Recent educational computer-based technologies have offered promising lines of research that promote social constructivist learning goals, develop skills required to operate in a knowledge-based economy (Roschelle et al. 2000), and enable more authentic science-like problem-solving. In our research programme, we have been interested in combining these aims for curricular reform in school science by developing innovative and progressive handheld and wearable computational learning tools. This paper reports on one such line of research in which the learning outcomes of two distinct technological platforms (wearable computers and Palm hand-helds) are compared using the same pedagogical strategy of Participatory Simulations. Participatory Simulations use small wearable or hand-held computers to engage participants in simulations that enable inquiry and experimentation (Colella 2000) allowing students to act out the simulation themselves.The study showed that the newer and more easily distributable version of Participatory Simulations on Palms was equally as capable as the original Tag-based simulations in engaging students collaboratively in a complex problem-solving task. We feel that this robust and inexpensive technology holds great promise for promoting collaborative learning as teachers struggle to find authentic ways to integrate technology into the classroom in addition to engaging and motivating students to learn science.

ResumenEste artículo de investigación presenta parte de los resultados de un estudio doctoral sobre escritura académica en español del área de historia, desde la lingüística sistémico-funcional, en particular el sistema de transitividad (Halliday y Matthiessen, 2014) y la teoría de la valoración (Martin y White, 2005), en cuanto a los significados evaluativos de actitud. El objetivo del estudio fue caracterizar el lenguaje académico en ensayos producidos por estudiantes de licenciatura y en artículos de investigación, identificando sus semejanzas y sus diferencias al expresar actitud (dimensiones de afecto, juicio y apreciación), así como la relación de los tipos de cláusulas del sistema de transitividad (procesos materiales, procesos relacionales, procesos mentales, procesos verbales, procesos existenciales y procesos conductuales) en estos significados. Usando el software UAMCorpusTool, primero se analizó cuantitativa y cualitativamente la transitividad y después los tipos de actitud presentes en los tipos de cláusulas. Los resultados arrojaron que los tipos de actitud más frecuentes en los textos del área de historia son la apreciación y el juicio, sobre todo en las cláusulas materiales y las relacionales, mientras que las variaciones en las cláusulas mentales y verbales en la expresión de tipos de actitud entre los corpus estarían relacionadas con el nivel de experiencia en la escritura académica, los géneros y las materias.Palabras clave: lingüística sistémico-funcional, teoría de la valoración, lenguaje académico, escritura académica, textos de historia, sistema de transitividad, actitud AbstractThis research report presents part of the results of a doctoral thesis about academic writing in Spanish within the area of history, following a systemic functional linguistics approach, particularly the transitivity system (Halliday & Matthiessen, 2014), and the Appraisal Theory (Martin & White, 2005), as of attitude assessing meanings. This study aimed to characterize academic language in academic essays at the undergraduate level and in research articles, by identifying their similarities and differences in expressing attitude (dimensions of affection, judgment, and appreciation), as well the relation between clause Actitud asociada a tipos de cláusulas en textos de historia. Un análisis desde la teoría de la valoración Este artículo es producto de la tesis de doctorado "Análisis de la transitividad y los significados evaluativos en la escritura académica en español: un estudio desde la teoría de la valoración", realizada como alumna del Programa de Doctorado en Lingüística de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México y que próximamente será defendida. Esta investigación de posgrado se realizó con una beca para estudios de doctorado otorgada por el Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT), de México.

Teachers have recently begun to bring makerspaces — traditionally community-operated physical spaces where people create do-it-yourself projects together — into the classroom. The author tells how she started an after-school program for fifth-grade girls at her former elementary school. By taking part in makerspaces, students learn by doing, develop confidence, and might discover career interests.

works for Caltech's Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Division as the Coordinator and Co-Director of the Caltech Classroom Connection, a science education and outreach program. He received his masters of science in physics from Caltech for his work in the field of nano-scale mechanical resonators. Before arriving at Caltech, he earned his bachelors of science in physics from the University of Florida.

Oliver received his B.S. in the neurosciences from the University of California, Riverside. He is now in the biology graduate program at the California Institute of Technology, and is working towards earning a doctorate of philosophy. Oliver is investigating the role of mitochondrial genetics in diseases affecting this organelle, and is also trying to develop techniques for manipulating the mitochondrial genome. Douglas Yung, California Institute of Technology Douglas Yung earned a Ph.D. in Bioengineering from Caltech, and a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and Mathematics from UCLA. He received the NASA Postdoctoral Fellowship and is currently working at Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. His research focuses on photonics, biosensor development, microfluidics, molecular & environmental microbiology, as well as astrobiology. He maintains the website and taught biostatistics, network circuitry, and neuronal modeling in the 2008 YESS program. Sindhuja Kadambi, California Institute of Technology Sindhuja received her B.S. in Genetics from the Rutgers University. She is currently working on her Ph.D. work at Caltech, studying glutamate gated chloride channels using electrophysiology. Paul Lee, California Institute of Technology Paul received his B.S. in Chemistry in 2003 from Dartmouth College. He is currently working on his Ph.D. work at Caltech, studying the response of DNA to oxidative damage.