Blog post 5

Hello all,

Here are 5 active learning activities that you can use in your Computer Science class.

	Name of the activity	Suitable to teach which CS topic?
1	PIM(Plus-Minus-Interesting)	Importance of information technology
2	POST-IT COLLECTION	secrecy and security
3	REVOLVING CIRCLE	Use of social media
4	SIMULATION	Information crimes
5	STICK DEBATE	Digital citizenship

	Name of the activity	Detailed Summary of its steps
1	PIM(Plus-Minus-Interesting) Subject: Importance of information technology	Facilitator discusses with pupils the meaning of PMI and explains what each term means: Plus = a benefit t, Minus = a downside, Interesting = an interesting. In this activity, the students are shown a template including areas to write positive, negative and interesting dimensions of information technologies. Students came to the board and they write positive dimension under plus area, negative dimensions under minus area and interesting dimensions under interesting area and they discuss why they put those dimensions under those areas. Thanks to this activity, students who don’t interest any side of information technologies can interest.
2	POST-IT COLLECTION Subject:  Secrecy and Security	Pupils in groups of four to six receive a Post-It sheet per pupil. In this activity, Each pupil writes his own idea about secrecy and security in online environment on his own post-it and writes some examples belonging to dangers of doing mistake behaviors in online areas which harms our security and secrecy on it. Then, each group’s members come together and they discuss what they wrote as individually. After completing ideas, a general post-it, that including summary of ideas of all members of group and examples with it, is prepared as group post-it.  At the end, Ideas from each group are placed on a flip chart and discussed with all classes.
3	REVOLVING CIRCLE Subject: Use of social media	Pupils divide into two groups. One group forms an inner circle and the other group forms an outer circle Pupils face each other. The inner circle then rotates clockwise and the outer circle rotates anti-clockwise. In this activity, each student will discuss about use of social media with many other students. While circles rotating, students will first ask to each students while they are standing face to face about  which social media tool they use. After, a full return completed, question will change and students will ask to each other for which aim they prefer using social media. The activity can be continued by adding new questions.  The general aim is to let each students discuss with many students about a specific idea of social media.
4	SIMULATION Subject: Information crimes	This activity is a role play activity. In this activity, students will learn information crimes and their penalty. Firstly, a court environment will be designed in the class. A student will be judge. Three students will be co-judge.  A few students will be public prosecutor and some students will be criminal. In this activity, some students is guessed that they have done some information crimes and their situation will be discusses by other in the court. After, discussing, firstly, it will be decided whether it is really an information crime or not. Secondly, it will be decided what penalty should be given if it is an information crime.
5	STICK DEBATE Subject: Digital citizenship	Each pupil receives three (lollipop) sticks. Every time that someone cannot speak, they must hand in a stick. In this activity, each student will have to talk about what to do to be a conscious digital citizenship and what the digital citizenship means. If students cannot give any answer they will lose a stick. The person who lost his all stick will be eliminated and the students who have most sticks in his hand will win.

Notice : I would like to mention that activities here are inspired or adapted from http://www.nicurriculum.org.uk/docs/key_stage_3/ALTM-KS3.pdf

Blog post4

Classroom Activities for Active Learning

                Active learning is the persons own view to be active in their own learning process. It is also manipulation process. It helps students to identify concepts and to create new concepts according to their gained concepts. While learning actively, students realize their own capability and they can increase their critical thinking and problem solving skills.  Also, active learning can easily be gained by class activities. In this way, some techniques arrive to apply active learning as more powerful in class environment.  One of the ways to make active learning powerful is questioning techniques. The main aim of asking questions is to check students understanding on taught concepts and principles. However, while asking questions, instructor should realize what a percentage of students actively answers questions and what can be done to increase students’ number responding questions. Also, it is really important to ask questions in the way of expected answers. Instructor should be conscious to be able to show what he expects while asking questions. Does instructor expect students to evaluate or to remember a gained knowledge or to apply their knowledge into practice? It is really important to get correct answers from students.

                 Another way to apply active learning is to put students in small groups to let them work cooperatively.  There are various types of putting students in group. For example, pair-share is one of them. Instructor present a subject, students think about it for a short time, then, students pair up their response to one another, finally, all class discuss the issue. Another type of grouping is Buzz groups. In this type, students are grouped as 5-8 people for discussing about subject and finally, groups report their work and discuss with other groups.

                Also, whole class involvement is also an important factor for active learning in class.  There also are some strategies to help in this way. One of them is Lecture Check. In lecture check strategy, 15-20 minutes a lecture is delivered, then, a multiple question is projected for class. If most of the class gives correct answer, instructor continues course material, otherwise, go back to the material. Second strategy is Whole-Class Debates. In Whole Class Debate strategy, class is divided into two groups. Each group is given five statements supporting their side of issue and finally two or three volunteers make summary arguments for each side.

                In addition, reading and writing exercises are also helpful for active learning in class environment. There are some strategies to use in this way. The first one is close reading method.  In this strategy, instructor models how to read and students may be wanted to read aloud similar selections, to discuss them in groups of two or to paraphrase them in their own words. The second one is Classroom Assessments Techniques. In these techniques, students write their thoughts or questions about day’s topic. It will help them to concentrate attention on topic so that they may be active listeners.