Procedures for The EMS on Trial:

The Question:

What effects do different types of electromagnetic radiation have on matter?

Background Information.

While the students' plants are growing, they can put the different types of the electromagnetic radiation "on trial". The "Trial" is a format, which allows students to explore electromagnetic radiation properties. Students get to select the judge, prosecutor, defense counsel, and jury, who will argue the pros and cons of each wavelength, while students will be learning about electromagnetic energy. The different types of electromagnetic radiation will serve as the "defendants" who are accused of properties which may or may not be true for that particular wavelength.

Procedure.

1. Students are divided into two main groups: defense witnesses and prosecution witnesses. Their homework (started at least a week prior to the "trial") is to find the benefits and negative effects of a particular type of radiation.

2.The judge, the prosecutor, the counselor for the defense, the defendant (electromagnetic spectrum), and the jury are selected from among the students of a class.

3.The rules of the game and the duties of each trial participant should be explained in detail some time before the lesson.

4.To make the trial more interesting, the speeches of the witnesses are to be accompanied by experiments and visual aid presentations.

5.The real "biography" of the accused spectrum can be made into the public appearance of the "defendant", and the jury should ask questions to specify the details and to try to make the whole process of the trial more effective and animated.

6.At the end of the lesson the teacher should explain his/her attitude toward the whole process of the "Trial" and stress the most interesting details. A discussion of merits and shortcomings of the lesson can be also conducted during the next period.

For more detailed directions, please see this web site: http://cse.ssl.berkeley.edu/lessons/indiv/nellie/new_nelli_trial.html

Assessment 1.

Students are scored using the Oral Presentation Rubric (below).

Dimension	0	1	2	3	4	Score
Ideas	no presentation; topic is not relevant; or contains inappropriate material	attempts to communicate idea, but purpose, supporting information, data, and/or conclusions are absent	communicates ideas, but purpose is unclear and/or supporting information, data, and/or conclusions weak	clearly presents ideas with adequate supporting information, data, and conclusions; importance and value of topic clearly stated	ideas presented in a clear and organized manner with supporting information, data, and convincing conclusions; audience understands the importance and values of the topic
Organization	no presentation; cannot be followed	presentation is not organized; lacks focus and/or flow	presentation is organized; has a beginning, an end, focus, and flow	presentation is adquately organized; has good beginning and ending; is clearly focused and flows smoothly through ideas	presentation is extremely well organized; has an engaging beginning and thoughtful ending; is clearly focused on topic and flows very smoothly through ideas
Voice	no presentation; cannot be heard	voice volume is weak and poor in quality and tone; rate of delivery detracts from presentation	voice volume, quality and tone is adequate; rate of delivery does not detract from presentation	voice volume and tone are strong and clear; uses effective quality, and rarely pauses or stammers; words are pronounced correctly	voice is warm, friendly, and inviting; makes excellent use of vocal variety, tones, and intonations; holds audience attention throughout
Audience Contact	no presentation	little or no control of audience; virtually no eye contact or facial expressions; hand gestures are ineffective and awkward; lacks a sense of presence	some control of audience; some eye contact and facial expression; hand gesture do not detract from presentation; has a sense of presence	good control of the audience; good eye contact; facila expressions and hand gestures contribute to presentation; has strong sense of presence	excellent command of the audience; uses appropriate eye contact, facial expressions, and effective hand gestures; excellent sense of presence
Visual Aids (if required)	none present; contains inappropriate material	visuals are poorly done, sloppy, and contain errors; are not relevant and/or used effectively and do not contribute to presentation	visuals are neat, contain few errors, and can be seen from a distance; are relvant, used effectively and contribute to presentation	visuals are accurately done; are bright and colorful; attract audience attention and contribute to presentation	visual look professional and creative; contribute greatly to presentation
Creativity	no presentation; contains inappropriate material	lacks original touches	contains a few original touches which enhance presentation	thoughtfully and uniquely presented; contains original touches throughout which enhance presentation	extremely clever and presented with originality; unique approach that truly enhances presentation

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