Learning with iPad - "Hey is that too loud for me?"

I always wondered how I could measure the existing environment with nothing more than the device I have on hand, collect the data and make some form of informed observation. One of the cool things about a device like an iPad is how there are so many sensors built into them. This includes the ability to sense, recognise, measure, and even react to a sound. With that I thought I could get students to use this to do exactly that; measure, and be informed of what the school was like in terms of decibels. In this way, we could get kids to instantly turn learning concepts into actual experiences where they will get to get curious, figure out how to do something well like measure sound levels, make connections to what are considered safe and unsafe levels of sound for us, and eventually make conclusions based on real world.

Preparation and flow:

I would need to scaffold this:

1. Have a check-in with students in terms of understanding what decibels are and how this is related to our hearing health.
2. Create roles for students in groups of 3-4.
3. One student would be the observant just using their perception of how loud a place is followed comfort level in a perception survey based on a simple likert scale of say 1-5. Another student will be actively recording the sound via a free app called Arduino Science Journal.
4. The third student would be jotting down observations of the place, including the location and what inferring what is contributing to the decibels
5. All the data would be recorded in a Numbers document (see attached example).

Possible extensions:

Once students have collected the data, it is time to have them share with other groups. They can compare and corroborate their findings and make conclusions as to whether the places they are in are conducive to learning or even more importantly posing possible health risks.

Further inquiries can be made about the perception data and how other variables might come into play, helping students appreciate and understand how gathering data involves a deliberate design to test particular hypothesis.

Attachments

Checking Decibels in your neighbourhood 2.numbers

Download  (1.8 MB)