Simulations: The teacher’s perspective

1. Simulations: The teacher’s perspective Ruth Thomas, Colin Milligan, SCROLLA, JeLSIM Partnership

2. After this session you will: • Appreciate the role that simulations can play in education, • Be aware of the pitfalls in using simulations • Have applied this knowledge in your own domain

3. Overview • What do you want from a simulation? • What are simulations? • Why use them in education? • Pitfalls and difficulties • Your simulations • Roundup.

4. Task: What do you want from simulations? In matched pairs: Identify an aspect of your teaching / the teaching you support; or reflect on your own learning experience and choose a topic that would benefit from the use of a simulation

5. What are Simulations? • Many perspectives and definitions • Two key features: • There is a computer model of a real or theoretical system that contains information on how the system behaves. • Experimentation can take place. i.e changing the input to the model affects the output.

6. Demos • Projectile (animation) • Projectile (simulation) • Nuclear power station (simulation) • Phasors (simulation) • Wave interference (simulation)

7. Group activity • Why are simulations valuable? • How can you use them educationally?

8. What does research say? • Experiential learning (Kolb) • Experience, reflection, conceptualization planning, • Constructivism (e,g Jonasssen) • Explore, observe, generate mental models, building on pre-existing models, • Case-based reasoning (Schank) • Learning by doing, relate to real world meaningful contexts, • Dynamic fidelity • Novices need lower fidelity models than experts, • Functional fidelity for cognitive understanding, • Physical fidelity for development of skills.

9. Possible pitfalls • Unguided exploration rarely works, • Engagement with interface not model, • Lack of reflection by student, • No transfer from simulation to real world, • Introduction of new misconceptions, • Poor scaffolding, • Lack of guidance, expertise, feedback.

10. Other design considerations. • Consider learning outcomes, • Assessment, • Cost: • What resources exist already? • Design for re-use. • Is it justified: • Or is it just mindless interactivity?

11. Task: Revise your simulations In original pairs - Refine your simulation: • What is its educational value? • How will you use it?

12. Round up and summary

13. More Information SCROLLA: http://www.scrolla.hw.ac.uk/ JeLSIM: http://www.jelsim.org/ Ruth Thomas: rct@jelsim.org Colin Milligan: colin@jelsim.org

14. The value of simulations • Engaging, • Active involvement not passive recipient • Learning by doing • Intrinsic Feedback • Exploratory environment • What if? • Hypothesis • Learn from mistakes • POE • Confront alternative conceptions

15. How can you use them educationally? • Why do you need a simulation? • drill and practice, self study, revision, diagnosis, exploration, experimentation, investigation, design? • Confront misconception • To explain a difficult concept • Resource for problem based learning • To set a task • A design exercise • To augment or replace a laboratory exercise • Assessment