Category Archives: Research

Grade 3 Vehicle Challenge

Posted on December 12, 2013 by JohnHeffernan

Here are some photos from our grade 3 open ended challenge to design a WeDo vehicle.  I reviewed 3 ways to connect motor to wheels before they started: gears, pulleys, or direct drives. Students used the base WeDo kit. However, … Continue reading →

Posted in Child Development, Research, Robotics, Teaching | 5 Comments

Design Based Science

Posted on December 6, 2013 by JohnHeffernan

A few of you may be interested in this literature review of design based science I just completed.  It reviews a good number of papers and studies that evaluate how science concepts and processes can be taught using design.  Design … Continue reading →

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Designing Ahead

Posted on October 7, 2013 by JohnHeffernan

How much young students can plan ahead is a hot topic in educational research (well, at least to me).  In discussing our recent designs, my son Aidan (age 7) volunteered that that he thinks about a design ahead of time … Continue reading →

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4 Color Problem Case Study Results

Posted on October 4, 2013 by JohnHeffernan

I recently completed a exploratory research project that examined how learners respond to a difficult but motivating math problem.   I did a small case study, which compared adult math experts, advanced math students (one grade 1 and two grade 4), … Continue reading →

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Year 2 Case Study Results – Summary

Posted on September 11, 2013 by JohnHeffernan

Year 2 – Longitudinal Robotics Case Study John Heffernan – 7/7/13 Introduction This basic research seeks to understand how children’s engineering skills change over time. Secondarily, I want to know how our K-6 robotics program influences students.  Every year from … Continue reading →

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Gender Differences in STEM

Posted on July 27, 2013 by JohnHeffernan

This is from a very interesting study that looks at how teachers treat boys and girls differently in the context of a STEM LEGO robotics project.  It confirms my experience that girls need to be involved in engineering projects all … Continue reading →

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Robotics Bibliography

Posted on July 16, 2013 by JohnHeffernan

As part of my book project and for graduate school, I am working on a research chapter for my elementary robotics book. Next step is an annotated bibliography but here is the non-annotated one for now.  I will post a … Continue reading →

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4 Color Map Problem Video

Posted on April 25, 2013 by JohnHeffernan

Here’s a video of some grade 4 students working on the famous 4 color map problem.  They formed spontaneous groups to try and find 5 color counterexamples, maps that REQUIRE 5 colors.   4 Color Map Problem from John Heffernan … Continue reading →

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4 Color Map Problem Research Conclusion

Posted on April 18, 2013 by JohnHeffernan

It was extremely valuable and interesting for me to take a lesson I have been doing for twenty years and examine it in-depth and against the background of extant research and theory.  For example, the research provided insights into how … Continue reading →

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Spinning Top Misconceptions

Posted on April 1, 2013 by JohnHeffernan

The study of alternative or common misconceptions is an active educational research field (Confrey 1990).  I have been paying more attention to it in my second grade robotics unit this year which focuses on gears and pulleys.  One the of … Continue reading →

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