Appendix 1: Teacher notes – organisation of the lesson

Combined with using the virtual field trip, this lesson links to the following units in the Teaching Syllabus for Biology:

• SHS 2 Section 1 Diversity of Living Things, Unit 7 Scientific Inquiry Skills
• SHS 2 Section 2 Interactions in Nature, Unit 2 Study of Specific Habitats
• SHS 2 Section 2 Interactions in Nature, Unit 8 Scientific Inquiry Skills

Ideas for organising this exemplar lesson link directly to activities and teaching examples in the OpenSTEM Africa CPD units on  Using ICT to support learning, and  Approaches to active notetaking.  

A full list of the OpenSTEM Africa CPD units can be found at https://www.open.edu/openlearncreate/CPD_units

Overview

If possible, this lesson should take place in the ICT Lab in your school if this can be arranged through your Head of Science and the Head of ICT. If the lesson takes place in the ICT Lab, it may be possible for each student to work individually at a computer; otherwise divide the class so that students are in small groups at a computer.

If it is not possible to use the ICT Lab for this lesson, then try to set up this lesson in your classroom. You may be lucky enough in your school to have a set of ‘empty’ tablets or mobile phones which students can use. Or you may be able to bring into the classroom a laptop connected to the internet or to your school intranet – and perhaps connected to a projector to make it possible for the whole class to view at once. If access to ICT is a real challenge in your school but you want your students to view an experiment, you might be able demonstrate it to small groups of your students at a time, using your own mobile phone

Whatever way(s) you set up the class, it would still be helpful to the students to be able to work in pairs or small groups for at least some of the lesson. Do remember as well that students need desk space to be able to write in their notebooks and to draw diagrams.

Steps in organising the lesson

Step 1: (This could be pre-lesson homework). Have students work individually or in pairs to pre-read the Background section of the exemplar lesson. Check understanding by asking them the questions in the Background section.

Step 2: Have each student make notes of the steps they need to do when they enter the OpenSTEM Africa Virtual Field trip. Have each student create a frame for their drawing of the field sketch and create tables in their notebook in preparation for their data collection.

Step 3: Make sure that all have access to/can see the computer screen to begin the practical activity. Ensure that each individual/pair knows how to move around the virtual field trip – or if you are using a laptop/projector, that the class helps to choose where to go on the virtual field trip and that you draw on the expertise of the class as you go through each step of the application, e.g. ask them what the next step is.

Step 4: Have the class follow the instructions for exploring the virtual field trip and gathering the information needed. If students are working in a pair on a PC, for Activity 1 ensure that students agree which locations and panoramas they chose to study and ensure that each student in the pair gets to choose one of the organisms to add to their table.

For Activity 2, make sure that each student in the pair gets to follow all the steps involved for one of the quadrats. Note: the students are required to examine two quadrats in a Quadrat Area. There are 5 quadrats in each Quadrat Area that they could look at. The full dataset consists of data for 10 quadrats in each quadrat area.

Step 5: Allow enough time for everyone in the class to make their own field sketch and collect their own tables of data. Have them check each other’s writing and data.

Step 6: Five minutes before the end of the lesson, tell the students to complete the quiz.

Other examples of lessons which could be relevant to the virtual field trip include:

• Biology Section 1 Diversity of Living Things
• Biology Section 2 Interactions in Nature
• Biology Section 3 Humans and Their Environment Unit 5 Scientific Inquiry Skills

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