This week in AEE 412 Lab we completed our Problem Solving Approach Labs. We were challenged to get our students thinking on higher levels and more critically about content by having them work through a problem. For my lab I had students break into groups of two or three and identify the cause for several different imperfections on welding beads.
I started my lesson by showing students real life issues that can happen when welds are done improperly and had students identify the need for a good welding technique.
 |
| Students identified the need for good welding technique and strong welds. |
Then, after introducing the problem solving activity, I guided the students with some sample questions to ask themselves that would be important in identifying the cause of each imperfection.
 |
| Questions to help guide students and get them thinking about factors that could cause weld imperfections. |
After the students had time to work, we came back together as a class to discuss the answers and how we reached each conclusion.
 |
| Student Activity Worksheet |
| Overall, I think my lesson went very well and the Cause and Effect problem solving activity was a great way to get students thinking critically about welding technique and ready to evaluate their own welds and modify their own techniques (the second half of the days lesson would have students reflection on welds they performed in the previous lesson and taking more time in the shop to practice). |
I also think I did a great job at keeping students on task by walking around the room and managing the timing of the lesson. One thing that I think could make this lesson more engaging and beneficial for students is having real welds for each example instead of just pictures. I think it would also help to have cross sections cut or pictures that would show the penetration of each weld into the base metal so they can see the strength of each weld as well.
Questions:
How would you improve my lesson to make it more engaging or helpful for students learning welding for the first time?
What are some of your favorite Problem Solving Lessons for students?
Elise, Great Job! Not having been there, it sounds like the lesson was a success. I agree with you that the really welds would have made it more engaging, but you did well with the resources you had. I also agree with you about viewing the cross section of the welds. Great reflection.
ReplyDeleteSome of my favorite Problem Solving lessons for students (whether it is in food/nutrition science, animal science or in the mechanics lab) is to deliberately give students different procedure so all students get different results and then we compare results (similar to what you did with your discussion). I suppose in a weld lesson you could have each student deliberately knowingly or unknowingly make wrong beads (wrong welder settings, etc.).
Overall, great job! Self and Peer Evaluation of work is critical in learning and I think this lesson sets you up to do this very nicely with your students.
Thank you Holly!
DeleteI love the idea of giving students different procedures, and I will definitely try to incorporate that into my future lessons.
Elise,
ReplyDeleteNice lesson. I think one way you could improve the lesson is by giving the students actual beads that were done incorrectly. The handout could be a nice "guide", but it is always nice to have the actual material there to touch/feel. I also understand that you will have these materials much more readily available when you are in your "own" classroom/laboratory.
-Dr. Ewing
Elise, I loved this lesson! As a learner it was really cool to see the common things that could go wrong with welds and have them be all lined up next to each other. I found myself then thinking about how I weld and things that I could do to improve my welds to get them to look like the good one on the page. Overall, great job with this! Your students are going to learn a lot from this lesson.
ReplyDeleteHi Elise,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this activity and will probably steal parts of it during the welding unit that I'm teaching in the spring. I think this activity will help students to recognize imperfections in their own welds and what their causes are, which will make them better. I also think that it will help them to make connections between the factors that affect welds.
Thank you Alyssa!
DeleteLet me know if you want a copy of my lesson plan for your unit in the spring.
Elise, this was a great lesson! I loved how well the images and descriptions went together and the amount of detail that was used. It made it evident that your students would have had to actively participate in this activity and really do some digging to solve your problem. You did a wonderful job!
ReplyDelete