Information Technology Unit Plan Unit Overview Unit Title Programme Implementation Unit Summary The use of the student centered approach of the problem-based learning strategy is used to develop and promote higher order thinking skills through the development of algorithms to solve real world problems and the conversion of these algorithms to programs using structured programming techniques. Curriculum Links CSEC Information Technology Section 3 Specific Objectives 1-11 Year Level Form 5 Approximate Time Needed 12 x 35 minutes periods (3 weeks) Unit Foundation Standards/Syllabus Outcomes Students should be able to: distinguish between low-level and high-level programming languages; distinguish among the different generations of programming languages; declare elementary data types; declare variables and constants; manipulate data; use control structures; manipulate data in a list; list the sequence of steps associated with implementing a program; explain commonly used terms and concepts in programming; perform checks and tests on programs to verify correctness write documented programs. Curriculum-Framing Questions Essential Question Why do we need to tell the computer what to do? Unit Questions How do we use the computer to help us solve problems? How does the computer know what to do? How does the user know that the computer is correct? Questions What are the different languages that the computer uses? How has computer languages changed over the years? 2000-2007 Intel Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Page 1 of 7
How important are names? How can control be maintained? How can many examples of the same type of data be stored? Why is order important? How do you know that the problem was solved correctly? Why is it important to explain to others what we are doing? Assessment Timeline Before learning activities begin While students work on learning activities After learning activities end Pre-Test Pre-Questionnaire Assessment Summary Q & A Session Discussions Peer Review Post-Test Q & A Sessions Rubric for oral presentation Student Reflections Teacher feedback Peer Review Presentation feedback Case studies Worksheets Puzzles Post-test Post-Questionnaire Unit Details Prerequisite Skills Students Prior Knowledge Students should be able to define a problem; propose and evaluate solutions; determination of the most efficient solution; develop and represent algorithm; test and validate the solution using trace tables. Teachers Processional Learning TEACHING AND LEARNING STRATEGIES Lesson 1: Introductory Lesson (2 x 35 minutes) How has computer languages changed over the years? Distinguish between low-level and high-level programming languages Distinguish among the different generations of programming languages Identify and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the different generation of programming languages Low-level language (Machine or Assembly Language); High- level language (Pascal, C). Characterization of first through to fifth generation languages. 2000-2007 Intel Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Page 2 of 7
Teacher enters class and greets the students in Spanish and proceeds to teach the class in Spanish. She explains that Spanish is just one of the many languages that people use to communicate with one another. Similarly there are many programming languages. Just as it s important for the sender and recipient to understand the language for effective communication to occur so too it is with the computer. Programs must be written using appropriate programming languages. Collaboration: Using pictures present four different scenarios and describe each using the four different languages (Spanish, French, German and Swahili) ask the students to match the pictures with the correct description. Lesson1-Activity1 Reflection: Describe the process that the group used to match the pictures with the descriptions. Have you ever been to a foreign country in which a different language was spoken or interacted with someone whose native language was not English? What were some of the challenges that you faced? Do you think that it is important to know more than one language? Collaboration: Given the handout ask the students to identify the problems of each generation of language, analyze the account described to determine the advantages of each generation of language and arrive at suggestions for applications for which each level and generation of programming language would be most appropriate to use. Lesson1-Handout1 Class Presentation (Oral)/Peer Review Each group has five minutes to present on one of the generation of language while the other groups mark their presentations using a rubric. OralPresentationRubric ----- Lesson 2: (2 x 35 minutes) How important are names? Declare elementary data types; Declare variables and constants; Manipulate data; Integers, real numbers, characters. Use of meaningful variable names and constants; assign initial values. Reading from and writing to variables, arithmetic operations. Give each group of students a set of meanings and ask them to determine which is synonymous with the meaning of their name. Explain to them that generally parents put a lot of thought into naming their children and so too when we are choosing variable names it is important to give meaningful names. 2000-2007 Intel Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Page 3 of 7
Class activity Ask students from each group to volunteer answers to complete a chart illustrating different examples of data that can be stored about them. Then ask them to determine what the data type would be for each example identified and allow another student from the group to write the response on the board. Given the problem ask students to illustrate solution using a flowchart. Student should be able to identify appropriate identifiers and corresponding data types and determine whether the values should be stored as constants or variables. Students should be able to complete a table comparing the representation of statements expressed as algorithms, pseudocode, flowchart symbols and as PASAL statements. Independent work Students are asked to write a program corresponding to the flowchart constructed for solving the problem. Ask students to formulate a problem that requires both variables and constants as identifiers and which requires that these identifiers belong to each of the data types discussed in class. Discuss case study in groups and complete part (a) as a group and part (b) independently. Lesson 3: (2 x 35 minutes) What are the different ways that control can be achieved? Use control structures; Conditional branching: if-then, if-then-else, Loops: while, repeat, for. Set Induction Ask three students to volunteer to participate in a game. Play the game of musical chairs. Explain to the students that they were given the option to play or to observe and that is an example of a selection control structure. Those who participated in the game were repeating an action until one person would emerge as the winner. This is an example of a repetition control structure. Since we do not know how many times the students would be going around the chairs in advance then this is an example of unbounded iteration. Since the total number of students who were asked to play the game was known in advance the action of presenting each student with a token is an example of a bounded iteration. Ask students to give examples of real life situations that require the use of each of the control structures identified. Discuss case study in groups and complete part (c) and (d) independently. Redefine problem description from Lesson 2 to include the use of selection and repetition constructs in its solution. 2000-2007 Intel Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Page 4 of 7
Lesson 4: (2 x 35 minutes) How can many examples of the same type of data be stored? Manipulate data in a list; Reading from and writing to arrays; traversing arrays; linear search. Set Induction Give students samples of green pigeon peas in the pod and red beans and ask them to compare the two. Explain to the student that the red bean is found growing as a single bean however there are more than one green peas in a single pod. This is similar to an array. A single data structure that can hold more than one data value of the same data type. Each pea is in its unique location in the pod as are the data elements in an array which are identified by the location in the array. Ask students to give examples of real life situations that require the use of arrays. Discuss case study in groups and complete part (e) independently. Redefine problem description from Lesson 3 to include the use of arrays in its solution. Lesson 5: (2 x 35 minutes) How do you know that the problem was solved correctly? Why are tests necessary? Explain commonly used terms and concepts in programming; Perform checks and tests on programs to verify correctness Testing, debugging, syntax errors, logic errors, run-time errors, dry run, test data. Testing and debugging techniques. How can we tell which food has starch and which does not? Students should be able to correctly identify that the iodine test would be used and explain. Five different samples (bread, orange, cheese, eggs and potatoes) would be provided for groups of students to perform the iodine test. Allow students to place a few drops of iodine solution on the sample and observe whether it turns blueblack in colour. If it does it means that starch is present. Explain to students that it is important for tests to be carried out using a variety of samples and in our case to determine the accuracy of programs different data values should be used. Discuss case study in groups and complete part (f) independently. Exchange the problem designed with another group and correct their solution to your problem. 2000-2007 Intel Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Page 5 of 7
Lesson 6: (1 x 35 minutes) Why is order important? List the sequence of steps associated with implementing a program; Create source code, compile, linking, executing, maintain program. Give each group four pictures. Explain to them that each person cannot show her picture to the others but she can describe it. The pictures should be placed correctly for a story to be told. Once a picture is placed on the table it cannot be taken up. Group discussion: Ask students to come up with examples of situations in which order is critically important and others in which the order may not make a significant difference. Allow each group to present their suggestions. Ask students to complete the graphic organizer listing the correct sequence of steps associated with implementing a program. Flowchart Ask students to type up, compile debug and execute the solution to the case study problem. Lesson 7: (1 x 35 minutes) Why is it important to explain what you are doing to others? Write documented programs. Importance of documentation; features of internal documentation (use of mnemonic names, use of comments, indentation, effective use of white spaces); external documentation (user manuals). Set Induction Show a video clip from Project Runway at the end of the show when they review the fashion show. Discuss case study in groups and complete part (e) independently. Ask students to include appropriate documentation to the solution to the case study problem. ----- Lesson 8: Summative Lesson (2 x 35 minutes) Post-test 2000-2007 Intel Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Page 6 of 7
Accommodations for Diverse Needs Students with Special Needs Gifted Students Visually impaired: Computers can be adjusted. Weaker Students: Advanced students will work with (Peer Teaching) the weaker students. Advanced Students will assist other students (Peer Teaching) Materials and Resources Required for Unit Technology Hardware (Click boxes of all equipment needed) Camera Laser Disk Computer(s) Printer Digital Camera Projection System DVD Player Scanner Internet Connection Television Technology Software (Click boxes of all software needed.) Database/Spreadsheet Image Processing Desktop Publishing Internet Web Browser E-mail Software Multimedia Encyclopedia on CD-ROM All activity sheets and checklists Printed Materials VCR Video Camera Video Conferencing Equip. Other MP3 Player, Interactive Whiteboard, PDA Mobile Technologies Web Page Development Word Processing Other Editing software, Internet Web Browser, Animation Software, Digital learning objects Supplies Internet Resources/ Communication Tools White board markers Synchron Eyes Other Resources Unit Author First and Last Name: Sunita Gopee School Name: Holy Faith Convent, Penal District: St. Patrick 2000-2007 Intel Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Page 7 of 7