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socratic
AndroidContent AreasGoogle Tips and TricksiOS Tips and Tricks

Google’s AI to the Rescue: Ask Socratic

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Ready to step into the future? You may find this new iteration of an app worth exploring. It will be even more useful if you are a high school or college student and need help studying. Google for Education announced February 12, 2020 that they have a new tool to assist you. What’s amazing is that it uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) to work. The updated app that Google acquired and revamped is Socratic.

Let’s take a moment to explore the new app.

socratic

Image Credit: Google Play Store

What Socratic Offers

socraticSocratic makes over one thousand high school and college-level subject guides available, relying on artificial intelligence to find and simplify answers to questions. The questions answered come from subjects like Algebra, Biology, Chemistry, Geometry, History, and Literature. Believe it or not, it can also answer questions about Physics and Trigonometry.

Socratic’s main features include the following:

  • Get problems into Socratic via camera, voice, or typed search
  • View online resources, including diagrams and videos, to solve the problem
  • Self-paced instructions and videos with explanations
  • A growing library of content

Getting started is as easy as getting the app and using it. Android users can get the app via the Google Play store. Need the iOS version? Get it here. (If you are clicking on this link to the app via your Chromebook or computer browser, log in with a personal account. The Google Play store doesn’t play well with G Suite EDU accounts and will give you an error.)

How Socratic Works

Wondering how Google’s AI works in Socratic? Google designed the app to assist students who may be studying on their own. You can use the voice search to ask a question. Another way involves students snapping a photo of a problem. Then Socratic  will do its best to find an answer.

Did You Know?

Sign up for one of our Google Certified Educator certifications. You’ll learn about more than Google Meet, as well as earn 12 CPE hours per course. Use these courses to get Google Educator certified. Find out more online.

When you first load  Socratic on your device, you’ll have to sign in. You can try to sign in with a G Suite EDU account. If that does not work, try a personal Gmail account.

Sign-In Screen G Suite EDU Account Not Found,

Use Personal Account Instead

 Snap a Picture of a Problem

Once you have logged in, you will grant Socratic camera access. After that, you can snap a picture of a worksheet with a word problem or type it in, as shown above. Here’s what a solution response will look like:

Some teachers may express concern about an app that can assist students for self-paced learning. Those few detractors aside, this is a boon to independent learners. Take a few steps into the future of artificial intelligence with Socratic.

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digital physics screenshot
Content AreasGood TeachingiOS Tips and TricksSTEM/STEAM

Digital Physics with Physics Classroom

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Are you a physics teacher looking for simple tutorials, interactives, or concept builders? Digital physics has never been easier. In this blog, we’ll explore a variety of digital resources you may find useful as a physics teachers.

Introducing Concepts to Students

You may find introducing tough concepts to be difficult. While interactive experiences are foundational, try some proven strategies to introduce students to new learning.

What are some great surface learning strategies? Here’s a quick recap on what surface learning strategies do:

Surface learning strategies introduce students to concepts, skills and/or strategies. These strategies seek to assist students gain requisite, background knowledge. The need this background knowledge before they can move forward to deep learning.

These strategies introduce students to unfamiliar content. You can see the effect size for each strategy in parentheses. Here are some you can use:

1) Jigsaw Method (1.20)

The jigsaw instructional method is a cooperative approach to learning. In this method, a teacher introduces a main topic and several subtopics. Divide students into “home groups.” Assign each member of the home group a subtopic. Students then divide up to study their assigned subtopic and have a discussion. At the end of the jigsaw, students return to their home group where each has a set time to share about their subtopic. Culminate the activity with a reflection component.

Tech Tip: Organize your instructions and sub topic resources topics in a Google Sites or a hyperdoc to structure subtopic explorations.

2) Flipped Classroom (0.58)

This is an approach that involves the teacher pre-recording video or audio presentations. Students can then watch/listen to content at home or in other situations. When students return to the classroom, engage them in hands-on activities that focus the learning. You can use a deep learning strategy like Reciprocal Teaching (0.84) to dig deeper into content in class. Or, use a simulation.

Tech Tip: Try using solutions such as Actively Learn, Edpuzzle, or  Kami. to heighten the interactivity of videos.

See more strategies and technologies you can use online.

Ready to explore the Physics Classroom website? Let’s get started.

The Physics Classroom Topics

This section offers source material (great for jigsaw) you can use. For example, some of the topics include:

In each section, you’ll find a series of lessons. For example, for Reflection and the Ray Model of Light:

The first lesson focuses on reflection and its importance with specific topics:

  1. The Role of Light to Sight
  2. The Line of Sight
  3. The Law of Reflection
  4. Specular vs. Diffuse Reflection

There are more lessons available. Each lesson provides great content students can read.

Physics Interactives

This section focuses on HTML5 interactive pages that work on various devices. This includes devices such as iPads and Chromebooks that no longer work with Adobe Flash.

digital physics

From their website (with slight edits):

Some Interactives are simulations that allow a user to manipulate an environment. They make it easier to observe the effect of changes in variables upon the simulation. Other Interactives are skill building exercises. In these, the user practices a skill that is crucial to learning some aspect of physics. Topics for Interactives match the classroom topics listed above.

Some Interactives provide game-like environments. These need the user to use a physics concept to meet a challenge. These are great for deep learning since they dig deeper into a concept. You can introduce them with direct instruction (.59) strategy. Use them when students are ready to build a deeper conceptual understanding. Strategies you can use include classroom discussion, reciprocal teaching. This involves students grappling with ideas together.

Concept Builders

Physics Classroom’s website offers access to 120 concept builders on 14 different topics. They describe it in this way:

A Concept Builder is an interactive learning activity. It targets student understanding of a discrete concept.  Each Concept Builder presents learners with carefully crafted questions. These target various aspects of the concept. There are many levels of difficulty or activities.

Track learner progress at each level or in each activity. Often, when a student misses a question, they have two opportunities to try again. Once they have done so, they will have exhibited skill.

You can see two screenshots of the concept builder below:

Lots More Resources

There are many more resources at the Physics Classroom. Explore it to see all the amazing content available for physics learners.

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chemix
ScienceSTEM/STEAM

Lab Diagrams Made Easy with Chemix

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Are you a science teacher needing a quick way to explain lab procedures? Mr. Casanova, my high school chemistry teacher, would have loved this new digital tool. Chemix Lab Diagrams (@chemixlab) makes it easy for teachers to draw lab diagrams. You can then share those in a variety of formats. As of February 11, 2020, Chemix Lab Diagrams was still in beta, so you can look forward to improvements.

chemix

Why Chemix Lab Diagrams?

“I would use [Chemix Lab Diagrams] at the beginning of the school year. It would get students to recognize the lab equipment and how to use them,” says Efren Rodriguez (@EfrenR). Chemix is “an online editor for drawing science lab diagrams. It can be used for drawing school experiment apparatus. The app provides for easy sketching for both students and teachers.”

Listen to the creator of Chemix, Hai Mac, and Julia Winters (interviewer) share about Chemix:

  • Website for creating diagrams of labs
  • Show students how to set up an experiment
  • Create diagrams for lab reports
  • Save diagrams to the cloud
  • Arrange images in Google Slides, then export the images to make an animated GIF

Check out this example from Dustin Draughn on a basic setup for an enzyme lab:

chemix

Some are already using it, such as @MrsWBio1, to illustrate worksheets:

Do you think this is amazing? If so, you’ll love this collection of animated diagrams Efren Rodriguez put together.  And you can learn more about how to create animated GIFs of Chemix diagrams via this blog entry.

How Does Chemix Lab Diagrams Work?

Using Chemix is an easy process. When you go to their website, you’ll see a blank canvas with a beaker on a shelf. A left hand sidebar features a wealth of containers. If you know your way around a lab, you’ll recognize many of the items, such as test tubes, bung/stopper, and more. Want to use a boiling flask? A thiele tube or calorimetry cup? Chemix has you covered.

Source: @EfrenR

Save images as JPGs, then convert them into animated GIFs. You can use a website like Gifmaker.me to make the animation. EfrenR has created a few animated GIFs which you can see in his Glide app (watch his Glide tutorial). Be sure to click on his “How To’s” tab in the app to see what Efren has come up with.

Students and teachers can explain what is happening in a lab. How can this be of benefit to students? Expecting students to create their own diagrams and to fine-tune them builds deeper conceptual understanding.

Deepening Conceptual Understanding

“We come to know ideas, and then we can be asked to relate and extend them. This leads to conceptual understanding, which can in turn become a new idea. These conceptual understandings form the ‘coat hangers’ on which we interpret and assimilate new ideas, and relate and extend them” says John Hattie. Teachers can create diagrams, illustrations, and animated GIFs that walk through concepts.

What leads to deeper learning is how students are able to use Chemix to teach themselves and others. It gives them control over a process they could only imagine before and makes their thinking about lab procedures visible. Teachers can check their students’ creations to verify understanding. This may assist them in deepening their learning as they transfer it to “multiple, fact-rich contexts.”

Getting students to map out their own lab experiments empowers students. With Chemix, students can create their own lab materials and worksheets. This is important because it gives students control and mastery.

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ed tech news
Educational Trends

Ed Tech News Roundup: Digital Citizenship, Rural Schools, and More

by Andrew Roush
written by Andrew Roush

Howdy, folks! Welcome to another in a series of periodic ed tech news roundups. We hope you enjoy this one, and if you have a story you’d like to see included, let us know.

Digging Into Digital Citizenship

Today’s students will grow up in a world full of technology. Knowing how to safely navigate that world requires good digital citizenship, and schools and districts around the country are making it a major focus.

  • Massachusetts curriculum and instruction director Matthew X. Joseph shares his “R.E.A.D.Y.” strategy for nurturing responsible digital citizens. [District Administration]
  • Want students to have ownership of their cybersecurity and digital footprint? Try giving them experience — and even certifications — as IT support. [EdTech]

Connecting with Rural Schools

Rural school districts often share a particular set of challenges, not least of which is keeping schools connected. Connecting rural communities with broadband access can have an impact in the classroom and well beyond it.

  • Think your school is remote? Try administering a district on an island off the coast of Alaska. Here’s how one administrator does it. [Education Week]
  • High-speed internet isn’t just useful to instruction — it’s vital to the kinds of careers students will take on after they graduate, even in remote areas. [Broadband Communities]

Face to Face

Safety is a top priority in every school. Now, some are turning to facial recognition technology to keep kids safe, but critics warn it may lead to violations of privacy.

  • Earlier this month, Lockport City School District in upstate New York activated AEGIS, a facial recognition system, but some students and civil rights activists are wary. [edscoop]
  • Vox’s Recode takes a deep dive into the history, uses, and concerns over student facial recognition. [recode]

… And Finally

Many students may puzzle over their physics textbook, convinced that the day they understand the subject will be the day pigs fly. And in one case, it just might be. [WGME Portland]

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Good TeachingSTEM/STEAM

Four STEM-tastic Activities Using Waste and Upcycled Materials

by Guest Blogger
written by Guest Blogger

Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) skills are essential for success in the modern world. Even in fields not directly related, the skills developed through STEM learning—such as trial and error, problem-solving, and critical thinking—are a big part of almost any career, not to mention having the potential to significantly boost income!

Recent research into the key motivators and beliefs for kids ages 11-17 surrounding STEM topics found that interest peaks at a younger age, but dwindles as kids get older. Additionally, research has also shown that gender stereotypes relating to math being a “boy’s subject” can set in as early as second grade. In order to prepare kids for life in this rapidly-changing world, as well as break down harmful stereotypes, we should teach them these essential skills sooner rather than later!

There are a plethora of methods out there for teaching STEM skills to kids. However, due to the nature of the subject, a lot of the available kits are prohibitively expensive, especially so when it comes to engineering, computing, and robotics.

Conversely, there are also tons of resources out there for kids to develop STEM skills through hands-on DIY activities. Below we highlight our top four activities for kids to learn science, engineering, and math using waste or upcycled materials!

1) Build a Paddle Boat

There are many different guides available for kids in different age groups to build their own miniature boats. We love the two builds below because they are almost entirely made out of recycled/waste materials. Additionally, there are also various ways to extend the activities for more advanced learning.

STEM activity paddle boat

Paddle boat from Coffee Cups and Crayons

The first is the plastic bottle paddle boat. This simple little boat is powered by an elastic band mechanism that works with a paddle mounted to the rear to propel the boat forward. This activity is a great way for kids to learn some basic engineering skills. Plus it can also be used to teach physics concepts like potential energy.

But the fun doesn’t have to stop there! There are lots of ways to extend this activity and develop more skills. For example, students can try to make the boat travel faster or further by modifying the initial design. They can change the hull to make the boat more streamlined or increase the paddle size. Have students formulate a hypothesis, test it by carrying out an experiment, and record their results. Then explain the results with science!

2) Build a Stick Raft

The second option is the stick raft, which is a great activity for different reasons. Before building their rafts, students will need to plan out the design. Then they’ll need to go outdoors and forage for the raw materials! Once built, they can then develop trial and error skills by floating the boat and perfecting the design.

Like with the paddle boat, there are many different ways to extend this project. For example, you can add a sail for more speed. You can also split students up into groups and set a challenge for who can build the raft that can hold the most weight. This is great for learning teamwork and collaboration.

3) Build a Rubber Band Car

The next two vehicles are quite similar to the boat activities above, but they’re built for land. The first is a simple activity that’s perfect for young learners. It is almost entirely made out of used plastic bottles too! The car is driven by a rubber band-powered fan on the back, so it’s another good way to learn about potential energy.

Similarly, students can also try to modify the car to increase the speed or distance it can travel or just for fun! For example, get them to change the wheel size, shape, or material to reduce friction against the floor. Older learners can then measure and record their results, using the speed = distance/time equation to calculate the speed.

4) Build a Mousetrap Vehicle

The mousetrap car is a classic science project that you may have encountered before. It is more complicated to build than the rubber band car, so it’s a good choice for older students. The only downside is you will most likely need to purchase more materials.

Mousetrap car STEM activity

Mousetrap car from Wehavekids.com

At the center of the vehicle is the mousetrap, which powers movement by converting stored energy in the spring mechanism into kinetic energy. For more information on this aspect, check out this fantastic article on the physics behind the mousetrap car.

Basic structure aside, there are tons of variations online for different builds that aim to optimize the car for speed or distance. Students can also keep working on their cars and making improvements to reduce friction, increase traction, or maximize energy transfer from the spring to the wheels. Here are some awesome suggestions!

Get Building!

Research shows students engage far better when their learning has a purpose. As such, the interactive activities featured here can provide a fantastic way to complement the curriculum and improve the learning experience, but without breaking the bank. For more details and ideas, see this list of the top DIY STEM activities for kids.

This is a guest blog by William Asbury. William is the founder of STEMtoyexpert, an educational resource designed to improve STEM learning and awareness for all age groups.

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OpenStax
CTO/CIOFundingLeadership

OpenStax Provides High-Quality OER for Texas Schools

by Guest Blogger
written by Guest Blogger

Why OER?

OpenStax was created out of a desire to break down the most common barriers to education, offering free access to high-quality learning materials that are kept always up-to-date. We’re a nonprofit based at Rice University that got our start in 1999 as the Connexions project, offering an online platform where anyone could publish and share content under an open license that allows others to reuse and remix the content. Fast forward to 2012: the modern-day OpenStax was born when we published the first of what is now 29 openly licensed college textbooks on OpenStax.org.

Our goal was to offer peer-reviewed, scope-and sequence-aligned college textbooks online to students for free, focusing on the highest-enrolled introductory college courses to maximize our impact. Today, OpenStax books are used by a myriad of readers, including college students at Stanford University and at Maricopa community colleges, high school students at South Houston High School and at St. Augustine’s College Preparatory School in New Jersey, EMS trainees for the State of Alaska, members of NASA’s Solar System Ambassadors program, and schools on every continent but Antartica. Our library spans disciplines in math, science, social science, and humanities – and we’re not done.

Moving OER into K-12

OEROpenStax began creating textbooks with college students in mind. But along the way, we saw that high schools were adopting the textbooks for use in Advanced Placement classes. Taking our cues from the needs of these teachers, we created a line of books for AP courses as a first foray into K-12 content, working with AP consultants and high school curriculum experts to re-purpose our content to prepare high school students for the AP test. Our library of Advanced Placement books on OpenStax.org currently includes Biology for AP® Courses, Principles of Macroeconomics for AP® Courses 2e, Principles of Microeconomics for AP® Courses 2e, and College Physics for AP® Courses.

Partnership with TEA

Last year, we got an opportunity to further expand into K-12 content through our partnership with the Texas Education Agency (TEA). We received a grant to develop seven TEKS-aligned high school textbooks specifically for Texas classrooms, available for free through the TEA-maintained Texas Gateway as of last fall. (The AP books are also aligned with AP frameworks.) We worked with Texas teachers to ensure that the content was aligned with the structures and standards of Texas classrooms and included appropriate level and variety. We also developed TEKS-aligned ancillary materials to accompany the books. Texas teachers can use any of these books in their classrooms at any time, completely free.

OEROur TEA Statistics, AP® Macroeconomics, AP® Microeconomics, Physics, AP® Physics 1: Algebra-Based, AP® Physics 2: Algebra-Based, and AP® Biology books are all currently available in the Texas Gateway. You can see the entire listing here. Each book includes interactives and videos within the content. Any teacher can use these books by accessing the direct links or by visiting www.TexasGateway.org, searching the term “OpenStax” from the homepage, and selecting the OpenStax resources. Once you find your subject, you can start using the content immediately. Some teachers choose to use the entire book; others elect to assign certain chapters along with other content they have selected for their course. Some teachers use parts of the books as supplementary material for courses in other subjects — for example, using sections of the High School Physics book for an astronomy class. The content is available to be used in whatever way best fits the needs of teachers’ respective classes. It’s that simple.

Shifting $$ Elsewhere

In higher ed, we’re focused on relieving students of the need to spend hundreds of dollars per year on required textbooks. In K-12, the focus shifts to making sure district budgets are not a barrier for teachers to have access to up-to-date content for their classes. OERRather than being held hostage to an individual provider’s resource, educators have the opportunity to adapt our content or pull it into different digital platforms and tools to make it perfect for their particular class or school. And now, districts have the opportunity to reallocate funds they had for textbooks and use them on other essential educational tools like lab equipment and professional development.

The Future

OpenStax is working towards further developments in content and technology to improve not only access, but learning, including the development of an easy-to-use personalized learning courseware. We see a future in which developments in technology, offered with open and adaptable content, offer increasing opportunities for students to have the information and learning support they need to help them succeed in school, career, and beyond. We won’t stop working to make that happen.

OERAs managing director of OpenStax, Daniel Williamson guides the organization in saving students across the country millions of dollars. He has dedicated the past ten years of his life to developing education startups from conception to culmination, with specialties in open education, content development, ed tech, consumer intelligence, management, and quality assurance.

Advanced Placement® and AP® are trademarks registered and/or owned by the College Board, which is not affiliated with, and does not endorse, this content.

Photo credits: OpenStax, Jemel Agulto, and Texas Education Agency

 

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OER
CTO/CIOEducational TrendsLeadership

TEA Partners with Study Edge to Create OER

by Guest Blogger
written by Guest Blogger

Today, more and more teachers are aware of Open Educational Resources (OER) and how OER can enhance instruction for little or no cost. However, many teachers may not be as familiar with the latest enhancement in OER: standards-aligned video content. In the spring of 2017, Study Edge was privileged to team up with the Texas Education Agency to develop videos and study guides covering each and every standard in Chemistry, Physics, Precalculus, and Statistics. These open-source materials are now available free of charge for all Texas teachers through the Texas Gateway.

All materials are aligned with the state standards (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS)) and are composed of a video “book” that may be used to teach an entire course or to supplement traditional textbooks. The edtech company Study Edge creates high-quality, engaging instructional videos, study guides, and other content and technology in partnership with colleges and universities, individual schools and school districts, and state and federal agencies. Current partners include the State of Florida, the State of Mississippi, the State of Michigan, the State of South Carolina, and the New York City Department of Education, as well as more than 200 colleges and universities across the country; over 1,000,000 students have benefited from Study Edge’s resources, both inside and outside of the classroom.

This partnership between the Texas Education Agency and Study Edge is an indication of the bright future of Open Educational Resources. In addition to textbooks and curricula, OER is now interactive content that can enhance and even transform classroom instruction at no additional cost to schools. Study Edge is thrilled to be a part of this movement.

OER

What is a Study Edge video?

Study Edge produces highly-engaging, short educational videos featuring master teachers (Study Experts). Study Experts are full-time staff of Study Edge and include certified teachers (from various states), former university and community college professors, and former college learning center and university athletic association tutors. Click here to see a sampler of the videos developed for Texas students and teachers.

How can educators use Study Edge videos?

The Study Edge videos developed with TEA are designed to be flexible in use, allowing each teacher to customize the experience for the needs of his or her unique classroom. The videos cover all the standards and deliver content through an exciting and effective medium that keeps students engaged. Teachers can also use this content to supplement traditional textbooks to help students be more successful in their most challenging courses. There are many ways to use Study Edge videos to enhance instruction, and we encourage teachers to think of the Study Experts as their “virtual co-teachers.” You can rely on them both inside the classroom and when students go home at night.  

Suggested Uses of Study Edge Videos

Here are some of the ways schools can use the videos:

  • Whole class instruction: Videos can introduce a new topic to the whole class while the teacher surveys the room for understanding. If there is a particularly difficult question, teachers can pause the video and review it with the class.
  • Differentiated instruction: Videos can catch students up or keep others challenged and engaged by letting them move ahead.
  • After-school support: Great for tutoring and homework help, especially if the after-school tutor isn’t perfectly familiar with the subject.
  • Flipped or blended classroom
  • Teacher professional development
  • Test prep and review (including boot camps)
  • Substitute teachers
  • Any way that works for you! Teachers are constantly coming up with new and innovative ways to incorporate Study Edge videos into their classrooms.

Mexia High School

As one example, a physics teacher from Mexia High School in Mexia ISD has used the videos as a way to introduce a concept. He will show a video at the beginning of class to start a discussion, then use the rest of the day’s classroom time to work through the concept or concepts. 

How do teachers access the Study Edge videos?

There are a couple of ways that teachers can access the free Study Edge videos and study guides:

1) Through the Texas Gateway:

  • Once on the Gateway’s website, search “Study Edge’”in the top search menu and you will see a “book” for each of the four courses. You don’t have to use the whole book; you can use any “page” in the book very easily.
  • Each book is composed of chapters, each containing three to ten concept videos.
  • Under each video is a link to download (and print, if you’d like) the study guide PDF for that chapter (one PDF exists per chapter), which students can fill in as they follow along with the videos.

2) Through the Study Edge Chrome OS app: Click here for directions on how to download the app from Google Play to a compatible device.

  • Open the Study Edge Chrome OS app.
  • Select the appropriate subject from the dropdown menu.
  • Once you have selected a subject, you will see folders below a video player, one for each chapter. Inside each of the folders is a study guide PDF that can be downloaded and printed that students can fill in as they follow along with the videos in that chapter.

OER

You can also download the instructional flyer with information about accessing Study Edge material on the TEA Gateway.

Questions about Study Edge or their Partnership with TEA?

Please reach out with any questions, comments, or ideas to Study Edge! Don’t hesitate to send us an email…we’ll get back to you promptly!  texas@studyedge.com.

This blog was written by Ethan Fieldman, the founder and president of Study Edge, based in Gainesville, Florida. More than 1,000,000 middle school, high school, and college students have enjoyed higher academic achievement through Study Edge-powered online supplemental instruction. An inventor with three patents and published educational researcher, Ethan also won the inaugural $50,000 Cade Prize for Innovation and was named to the White House’s Empact 100 in 2012 — the top 100 entrepreneurs in the United States, aged 30 and under. In his free time, Ethan enjoys reading (about education and technology), as well as spending time with his wife and son.

Photo Credit: Photo by Ben Kolde on Unsplash

 

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