2 12 4 5
Response rate(%) 99 % 44 % 70 % 80 %
Rank Order 1 10 8 5
5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
40.4 31.6 31.3 30.0 30.8 28.5 45.8 32.2
72 % 56 % 56 % 54 % 55 % 51 % 82 % 57 %
3 7 8 10 9 11 1 6
99 % 55 % 87 % 72 % 42 % 29 % 96 % 77 %
2 9 4 7 11 12 3 6
Question
1 4 3 8 5 6 9 2 7
The mark shown for Q12 above is the weighted mean value.
Rank order 1 4 3 2
Note: 3.0% of candidates attempted all four components to Q12; 17.8% attempted 3 components and 2.2% attempted only one component. PAGE
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Question 12 (a) (b) (c) (d)
Average mark 19.5 13.2 18.8 16.5
Average mark % 69 47 67 59
Rank order 1 4 2 3
Response rate(%) 56 47 10 34
Rank order 1 2 4 3
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How Radar Works Radar is something that is in use all around us, although it is normally invisible. Air traffic control uses radar to track planes both on the ground and in the air, and also to guide planes in for smooth landings. Police use radar to detect the speed of passing motorists. NASA uses radar to map the Earth and other planets, to track satellites and space debris and to help with things like docking and maneuvering. The military uses it to detect the enemy and to guide weapons.
Understanding Radar The echo of a sound can be used to determine how far away something is, and the Doppler shift of the echo can be used to determine how fast something is going. It is therefore possible to create a "sound radar," and that is exactly what sonar is. Submarines and boats use sonar all the time. You could use the same principles with sound in the air, but sound in the air has a couple of problems: • Sound doesn't travel very far -- maybe a mile at the most. • Almost everyone can hear sounds, so a "sound radar" would definitely disturb the neighbours (you can eliminate most of this problem by using ultrasound instead of audible sound). • Because the echo of the sound would be very faint, it is likely that it would be hard to detect. Radar therefore uses radio waves instead of sound. Radio waves travel far, are invisible to humans and are easy to detect even when they are faint.
Operation Specialist 2nd Class Gilbert Lundgren operates radar equipment in the combat information center of the USS Carney. Photo courtesy Department of US Defense
Meteorologists use radar to track storms, hurricanes and tornadoes. You even see a form of radar at many grocery stores when the doors open automatically! Obviously, radar is an extremely useful technology. When people use radar, they are usually trying to accomplish one of three things: • Detect the presence of an object at a distance Usually the "something" is moving, like an airplane, but radar can also be used to detect stationary objects buried underground. In some cases, radar can identify an object as well; for example, it can identify the type of aircraft it has detected. • Detect the speed of an object - This is the reason why police use radar. • Map something - The space shuttle and orbiting satellites use something called Synthetic Aperture Radar to create detailed topographic maps of the surface of planets and moons. All three of these activities can be accomplished using two things you may be familiar with from everyday life: echo and Doppler shift. These two concepts are easy to understand in the realm of sound because your ears hear echo and Doppler shift every day. Radar makes use of the same techniques using radio waves.
Left: Antennas at Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex (part of NASA's Deep Space Network) help provide radio communications for NASA's interplanetary spacecraft. Right: Surface search radar and air search radar are mounted on the foremast of a guided missile destroyer. Photo courtesy NASA (left), Department of Defense (right)
Let's take a typical radar set designed to detect airplanes in flight. The radar set turns on its transmitter and shoots out a short, high-intensity burst of high-frequency radio waves. The burst might last a microsecond. The radar set then turns off its transmitter, turns on its receiver and listens for an echo. The radar set measures the time it takes for the echo to arrive, as well as the Doppler shift of the echo. Radio waves travel at the speed of light, so if the radar set has a good high-speed clock, it can
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measure the distance of the airplane very accurately. Using special signal processing equipment, the radar set can also measure the Doppler shift very accurately and determine the speed of the airplane.
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The lidar gun clocks the time it takes a burst of infrared light to reach a car, bounce off and return back to the starting point. By multiplying this time by the speed of light, the lidar system determines how far away the object is. Unlike traditional police radar, lidar does not measure change in wave frequency. Instead, it sends out many infrared laser bursts in a short period of time to collect multiple distances. By comparing these different distance samples, the system can calculate how fast the car is moving. These guns may take several hundred samples in less than half a second, so they are extremely accurate.
Smile for the Camera!
The radar antenna sends out a short, high-power pulse of radio waves at a known frequency. When the waves hit an object, they echo off of it and the speed of the object Doppler-shifts the echo. The same antenna is used to receive the much-weaker signals that return.
Police may use handheld lidar systems, just like conventional radar guns, but in many areas, the lidar system is completely automated. The gun shines the laser beam at an angle across the road and registers the speed of any car that passes by (the system makes a mathematical adjustment to account for the angle of view). When a speeding car is detected, the system triggers a small camera, which takes a picture of the car's license plate and the driver's face. Since the automated system has collected all of the evidence the police need, the central office simply issues a ticket and sends it to the speeder in the mail.
In ground-based radar, there's a lot more potential interference than in air-based radar. When a police radar shoots out a pulse, it echoes off of all sorts of objects -fences, bridges, mountains, buildings. The easiest way to remove all of this sort of clutter is to filter it out by recognizing that it is not Doppler-shifted. A police radar looks only for Doppler-shifted signals, and because the radar beam is tightly focused it hits only one car. Police are now using a laser technique to measure the speed of cars. This technique is called lidar, and it uses light instead of radio waves.
Lidar The last section, looked at the conventional radar guns police have been using since the 1950s. These days, more and more police departments are using laser speed guns rather than conventional radar. The basic element in a laser speed gun, also called a lidar gun (for light detection and ranging), is concentrated light.
This article and more information is available at http://science.howstuffworks.com/radar.htm
Two different lidar gun designs. Photo courtesy K40 Electronics
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Physics SLSS ICT Questionnaire 2008 In May 2008, Physics SLSS sent out an ICT questionnaire to one hundred physics teachers. Fifty of the questionnaires were emailed to teachers who had attended continuing professional development courses and were selected at random. The other fifty questionnaires were printed off and posted to fifty physics teachers selected at random from the SLSS Physics database. The aim of the survey was to gauge the embedding of ICT in the learning and teaching of physics, to identify some of the challenges and to inform the Support Service of existing needs. Twenty two replied by post and twenty five by email. Five of those that replied by post chose to remain anonymous. Male 60%
Female 40%
<5 years 25%
5-10 years 17%
>10 years 58%
50%
Boys only 25%
Girls only 9%
Mixed 66%
30%
70% 60%
40%
20% 10%
Classroom Resources Have a computer Have a data projector 53% 45%
Have broadband 51%
Lab Resources Have a computer 85%
Have broadband 77%
0%
Introductory
Word processing
Have a data projector 81%
Personal ICT Equipment Have a memory stick Have a digital camera 96% 72%
Satisfactory
Internet access
Excel
Advanced
PowerPoint
What had most impact ? Have my own laptop Physics teachers indicated that ICT had been very good to ‘motivate interest’ and added an ‘increased visual appeal’. It was 85% also helpful for preparing classwork and had a lot of useful resources already available.
How useful is ICT in teaching?
Just the idea that we could start sharing what we have. So The majority of teachers were positive toward the use of ICT in many individuals have so much great work done. Use of their classroom teaching; 46% of participants considered that ICT video and animations to help explain difficult concepts, was vital in teaching, 52% considered ICT useful while 2% Flash animations - freeware available. considered that ICT had limited use in teaching. Some focussed on its use as a stimulus to engage students while others highlighted its It would seem that most of the focus was on usage and only in a merits as a communication enhancer. few instances did teachers refer directly to improving the students’ learning experiences. This would be in keeping with the The comments included: idea that for most teachers its an evolving area where many are • Students are used to fast moving games and technology and in still developing their skills. order to keep their interest it is essential to use modern and varied teaching tools I use it because it allows me to vary my teaching methods and it also makes it easier in some experiments to use data logging.
• A huge number of resources are available , makes understanding for the student easier, makes it more interesting, more like life outside school e.g. datalogging
It makes physics interesting and helps the pupils understand difficult concepts.
• My experience indicates that once ICT is involved, students sit up, listen and get involved • Not vital, and its overuse can drown the practical everyday uses of physics but definitely of use to attract and pull students into understanding
It helps me explain difficult ideas and I think it makes classes more interesting
ICT Competency
Students are more used to obtaining information in a multimedia way. As a physics teacher it is important to use modern technology.
Nearly 90% of participants had attended some form of ICT course and were most impressed by PowerPoint, Datalogging and Flash Animations which have impacted on their classroom teaching of physics.
I've started getting my leaving cert one classes to do physics projects on various topics eg road safety, resonance...it works so well in promoting them to learn for themselves
Over 40% of participants indicated that they had ‘advanced’ level skills in Word processing, Internet access and Email while Excel and PowerPoint were their weakest.
Over 50% of teachers indicated that they use their computer and internet more than once a week and 40% specified that they use the internet, PowerPoint and Word in their teaching most days.
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Physics SLSS first offered subject specific ICT courses in 2003. These courses were elective and provided like minded colleagues the opportunity to network, share classroom experiences and partake in action research. The courses were three days and focussed on communicating some of the more difficult concepts with the use of ICT tools such as PowerPoint, CD-ROMs, Internet Applets and Datalogging to engage the learner. The course days were separated by a few weeks to give participants the opportunity to try out some of the methodologies in their own classrooms. Participants were also invited to submit projects for collation and these were compiled and distributed to contributing participants.
Networking The majority of teachers found networking with colleagues extremely helpful and indicated that it had impacted their classroom teaching.
Not at all 17%
Some what 27%
A lot 56%
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Yes -they have shared resources and ideas with me which I have used in my classroom. I feel affirmed as a teacher, have obtained many new ideas and approaches to certain topics and realise that every teacher has something positive to contribute! I don't do enough of it, but it is mainly advice on pacing the teaching and advice on best practice that I discuss when I get the chance. Really the only networking I did was at the in-services, I have not done networking outside that. Many teachers highlighted the benefits and value to be gained from meeting up with like minded colleagues. The main areas requested for further support were PowerPoint, Utube videos, flash animations and datalogging. Many teachers have great ideas that would be very valuable to their colleagues. I need a course with Flash. I think students are hesitant to use datalogging methods in exam questions as they feel more secure using methods described in text books. More advanced knowledge of extracting internet information and inserting in presentation software e.g. save youtube movies. Methodologies for certain physics topics e.g. datalogging Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m still far from expert level. The full report will be uploaded onto the http://physics.slss.ie website and forwarded to all participants shortly.
Two Cork Students named BT Young Scientists of the Year. (09-Jan-09) The Taoseach Brian Cowen is leading the tributes to the joint winners of the 2009 BT Young Scientist of the year title. The pair, 14 year old John D. O'Callaghan and 13 year old Liam McCarthy, 2nd year students from Kinsale Community School, Co. Cork, were entered in the Biological and Ecological Sciences category, junior section with their groundbreaking test to establish the health of cattle using washing up liquid. Officially termed "The Development of a convenient test method for Somatic Cell Count and its importance in Milk Production" it's thought the research could be commercialised for use by farmers in Ireland and futher afield. John and Liam are two farmers' sons from Cork, concerned with the financial losses incurred if milk sold from their farms had high contents of somatic cells. Somatic cells reflect infection in the mammary gland of the cow and downgrades the processability of the milk during cheese making. Current tests for somatic cells are expensive and slow. In their research the boys discovered that if a small amount of detergent is mixed with a fresh sample of milk the mixture becomes progressively more viscous as the somatic cell content of the milk rises. With this knowledge in mind they derived a simple apparatus that could be used by the farmer to quickly test the milk and determine its status. This will be of tremendous commercial help to farmers and is a marketable product. An Taoiseach Brian Cowen accompanied by BT CEO Chris Clark presented the pair with a cheque for â&#x201A;Ź5,000, a Waterford Crystal trophy and the opportunity to represent Ireland at the 21st European Union Contest for Young Scientists taking place in Paris this coming September. And the industry of the Cork students is just what the Taoiseach wants to see in these challenging times. PAGE
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How Science and Scientific Principles can help us get through the latest Credit Crisis- Invest in People Chris Armstrong is an inventor, an entrepreneur and an evangelist for media on a flash key. ‘My wife rings me up and asks me to get Carlito’s Way for her and so after work, I’m going to go across the road to the movie store. I went to the desk and the young girl said to me it wasn’t in stock And as I put my movie card back in my wallet, I just pulled out my keys and on my keys is this little USB memory key and I thought to myself, why couldn’t I download that movie. I found that nobody was doing a fast movie key and I had an idea of how we could make a movie download in less than 30 seconds. So we decided to build the actual chip.
Within a month I was on a plane to Hollywood and we met some executives and we demoed the download of a movie in 26 and a half seconds and the look on their face was dumb, they were dumbstruck. They saw us as the biggest potential pirate that had come into their office. They said to me: we will not consider giving you any content unless you can fix it with the content protection that we want. I started to work with the IBM research people on the security on the chip.They helped me get the content I needed and design out and build the underlining capabilities and platform. They’re now helping me get into the retailers globally. So what Porto Media does is give the opportunity to bring content to consumers when they are on the go. Ireland has made great strides on high-tech research and development. However we still lag behind other OECD and EU countries. The report on the government’s Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy indicates that the state has already spent €1.4 billion under the strategy since it was set up last year. This was to promote science in education and back new research and development projects. R&D expenditure grew from €2.3 billion in 2006 to €2.5 billion in 2007. This compares with total annual spend of €855 million in 1997. Now that our economy has turned down and the property bubble has burst we need to change our whole thinking on
our future and our children’s future. The politicians are now starting to talk of the need of the knowledge economy; they speak of investing in people (sic).
Over the last 4 years I have struggled to raise €11M to convert a simple idea into a real business. That idea was that customers could use a high speed flash key to download movies from a retail jukebox or “ATM for Movies” in less than 20 seconds. The idea was that the DVD just didn’t suit the new digital age and that what customers wanted was a digital fill-up station where they could rent or buy movies including other media to play on their PC, portable players, mobile phones and most importantly on their home TV. The vision was that high speed and large capacity flash cards would replace DVD’s and CD’s. However developing the technology was the easy bit. The idea that a small Irish company based in Galway could change the movie business was the difficult bit. In fact the most of our time is spent lobbying for investment and trying to convince people to change their views which are quiet ingrained. Fortunately I have a world class team (true knowledge economy) that had the belief to follow the vision and who knew that they could deliver on the dream. They could have just opted for the safe corporate life but instead they choose to believe in change and I will be eternally grateful that they were willing to do so. These people are the real pioneers of the knowledge economy. Universities need to look at how they educate the next generation; who will live in a really connected or IP world and where access to information via mobile devices will be a reality. We really need to look at how we teach and what we teach. Interpreting facts and encouraging creativity is what’s needed. We simply can’t keep the status quo. Chaos is seen by most people as a terrible event. However the outcome from these events is what forces radical change which is necessary to force us to think new ideas and to accept conditions that may be most unpalatable in the short term but which in the long term we will adapt. Therefore we must not look on chaos as all bad, in fact it should be seen as the catalyst for change or innovation. Today we are faced with a financial Tsunami that, while horrible for all effected, it must also be seen as the opportunity for change. Politicians need to have the real conviction and lead this change. Obama’s election can be the catalyst.
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John F Kennedy sold the American people the idea of putting the first man on the moon which kicked started a major investment into new technologies and while seen as extravagant it was the one vision that advanced many of the latest inventions we see around us today. The global conditions today provide our leaders with the opportunity to build a new model, to innovate, to change the status quo. The current global credit crisis has now created the perfect storm for that innovation to happen and we need the leadership with vision to grasp the opportunity. Like in nature we have the seasons with spring comes growth and with winter death and likewise with Depression comes great opportunity. We must not waste this and hopefully the American people have had the vision to elect their President of change. We must all accept this challenge and in Ireland we must embrace the chance to build a new system that rewards the risk takers. Innovation brings emotive words such as risk takers, entrepreneurs and the most important for me; knowledge capital. This phrase knowledge capital is used by politicians and bankers as if they believe in it but from my direct experience it is another myth. For the last 20 years we have lived with various bubbles be they the Dot com, housing and oil bubble they were created by the failure of bankers, accountants, lawyers and the politicians to understand what is happening around them or more frighteningly, that they knew exactly what was happening but because they were directly benefiting they didn’t want to see the real errors of their ways. The King had no clothes. How do we correct this and try to prevent it from happening? Well the answer lies in science and nature and it’s the fundamental building block of scientific research – the feedback loop. In science we are taught to be true to the facts even when the result isn’t what we want it to be. All great inventions are iterations on things that have gone before. Once the proper feedback systems are put in place science can function and the truth will out. Innovation just takes shear focus and determination and honesty with the resulting facts. These are exactly the same principles that we need to build into our current financial models. We need to appoint scientists and engineers and thinkers to the boards of our banks and the major pension companies. Change is good but only if managed properly as it will direct us forward. We need to trust in people and especially in new ideas.
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To end this piece on a high note I would humbly suggest some of the things that we can do here in Ireland to make the “knowledge Economy” really work. 1. We need to invest in real initiatives in the educational field that will get more students into the sciences/engineering. We need to appoint innovators (scientist, engineers) to the boards of our banks and we need to show that risk capital is assigned to back people and not just the brick and mortars projects. It must be seen as cool to be an innovator. 2. We need to show the world we mean business in the new Knowledge economy and to this end we should scour the globe and offer scholarships to the best brains and invite them to relocate in Ireland. The early days of the Celtic tiger was built on the IDA attracting into Ireland the Dell’s and the Intel’s. However what we now must do is to offer the next Michael Dell before he starts his venture to come to Ireland and see Ireland as the best place to develop their ideas and to get backing for their Knowledge IP venture. We need to attract an exceptionally well educated new breed of immigrant -the IP Immigrant or the “Genius Visa”. They will help kick start the innovation in Ireland and it will pay dividends. 3. We must remove the property debt millstone that our young people have weighing them down. While they are carrying these ridiculous mortgages we will choke off any risk taking so we must write down or offer new funding to those that will ensure that our young people will start new IP based businesses. 4. We must reorganise the Enterprise Ireland and ensure that the employees are rewarded on the success of their companies. We need to make them service the needs of the client companies. We need to switch from a grant system to soft loan based system. 5. We need to increase the BES fund limit from €2M to €10M with key milestone criteria to reach the maximum limit. 6. We need to develop applied innovation which will capitalise the R&D and generate the new jobs in the Irish economy. 7. Finally we need to must invest in people and ideas and that means putting billions into funding these ideas. There is no substitution for hard work and sheer belief that we can drive us on to succeed. We need our young people in schools today to see science and its scientific principals as keys to their futures. Finally they must believe that we will back them and reward them for this. That is my hope.
For this to truly work we must be willing to back it financially - it’s no use paying lip service - if you don’t create a banking system that accepts this then it won’t happen. The word trust comes to mind and the other word is regulation or feedback. Backing scientists, engineers and innovators is the way we get out of the current mess especially in Ireland. We need role models for our young people and we need our youth to aspire to not just become lawyers or accountants but to become innovators, engineers and scientists. We need a vision of this new world and people will follow.
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Chris Armstrong CEO of Porto Media, Galway, Ireland Chris trained as a physicist specialising in telecommunications and holds a diploma from Stanford University in Research and Development. He taught physics in Our Lady's Bower, Athlone for a number of years and is also director of the Midlands Institute of Technology for Research and Innovation.
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Global IT giants work to bring 21st-century teaching to schools Cisco, Intel and Microsoft have banded together to develop new assessment approaches, methods and technologies for measuring the success of 21st-century teaching and learning in classrooms around the world. OECD [Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development] and the International Association of the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) have expressed interest in using the evidence-based and verifiable output of the 21st-century skills assessment to inform the development of the next versions of PISA and Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), their respective international benchmarks. “IEA is committed to the greater integration of IT into all its assessments, especially TIMSS and the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study,” said Seamus Hegarty, chair of the IEA. “This reflects the changes in learning environments and the potential of technology to enhance the teaching and learning process. We look forward to working with the collaboration to achieve our common goals for young learners.” Based on extensive research, Cisco, Intel and Microsoft concluded that most education systems have not kept pace with the dramatic changes in the economy and the skill sets that are required for students to succeed. These skills include the ability to think critically and creatively; to work co-operatively; and to adapt to the evolving use of technology in business and society. For more details go to
http://www.siliconrepublic.com/news/article/12095/
Telescope Challenge for schools is launched as part of the International Year of Astronomy 2009 The Faulkes Telescopes Universe Challenge was launched on Thursday, 8 January, at the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition in the RDS, as part of the Irish celebrations of the International Year of Astronomy 2009. Transition Year students, and their equivalents in Northern Ireland, will be asked to take part in scientific research projects involving the Faulkes Telescopes. The state-of-the-art, 2m diameter telescopes are situated on mountain-top sites in Australia and Hawaii, and can be remotely operated by school groups. Members of the professional astronomy community in universities and institutes throughout the island of Ireland will suggest research projects and assist school students in their delivery. On the basis of their results, to be presented at the Galway Science and Technology Festival in October 2009, the best group, including their teacher and professional mentor, will be invited to visit the Chilean Observatories of the European Southern Observatory. There they will see one of the world s best telescopes and try out one of the smaller telescopes for their own research. The International Year of Astronomy (IYA2009) is a global celebration of astronomy and its contribution to society and culture. 2009 is the 400th anniversary of the first use of an astronomical telescope by Galileo, in reality the beginning of the modern age in astronomy. The aim of IYA2009 is to stimulate a worldwide interest and encourage participation in astronomy and in science amongst students at all levels, and among the general public. In Ireland, a programme of events is being organised by the Irish Node of IYA2009, headed by Professor Michael Redfern, Centre for Astronomy, NUI Galway.
Further information can be found at
www.astronomy2009.ie PAGE
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Physics Support January – June 2009 Leaving Certificate Physics Physics support will focus on providing courses and resources to enhance the classroom learning and teaching of physics at senior cycle. This will include Modular Courses, Induction Courses, a limited number of school visits undertaken on request as well as regional support meetings. A consultation service by fax, phone or email will be available. Further support will be offered through the magazine “Physical Sciences” and the website http://physics.slss.ie The SLSS national database for physics teachers is being updated. If you have not yet forwarded your contact details or if you are unsure, please register on the website. The physics support courses available from January – June include:
Three day Modular Courses SL0849 Induction for New Physics Teachers
SL0852 Flash Animations in Classroom Physics
The first two days of this course have taken place already. Day three which will focus on experiments will be held in a school laboratory in the following venues:
This course addresses the needs of teachers who have completed the SLSS physics ICT modular course or equivalent and who are interested in exploring the added value of using flash in the classroom. The first day of this course has taken place already. Day 2 is available nationally in the following venues:
Venue
Date
Cork
February 28, 2009
Dublin
March 7, 2009
Galway
March 7, 2009
Venue
Date
Cork
February 10, 2009
Galway
February 24, 2009
SL0858 Implementing Current Teaching and Learning Strategies in Science Classrooms This course explores current research on teaching and learning strategies including assessment for learning. Participants experience learning and exchanging resources in a Virtual learning Environment. Venues: Cork and Galway The first day of this course has taken place in Cork. Day two will be held in Cork March 10, 2009.
Network Meetings
Physics Induction Day, Cork
Further local evening network meetings will take place in Spring 2009. These will support local identified needs and be organised in partnership with Education Centres (EC) and in collaboration with the Irish Science Teachers’ Association and the Institute of Physics. Further details will be provided locally.
SL0850 Using ICT to enhance teaching and learning in Physics The first day of this course took place during the Autumn. Day two will be held in the following venues: Venue
Date
Blackrock
Thursday January 22, 2009
Wexford
Thursday January 22, 2009
Laois
Thursday February 5, 2009
Athlone
Wednesday March 4, 2009
Network meeting, Limerick Education Centre
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Chemistry Support January – June 2009 Dear colleagues, The aim of the support service is to provide teachers with continuous professional development. If you believe there is a need for support in a particular area please contact me or place a notice on the “forum” on our website http://chemistry.slss.ie/. The Chemistry Support Service will continue supporting the teachers of chemistry at Senior Cycle during the Spring and Summer terms of 2009 as follows: • New IT resources that will enhance the learning and teaching in the classroom will be uploaded to our website at http://chemistry.slss.ie/ as they become available. • We will also offer Local courses organised in association with Education Centres throughout the country. • School visits may be undertaken in response to requests and by agreement with school management, where resources permit. • A consultation service by fax, phone or email will be available. • Further support will be offered through an issue of the “Physical Sciences” magazine, which will only be available to download on our website in January. The chemistry support courses available from January - June include:
Modular Courses SL0853
Network Evening Meetings Following on from the success of these evening courses last year it is hoped to run evening meetings in each of the six Education Regions. (see Map in Brochure). The aim is to run a workshop on the use of the new resource from Science and Technology in selected Education Centres. These workshops are organised in partnership with the Education Centres and with the local branches of the ISTA. Notification of the dates will be posted on our website at http://chemistry.slss.ie/
Induction Course for teachers of Chemistry
This course commenced in the autumn term in NUI Maynooth, Athlone I.T and the University of Limerick. Two laboratory days have already taken place. The final day of this course will be held before Easter. Participants will be informed of the exact date and venue in good time.
SL0854
Using IT in Chemistry teaching (Beginners)
Website
This course commenced in the Autumn term and Day 2 will take place between 7.00pm and 9.00pm in the evening on the dates given below. Venue Monaghan Education Centre Kilkenny Education Centre Drumcondra Education Centre Galway Education Centre West Cork Education Centre Mayo Education Centre
SL0855
The updated website may be found at www.slss.ie - Click on the Chemistry icon or at http://chemistry.slss.ie/ Here you will find details of all upcoming support events. You will also find a wealth of downloadable resources which will be continually updated. Upon logging on we would appreciate if you could register with us and provide us with an email address. It is hoped in the near future to allow queries to be posted on the bulletin board. If you have any useful resources in electronic form that you wish to share with your fellow teachers send them to me at brendanduane@slss.ie and I will upload them onto the website.
Dates 15th Jan 2009 20th Jan 2009 22nd Jan 2009 27th Jan 2009 3rd Feb 2009 12th March 2009
Using ICT in Chemistry teaching (Advanced)
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This course commenced in the Autumn term and Day 2 will take place between 7.00pm and 9.00pm in the evening on the dates given below. Venue Dates Dublin West Education Centre 5th Feb 2009 *Kildare Education Centre 10th Feb 2009 4.30 - 6.30 p.m Clare Education Centre re 12th Feb 2009 Donegal Education Centre 24th Feb 2009 Waterford Education Centre 5th Mar 2009 Tralee Education Cent 26th Mar 2008
The Physical Sciences magazine will be published and available to download from our website in January 2009. Details of all Chemistry courses are available on the back cover If you would like to contribute an article for inclusion in the magazine. please send it to brendanduane@slss.ie . Also if you have come across useful resources on the internet please share them with us.
* Note different time in Kildare Education Centre
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Calendar of Events 2009 January 8 – 10, 2009 ASE Conference University of Reading January 6 – 10, 2009 BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition R.D.S. Ballsbridge, Dublin 4 January 15, 2009 Course: Using ICT in Chemistry Teaching. (Beginners) Day 2 Venue: Monaghan Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 January 20, 2009 Course: Using ICT in Chemistry Teaching. (Beginners) Day 2 Venue: Kilkenny Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 January 22, 2009 Course: Using ICT in Chemistry Teaching. (Beginners) Day 2 Venue: Drumcondra Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 January 22, 2009 Course: Using ICT to Enhance the Teaching and Learning of Physics Part 2 Venue: Blackrock Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 January 23, 2009 Course: Using ICT to Enhance the Teaching and Learning of Physics Part 2 Venue: Blackrock Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 January 27, 2009 Course: Using ICT in Chemistry Teaching. (Beginners) Day 2 Venue: Galway Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 February 3, 2009 Course: Using ICT in Chemistry Teaching. (Beginners) Day 2 Venue: West Cork Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 February 5, 2009 Course: Using ICT in Chemistry Teaching. (Advanced) Day 2 Venue: Dublin West Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 February 5, 2009 Course: Using ICT to Enhance the Teaching and Learning of Physics Part 2 Venue: Laois Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 February 10, 2009 Course: Using ICT in Chemistry Teaching. (Advanced) Day 2 Venue: Kildare Education Centre 16.30 – 18.30 February 10, 2009 Course: Flash Animations in the Physics Classroom Part 2 Venue: Cork Education Support Centre 19.00 – 21.00
February 12, 2009 Course: Using ICT in Chemistry Teaching. (Advanced) Day 2 Venue: Clare Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 Mid-Term Break Feb 16 – Feb 20 February 24, 2009 Course: Using ICT in Chemistry Teaching. (Advanced) Day 2 Venue: Donegal Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 February 24, 2009 Course: Flash Animations in the Physics Classroom Part 2 Venue: Galway Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 February 28, 2009 Course: Induction Physics Labday Venue: Cork 9.30 – 15.30 March 4, 2009 Course: Using ICT to Enhance the Teaching and Learning of Physics Part 2 Venue: Athlone Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 March 5, 2009 Course: Using ICT in Chemistry Teaching. (Advanced) Day 2 Venue: Waterford Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 March 7, 2009 Course: Induction Physics Labday Venue: Galway 9.30 – 15.30 March 7, 2009 Course: Induction Physics Labday Venue: Dublin 9.30 – 15.30 March 10, 2009 Course: Implementing Current Teaching and Learning Strategies in Science Classrooms Day 2 Venue: Cork Education Support Centre 14.00 – 17.30 March 12, 2009 Course: Using ICT in Chemistry Teaching. (Beginners) Day 2 Venue: Mayo Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 March 20-22, 2009 ISTA AGM Limerick Easter break March 26th 2009 Course: Using ICT in Chemistry Teaching. (Advanced) Day 2 Venue: Tralee Education Centre 19.00 – 21.00 April 3-5 Course: Physics for Life-IoP Spring Weekend, Venue: Whites Hotel, Wexford
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