ICT4me: Big Ideas

What are the important things to keep in mind when facilitating ICT4me? In ICT4me, youth engage in projects that have design challenges. It is important that they complete the projects and take time to reflect on what they've done and learned.

Reflection occurs primarily in performance tasks. Performance tasks are the opportunity for youth to show what they know and can do, and to reflect on what they’ve learned. Performance tasks focus on one of the enduring understandings or "big ideas" that are addressed in the activities throughout the unit. Essential questions, which are in all sessions, are the big ideas rephrased into questions to be used in discussions and reflections.

Below are the Big Ideas by Unit.

Big Ideas

• Design is a process that involves identifying and solving problems for a specific group of users. All of the objects, tools, technologies, places, transportation systems, buildings, and media—the human construction of the world—that we encounter every day went through and may continue to go through the design process.
• The design process, composed of specific stages and elements, is a sequence of strategies for addressing user needs and satisfying constraints: brainstorming, planning, gathering user data, scenario development, storyboarding, requirements and documentation, prototyping, user testing, and revising.
• Design is iterative. An initial solution is often revised or improved by iteration, which often causes a refinement in the definition of the problem.
• A "mathematical disposition" toward problem solving requires analyzing given information, drawing on specific strategies, and having the ability to monitor and adjust strategy use.

Essential Questions

• Where do you see design around you?
• What is the design process?

Big Ideas

• Designs have both form (how it is designed, what it looks like) and function (what it is designed to do). The functionality can be visible (e.g. web page navigation and hidden (e.g. html code) to the user.
• Networked computing enables three types of communication: one to one; one to many; many to many. Audience and intent of the communication should determine communication design and choice.
• The Internet is a large global network comprised of thousands of smaller networks that allow information to be routed among computers. These structures have an impact on the flow of information that can affect a user’s experience.
• How to use structured approaches and models to address complicated counting problems that are found in the development of Web applications. (i.e. algorithmic thinking)

Essential Questions

• Identify the form and function of a communication tool. How does the form of a communication tool relate to its function?
• How does your audience and the intent of the communication affect your technology choices?
• How does information travel on the Internet?

Big Ideas

• A design has both form (how it is designed, what it looks like) and function (what it is designed to do). The functionality can be visible (e.g., web page navigation) or hidden (e.g., HTML code) to the user.
• Engineering conventions (i.e., shared standards) create opportunities and constraints for design.
• ICT professionals work with colleagues and users to solve problems.
• There are a variety of ICT careers. Some of these careers involve computer programming.
• Structured approaches and models in mathematics address complicated counting problems that are found in the development of Web applications (i.e., algorithmic thinking).

Essential Questions

• What are the differences between how a user interacts with the web and how an engineer interacts with the Web? Hint: You’ve engineered your web pages.
• How does HTML enable and limit your designed Web page?

Big Ideas

• Computers, in a variety of sizes, can be used independent of networks and as part of networks.
• Networks include a variety of human and technology components that can be mapped and analyzed to troubleshoot problems and improve the system.
• Mathematics: An algorithm is a detailed, step-by-step description of a solution to a problem. Computer programming is used to implement algorithms on computers to address problems.
• Mathematics: Algorithmic problem-solving includes: problem statement and exploration, examination of sample instances, design, program coding, testing, and verification.

Essential Questions

• Why would you want to use a network?
• How do computer networks and the computers they connect impact your life?

Big Ideas

• Collaboration involves a strategy for dividing tasks associated with a solution into pieces that can be worked on individually and reassembling the work products into a cohesive whole to form the solution (NRC, SCANS).
• Leadership involves teaching others new skills, communicating ideas to justify a position and convince others, and supporting a vision that may challenge the status quo (SCANS).
• To troubleshoot a problem in an information technology system, application, or operation, it is essential to have some expectation of what the proper behavior should be and how it might fail to be realized (NRC).
• Algebra: represent patterns in tables, with graphs and with symbolic expressions

Essential Questions

• How do you decide what to build?
• What is programming?

Big Ideas

• Collaboration involves a strategy for dividing tasks associated with a solution into pieces that can be worked on individually and reassembling the work products into a cohesive whole to form the solution.
• Leadership involves teaching others new skills, communicating ideas to justify a position and convince others, and supporting a vision that may challenge the status quo.
• ICT Professionals: ICT professionals work with others to solve problems: colleagues and users.
• ICT Professionals: There are a variety of ICT careers. Some of these careers involve computer programming.
• Mathematics: A "mathematical disposition" toward problem solving requires analyzing given information, drawing on specific strategies, and having the ability to monitor and adjust strategy use (e.g. use of ratios in image sizing).

Essential Questions

• How can you divide tasks among team members in order to develop an effective product?
• How can you best present your work to your client?

 

Design

Design is a process with specific stages and elements: brainstorming, planning, gathering user data, scenario development, storyboarding, requirements and documentation, prototyping, user testing, and revising (NRC, pp21).

An initial solution is often revised or improved by iteration, which often causes a refinement in the definition of the problem (NRC, pp21; SCANS).

Testing entails determining whether a proposed solution meets design goals (and whether the design addresses the problem) and works under diverse conditions, taking into account that most systems will be used in ways that were not intended, as well as in expected ways (NRC, pp22; SCANS).

All computers are programmed, meaning they follow a sequence of basic steps (NRC, pp29).

Computers

Computers, in a variety of sizes, can be used independent of networks and as part of networks ( NRC, pp30; SCANS).

Systems and Networks

Information systems include a variety of human and technology components that can be mapped and analyzed to troubleshoot problems and improve the system (NRC, SCANS).

Networks have physical and logical structures that allow information to be routed between computers. These structures have an impact on the flow (e.g., bandwidth) of information that can affect a user's experience (NRC, SCANS).

Troubleshooting

Technology analogies exist and can help one to become adept at using new technologies and to troubleshoot (NRC).

To troubleshoot a problem in an information technology system, application, or operation, it is essential to have some expectation of what the proper behavior should be and how it might fail to be realized (NRC, pp31).

Collaboration & Leadership

Collaboration involves a strategy for dividing tasks associated with a solution into pieces that can be worked on individually and reassembling the work products into a cohesive whole to form the solution (NRC, pp24; SCANS).

Leadership involves teaching others new skills, communicating ideas to justify a position and convince others, and supporting a vision that may challenge the status quo (SCANS, pp10).

 

 

• A "mathematical disposition" toward problem solving requires analyzing given information, drawing on specific strategies, and having the ability to monitor and adjust strategy use.
• How to use structured approaches and models to address complicated counting problems that are found in the development of web applications. (i.e., algorithmic thinking)
• Mathematics: Algorithmic problem-solving includes: problem statement and exploration, examination of sample instances, design, program coding, testing, and verification.
• Algebra: represent patterns in tables, with graphs and with symbolic expressions.