e=mc2andallthat

I think the Singapore Bar Model is a neat bit of pedagogy that has great potential in Science education.

Essentially, the Singapore Bar Model uses pictorial representations (often in the form of a bar or line) to help students bridge the gap between concrete and abstract reasoning. I wrote about one possible application here.

A recent discussion on Twitter started me thinking about if it could be applied to kinetic energy.

For example, how would you explain what happens to the kinetic energy of an object if its velocity is halved?

Many students assume that the KE would halve as well, instead of reducing to a quarter of its original value.

How can we help students grasp this slippery concept without using algebra? Algebra would work fine with your higher sets, of course, but not necessarily for other groups.

This gives a clear visual representation of the fact that the KE quarters when the velocity halves. In other words, 0.5 x 0.5 = 0.25.

(Note that I have purposefully used decimals as we know that many students struggle with fractions(!))

Many students found the following question on an AQA paper extremely challenging:

The correct answer is that the power output drops to one eighth of its original value.

Could the Singapore Bar Model helps students to see why this is the case?

I think it could: