Praktiska metoder/hands-on learning är en undervisningsmetod som har blivit mer aktuell i dagens undervisning. Ett av skolans viktigaste uppdrag är att det finns en koppling mellan undervisningen och världen utanför, vilket gör att undervisningen bör innehålla undersökande och experimenterande uppgifter för att främja nytänkande (Lgr 11 rev. 2019). Detta innebär en omvandling av den traditionella utbildningsmodellen till en som drar nytta av elevernas naturliga benägenhet att lära sig. Denna kunskapsöversikt syftar till att analysera och sammanställa forskning som belyser vikten av praktiska metoder/hands-on learning inom de naturorienterande ämnena samt till att analysera hur begreppet definieras. Vidare undersöks om praktiska metoder kan påverka elevernas motivation och förståelse av undervisningen. Urvalet samlades in via systematiska sökningar i databasen Eric (ProQuest), konsultation och manuell sökning. Utifrån förvalda urvalskriterier valdes totalt nio publikationer ut som besvarar kunskapsöversiktens syfte och frågeställningar. Kunskapsöversikten grundar sig i följande frågeställningar: Vad kännetecknar forskningen om praktiska metoder/hands-on learning inom grundskolans naturorienterande ämnen? Hur definierar forskningen praktiska metoder/handson learning? Vad i praktiska metoder/hands-on learning tyder på att elevernas motivation och förståelse utvecklas? I majoriteten av kunskapsöversiktens artiklar framkommer att praktiska metoder/hands-on learning ses som en framgångsrik undervisningsmetod för såväl elevernas lärande som motivation i de naturorienterande ämnena. Forskningen visar att praktiska metoder bidrar positivt till bland annat kunskapsinlärning, attityder och engagemang i undervisning. Flertalet beskrivningar som ges av begreppet praktiska metoder/hands-on learning handlar om att eleverna ska genomföra olika undersökningar och aktiviteter, vilket syftar till att ha en direkt interaktion med olika naturvetenskapliga fenomen. Motsatsen till praktiska metoder/hands-on learning beskrivs i vissa artiklar som undervisning som präglas av bland annat läroböcker, demonstrationer samt muntliga och skriftliga uppgifter där eleverna främst ska memorera fakta.

As robots become more prevalent in our everyday lives, both in our workplaces and in our homes, it becomes increasingly likely that people who are not experts in robotics will be asked to interface with robotic devices. It is therefore important to develop robotic controls that are intuitive and easy for novices to use. Robotic hands, in particular, are very useful, but their high dimensionality makes creating intuitive human-machine interfaces for them complex. In this dissertation, we study the control of non-anthropomorphic robotic hands by non-roboticists in two contexts: collaborative manipulation and assistive robotics. In the field of collaborative manipulation, the human and the robot work side by side as independent agents. Teleoperation allows the human to assist the robot when autonomous grasping is not able to deal sufficiently well with corner cases or cannot operate fast enough. Using the teleoperator’s hand as an input device can provide an intuitive control method, but finding a mapping between a human hand and a non-anthropomorphic robot hand can be difficult, due to the hands’ dissimilar kinematics. In this dissertation, we seek to create a mapping between the human hand and a fully actuated, non-anthropomorphic robot hand that is intuitive enough to enable effective real-time teleoperation, even for novice users. We propose a low-dimensional and continuous teleoperation subspace which can be used as an intermediary for mapping between different hand pose spaces. We first propose the general concept of the subspace, its properties and the variables needed to map from the human hand to a robot hand. We then propose three ways to populate the teleoperation subspace mapping. Two of our mappings use a dataglove to harvest information about the user's hand. We define the mapping between joint space and teleoperation subspace with an empirical definition, which requires a person to define hand motions in an intuitive, hand-specific way, and with an algorithmic definition, which is kinematically independent, and uses objects to define the subspace. Our third mapping for the teleoperation subspace uses forearm electromyography (EMG) as a control input. Assistive orthotics is another area of robotics where human-machine interfaces are critical, since, in this field, the robot is attached to the hand of the human user. In this case, the goal is for the robot to assist the human with movements they would not otherwise be able to achieve. Orthotics can improve the quality of life of people who do not have full use of their hands. Human-machine interfaces for assistive hand orthotics that use EMG signals from the affected forearm as input are intuitive and repeated use can strengthen the muscles of the user's affected arm. In this dissertation, we seek to create an EMG based control for an orthotic device used by people who have had a stroke. We would like our control to enable functional motions when used in conjunction with a orthosis and to be robust to changes in the input signal. We propose a control for a wearable hand orthosis which uses an easy to don, commodity forearm EMG band. We develop an supervised algorithm to detect a user’s intent to open and close their hand, and pair this algorithm with a training protocol which makes our intent detection robust to changes in the input signal. We show that this algorithm, when used in conjunction with an orthosis over several weeks, can improve distal function in users. Additionally, we propose two semi-supervised intent detection algorithms designed to keep our control robust to changes in the input data while reducing the length and frequency of our training protocol.

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Black and Wiliam (1998b) pointed out, "Learning is driven by what teachers and pupils do in the classroom" (p. 139). Their analogy of the classroom as a "black box" created the impetus for this study. The study was designed to peer inside this black box in an effort to identify and examine how third-, fourth-, and fifth-grade school teachers use assessment during hands-on science classroom instruction. The overarching question as it relates to the hands-on classroom assessment is: What are the connections among teachers' assessment methods, feedback to students, and students' responses to the feedback? This study was not an evaluation of the effects or outcomes attributed to the use of classroom assessments. Instead, the researcher sought to identify and describe classroom assessment practices, teacher to student feedback, and the interplay among teachers and their students in the context of hands-on science instruction. Classroom observations, semistructured teachers' interviews, and document analysis were used to identify and describe the methods of assessment used by teachers in hands-on science classrooms. A descriptive report of five themes derived from classroom observations. The interviews provided insight into local teachers' opinions and their use of hands-on science instruction and assessment. An interpretive synthesis of the overall findings from the study determined that the role of assessment in science education continues to be an evaluative instrument for the teachers rather than a tool for learning. The participant teachers reported that assessmentÆs fundamental purpose was to document student performance. Evidence suggests that professional development will be essential for teachers to understand and use formative assessment in their classrooms. Equally important, if assessment is to be used to help students achieve, then teachers must help students use the information from the assessments to alter and advance learning.

Då jag tidigare besökt förskoleklasser i USA har jag förvånats över hur mycket tid som ägnats åt laborativ matematik. När nationella läroplanen i matematik i USA, Principles and Standards for School Mathematics, omarbetades blev fokus inom matematik att arbeta för att stärka elevers taluppfattning. Lockad av tidigare erfarenheter från det amerikanska skolsystemet beslutade jag mig därför för göra en deltagande observation med löpande protokoll för att se hur man arbetar med taluppfattning i en förskoleklass i Texas. Under observationen fokuserade jag på att se samband mellan undervisningen, läroplaner och teorier inom matematikundervisning. Resultatet av min undersökning visar att nittio minuter varje dag ägnades åt laborativa matematikaktiviteter anpassade för att hjälpa eleverna att uppnå läroplanens mål. Därtill fanns en tydlig anknytning till teorier inom matematikundervisning.Arbetet är skrivet på engelska. Detta för att termer, dialoger etc. inte ska översättas inkorrekt och för att skolan som observationen skedde på ska kunna ta del av resultatet. / As I earlier visited Kindergarten classes in the United States, I was surprised to see how much time that was set aside for mathematical activities in a hands-on fashion. In the reform of the United States Principle and Standards for School Mathematics, number sense was an essential outcome. Hence, the purpose of my study was to investigate, using participant observation with running records as a method, how number sense is taught in a Kindergarten class in Texas. During my observation, I especially looked at the educations connection to the guidelines and mathematics education theories. The result of my investigation shows that ninety minutes every day was set aside for mathematical activities in hands-on fashion, adapted to meet the guideline requirements and goals. In addition, the teaching observed in the class was closely associated with the mathematics educational theories.

Because communication has always been difficult for people who are deaf-blind, The Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute (SKERI), in conjunction with the California Polytechnic State University Mechanical Engineering department, has commissioned the design, construction, testing, and programming of a robotic hand capable of performing basic fingerspelling to help bridge the communication gap. The hand parts were modeled using SolidWorks and fabricated using an Objet rapid prototyper. Its fingers are actuated by 11 Maxon motors, and its wrist is actuated by 2 Hitec servo motors. The motors are controlled by Texas Instruments L293D motor driver chips, ATtiny2313 slave microcontroller chips programmed to act as motor controllers, and a master ATmega644p microcontroller. The master controller communicates with a computer over a USB cable to receive sentences typed by a sighted user. The master controller then translates each letter into its corresponding hand gesture in the American Manual Alphabet and instructs each motor controller to move each finger joint into the proper position.

Increasing underrepresented minority youth (URMY) engagement in STEM education remains at the forefront of our Nation's educational battle. The aim of this study was to create, implement, and evaluate the impact of innovative food science and technology (FST) lesson plans on URMY engagement in, and attitudes towards science, and their awareness of the field of FST. The 2011 United States census recalls that URMY make up only 13.3% of the STEM workforce. This study identifies URMY as individuals representing one or more of the following demographics: Low income, African American, Latino(a) American, and Indian American. Eight 5th-6th grade youth participated in a seven-week program, The Enliven Program (TEP), which is a STEM education program created for the purpose of this. The Enliven Program focuses on youth engagement in science learning through the implementation of a FST curriculum. The lessons delivered in TEP utilized the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study (BSCS) 5E instructional model as its foundation. This model focuses on five phases of student centered learning: engagement, exploration, explanation, elaboration, and evaluation. Data was collected using a fixed-mixed methods design. A qual-quan approach was employed to measure youths' positive behavioral and cognitive engagement in science learning. Measures of positive behavioral and cognitive engagement demonstrated that youth were positively behaviorally and cognitively engaged in the science learning activities. Furthermore, relationship building played an instrumental role in maintaining youth participants' positive attitudes towards and engagement in TEP activities. The results display an overall increase in youth's desire to do science and self-concept in science. / Master of Science in Life Sciences

The topic of heat transfer is traditionally taught as an upper level, lecture-style course to mechanical engineering students. Such courses do not provide students with ways to see and feel the important heat transfer concepts at hand. As a way to overcome this, novel, hands-on workshops have been designed and implemented into a heat transfer class taught to junior level mechanical engineering students. Two types of experimental workshops were created and used in two different years of a section of a heat transfer class. In the first year, twelve workshops were designed which included live demos so that the students could see and feel different modes of heat transfer while taking data and seeing real-time plots of temperature and heat flux in different experiments. The workshop introduced each topic the students would be learning in the lecture and was performed the week before the actual lecture on the topic. Each workshop included easily available materials, thermocouples, heat flux sensors, and data acquisition instruments for the students to use. The workshops also served replacements for what would be the third lecture of the week. Results from a concept inventory test given at the end of the first year showed a significant difference on certain question between an experimental group of students who had the workshops and a control group who took the traditional class lecture. However, there were still concepts and topics that the experimental group did not show improvement. They also showed a lack of improvement in their problem solving skills for quiz and test problems. For the second year of the experiment, the workshops were restructured quite a bit. The original 12 workshop format was cut down to only six in order to focus on the ones the students seemed to have benefited from the most. The workshops were also changed into a video-enhanced format where the students would watch a video of the experiment being done while also having the materials in front of them to place their hands on themselves. The students could therefore see and feel what was physically happening and still perform the experiment while watching real-time, pre-recorded plots of heat flux and temperature without worrying about making sure their setup was right and acquiring good results. The new video-enhanced workshops also included control volume and resistance diagrams for each experiment in order to help the students relate the workshops and concepts back to problems on their quizzes and tests. Results from these workshops seemed to show some statistical significance between the experimental and control groups on concept questions given on quizzes throughout the semester, but there was no difference on any questions from the ten concept questions given on the final exam. However, surveys taken by the students indicate that they believed the workshops did help them to understand the concepts in a real-world sense and that they helped them understand the class material better overall. Aside from the results of the workshops on the students learning, this study concludes with an analysis of important heat transfer concepts and how to test them. There is much debate about the underlying concepts in the topic of heat transfer and a thorough analysis on what specific concepts are important for students to know must be addressed. Many heat transfer concept questions on current concept inventories have more to do with thermodynamics and the mixing of the two topics is itself a misconception. / Master of Science

In recent years there has been an increased interest in inquiry-based learning, also known as experiential learning or problem-based learning, as a more appropriate model of teaching science. The purpose of this study was to incorporate inquiry-based learning in a college sophomore-level General Microbiology Laboratory. The goal of this laboratory course is to introduce students to basic techniques and procedures necessary for the study of microorganisms. Laboratory sections were randomly assigned to an experimental group or a control/reference group. The experimental group was taught the concept of serial dilutions using an inquiry-based learning approach whereas the control group was taught using traditional teaching methods. Analysis of the data generated from the students' involvement in the investigation during the fall semester indicated that the experimental group had a slightly greater improvement in their knowledge of serial dilution. The study continued in the spring semester and involved close to 300 students. During the spring semester both the experimental and the control groups had similar attitudes about their learning experience as evaluated by a Lickert Scale survey. However, a statistical analysis of the quiz scores of the students with values within the interquartiles indicated the experimental classes' quiz scores were significantly higher on quiz 2 taken at the midpoint in the study. Thus an inquiry-based learning approach was found to be beneficial to the middle 50% of the class. / Master of Science

This thesis presents the design, modeling, and development of adaptive robot hands that are capable of performing dexterous, in-hand manipulation. The robot hand comprises of anthropomorphic robotic fingers, which employ an adaptive actuation mechanism. The mechanism achieves both flexion/extension and adduction/abduction, on the finger's metacarpophalangeal joint, by using two actuators. Moment arm pulleys are employed to drive the tendon laterally, such that an amplification on the abduction motion occurs, while also maintaining the flexion motion. Particular emphasis has been given to the modeling and the analysis of the actuation mechanism. Also, a model for spatial motion is provided that relates the actuation modes with the finger motion and the tendon force with the finger characteristics. For the hand design, the use of differential mechanisms simplifies the actuation scheme, as we utilize only two actuators for four fingers, achieving affordable dexterity. A design optimization framework assess the results of hand anthropometry studies to derive key parameters for the bio-inspired actuation design. The model assumptions are evaluated with the finite element method. The proposed finger has been fabricated with the Hybrid Deposition Manufacturing technique and the actuation mechanism's efficiency has been validated with experiments that include the computation of the finger workspace, the assessment of the force exertion capabilities, the demonstration of the feasible motions, and the grasping and manipulation capabilities. Also, the hand design is fabricated with off-the-shelf materials and rapid prototyping techniques while its efficiency has been validated using an extensive set of experimental paradigms that involved the execution of grasping and in-hand manipulation tasks with everyday objects. / Master of Science / This thesis presents the design, modeling, and development of adaptive robot hands that are capable of performing selective interdigitation, robust grasping, and dexterous, in-hand manipulation. The robotic fingers employ an adaptive actuation mechanism. The design is minimal and the hand is capable of performing selective interdigitation, robust grasping, and dexterous, in-hand manipulation. Particular emphasis has been given to the modeling and the analysis of the actuation mechanism. For the hand design, the use of differential mechanisms simplifies the actuation scheme, as we utilize only two actuators for four fingers, achieving affordable dexterity. A design optimization framework assess the results of hand anthropometry studies to derive key parameters for the actuation design. The robotic fingers and the anthropomorphic hand were fabricated using off-the-self materials and additive manufacturing techniques. Several experiments were performed to validate the efficacy of the robot hand.