As a future science teacher, I was so excited today to see a class that fit SO perfectly into the readings from our multi-literacy learning class – a chemistry lab. In the reading by Cope and Kalantzis, Knowledge processes: the pedagogical moves of Learning by Design they describe the idea of learning by design. Learning by design encourages teachers “to reflect up the range of activity types during the design process, to supplement existing practice by broadening the range of activity types, and to plan the sequence carefully.” (Cope and Kalatzis, 2009). This lab let students experience the know, unknown, analyze, apply, AND conceptualize. It seems perfect. 

 

The class began with a LITTLE didactic instruction, which, in my opinion was completely necessary. In order to know what to do, and what they were looking for in the lab, the teacher used overt instruction. “Overt instruction helps learners focus on important features and gain experiences that allow them to understand systematic, analytic, and cognizant explanations of different modes of meaning” (Biswas, 2014) The students were to perform a lab to discover if a known, household product was an acid or a base, based on what colour purple cabbage juice turned when dropped into the substance. They would then have to find out two UNKNOWN substances, by using the information from the lab. The teacher spent the first 10 minutes or so of the class, reviewing the necessary background information about acids and bases with the students to give them the foundation for the lab. She also wrote the day plan on the board, to show the students EXACTLY what to expect for the block (sit and learn, go and do, come back and reflect – it seems to cover many different learning styles in one class).

The lab itself was quite simple, but it gave all the students an opportunity to “do” science with common, every day items. Every person in the group could participate equally, and there was enough time given for the students to think about why the reaction occurred.

Before the students mixed any “chemical”, they first predicted whether they thought each thing was an acid or a base (hand sanitizer,  lemon juice, apple juice, vinegar, baking soda, shampoo, conditioner). They then put a little of each thing into their test tubes, and added some cabbage juice. The sounds of pleasure emanated through the class, “oohs and aahhhhhs” as the students saw bright pink, and blue/green colours appear.

Once they tested all of the items that they had hypothesized about, they tested two unknown items.

 The unknown items made the students think. They had to take the knowledge gained during the class, and use it to discover/apply it in an unknown situation.

After the lab, the students cleaned up, and returned to their desks to finish their work. They had to look up the actual pH of the chemicals they discovered, and answer a few questions about the reactions that occurred.

The only flaw that I saw, was that the work was assessed on paper. Perhaps a student who struggles with reading/ writing could be  “quizzed” on the information orally to ensure everyone had an equal opportunity to succeed.

References:

Biswas, S. (2014). How to teach multiliteracies. Canadian Journal for teacher research. 1, 38-46

Kalantzis, M. and Cope, W., (2009) Knowledge processes: the pedagogical moves of Learning by Design. Pedagogies: An International Journal. 164-195