Fact or Fiction: Research WritingBonnie Belshe, Kavita GuptaMonta Vista High School, Cupertino, CA

CONTACT INFORMATION

Website: emails

http://web.fuhsd.org/kavita_guptawww.montavista.schoolloop.com

Bonnie Belshe: Bonnie_belshe@fuhsd.orgKavita Gupta: Kavita_gupta@fuhsd.org

PRESENTER INFORMATION

Why Research at high school level?

NGSS Common Core

College Board

Alumni Data Supporting the Need for Developing Research Skills in High School

The science classes that you have taken so far in college fulfill:

general education requirement 35

requirement for major 77

I have not taken any science class in college

19

How well do you believe AP Chemistry at MVHS prepared you for the following in college? - Content Knowledge

very well 26

good 9

somewhat 1

poorly 0

hard to gauge 11

How well do you believe AP Chemistry at MVHS prepared you for the following in college? - Critical-thinking

very well 25

good 10

somewhat 2

poorly 1

hard to gauge 9

How well do you believe AP Chemistry at MVHS prepared you for the following in college? - Technical- Writing

very well 16

good 11

somewhat 6

poorly 2

hard to gauge 12

Total Sample Size= 131, 2012-2013

Data from Former students, College Profs and NY Times

“To make knowledge, which is the foundation of learning, it is necessary to apply thought to information, to think about the facts that have been gathered, and this is work only an individual can do. “ ~ William Fitzhugh, editor of The Concord Review in The New York Times on “Why a Research Paper is Valuable”

“Knowing how to research and the research process has given me a leg up in college. While everyone else is still asking what an academic journal article is, I have found reliable sources on JSTOR and EBSCO. Just knowing how to efficiently carry out a research paper (steps I learned in high school) makes it so much easier to remain calm about a 10 page paper due in two weeks.”~Emily Batsford; University of Arizona, Class of 2017; Monta Vista High School Alumnus, Class of 2013

“Research is all about discovering which crazy ideas are actually good ideas and which ideas really are crazy. Research is key to students becoming excited about their own work. Starting early-a high school summer project for the NSF (National Science Foundation) in my case- ignited my career. That summer led me to research projects in several science classes and I worked on research projects every summer until I could start my own research lab.”~Dr. Robert Belshe; Diana and Joseph Adjorjan Endowed Professor of Infectious Diseases and Immunology; Director, Center For Vaccine Development; Saint Louis University School of Medicine

So, we agree that it is important to teach research and technical writing skills. But HOW?

Formation of Research PLC

RESEARCH PLC

Research PLC

Identified Common Research Process

Examined student work from different content areas with

the idea of identifying overlaps, so common

research and writing skills can be carried over across the

content area

FACT OR FICTION PROJECT: AP CHEMISTRY

Objective The objective of this year-end project is to emphasize research and technical writing skills by finding a chemistry related concept in a movie/media clip and testing the validity of its claim by doing extensive research.Expected Products1. Oral Presentation on Research Findings: Power point or movie with the media clip (under 2 minutes) inserted (7 minutes total) 2. A scientific research paper (with the five components of research) evaluating the validity of the concept through academic research.

Fulminated MercuryThe Next Frontier of Explosives?

Video Background

• In Breaking Bad, Walt is a high school chemistry teacher turned criminal producing metamphetamine (crystal meth) to sell on the black market.

• At one point his partner, Jesse, gets swindled and beaten up by a psychopathic gangster called Tuco.

• The following video shows Walt's confrontation with Tuco and subsequent explosion using Mercury Fulminate.

Breaking Bad Video Clip

Could a small crystal of mercury fulminate really do so much damage?

Research Problem

Properties of Mercury Fulminate

-It is prepared by reacting mercury with nitric acid and then adding ethanol.

-The crystals are usually brown to grey (due to colloidal mercury) and large crystals are extremely unstable

-Pressure changes, vibrations and shock can lead to detonation. The explosive properties can be demonstrated in the lab by hitting a very small crystal with a hammer

Properties of Mercury Fulminate

• insoluble in water

• exists as white powder

Mercury (II) fulminate comprises two fulminate ions (CNO-) bonded to a central mercury atom.

Mercury (II) fulminate is very sensitive because of the instability of the fulminate ion.

Reasons for Instability

• single bond is unstable-->immediately break in most reactions

• nitrogen will most likely bond with other nitrogen atoms, forming nitrogen gas.

Detonation of Mercury Fulminate

• Detonation produces mercury vapour, carbon monoxide and nitrogen.

• One explosion pathway could be: 2Hg(CNO)2 → 2CO2+N2+Hg+Hg(CN)2

The explosion

-Ultimately only .9-1.8 kJ of energy received by windows which is not enough to shatter them

-Our Verdict based on the research: FICTION!!

The Process of ResearchIdentify an area of interest

Search sources for relevant information

Evaluate Resources

No valid resources found

Can not answer the question, invalid

resources

Begin Research

Research Resources: http://www.lib.uci.edu/how/tutorials/BeginResearch/public/

MV Library: http://www.montavista.schoolloop.com/cms/page_view?d=x&piid=&vpid=1314006552580

Research Question Good Resource from UCSChttp://library.ucsc.edu/help/research/start-your-research

When writing a research question, it is important that the magnitude of the question matches the expected outcome. For example, if you are writing a 4 to 6 page research paper you do not want to try and answer the question, “What is human nature?”. As a general rule when writing historical research questions, stay away from ideas of human nature, civilizations as a whole, and philosophical debate

Choosing a Topic Good Resource from UCSChttp://library.ucsc.edu/help/research/start-your-research

Research Question

Or too narrow..

Example of too broad a topic: Is there a material

that can pull the weight of an average sized human

without breaking?

Example of too narrow a topic: What is the

numerical value of the tensile strength of a nylon-

based material?

Good Resource from UCSChttp://library.ucsc.edu/help/research/start-your-research

Databases and Primary and Secondary Sourceshttp://library.pdx.edu/tutorials/knowledgecycle/10

Jstor (www.jstor.org)Screencast on using jstore•Choose Advanced Search•Combine keywords with “AND” (already displayed)•When you open a record, click on the “Summary” tab to help decide if an article is useful.•Create your own log-in to save searches.

Primary Sources: Academic Journals with original research

EBSCO Electronic Database

•Limit your search to “Full Text”•Check off “Scholarly (Peer Reviewed) Journals to limit your search to primary sources.•Try narrowing your search by combining keywords by “AND”•Create your own log-in to save searches.

Google Scholar•Go to: http://scholar.google.com

•Choose Advanced Search. •Use a combination of keywords and/or phrases.

•Choose Subject Area for search > Chemistry and Materials Science

Secondary Resources

Secondary Sources: Articles reporting on various research

EBSCO Electronic Database•www.mvhs.fuhsd.org/researchresources•Choose “Science Reference Center”•Expand your search by adding databases: TopicSearch, Newspaper Source, Health Source, and Mas Ultra

Scientific American Magazine: http://www.scientificamerican.com/Popular Science Magazine: http://www.popsci.com/ChemMatters Magazine Online (type into Google to find link); published by ACS

•Use Google wisely:•Use effective search strategies to find relevant results.•Evaluate each website to make sure that it is reliable. •Fill out an evaluation form for each website used. Find the form in the lower right hand side of: www.mvhs.fuhsd.org/researchresources

Synthesis Document

Finding Fact or Fiction

Supporting Argument #1

Include intext citation

Supporting Argument #2

Include intext citation

Supporting Argument #3

Include intext citation

Limitations Conclusion

Reflection: What further research/evidence do you need?

What are your next steps?

Credit: Adapted from document created by Susan Marks

Google Doc for Collaboration and Writing the Research Paper

Video on Google Docs: http://learn.googleapps.com/gmailvids

Good Resource on Google Docs: http://shs.bellinghamschools.libguides.com/content.php?pid=317319&sid=2721663

Lessons learned

Start small and jump in, jump out Here are some ways in which you can “chunk” the research paper or break

them into smaller activities: Read literature- teacher models and students create research

questions Evaluate Resources- activity on what is primary, secondary or tertiary

resource or use annotated bibliography Synthesis- organizing ideas using Google docs or synthesis document Research Product- oral presentation with power point (minimizes

writing)

Lessons Learned

•Pre-approval Form: Helps students be organized and fights procrastination• Use benchmarks

•For Skill/Content-Teacher Check-Ins-Revision

•Procrastination Avoidance/Stress Management-Completion Check

•Seek help and collaborate with the other teachers since research is done in EVERY discipline.