ABILITY TO CONSTRUCT CIRCUITS
Concept designs used.
The case study selected requires that at the end of the session students should have the capability to construct circuits by themselves under minimal supervision. To implement this, several concept design are to be utilized including inquiry skills, scientific reasoning, scientific literacy, and assessment methods. These methods are to be used as the trainer weighs out the best way that will ensure that students understand the topics substantially.
Inquiry skills
Inquiry skills give the students an opportunity to consult their fellow students such that at the end they can come up with a basic list of elements required to light a bulb.
Scientific reasoning
It involves brainstorming activities to ascertain the capability of the students to possess scientific thinking. In this case, their capability to accurately choose components for an electrical circuit is to be assessed.
Scientific literacy
The concept tests the capability of the students to explain electrical conductivity scientifically. How they can recollect and order their various knowledge to come up with a reasonable point.
Assessment methods
There are different evaluation methods that the instructor would apply to ascertain that at the end or in the process of the lesson to ensure that the students have appropriately understood the topic. These includes Classroom dialogue, Teacher observation, Student-devised materials drawings of circuit diagrams.
Tutor assessment of the students.
The activities to be carried out were categorized into four groups (A-D), and it is required that each assessment must focus on the capability of the students to correctly respond to these questions.
| A | Ability to build circuits |
| B | Associated power supply |
| C | A suitable waveform generator |
| D | A means of measuring current, voltage and resistance |
The students were assessed on the topics listed to ascertain their abilities to effectively perform every activity within the topic.
Assessment after brainstorming activity
| Student | Participation rate | Prior knowledge | Creativity | Culture of discussion | Mean score |
| 1 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 3 |
| 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 |
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
The possible results for the three students indicate student 1 to be an active participant as well as student 2 while student 3 does not participate even a little. It is not evaluated negatively because in case of a class with a bigger number it is possible that during a short brainstorming period some student may not get the time to participate.
Assessment on Inquiry
Under inquiry, the specific capability assessed on the student is the ability to carry out a planning investigation. The student were then evaluated on the capacity to select the required items to construct an electric circuit. The ability to discuss with classmates on the necessary topics.
| Assed skill | Emerging | Developing | Consolidating | extending |
| Selection of an adequate set of elements | Students tries to select the elements but his/her list is not complete or inadequate and hence not able to complete the tsk even after the discussion with a peers. | Student tries to select the set of elements, but his/her list is not complete or inadequate; he / she is able to complete the task only after discussing with the peers. | The student is capable of completing the set of adequate elements, but during the discussion with a peer is not able to defend his choice. | The student has the capability to complete the set of adequate elements, discuss his/her choice with the peers and can defend the choices of elements. |
Assessment on building working electrical circuit.
The students to be assessed on their capability to make use of the elements chosen to create a working circuit.
| Assessed skill | Emerging | Developing | Consolidating | Extending |
| Investigation of the conducting properties of the objects selected. | The group of the students is not able to build a working electric circuit | The students can come up with a few element connected well but not all | The students are able to examine the objects and compare the results with the hypothesis. | The students indicate creative skills, whereby incase the circuit does not resemble the hypothesis they inquire to note the sources of error. |
Assesment of representation of electrical circuits
Under representation of the circuits the studnts are expetecd to show a neet drawing, well labelled to indicate how the working components are to be connected.
| Assessed skill | Emerging | Developing | Consolidating | Extending |
| Drawing two working electric circuit with measuring equipment | Students are able to draw 1-2 drawing which are either incorrect and cannot be read. | The student can draw one correct drawing but the second drawing is incorrect | The student can draw the two drawing correctly with minor errors. | The student draws the two drawings correctly and accurately. |
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The objective tree
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Inquiry seems to work perfectly for getting students to understand the how to create circuits. The students get to inquire from their peers and in the process student ensure that they correct where they go wrong and hence come up with a correct designs.
Example of a simple circuit
