Electricity

The Electricity SAILS unit provides an introduction to conductivity and electric circuits and is recommended to be implemented after students have studied electrostatics. This topic is present in most of the lower second level curricula across Europe. The three activities are presented as a guided inquiry-based approach and implementation should take no more than two lessons (45 minutes each).

Activity A introduces the topic as whole class brainstorming activity, where students construct a mind map based on their prior knowledge. In Activity B, the students design and assemble a simple working electric circuit and use this circuit for planning and executing an investigation on the conductivity of every-day objects and materials (Activity C). As a further challenge, students can propose an experiment to show lightning in the classroom without the use of any device plugged into the mains. A further homework assignment is suggested, an essay on “Is electric current always dangerous to human beings?” This unit has opportunities for assessment of several inquiry skills, in particular planning investigations and working collaboratively, as well as progressing their scientific literacy and reasoning capabilities. Assessment opportunities include teacher observation, group brainstorming and student artefacts.

This unit was trialled in Slovakia, Ireland, Turkey and Poland (five case studies, 17 classes, 333 students). Planning investigation and scientific reasoning were the main skills assessed, although in Ireland working collaboratively (debating with peers) was assessed. One teacher in Turkey added an activity on developing hypotheses to the unit, and provided oral feedback to the students.

Unit booklet

Key content / concepts

Introduction to conductivity and electric circuits
Simple electric circuit
Conductivity of different materials

Level

Lower
Upper

Inquiry skills and competencies assessed

Planning investigations
Developing hypotheses
Forming coherent arguments
Working collaboratively
Scientific reasoning
Scientific literacy

Assessment methods

Classroom dialogue
Teacher observation
Peer-assessment
Self-assessment
Worksheets
Student devised materials
Other assessment items

The teaching and learning activities described in the Electricity SAILS inquiry and assessment unit were developed by the FP7 Fibonacci project (Fibonacci Electricity unit, http://www2.if.uj.edu.pl/fibonacci/class3.html) and adapted for use in the SAILS project by the team in Jagiellonian University. The unit comprises three activities, which are recommended for use with lower second level students, aged 12-15 years. The topic is first introduced through a whole class brainstorming activity and individual/small group construction of a mind map based on their prior knowledge (Activity A). In the second activity, the students design and assemble a simple working electric circuit (Activity B). They then use this circuit for planning and executing an investigation on the conductivity of every-day objects and materials (Activity C). Students are facilitated to improve their skills in developing hypotheses through peer discussion on the conductivity properties of these materials. Everyday contexts are included and students are facilitated to develop skills in scientific literacy and searching for information, e.g. how lightning is formed during a thunderstorm and what is the conductivity of air?

There are opportunities identified throughout this unit for the development and assessment of inquiry skills. Evidence of skill development can be collected in the form of student artefacts (worksheets or student devised materials, such as mind maps), through teacher observation or peer- and self-assessment. While some assessment tools are described within this unit, there is also flexibility for the teacher to devise and implement their own assessment instruments. Suggested skills to be assessed during implementation of this unit include developing hypotheses, planning investigations and development of scientific literacy, in particular, explaining electrical current and electrical conductivity using scientific terminology.

Below you can find the full inquiry and assessment unit for download, as well as an archive with classroom materials, including student worksheets and assessment tools for teachers to be used during the activities if available.

Unit booklet Classroom materials

Activity A: Introduction to electricity

Concept focus	Connecting the concept of electricity to everyday life
Inquiry skills focus	Working collaboratively
Scientific reasoning	Making scientific connections
Scientific literacy	Explain concepts scientifically
Assessment methods	Classroom dialogue Worksheets Student devised materials

In this activity, students are asked to draw a mind map using the word electricity in the centre. This allows them to review their prior knowledge of the topic. They then discuss the words used, identifying scientific terms and distinguishing them from everyday words. Through this task, students strengthen their scientific literacy.

Activity B: Simple electric circuits

Concept focus	Building a simple electric circuit
Inquiry skills focus	Planning investigations Working collaboratively
Scientific reasoning	Choosing components for electric circuit
Scientific literacy	Critiquing a method Explaining electric current scientifically
Assessment methods	Classroom dialogue Worksheets

In this activity, students are asked to identify the components needed to construct a simple electric circuit. They engage in peer discussion and distinguish between items that are necessary and those that are not needed, before drawing a sketch of their proposed electric circuit. This activity allows the students to develop their skills in planning investigations, critiquing experimental design, and working collaboratively. Opportunities exist for strengthening scientific literacy and scientific reasoning capabilities.

Activity C: Conductivity of different materials

Concept focus	Conductivity – conductors, insulators
Inquiry skills focus	Planning investigations Developing hypotheses Working collaboratively
Scientific reasoning	Making predictions
Scientific literacy	Searching for information Explaining conductivity scientifically
Assessment methods	Worksheets

In this activity, students are asked to plan an investigation to check the conductivity of different materials, using an electrical circuit with a single bulb. They first develop a hypothesis about various materials, plan an investigation to investigate their research question, observe and record the results and draw conclusions. During this activity, students develop their scientific literacy through introduction to the symbols used for representation of an electric circuit, enrich their scientific reasoning and skills of developing hypotheses, drawing conclusions and planning investigations.

The Electricity SAILS inquiry and assessment unit was trialled in four countries, producing five case studies of its implementation – CS1 Slovakia, CS2 Ireland, CS3 Turkey, CS4 Poland and CS5 Poland. The case studies were conducted by 14 different science teachers in a total of 17 classes and with 333 students.

The activities have been carried out with lower second level students from mixed ability classes; CS1 Slovakia combines the classroom experiences of 10 teachers in 11 classes, CS2 Ireland reports on one teacher's implementation with two different class groups (all girls, aged 14 years) and CS4 Poland describes one teacher's implementation with one class of 14 year old students. CS3 Turkey and CS5 Poland present the experiences of teachers implementing this unit at upper second level, with students aged 15-16 years and one of the teachers in CS1 Slovakia also trialled this unit with this age group.

The key inquiry skill evaluated was planning investigations, while most case studies also reported on collecting evidence of scientific reasoning and scientific literacy. The identified assessment opportunities included students' contribution during brainstorming, students' construction of mind maps, students' abilities to draw electrical circuits and develop investigation plans. The assessment methods used include classroom dialogue, students' worksheets and other devised materials, such as mind maps, and peer-/self-assessment tools.

The inquiry approach used in all the case studies was that of guided inquiry, as outlined in the unit description. In two case studies – CS2 Ireland and CS3 Turkey – students did not have lessons on electricity prior to the implementation of this unit, while in all other classes the activities of this Electricity SAILS inquiry and assessment unit were used for revision purposes. The purpose of this unit was particularly important in student’s construction of mind maps in Activity A: Introduction to electricity. If students had no prior knowledge of the topic electricity, the mind map was used to set the everyday context. If electricity was introduced beforehand, the mind map was utilised as a revision exercise. In one class (CS2 Ireland) the mind map was used for comparison at the beginning and at the end of the unit. The unit was usually adopted as outlined, however in some cases (CS2 Ireland and CS5 Poland) the final challenge was partially or entirely skipped during the implementation.

In the Electricity SAILS inquiry and assessment unit, several assessment opportunities were identified. No one teacher that implemented this unit used all of the opportunities or tools for assessment provided, and instead they focused on particular skills for development and assessment.

Three key skills identified in the activities for teaching and learning were highlighted for assessment during implementation in the classroom. Scientific literacy and scientific reasoning about electricity could be evaluated four times – during brainstorming in activities A and C, mind maps in Activity A and using graphical and schematic representations of working electric circuits (activities B and C). The assessment of planning investigations was suggested in Activity C and could be used as a part of a group work assessment. A task involving searching for information was proposed at the end of the unit and could be offered as a homework exercise.

Below you can find the full inquiry and assessment unit for download (excluding the case studies), as well as an archive containing all the case studies.

Unit booklet Case studies

CS1 Slovakia

Concept focus	Simple electric circuits Conductivity of everyday materials
Activities implemented	Introduction to electricity Simple electric circuits Conductivity of different materials
Inquiry skills assessed	Planning investigations
Scientific literacy	Searching for information Explaining lightning scientifically
Assessment methods	Classroom dialogue Worksheets Student devised materials Other assessment items
Level	Lower Upper
Age	14-16
Prior experience with inquiry	No experience

This case study describes implementation by 10 teachers in 12 separate classes in Slovakia. In all cases, the skills assessed were planning investigations and students' ability to search for scientific information. The skills were assessed through evaluation of students' worksheets and teachers used rubrics to identify performance at four levels. The teachers provided written feedback for the students to review.

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CS2 Ireland

Concept focus	Introduction to electric conduction and electric circuits Drawing electrical circuits
Activities implemented	Introduction to electricity Simple electric circuits Conductivity of different materials
Inquiry skills assessed	Planning investigations Working collaboratively
Scientific literacy	Searching for information Use of scientific language Explaining electrical conduction scientifically
Assessment methods	Classroom dialogue Teacher observation Peer-assessment Worksheets Student devised materials
Level	Lower
Age	13-14
Prior experience with inquiry	No experience

This case study details an interesting use of mind-maps, whereby the teacher allowed students to modify their mind-maps at the end of the lesson and to add new words and connections. In a different class, the mind-map exercise was used as a revision exercise. The teacher used a rubric to assess students’ mind-maps. Students were assessed both as they worked, by listening to student conversations, and after the lessons, through collection of mind-maps and circuit models.

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CS3 Turkey

Concept focus	Simple electric circuits Electrical conductivity of everyday materials
Activities implemented	Introduction to electricity Simple electric circuits Conductivity of different materials
Inquiry skills assessed	Developing hypotheses Forming coherent arguments
Scientific literacy	Explaining electrical conductivity scientifically
Assessment methods	Classroom dialogue Worksheets
Level	Lower
Age	16

In this case study, many skills were identified for assessment, but particular details are provided for assessment of developing hypotheses, including generating inquiry questions, and forming coherent arguments. The teacher used short quizzes, question and answer sessions, and classroom discussions for assessment of student knowledge. Some of the assessment took place in the classroom, but because of limited time, some assessment had to be done after the class, such as reading short quizzes or marking using rubric tables.

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CS4 Poland

Concept focus	Simple electric circuits Electrical conductivity of everyday materials
Activities implemented	Introduction to electricity Simple electric circuits Conductivity of different materials
Inquiry skills assessed	Planning investigations
Scientific reasoning	Identifying connections
Scientific literacy	Explaining the principles of electricity scientifically
Assessment methods	Classroom dialogue Teacher observation Peer-assessment Self-assessment Worksheets Student devised materials
Level	Lower
Age	14
Prior experience with inquiry	No experience

In this case study, students’ scientific reasoning and scientific literacy were assessed, in particular their ability to form connections between scientific concepts and prior knowledge or experiences, and their ability to explain the principles of electricity in a scientific way. Teacher observation and a frequency chart were used to record students’ contributions during brainstorming, while student artefacts were evaluated using rubrics. In addition, peer- and self-assessment were used to assess skill in planning investigations.

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CS5 Poland

Concept focus	Building working electrical circuits Conductivity of everyday materials
Activities implemented	Introduction to electricity Simple electric circuits Conductivity of different materials
Inquiry skills assessed	Planning investigations
Scientific reasoning	Choosing components for an electrical circuit
Scientific literacy	Ability to explain electrical conductivity scientifically
Assessment methods	Classroom dialogue Teacher observation Student devised materials
Level	Upper
Age	16-17
Prior experience with inquiry	No experience

In this implementation, the teacher selected several skills for assessment, in particular planning investigations and scientific literacy, and focused on evaluation of specific pre-selected students or groups at different stages of the inquiry process. The teacher chaired a whole-class discussion to address difficulties experienced by the class. The lesson sequence was modified during the lesson, to allow the class to focus on specific key learning objectives.

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Electric current – lighting up the darkness