OVERVIEW OF THE PROJECT
Project Java began in 1996 as a collaborative effort between the Center
for High Pressure Research and the Long Island Consortium for Interconnected
Learning, both headquartered at the University at Stony Brook. As
part of this project, undergraduate students from the Department of
Computer Science work under the supervision of faculty and staff from
a variety of departments to develop interactive Java applets intended
for use as instructional tools.
During the Fall of 1999, the Chemistry Team of Project Java was composed
of six students, each of whom was enrolled in 2 credits of undergraduate
research. The supervisor for the project was Dr. Troy Wolfskill of
the Department of Chemistry. The goal of the Chemistry Team was to
develop an interactive model of the kinetic molecular theory of gases.
Students will use this model under the guidance of questions that
are aimed at helping them to develop an understanding of the underlying
chemical concepts.
IMPACT OF THE PROJECT
Students in the Chemistry Team of Project Java are making significant
contributions to a project that is aimed at getting students to learn
and teachers to teach in new ways. Supported by funding from the National
Science Foundation, members of this project are working toward the
development of Web-based activities and tools for enhancing students'
conceptual understanding and developing their abilities to think critically,
solve problems, communicate, collaborate, manage their effort, and
self-assess their growth.
Text-based workshops organized around the fundamental ideas of this
project have produced remarkable improvements in student efforts,
attitudes, and accomplishments (Hanson, D.M.; Wolfskill, T. J. Chem.
Educ. 2000, 77, 120-130). As part of the computer-based version of
these activities, students work in teams to examine interactive models
under the guidance of critical-thinking questions that compel them
to process information, verbalize and share their understanding, and
make inferences and conclusions, i.e. construct knowledge. These computer-based
activities have received high assessments from students. 90% of students
polled indicated that they found computer-based activities more enjoyable
than text-based activities, and 87% stated that interactive models
help them to better understand chemical concepts (Hanson, D.M.; Wolfskill,
T. J. Chem. Educ, submitted for publication). The model for the kinetic-molecular
theory of gases presented here is an excellent example of the interactive
models being developed as part of this project.
TESTIMONIAL FOR STUDENTS
Project Java couples the top students from the previous semester's
introductory computer science course with faculty from various departments
for the purpose of developing Java applets for educational use. Students
engaged in the project receive two credits of research in computer
science, CSE 487. They spend the first few weeks of the semester learning
Java and then work with their supervisor to identify a team project
that is to be completed over one semester. For the chemistry team,
the supervisor has minimal experience with Java, so that students
are faced with learning Java and solving problems primarily on their
own and with the help of their teammates. In this challenging environment,
these students have done an excellent job. Not only have they succeeded
on a project at which several previous students failed, they showed
excellent teamwork in reaching their goals. I most highly recommend
them for an award for their efforts.
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