IntoScience

IntoScience release v1.6 - Friday 15 May 2015 Science is electric! Hi everyone, We are pleased to announce the release of IntoScience client version 1.6 which will go live on Friday 15 May 2015. This release is all about electrical circuits. We have eight electrifying activities and an exciting, new environment – a run-down monorail station. This immersive, 3D space provides numerous opportunities for inquiry based learning for year levels 6-9. Students can apply the knowledge they’ve developed in activities on circuits and electricity to rejuvenate the abandoned station and repair the broken down monorail. In future releases students will be able to use the monorail to travel to new environments, such as a vast model of an African savannah. New Features

• New topic! Eight new activities covering electrical circuits, aligned to the Australian Curriculum

• New quest! Repair the monorail • Improved teacher console with downloadable reports • View locations of students currently online • Inquiry point totals for activities displayed in the activity menu • New journal activity and mid and end challenges for the Jenolan Caves topic • Quest subtitles, giving greater accessibility for all platforms without sound

Improvements

• Avatar control system – now double click to set destination for avatar • Latest beta version now accessible via website

(http://intoscience.com/signin/beta) • Improved legacy code systems • Improved activity loading system – load times reduced for all environments,

activities and quests by between 20 and 80 percent • Better content caching – we have broken our content down into smaller files,

drastically improving caching in schools • Reduced memory usage – better iPad 2 support

The automated test page has proven a great help in assisting school IT managers in ensuring they have completed all the required steps for the technical install process as has the school trial registration form and updated download page. Instructions on updating Unity web browser plugin for windows. We are now publishing IntoScience using Unity3D version 4.6.4. Schools that access via a web browser will be required to have the latest version of Unity web player. Please note: Version 42 Chrome now disables plugins by default. Any Chrome install that has auto-updated to version 42 or later will need to enable the Unity web player plugin to access IntoScience using Chrome. Schools using the Windows App, OS X App or the iPad App simply need to download the new version of IntoScience (v1.6) from our website or the App store. Schools using the local content server should update their content bundle here. For install instructions and ‘getting started’ guides please visit our support website. To sign in, go to http://intoscience.com/signin.

New features in v1.6 Improved teacher console Our teacher console now displays student locations giving teachers more visibility of student progress. Teachers can now also download reports for a whole course, or a detailed report on any individual topic.

Inquiry points displayed in the activity menu The activity menu has been upgraded to display the current user’s inquiry and challenge score in both the topics view and the activity view. This clearly indicates to students what they have completed, what they can explore next, or what might need improvement.

New content Electrical circuits topic With Science is Electric, IntoScience set out to create a compelling and authentic suite of true inquiry based content, imparting students with a deep understanding of electrical circuits. Using real world examples and embedding tasks within the rich Biodome narrative, students apply their knowledge in meaningful ways. This approach encourages the development of tangible connections to the concepts, ensuring their understanding is retained long after the lesson is over. Students use a virtual, open-ended circuit construction toolkit to overcome a variety of structured challenges, requiring students to demonstrate competency in a variety of settings. Introduction to electricity A brief introduction to electrical energy through a series of videos that present the basic concepts of static electricity and electrical current. Bits and pieces Collect electrical components and discover their function in order to help build an exciting invention. Schemes and plans Unpack electrical circuit schematics and component symbols by building some construction kits. Open and closed Get the power flowing to some damaged circuits by diagnosing and repairing open and short circuits. Mid challenge Challenge students’ knowledge, application and reasoning on the first four activities in the topic. Series and parallel Discover the difference between series and parallel circuits by adding and removing components. Current and voltage Explore the relationship between current, voltage and resistance in simple series circuits. End challenge Challenge your knowledge, application and reasoning on this topic. Quests series - Science is Electric - Restore the monorail Restore the monorail by applying knowledge gained in the electrical circuits activities.

Jenolan caves improvements The new Jenolan journal provides a guided experiment plan, making it easier than ever for students to investigate how the caves were formed. The journal restructures content to empower teachers to run their own virtual excursion in the classroom. We also have three video guides to support a short, medium or long learning excursion in this amazing science environment.

Other updates Database migration We’ve standardised our database with the technologies that 3P learning use so IntoScience data will be available in the data centre and district and reporting consoles. This was a massive undertaking and has gone very smoothly. Support materials The lesson guides have been edited and updated. They now detail exactly where each inquiry point is earned to assist teachers in supporting student progress. Many worksheets have been visually improved, and more have been added to support Year 7 content. Rollover support Student results will now persist across rollover and class results will be adjusted accordingly to reflect new students being added or removed from classes. Android app We now have a functional Android app which is in beta testing. If you’re interested in downloading and trying the app, please email nick.maunder@intoscience.com to join the testing group and download the app from the Google Play store.

Summary of IntoScience IntoScience is an inquiry-based 3D learning resource aimed at the Australian Curriculum: Science for Years 7 and 8, English science curriculum Key stage 3 and USA middle school. As students work their way through the activities, they build up a complete DNA on:

• Which outcomes they do or do not understand • Their knowledge, application and reasoning abilities • Inquiry points to track their depth of participation and inquiry • Challenge questions for each topic so they are graded with a mark

Each student receives their own 3D research laboratory, observatory and biodome, packed with inquiry-based activities and quests, as well as a range of core learning activities. Regards, Luke Tomes Chief Technology Officer IntoScience Mobile +61 448 016 690 Office +61 2 9922 4403 Email luke.tomes@intoscience.com Twitter @luketomes