‘Do’ Type ActivitiesA Mini Presentation

By

Papia Bawa

About This Presentation

• The content is inspired and adapted from William Horton’s

2015 Online Guide as well as the designer’s knowledge of

pedagogical concepts.

• Please refer to the Readings and Resources area of this

section of LAUNCH module within Blackboard to find the

link to Horton, 2015 for more information and examples.

What Are They?

• “While Absorb activities provide information, Do

activities transform that information into knowledge and

skills. In Do activities, learners discover, parse, decode,

analyze, verify, combine, organize, discuss, debate,

evaluate, condense, refine, elaborate, and, most

importantly, apply knowledge” (Horton, 2015).

Types of Do Activities:

Practice Activities

• Drill and Practice

• Hands On

• Guided Analysis

Discovery Activities

•Virtual Labs

•Case Studies

Games and Simulations

• Games

• Simulations

Tips and Best Practices

Drill and Practice

• Drill-and-practice activities are based on ipsative or self-

learning protocols.

• They generally use a simple testing cycle in which a

problem is presented to the learner and feedback is

provided for each attempt, before posing the next

problem. Then the cycle is repeated.

Example:

• Nautical Flags (Horton, 2015)

• This activity teaches learners to recognize nautical flags. This part of the exercise teaches the learner to recognize individual flag patterns and associate them with letters of the alphabet. The learner views a grouping of flags and then types in the equivalent letters.

• After entering the answer, the learner clicks Check to see if the answer was correct. Then, the learner can click Next to see another problem(Horton, 2015).

Hands On Activities

• These are based on authentic learning principles and students are

engaged in activities in which they actually perform a task.

• Examples: Using software, machinery, accessories or apps

Guided Analysis

• As the name suggest these activities involve learners

going through a complex analysis process.

• “They answer one of the most important questions ever

asked: “So what?” (Horton, 2015).

Example

• Analyze Soil Activity (Horton, 2015)

• “This activity aides forestry professionals in classifying

soil textures based on the proportions of sand, loam, and

silt in the soil” (Horton, 2015).

Virtual Laboratories

• A virtual laboratory provides an online simulation or

calculation tool that allows learners to replicate real lab

environment.

• Example: A simulation that allows leaners to put exact

amount of virtual chemicals using a virtual pipette for a

chemistry project. This allows learners to understand the

correlation between portions and chemical reactions.

Case Studies

• Case based learning is a core concept of the Constructivist Pedagogical approach. Case studies engage learners in reading and critical analysis, which enhance their understanding of abstract and concrete concepts.

• Cases can be designed based on actual events/ incidents or fictional ones based on specific issues the lesson plan seeks to cover..

Games and Simulations

• These activities are very useful to create interactivity as

wall as challenge the learners to engage in critical thinking

and problem solving processes.

• They can also be used as role-playing activity options

• Use off the shelf, simple rules, or simple games like quiz

show, word puzzle, or branching scenario

• Use simulations when operating real life equipment is too

costly, complex, or dangerous to operate

And Now

• Please continue on to the Readings and Resource

section for more detailed information on the

concepts discussed in this presentation.

Image Credits

• Lets Do This: onlythebeat.com

• Virtual Labs: anooponline.com

• Case Studies: appliedpowerconcepts.com

• Games and Simulations. ackabiology.com

• Hands on: yoursingapore.com

• Guided Analysis: horton.com

• Virtual Lab: hiwtc.com