Application of Scientific Concepts
I have grown in my ability
to apply concepts and scientific principles to practical problems
and/or real-world situations.
I am using my
lesson plan from my Baseline Portfolio as my baseline
evidence.
Unlike
the work evidencing of my growth in my
ability to apply concepts and scientific principles to real-world
situations, the lesson plan included minimal real-world applications,
and the activities lacked meaning.
1. Environmental Science
What this piece of evidence
is...
Excerpts of my group
project from the
environmental course shows how I am more able to apply scientific
concepts to
solve practical, real-world issues of environmental concerns. The
presentation provided an ideal new urbanism town that is
environmentally-consciously designed with the use of solar powered
lights, recycled materials, and much more. This ideal community
was designed with many best practices in mind, and the PowerPoint
slides depict a synopsis of what a ecologically friendly new urbanism
community would include.
Why I chose this
and how this
illustrates my growth
in the ability to apply
concepts and scientific principles to practical
problems...
The group activity was designed to allow us to
apply
concepts we learned in the course to a real-world situation, and our
task was to design an environmentally-friendly community. The
group work exemplifies the applicability of learned concepts in the
real-world, as the excepts display.
The "Best Management Practices"
slide displays the many best practices we discussed in class.
Though I knew about solar panels, rain barrels, and eco toilets, I
learned many best management practices that I would never have
conceived of. I heard about "green roofs", but I did not realize
it meant that a building literally had greens and plants on it!
Another interesting practice that was introduced to me in the
environmental class is the pervious paving where rain water can be
absorbed through the pavement material, reducing the amount of runoff
and possibilities of flooding. In addition, when there is
communal space, less plant life need to be destroyed, and more plants,
especially trees, can be planted for better air and water
retention.
The design of roads in this ideal community, as
shown in the "Road Design" slide, are very intentional. Limiting
concrete paving and utilizing pervious paving such as gravel lowers the
runoff coefficient and promotes the natural cycling of water. A
simple design of allowing cars to be parked on one side of a road
rather than both reduces the width of roads. The availability of
bike and walk paths promote the use of alternative traveling means,
therefore reduces the emission of green house gases.
I have learned that it is not difficult to engineer
a new
urbanism town where schools and buildings are built to conserve energy
and resources while reducing water and air pollution. Prior to
the course, I would not have fathomed a real place like the Truman Show, but by the end of the
course, I realized that a new urbanism town is very much
doable. My colleagues and I are not engineers or architects by
any means, but if we were able to design this ideal town, I believe
that real professionals can make the fairy tale come true.
Evidence from group project
done in environmental science:
2.
Physics: The
Foundations of Science II
What
this
piece
of evidence
is...
This is an excerpt from the second
homework assignment from the second physics course where the
concepts of parallel circuits were applied to a circuit breaker at
home. The homework item required me to synthesize and apply my
newly
acquired knowledge about parallel circuits to determine where I would
most appropriately
place a fuse box. I found this question very meaningful because I
was able to apply to a real-life situation that pertained to me.
I was very excited to be able to answer this question.
Why I chose this
and how this
illustrates my growth
in the ability to apply
concepts and scientific principles to practical
problems...
This piece clearly exemplifies my application
of the
concept of parallel circuits in a real-world situation: my
home. I was pleasantly surprised that I was able to tackle the
task, for electricity and electrical circuits were always foreign
concepts to me. As a matter of fact, I once tried to change light
switches in my kitchen with a Home Depot 1-2-3 book. After being
zapped a few times, successfully changing ONE switch, and carelessly
taking one wrong move, I was forced to eat dinner under candlelight for
a few days until a real electrician was able to come and fix my
mistakes.
The item required me
to think and apply my learning where I would not have done so
myself.
It is unlikely that I woul apply the newly learned
concepts to an ordinary home or building, but the homework item
did. It forced me to apply the
concept of parallel circuits, closed circuits, and current flow in a
way that I would not have done so independently. I was able to
explain why appliances should be in parallel to other appliances so
that when one appliance is out no other appliance is affected because
they each have independent pathways to the main energy source. In
order for a fuse box to protect a home or building, it must be in the
beginning of the path of the battery source. My response to
the task demonstrates a practical use of what I learned in class.
Prior to our second physics class,
I would never have
expected myself to view the electrical work in my home as common sense
or a "physics house". Electricity always seemed to be a different
from anything else; it is something that is not concrete, an idea that
I cannot grasp, and has a power that I fear. Knowing
what I know now about electrical circuits, I am less fearful of
electricity, but I know I should not have a false sense of confidence
to take on any electrical work at home.
3.
Chemistry
of
Living Organisms
What
this
piece
of evidence
is...
This is an example from the beginning of the biochemistry course
after we learned about chemical concepts and structures. On this first quiz,
I
was
able to apply my newly acquired biochemistry knowledge to
last summer's Earth Science class. Prior
to
this course, I found it difficult to connect one MISE program course
to another, but during this first quiz, I had enough biology,
chemistry, and Earth science knowledge to make connections between the
different strands of science.
Why I chose this and how this illustrates my growth
in the ability to apply
concepts and scientific principles to practical
problems...
This item on the
quiz, in comparison to my baseline portfolio lesson, depicts my
ability to apply scientific principles to practical problems. The
activities in the lesson plan were not real for students, but this
question about the Martian environment is a real-life concept. My response to the
item on the quiz allowed me to apply chemical
concepts to explain why dry ice exists naturally in the Martian climate
but not on Earth. Prior to taking this
first quiz in my second biology course, I would not have been able to
explain this real-world situation: why dry ice exists naturally
in Mars
and not on Earth. Though the tasks on assessments are forced upon
students, real-world application questions like these allow students to
synthesize and apply their newly learned concepts. This item will
help me to develop my own real-world application assessment tasks in
future lesson and unit plans.
