An Analysis of Network Learning Project, Physics Park

Introduction

Network Learning Project, Physics Park, was originally designed by Denise Ciotti, physics teacher at Winsor School for Girls in Boston, and is a collaborative online project set up in a series of seven activities.  The project is advertised on Global Schoolhouse and can be found at http://www.onlineclass.com/physics/home.html.  The purpose of my project, An Analysis of Network Learning Project, Physics Park was to conduct an analysis of the effectiveness and organization of the Ciotti’s project.  Teachers and students who had participated in the Physics Park network learning project completed the analysis.

To analyze the effectiveness of Physics Park students participated in activities that explored physics concepts, practiced math problems, and guided them in designing a roller coaster.  The lessons were presented in a private web classroom and assistance was provided through email discussions among the Physics Park project coordinator and participating students of classrooms worldwide.  After completing the project students provided feedback in the following areas:

Participating teachers compared Physics Park’s organization to network learning project recommendations made in an article written by Michael Waugh, James Levin, and Kathleen Smith published in the February and March issues of The Computing Teacher Journal of 1994 entitled “Organizing Electronic Network-Based Instructional Interactions: Successful Strategies and Tactics.”    This article described six organizational elements that were common in facilitating and completing successful network based projects: proposal, refinement, organization, pursuit, wrap-up, and publication.