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This is a PowerPoint that contains the questions that would be used with the natural selection PhET simulation. 

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This is a PowerPoint that contains the questions that would be used with the natural selection PhET simulation. 

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This video shows how to use PhET simulations by looking at a specific example of natural selection.

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PhET interactive simulations through natural selection

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This video shows how to use PhET simulations by looking at a specific example of natural selection.

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PhET's "John Travoltage" simulation in action

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Furthermore, some PhET simulations are targetted at concepts that would otherwise be too dangerous for students to investigate in their own inquiries in the classroom, such as the rather silly but visual interactive “John Travoltage” which visualises concept of electrical transmission through the human body and static electricity generation without the potential hazards associated with electrical transmission in the classroom!

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PhET's "Acids and Bases" simulation

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The above simulations are a depiction of some mathematical simulations available on the PhET website. Simulations such as the “Arithmetic” and “Balancing Act” address simple or early-level mathematics concepts such as basic operations and algebra; whilst more advanced level concepts are also accessible through PhET simulations with tools such as the Calculus Grapher and Equation Grapher.
Typically difficult to visualise concepts such as Acid-Base interactions, solar orbits and potential energy can be visualised easily and in an interactive manner through analogy and simulation of concepts too small or large in scale to normally see. Interactions that take too long or occur to quickly for the human eye can also be simulated at a visible timescale to clarify previously abstract concepts.

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A look at the scope of PhET's simulations

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A look at the scope of PhET's simulations

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The website has a functional search menu to distinguish between separate subject areas

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Image accessed from http://i57.tinypic.com/348leuh.jpg

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What types of activities does PhET offer?

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What types of activities does PhET offer?

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PhET covers each curriculum area of Science and mathematics at all educational levels and often their simulations can be scaled up or down in terms of depth to suit the level of content being taught. Each of the following areas can be searched individually using the website’s functionality:

Physics

Biology

Chemistry

Earth Sciences

Mathematics

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PhET is an online simulation database produced by the University of Colorado Boulder that provides nearly 150 free, research-based interactives in the fields of mathematics and Science. PhET cites the reasoning for its specific design into simulations as being “based on research on how students learn” (Bransford et al., 2000). Each simulation is tested in the classroom before becoming an official part of PhET by experienced teachers. Furthermore, each simulation is revisited twice or more a year to determine if it can be redesigned or improved based on recommendations from research conducted by PhET themselves.

PhET as a tool was designed with key educational goals in mind and intends for their simulations to be used to achieve these goals:

Use of analogy to construct understanding: Students use analogies in simulations to make sense of unfamiliar phenomena. Representations play a key role in student use of analogy.

Simulations as tools for changing classroom norms: Sims are shaped by socio-cultural norms of science, but can also be used to change the traditional norms of how students engage in the classroom.

Specific features of simulations that promote learning and engaged exploration: Our design principles identify key characteristics of simulations that make them productive tools for student engagement. Now we wish to study indetail how each feature impacts student understanding.

Integrating simulations into homework: Simulations have unique features that are not available in most learning tools (interactivity, animation, dynamic feedback, allow for productive exploration)

Effectiveness of Chemistry simulations: We have just begun investigating the envelope of where and how chemistry simulations can be effective learning tools.

(Educational goals from the PhET research and design web-page)

PhET aims to help students become engaged in class through encouraging inquiry, visualising abstract concepts and providing multimodal representations to invisible ideas, implementing interactivity in all cases to ensure that students are involved in the simulation and making connections to the real world, allowing students to access the content more easily in a way that might be more interesting or valuable to them. Additionally, a further aim for PhET was to be flexible in order to apply to more educational scenarios.

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Bell, R. L., Smetana, L. K. (2008). Using computer simulations to enhance science teaching and learning. National Science Teachers Association, 3, 23-32.
Bransford, J., Brown, A., & Cocking, R. (Eds.). (2004) How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School., Washington, DC: National Academy Press.
Chamberlain, J. M., Lancaster, K., Parson, R., Perkins, K. K. (2014). How guidance affects student engagement with an interactive simulation. Chemistry Education Research & Practice 15, 628–638. DOI:10.1039/C4RP00009
A Chin, C. and Brown, D. E. (2000), Learning in Science: A Comparison of Deep and Surface Approaches. J. Res. Sci. Teach., 37: 109–138. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1098- 2736(200002)37:2<109::AID-TEA3>3.0.CO;2-7
Hensberry, K. K. R., Paul, A. J., Moore, E. B., Podolefsky, N. S., Perkins, K. K., D. Polly (Ed.) (2013) PhET Interactive Simulations: New Tools to Achieve Common Core Mathematics Standards. Common Core Mathematics Standards and Implementing Digital Technologies (147-167), Hershey, PA: IGI Global.
Hoy, A.W., Margetts, K. (author) (2016).Educational psychology (4th edition). Melbourne, VIC Pearson Australia Mishra, P., & Koehler, M. J. (2006). Technological pedagogical content knowledge: A framework for teacher knowledge. Teachers College Record, 108(6), 1017-1054. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9620.2006.00684.
Moore, E. B., & Perkins, K. K. (2014). Assessing the implicit scaffolding design framework: Effectiveness of the Build a Molecule simulation. In Proceedings of the National Association for Research in Science Teaching (NARST), Annual International Conference. Pittsburgh, PA.

Perkins, K., Adams, W., Dubson, M., Finklestein, N., Reid, S., Wieman, C., LeMaster,Ron (2006). PhET: Interactive Simulations for Teaching and Learning Physics. The Physics Teacher, v. 44, pp. 18-23.
Windschitl, M., Thomas, A. (1998). Using computer simulations to enhance conceptual change: The roles of constructivist instruction and student epistemological beliefs. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, v. 35, n. 2
Zimmer, E. (2012). Inquiry-based Lessons and PhET Simulations - A great match for Middle School Classrooms. In P. Resta (Ed.), Proceedings of Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2012 (pp. 2652-2654). Chesapeake, VA: Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE).

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Ozlem Alpcan, Nameer Hana, Fiona Tingate & Jack O'Shaughnessy

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http://bit.ly/2eglhlj