Hands-On Activities to Keep Students With Disabilities Engaged in K-12 Classrooms

2022 ◽  
pp. 1154-1180
Author(s):  
Pankaj Khazanchi ◽  
Rashmi Khazanchi
Keyword(s):  
Student Engagement ◽  
Learning Styles ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Real World ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Classroom Teachers ◽  
Inclusion Classrooms ◽  
Hands On ◽  
K 12

The central aim of this chapter is to identify the best practices in hands-on activities to keep students with disabilities engaged in K-12 classrooms. With diversity being a key component in today's classroom, teachers struggle in devising strategies to keep students with disabilities stay engaged. Improving student's learning by keeping them engaged is vital for our nation's competitiveness. Studies have shown the role of hands-on activities in improving engagement of students with disabilities. This chapter will define student engagement and will highlight some of the causes of student disengagement in classroom, relationship between hands-on activities and student engagement, need of hands-on activities/project-based learning in 21st century classrooms, creative ways to implement hands-on activities, connecting hands-on activities with the real-world situations, creating hands-on activities for students with disabilities in self-contained and inclusion classrooms, and matching students' interest and learning styles when developing hands-on activities.

Hands-On Activities to Keep Students With Disabilities Engaged in K-12 Classrooms

2019 ◽  
pp. 185-211
Author(s):  
Pankaj Khazanchi ◽  
Rashmi Khazanchi
Keyword(s):  
Student Engagement ◽  
Learning Styles ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Real World ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Classroom Teachers ◽  
Inclusion Classrooms ◽  
Hands On ◽  
K 12

The central aim of this chapter is to identify the best practices in hands-on activities to keep students with disabilities engaged in K-12 classrooms. With diversity being a key component in today's classroom, teachers struggle in devising strategies to keep students with disabilities stay engaged. Improving student's learning by keeping them engaged is vital for our nation's competitiveness. Studies have shown the role of hands-on activities in improving engagement of students with disabilities. This chapter will define student engagement and will highlight some of the causes of student disengagement in classroom, relationship between hands-on activities and student engagement, need of hands-on activities/project-based learning in 21st century classrooms, creative ways to implement hands-on activities, connecting hands-on activities with the real-world situations, creating hands-on activities for students with disabilities in self-contained and inclusion classrooms, and matching students' interest and learning styles when developing hands-on activities.

scholarly journals Examining the use of a Personalized Learning Management System (PLMS) to Increase Student Engaagement in High School Physics

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meera Singh
Keyword(s):  
Student Engagement ◽  
Learning Styles ◽  
Survey Data ◽  
Learning Style ◽  
Management System ◽  
Learning Management System ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Digital Learning ◽  
Learning Management ◽  
K 12

Motivated by the drive to impact the quality and diversity of students applying to engineering schools, this study evaluates a component of a Personalized Digital Learning Management System (PLMS) that has been designed to increase student engagement in K-12 Physics. In particular, a non-traditional project based learning module, with roots in game-based learning, has been developed and executed in grade 8 science classrooms. Pre and post survey data that includes attitudinal markers, learning style profiles, gender, and assessments of knowledge gained, are analyzed and presented. Results suggest that students who are more interested in science, physics and engineering tend to have learning styles that require programming that is more active and less sequential than traditionally delivered. This is particularly the case for female students. The non-traditional game based project acted to provide these types of learning opportunities and post survey data showed a very high level of student engagement. Results obtained will be used to further refine the PLMS.

Games-Based Learning in the Classroom and How it can Work!

2009 ◽  
pp. 274-286 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Routledge
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Learning Styles ◽  
Digital Divide ◽  
Real World ◽  
Digital Games ◽  
Practical Guide ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Changing Role ◽  
Theoretical Overview

Based on real-world experiences using a variety of digital games, this chapter presents a guide for teachers on how to use games-based learning in the classroom. Beginning with a theoretical overview of the change in learning styles and the growing digital divide, the impact that games have had on young people will be discussed. The limitations faced and ways to overcome these to create effective pedagogical experiences when using games will follow. The second half of this chapter aims to provide a practical guide for teachers wishing to integrate games into their classrooms, beginning with an overview of the changing role of the teacher, moving onto preparation guidelines, before finally discussing assessment and practical implementations.

Enhancing Engineering Learning Experience at UTB by Freshmen iHOP

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nazmul Islam
Keyword(s):  
Engineering Design ◽  
Real World ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Senior Design ◽  
Team Selection ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Lower Division

Most of the engineering courses focus more on theory and very little on hands-on, project-based learning in the classroom. Integration of real-world engineering problems and applications in lower division engineering courses will produce engineering students, who will be technically sound and be able to execute and manage real-world projects, when they will do senior design projects in their final year of engineering study. To overcome the engineering design challenges we have developed iHOP (Ingenieŕia Hands on Project) and integrate it with our lower division engineering courses. iHOP has been developed to emphasis the design component at the University of Texas at Brownsville (UTB) Engineering Physics curriculum and the project is now an integral part of Introduction to Engineering class. The iHOP project is one that is challenging, fun, requires teamwork, associated with the engineering material being studied, low cost, and doable in a limited amount of time. The experience from iHOP project motivates our freshman students to choose a better senior design project in senior year of their college career. The objectives of the iHOP projects are — to have students develop teamwork skills, and to teach students basic engineering design concepts in a complementary format to the traditional lecture. Various techniques related to team selection, encouraging teamwork, incorporation of engineering topics, keeping costs down, project results presentations, and gathering feedback from students will also be presented in this paper. Integrating iHOP Project with Introduction to Engineering class helped us to improve our retention effort in the engineering department.

Bridging the Gap: Bringing Professionals into the Classroom to Effectively Teach Environmental Science Concepts

2019 ◽  
Vol 81 (9) ◽  
pp. 618-624
Author(s):  
Mallory Ware ◽  
Christie Sampson ◽  
Delaney Lann ◽  
Erica Linard ◽  
Lauren Garcia Chance
Keyword(s):  
Science Teachers ◽  
Real World ◽  
Science Communication ◽  
Environmental Science ◽  
Teaching Method ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Community Science ◽  
K 12

Hands-on learning is a highly effective teaching method for topics in STEM disciplines. Unfortunately, environmental science teachers sometimes lack the tools to engage their students in hands-on experimentation in real-world research outside of the classroom. Partnerships between science professionals and teachers can help address this disparity, and operating within an established community science program is an excellent way for teachers and professionals to provide K–12 students opportunities for involvement in real-world research. We developed a four-stage program that maximizes the benefits of bringing together members of the professional and academic sectors; the stages include Learn, Collect, Report, and Communicate (LCRC). The goal of this program is to bring science professionals into a K–12 classroom to emphasize the importance of conducting research using the scientific method, to promote responsible community science, improve students' data literacy and critical thinking skills, and highlight the relevance of science communication. We demonstrate this program with a case study using water quality research in high school AP classes. Evaluations of the case study indicate this framework, and the engagement with science professionals alters students' perceptions of science and scientists while giving them the skills, knowledge, and confidence to pursue scientific endeavors.

Student Engagement and Supporting Students With Accommodations

2022 ◽  
pp. 99-116
Author(s):  
Zoe Nulty ◽  
Shelley G. West
Keyword(s):  
Student Engagement ◽  
Best Practices ◽  
Learning Styles ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Universal Design For Learning ◽  
Teacher Education Programs ◽  
Classroom Engagement ◽  
Learning Differences ◽  
Design For Learning ◽  
The Impact

Student engagement and embracing students with accommodations have long been at the forefront of developing future teachers. Assessing the effects of COVID-19 and the long-term implications shifted the overall perception of how the world is redefining teacher education programs and preparing teachers to move forward. One could presume the impact of COVID-19 will be discussed in history classes forever as the pandemic reconfigured learning styles, structures, and supports. Student engagement and supporting students with accommodations explore multiple modalities for best practices in the classroom and encourage students with disabilities and learning differences to be successful. The authors examine best practices for in-person, hybrid, and remote learning environments: Bloom's taxonomy, universal design for learning, and formative assessment. The chapter provides examples of each resource and delves into classroom engagement and accommodations.

A Block-Based Arduino Programming Platform for Developing Computational Thinking Skills for K-12 Students

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Binsen Qian ◽  
Harry H. Cheng
Keyword(s):  
Real World ◽  
Autonomous Vehicles ◽  
Computational Thinking ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Critical Set ◽  
Programming Students ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Block Based ◽  
K 12 ◽  
And Robotics

Abstract As a critical set of skills in the 21st century, computational thinking has attracted increasing attention in K-12 education. Microcontrollers, combined with LEDs, actuators, and a variety of sensors, provide students countless real-world projects, such as autonomous vehicles, smart homes, and robotics. By solving those projects through programming, students will not only learn computational skills but also benefit from the hands-on activities to get some experience on solving real-world problems. It makes microcontroller projects a perfect tool to develop the computational thinking skills of K-12 students. Our previous work has proposed a solution for higher graders to program Arduino through Ch, a C/C++ interpreter. It is necessary, however, to develop a platform for lower graders (K-6) since most of them do not have the ability to type through the keyboard. This paper extends our previous work such that students can program Arduino on RoboBlockly, a block-based programming platform. In the paper, we will present two case studies to demonstrate how to build blocks to control the Arduino board and what concepts students will learn from those projects. In addition, the proposed platform also provides an interactive way of transitioning students from the block-based program to a text-based program in Ch.

scholarly journals A higher degree of resilience: Using psychometric testing to reveal the benefits of university internship placements

2017 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 102-115
Author(s):  
Anne E Goodenough ◽  
Hazel Roberts ◽  
David M Biggs ◽  
James G Derounian ◽  
Adam G Hart ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Student Engagement ◽  
Active Learning ◽  
Real World ◽  
Psychometric Testing ◽  
Important Research ◽  
Learning Framework ◽  
Context Of Learning ◽  
Learning Frameworks ◽  
Academic Year

Resilience is a multifaceted concept but, in the context of learning, it can best be thought of as an individual’s capacity to create and maximise opportunities as well as responding positively to setbacks and challenges. Developing students’ resilience is becoming increasingly important. Research has shown resilience links to attainment, retention, engagement and employability. However, very little work has examined what aspects of curricula enhance resilience and the particular role of active learning frameworks in achieving this. In this study, we analyse the effects of optional real-world internship placements on eight measures of resilience. Psychometric testing was conducted twice per student – at the start of their second academic year and again at the end. Students choosing an internship had significantly higher challenge orientation and adaptability scores than other students in the same cohort. Adaptability of both interns and non-interns improved over the academic year, but improvement was significantly higher for interns. Scores for optimism, purposeful direction and ingenuity significantly increased between start-of-year and end-of-year tests for interns versus a decline for non-interns. We conclude that facilitating student engagement with real-world issues and challenges through supported internships within an active learning framework is an important mechanism for increasing students’ resilience.

Why Engineering-Based Learning Can Revolutionize STEM Teaching in High Schools

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica Chin ◽  
Ibrahim Zeid ◽  
Claire Duggan ◽  
Sagar Kamarthi
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
High School Students ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Stem Education ◽  
Real World ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
School Level ◽  
Teaching Pedagogy ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Stem Teaching

For many years, literature has documented the benefits of project-based learning (PBL) and its impact on student learning especially at the high school level. More often than not however, students are still losing interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education because current educational teaching pedagogies have become antiquated and are not impacting student learning, as it should. With that said, our discovery through elicitation of high school educators has cited the main reason for such disinterest is due to the inability of students to connect STEM abstract concepts and theory with STEM application to appreciate the value of learning STEM. With access to information easier than ever, students are forgetting that learning is not about getting the right answer but understanding how to solve a complex problem. In the past, PBL has benefited students in engaging them in hands-on learning however, with a more complex paradigm shift in student learning style, PBL and lecture-based learning are no longer the most effective methods of teaching. Engineering-based learning has the opportunity and potential to modify STEM education and revolutionize STEM teaching pedagogy by changing the one-size-fits-all model to an individual, student-centered learning approach where education is mass customized. This paper discusses a new teaching pedagogy dubbed Engineering-Based Learning (EBL) that is a more systematic approach to high school STEM teaching for open-ended problems. This paper presents the EBL model, the EBL tools, and its impact thus far on high school students. It also presents sample feedback from both teachers and students and how it has influenced their outlook of engineering and STEM in the real world. The purpose of this paper is also to disseminate this new teaching pedagogy to support the notion that STEM education can be successfully taught and provide students with a structured, systematic, hands-on approach, as well as the appropriate tools and resources allowing them to connect complex STEM theory and real-world application.

Respect, Appreciation, and Acknowledgment of Paraprofessionals Who Support Students with Disabilities

2001 ◽  
Vol 67 (4) ◽  
pp. 485-498 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael F. Giangreco ◽  
Susan W. Edelman ◽  
Stephen M. Broer
Keyword(s):  
General Education ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Special Educators ◽  
School Personnel ◽  
Classroom Teachers ◽  
Individual Interviews ◽  
K 12 ◽  
Support Students ◽  
General Education Classrooms

This article describes the experiences of 103 school personnel, including classroom teachers, paraprofessionals, special educators, and administrators who worked in four schools, Grades K-12. Data were collected during 22 school visits and 56 individual interviews. Six themes were identified pertaining to how school personnel think about and act upon, issues of respect, appreciation, and acknowledgment of paraprofessionals who work in general education classrooms supporting students with and without disabilities. The themes included (a) nonmonetary signs and symbols of appreciation, (b) compensation, (c) being entrusted with important responsibilities, (d) noninstructional responsibilities, (e) wanting to be listened to, and (f) orientation and support. The article concludes with a discussion of implications for how these data might be applied in schools.

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