Engage
Students begin a new unit of study by a Web activity that requires no formal
knowledge of topic. This learning phase engaged the student’s interest,
and connects the student to the topic on a personal level. This phase of the
learning cycle helps the student answer questions such as: Why is this topic
important to me as a high school student? Why is it important to our understanding
of how the living world works? These Web activities are WebQuests, half hour
long directed activities that introduce new concepts to students by engaging
their interest and curiosity for more. This Web activity connects to the introduction
of the text chapter. A classroom discussion or demonstration will support the
engagement activity.
Explore
Student reinforces understanding of concepts, applies the concepts, and practices
the process of science through learning activities on the Web and laboratory
or field activities in class. The teacher can select activities such as a lab/field
collection posted on teacher support site and coordinated with Laboratory modules
that provide pre- and post- laboratory instruction, simulation and assessment
for laboratory procedures and analysis) and Web-based exploratory activities,
such as the interactive concept activities In this learning phase, students
begin to construct for themselves biological meaning from the exploration activities.
Explain
Students read the text chapter, which develops a biological, social, and historical
context for key concepts. This solidifies the students’ personal understanding
of key concepts they generated in the Engage and Explore phases. The Explain
phase is supported by Web-based tutorials, which utilize graphics, animation,
and interactivity to teach key concepts.
Evaluate
Students find opportunities for self-assessment built into the Engage, Explore,
and Explain phases. The Engage, Concept, and Laboratory components on the Web
include self-assessment with each concept and a unit-end self-quiz. At the end
of each block of material encompassed by a book chapter, we will have a customizable
test bank, which includes short answer questions and problems as well as objective
questions. Finally, we will develop Web-based methods of authentic assessment
(such as student-generated Web-based poster presentations) that will be assessed
by rubrics.