Copyright © 2005 SRI International

The NanoSense ProjectChallenges and opportunities

Patti Schank, Tina Stanford, Anders Rosenquist, Alyssa WiseSRI International

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Team

Patti Schank(PI)

Vera Michalchik(internal eval)

Anders Rosenquist(learning scientist)

Tina Stanford(Co-PI, chem)

Nora Sabelli(advisor, workshop)

Alyssa Wise(intern)

Ellen Mandinach(external eval)

Maureen Scharberg(chem, SJSU)

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Goals

• Work with scientists and educators to create and disseminate high school units that– Promote learning of basic science concepts

that account for nanoscale phenomena– Help students visualize underlying principles

that govern the behavior of particles on the nanoscale

• Situated in single discipline (chemistry)– Making explicit ties to other disciplines

• Mapped to core concepts and standards

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Timeline

• Develop, test, refine materials (2004-2007)– Define learning goals and core concepts– Gather, validate, organize content– Design and generate assessments, activities– Classroom test and refine materials

• Disseminate widely (2007-2008) – Teacher workshops at San Jose State

University, conferences– Online http://nanosense.org

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Curricular Units

• Introduction to Nanoscience (tested, available)– 1-2 weeks, 1 day; Size and scale, unique

properties, tools of the nanosciences, applications• Clear sunscreen (in development/testing)

– 1 week, 1 day; How light interacts with matter• Nanofiltration (in development/testing)

– 1 day; How size, charge, and shape become important factors in filtration

• Planned for development in 2006-2007– Quantum dots, carbon nanotubes, clean energy

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“Traditional” ZnO sunscreen is white

Zinc oxide nanoparticles

Nanoscale ZnO sunscreen is clear

Sources: http://www.apt powders.com/images/zno/im_zinc_oxide_particles.jpg http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/stories/s1165709.htm http://www.4girls.gov/body/sunscreen.jpg

Clear Sunscreen

• Large ZnO particles – Block UV light– Scatter visible light – Appear white

• Nanosized ZnO particles– Block UV light– So small compared to the

wavelength of visible light that they don’t scatter it

– Appear clear

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Design Challenges

• Three main challenges we faced:

1. Defining the curriculum for a new and evolving area of scientific study

2. Situating an interdisciplinary science within a classroom that focuses on one discipline

3. Developing support materials for content that is novel for teachers (and often not fully understood by scientists)

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Challenge 1: Defining the Curriculum

• Identifying core concepts and finding accessible topics and applications to illustrate them– Many (e.g., quantum mechanics) are difficult

• Finding reliable, verifiable information– 9 contradictory explanations about ZnO sunscreens– Different fields use different terminology or same

terminology in different ways• How to organize materials

– Underlying themes? Topically based on applications? Based on traditional science disciplines?

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Addressing Challenge 1

• Identify and develop units based on nanoscience topics that focus on:– Readily available deep scientific expertise from

scientists and engineers working in the particular area– Defined gaps in conventional instructional materials/core science or technology concepts

– Specific applications that are highly engaging/interesting to students

– Opportunities for innovative instructional materials/educational technology

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Example

• Clear Suncreen– Addresses clear gaps

• Solid state interactions w/light not taught in chemistry • Unified EM spectrum not taught in physics

– Engaging topic for students– Opportunity for animations of scattering mechanism– Expertise evolving

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Challenge 2: Situating the Science

• Fit into a classroom that focuses on 1 discipline– What other science concepts have students been

exposed to? In what other courses will they see the same or related concepts?

• Our partner teachers want to use the curricular materials in many different classes– AP chemistry, regular chemistry, biology, physics,

and interdisciplinary science– All these disciplines use different terminologies

and focus on different aspects of phenomena• How to help teachers figure out where the

curricula fits with what they currently teach

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Addressing Challenge 2

• Explicitly connect to standards and core science topics in traditional science disciplines– E.g., atomic energy levels, scattering of light by

matter• Provide teachers with many ways to use the

materials – E.g., provide alignment charts that show how they

are related to standards and standard topics in different subject areas

• Provide many options to incorporate materials – E.g., incorporate into regularly taught units (as a

real life example), 1-day or multi-day modules

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Challenge 3: Prof. Development

• Nanoscience is a multidisciplinary field – Draws on concepts from fields outside of teachers’

primary area of expertise• The novelty of the content combined with its

newness as a field raised pedagogical demands– Teachers were not able to know all the answers to

student (and their own) questions– Traditional chemistry and physics concepts are not

always applicable at the nanoscale level– Some questions may go beyond the boundary of

our current understanding as a scientific community

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Addressing Challenge 3

• Support teachers by providing more and deeper background content

• Help teachers move from an expert “content-delivery” mode to model the scientist in action– Recast teaching challenges as opportunities to

model the scientific process and provided concrete strategies for how to do so

– Our materials include explicit reference to:• The development of “nanoscience” as a field • The advantages and limitations of models to explain

scientific phenomena

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Answering the Framing Questions

• What nano topics should guide the development of classroom materials?

• Example: Clear Suncreen– Expertise evolving– Solid state interactions w/light not taught in chemistry,

unified EM spectrum not taught in physics– Engaging, authentic application– Animation of scattering mechanism

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Framing Questions (Cont.)

• What learning goals should guide the development of classroom materials?– Connect to core science topics they know about– Deal with deep science, not superficial overview– Deal with process of science explicitly

• What areas of secondary (grades 7-12) science support the integration of nano concepts?– Big question! Physical science, physics, integrated

science, chemistry, biology….– Advancing Nanoscience Education Workshop

participants from diverse areas identified core nanoscience concepts

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Framing Questions (Cont.)

• 8 core nanoscience concepts identified in the Advancing Nanoscience Education workshop: – Scale – Energy – Quantum principles and probability– Relation between structure and properties – Surface phenomena– Unique properties at the nanoscale– Self-assembly – Control of fabrication

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Framing Questions (Cont.)

• How can instructional technology enrich nano classroom resources?– Expert and student-generated animations

• Clear Sunscreen: scattering mechanism• Energy: mechanism of breaking water down in an energy-

efficient way (nano-enhanced hydrogen production)

– Multiscale modeling (“GenScope” for nanoscience)• Show how properties change as the size scale changes• Help students move between models, embrace complexity

– Probeware• Clear Sunscreen: colorimeter to test percent absorption or

transmission• Energy: conductivity testing