Análisis de las encuestas aplicadas a la competencia

Physics Experiment on Reinforcement

Brief Description The following is a sample closing activity for Session 2. This physics experiment teaches the principle of reinforcement by demonstrating the omnidirectional nature of air pressure. A parallel is made between the results of the experiment and the roles that good information and informed guidance play in promoting/supporting student success.

Time 20 minutes max

Goals/Outcomes Participants will reflect on:

• Their role as information agents for their students and the importance of good information and informed guidance in a student’s success

• The opportunities and hurdles their students often don’t see on their path to college and careers—and the importance of alerting students to both as part of an informed guidance process

• How high-quality, transparent, up-to-date information leads to best bets and non-best bets and can facilitate an effective student match to postsecondary programs

Materials It is assumed that the trainer who leads this activity and all participants in the audience will be standing by a table when conducting this experiment.

On the table for each participant (including the trainer):

• One transparent plastic cup filled 1/3 of the way with water • Four 4”x 6” index cards (the index card must be slightly larger

than the mouth of the cup)

• One deep aluminum tray (to catch any spills during the experiment)

On each table:

• One hand towel (to dry up any spills)

• One pitcher of water (to refill cups as needed)

Setup Participants should stand at their tables with the materials noted above in front of them.

Overview of Physics Experiment on Reinforcement

Time 20 minutes max

Breakdown Time

1. Before you begin, make certain that all tables and participants have the necessary supplies for the experiment. Ask all participants to stand up.

Introduce the experiment by saying something like:

Next, we want to have some fun with you through a physics

experiment. Before you try it, please watch me first for instructions. You’ll notice that I have an aluminum tray directly under where my hands will be during the experiment to catch any water that spills and I have a hand towel near me to wipe up any spills.

Next, conduct the experiment at the front of the room where everyone can see, explaining the various steps:

I’m going to hold up my cup (filled 1/3 of the way with water), with one hand and my fingers in a vertical position around the bottom of the cup, and then use my other hand to place an index card on top of it. You’ll see that I’m making sure to cover the entire mouth of the cup with the card and that I’m holding it firmly in place with my hand without bending the card. Next, I’m going to carefully turn the cup upside down, and then gently remove my hand from underneath it— and (drum roll!) the index card stays up! Notice that I’m not moving the cup at all once I have it set—not up, or down, or sideways. I’m keeping it still in the same position the whole time.

Before you try the experiment yourself, some important points:

• Please note that if you attempt the experiment more than once, you should dry your hands and use a new index card each time.

• This experiment demonstrates that air pressure is

omnidirectional. It doesn’t just push down, it pushes in all directions, including up. In this case, we can’t see it, but the pressure from the air molecules pushing UP on the index card is more than the pressure of the water pushing DOWN on the card, so the card stays UP. The force of the water pushing DOWN on the card is less than a pound, in comparison to the roughly 15 pounds per square inch of force from the air pushing UP.

Now, I’d like you to think of the index card as a student. The water pushing DOWN on the card represents the negative forces in your student’s life, which affect whether he/she enters, persists through, and completes a postsecondary program—for example, financial

issues, or issues with housing, child care, family, transportation, health, domestic violence, etc.

And now I’d like for you to think of the air pressure holding UP the index card as the positive forces that help hold your student UP, such as family/peer support, tutorial services, mentors, and … GOOD INFORMATION AND INFORMED GUIDANCE from folks like you.

As with this experiment in which we can’t see the air pressure that holds up the index card, lots of folks underestimate or don’t see the important role that informed guidance plays in making the difference between a student who is successful in completing a postsecondary program that leads to a good job and one who’s not.

Speaking of not being able to see things, it’s important to remember that our students often can’t see (and therefore don’t anticipate) all the different hurdles that they’ll face on the road to attaining a

postsecondary credential (e.g., developmental courses or screening requirements for programs or jobs). As a result, it’s critical that we not only cheerlead for our students and talk to them about opportunities they should explore, but also that we talk to and warn them about the hurdles that they are likely to face on the road ahead. If we do this, they can better plan so that the positive forces in their lives outweigh the negative, holding them up like the index card in this experiment. With these ideas in mind, NOW I’D LIKE FOR YOU TRY THE EXPERIMENT! GO FOR IT!”

2. Participants conduct the experiment themselves. Give them time to play with it – each participant should try the experiment at least once (some participants will do it successfully the first time and won’t need to repeat it). The facilitator should walk around the room to help/offer positive feedback.

10 minutes

3. Make closing comments such as:

Thanks, everyone! Great work! I hope you enjoyed the experiment and that it helped you to reflect on the training’s key messages: You are information agents for your students—and, in some cases, you (and your programs) are some of the only trusted sources of specific, clear, up-to-date, and high-quality information that they need to make

informed decisions about college and careers. We hope that this training has given you the tools to continue to identify and inform your students about best bets in your region and to strengthen the important work you do.

Thanks so much again.