Transformation

In order to achieve understanding of a concept such as significant figures, students must first gain knowledge of that concept in small, defined pieces.  To this end, the most important “facets of understanding” that need to be considered and addressed are as follows:

1. Explanation: Learners will develop beyond memorization and utilization of significant figures.  They will use evidence and logic to explain the importance of expressing data with precision and accuracy.  Through the practice of comparing “raw” data with properly formatted data, they will also observe the benefits of using significant figures when recording or interpreting quantitative data. 

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2. Interpretation: As a result of the explanation component, students will view significant figures as a process that is meaningful and essential to peer review.  It will no longer be viewed as a futile and ambiguous requirement.  Adding meaning to this chemistry objective will reduce frustration, improve confidence, and support retention.

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3. Empathy: This seems an odd choice at first glance, but a form of empathy is an important component in science.  One of the main tenants of science is repeatability.  Research, experimentation, recording of data, results, and conclusions should all be easily reproducible by a knowledgeable and careful peer.  In order to make this possible, a student scientist must be able to anticipate and address issues that might be encountered by another person.  Something that may be simple or clear to them may be unclear and confusing to another.

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Access to graphing calculators with Sig Fig functionality would support student learning in a variety of ways, based on what it does and what it does not do:

• Sig Fig functionality on graphers is not able to provide significant figures on single data points.  Therefore, students must have independent knowledge of how to express independent numbers with appropriate digits.

• With this in place, the SF-enabled device performs calculations with this data and expresses the answer using significant figures.  This functionality can be turned off to express data in “raw” form.   Students are, therefore, able to practice calculations and have a built-in answer checking resource.

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Assessments will naturally evolve as a result of this technology.  In the past, assessments focused only on whether or not students could properly utilize significant figures for individual data points.  With the additional of this technology, that previous goal will be a stepping-stone to more in-depth assessments: explanations of why significant figures are important, discussions regarding the applications of Sig Fig rules and why these are logical, calculations performed without graphers and others performed with graphers, chemistry labs with peer-reviewed data and conclusions, and even extension activities such as student presentations that utilize graphing calculators to demonstrate and explain the concept of significant figures to classmates.