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  • Is Engineering Creative?

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about creativity in engineering. The probe is designed to determine the extent to which students think that creativity is an important part of…

  • Is It Rocket Science?

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about the importance of both engineering and science for creating technology. The probe is designed to determine if students recognize that working in…

  • What’s the Problem?

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ initial response to an ill-defined problematic situation. The probe is designed to reveal whether students recognize that in a problem situation, there is…

  • Pizza Problem

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about researching a problem. The probe is designed to determine the extent to which students are aware of the need to learn as much as possible about how…

  • Brainstorming

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about brainstorming. The probe is designed to determine the extent to which students understand the norms of good teamwork during the brainstorming…

  • Engineering and Nature

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about how engineers use designs from nature. The probe is designed to see if students recognize that designs from nature provide creative ideas for…

  • What Is a Product’s Life Cycle?

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about the life cycle of a product. The probe is designed to see how students apply the concept of life cycle analysis to determine the impact of a…

  • Engineers’ Models

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about different types of models commonly developed by engineers. The probe is designed to reveal whether students recognize that just like scientists,…

  • Designing With Math and Science

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about how science and math are both used in engineering. The probe is designed to get students to think about the various ways science and math are…

  • Testing for Success

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ initial ideas and attitudes about the procedure that should be followed when testing models to determine if a design solves the problem. The probe is designed…

  • Making It Better

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about different ways to optimize a design that has been successful in the past, but that still needs improvement. The probe is designed to see if…

  • Seedlings in a Jar

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about conservation of matter in a closed system after a transformation of matter from seed to seedling has taken place. The probe is designed to reveal…

  • Is It Melting?

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about the physical process of melting. The probe is designed to find out if students recognize melting as a change in state from solid to liquid that…

  • Is It Made of Molecules?

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about molecules. The probe is designed to uncover whether students recognize that objects, materials, and substances of both a biological and physical…

  • The Rusty Nails

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about a common phenomenon—rusting. The probe is designed to find out what students think happens to the mass of iron nails after a chemical change.

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