Suwaree Pongtheerawan
Topic:
"Six thinking hats" methodology for science project.
Merits:

Suwaree is a science teacher. Her approach is to know each student characteristic before teaching, to understand students’ emotion and learning needs and to be able to meet students’ expectation. She uses learning and teaching materials in the area and implements science pedagogical method, for example, surrounding problems in daily live for students to solve by  using science problem solving process. She develops students thinking process through problem-based learning. learn to solve the problems from experiences both inside and outside classroom.

 

Contribution:

Title : Six thinking hats for science project.

For many years, I had taught the science project. The main problem that I face is the lacking in systemic thinking of student and make their though conflict.So, I and partner decide to solve this problem. We think the idea management process can help student capturing the key idea to make project successful.I believe that if student have systematic thinking, it will help them easier, clearer and faster brainstorming the creative ideas.

I am interested in the six hats theory by Dr.Edward de Bono. To help students think systematically.So the topic of the project starting from problem around students, we call “Science project close to villager”. Then, we use the fish bone diagram to separate the problem and we can choose the most interesting issue from just 1 fishbone.

After that, we use six hats techniques to dothe systematic thinking. We start with the white hat, bysearching for knowledge, ideas that student are interested and working principles from others researches, then analyze the information with 5W1H (whom, what, where, why, when, how).

The second, the yellow hat. We analyze the data in the positive points of the project, highlights of information.

Does the project be interesting challenge? or Does the information be a great advantage that we will be further developed ?

The third, the black hat. We look the data in difference site, that is negative points we consider about what is the weakness or what is problem that we need to solve for developing the project.

The forth, the red hat or the decision hat. Under the analyzed data, we determine with critical thinking about beginning of the project. If answer is no, student will choose next topic in the fish bone diagram and repeat the white to red hat again.

The fifth is green hat or creative idea. The green hat consist of vein diagram that will help students think the new idea by consider from searched in formation and the topic that student want to know and giving decision for student to think outside the box.

When they have a clear direction and have the new idea in the interested issue. Then using a the blue hat to plan the ideas for beginning their project.

I have been using these methods with my students. I can see that they are happy in studying science projects. So I and students are proud of the work . My students have won prizes in the project competition, such as receiving awards from the global project competition at Intel ISEF at the United States in 2009, 2011,2012, 2017, received the winner of the Stockholm Junior water prize 2017 in Sweden, received international awards in IEYI from India, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia And the first prize in Thailand. Therefore, this method is suitable for students in my country and help them successful in science project.

Expectations:

I  want to  share  my experience and  bring the new teaching innovation to develope teaching