ERIC Number: EJ1046349
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2014-Jul
Pages: 6
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0036-8555
EISSN: N/A
Graphing the Past
Clary, Renee; Wandersee, James
Science Teacher, v81 n5 p39-44 Jul 2014
Renee Clary and James Wandersee implemented the Stratigraphy and Data Interpretation Project described in this article when they recognized that some students were having difficulties constructing appropriate graphics and interpreting their constructed graphics for an earlier mathematics-science project in their classrooms. They also previously observed that some students could not consistently identify which fossils were youngest in an outcrop: Some students thought that the fossils closest to the surface represented an organism's origin instead of its extinction. Therefore, they designed the project so that each student would receive a unique data set that he or she would have to analyze, interpret, and graph and produce a sketch showing where the data originated. Students not only performed well on this project but also enjoyed it. The authors emphasized that this project was similar to ones that scientists encounter working in a professional lab, where each individual works with unique data. Students also learned that scientists in laboratories commonly have their notebooks reviewed and witnessed by coworkers. A Project handout and individualized data sheets for students are available on the web.
Descriptors: Science Instruction, Graphs, Data Analysis, Freehand Drawing, Science Process Skills, Science Laboratories, Student Projects, Geology, Paleontology
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: Teachers
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A