OpenSciEd Unit 6.5 · Lesson 08 · 8.A
Look for: Ideas of how technologies have changed over t…
From Teacher Edition
Facilitation guidance from the lesson plan — what to notice in student thinking and how to respond while teaching.
Building towards
8.A.2 Use digital tools and/or mathematical concepts to integrate and synthesize information to compare the reliability of emergency communication systems.
What to look / listen for
- Ideas of how technologies have changed over time, but some technologies are still used today to alert people in a hazard.
- Ideas about how technologies use different systems for communication.
Wired v. Wireless
Broadcast to each individual household v. broadcast across an entire area
- Ideas for why some signals (i.e. digital) are more reliable than others.
- Ideas for what causes some communication technologies to be limited in their ability to warn people.
What to do
If students are struggling comparing communication systems, ask students about very specific communication systems, such as morse code versus push notifications. Ask students about how they are similar or different, and their benefits and drawbacks for each stakeholder group. If students are struggling with comparing analog and digital signals, have students focus on the types of technologies that use each type of signal. Ask students to compare their reliability and utility in a natural hazard. If students are struggling with what system may be more reliable for certain stakeholder groups versus others, ask students how that stakeholder group generally receives their information, and what type of information that stakeholder group would need. Consider if that form of communication is analog or digital, and then ask students the pros and cons of it being in that form. Ask students to then determine how reliable that would be in a hazard, and if that is the only method of communication needed for that stakeholder group. If students are struggling with identifying digital as a more reliable method of communication, focus students back on the storymap. Ask students to consider those that live in remote locations or those that are not in a place to hear sirens or others and determine which method is more likely to reach that stakeholder group with a clean signal.
Turn and talk about communication types (optional). Say, It sounds like there are a variety of warnings that would work during a hazard, both analog and digital. Project slide E. Ask students to turn and talk to a partner about the question on the slide. If your students have already arrived at the conclusions below, proceed on to the navigation into the next lesson.
What type(s) of signals should we use during a natural hazard?
Should we use only one method, analog or digital?
Why or why not?
Allow students to respond. Guide students to determine that a digital signal is an option that meets the needs of many stakeholders, but multiple methods of communication are a good idea during a natural hazard. Students should suggest that we need a variety of communication methods, both analog and digital, to alert people during a natural hazard such as a tsunami. Students should also conclude that while we have the ability to use both analog and digital signals, digital signals tend to be the most reliable and reach the most people in a short period of time.
Supporting Universal Design for Learning
Teachers can support all students in forming a deeper understanding of newly “earned” or “encountered” vocabulary by representing the new term in several ways. For example, students can (1) write the term, (2) draw a representation of the term, (3) use their own words to write an explanation for what the term means, and (4) use the new term in a sentence.
This strategy is particularly helpful for emerging multilingual students.