The Educational ModulesLower secondary level (13-15 years)• Light signals – the properties of light and its use in telecommunication• Colours – colour perception, additive and subtractive colour mixing • Lenses and telescopes – refraction and imaging• Eye and vision – comparison between human eyes and digital cameras,

learning about accommodation in the eye

Upper secondary level (16-18 years)• Making light – comparing light sources for efficiency and sustainability• Diffraction and interference – diffraction on a slit, spectrometry• Polarisation – applications in displays and life sciences• A scientist’s job – encouraging esp. young women to pursue careers in

science and engineering

Module 1: Light Signals

Didactic Framework: 3 worksheets, 1 factsheet, 1 Notes for Teachers

In this module students learn the following:

This module is designed to help students learn the basics of optical telecommunication by presenting a situation

between two villages. Students need to devise a system to allow these two villages to communicate with each

other without using electricity and whilst meeting certain criteria, much like the requirements facing engineers

working in industry. Once students establish that using light is the best means of communication they need to

send an encoded message through the optical fibre using red, green and blue LEDs. Students also learn the laws

of reflection via an experiment which uses a slit to direct light onto mirrors that then reflect the light.

That light goes fast and straight

The concept that light paths are reversible

The law of reflection

How optical fibres guide light

Teamwork

Developing technical solutions under time pressure,

while meeting specifications

Module 2 : ColoursDidactic Framework: 2 worksheets, 2 factsheet, 1 Notes for Teachers

In this module students learn the following:

The worksheets of this module do not aim at “explaining” the phenomena of colours, but rather use the topic to make

students familiar with the scientific method. Students have to choose a hypothesis, design and conduct their

experimental results, and give evidence for their conclusion.

The module is structured in two chapters:

Rainbow colours : students find out how colour filters work and use them to study the colours of the rainbow

Colour mixing : Subtractive colour mixing is illustrated with colour printing, while additive colour mixing is

demonstrated with computer screens.

Sunlight includes all colours of the rainbow

The colours in white light can be split ,e.g. by refraction

Colour filters and coloured objects appear coloured because

they absorb parts of the visible spectrum

Additive colour mixing, illustrated with computer screens

Subtractive colour mixing, illustrated with computer screens

Colour is a perception

Working with the scientific method

Designing experiments to provide evidence for a hypothesis

Distinguishing between observation and interpretation of

experimental results

Module 3 : Lenses and telescopes Didactic Framework: 1 worksheet, 1 factsheet, 1 Notes for Teachers

In this module students learn the following:

Lenses are a basic optical component. However, understanding how they work is non-trivial ! They have a wide

variety of applications. One such use is in telescopes to allow us to look at astronomical objects. In this module,

students will get to work with lenses and learn about interesting effects for themselves. More particularly they will

learn how concave and convex lenses focus light. They also build their own Galilean and Kepler telescopes to look at

distant objects.

How different lenses focus light

The physical concept of “focal point”

The difference between real and virtual images

How to build tow types of telescopes

How to work out the magnification of a telescope

The concept of field- of -view

Teamwork

Working with lenses and ray diagrams

Building their own experimental setups and relating

observations to theories

Module 4: Eye and Vision Didactic Framework: 2 worksheets, 1 factsheet, 1 Notes for Teachers

In this module students learn the following:

In this module students compare the parts of a digital camera to the parts of the human eye and discover the function

of each part and similarities and differences between the two. They measure the focal lengths of their own eyes and

learn about ‘accommodation’ – the focussing mechanism of the human eye by performing experiments with long and

short focal length lenses.

To measure focal lengths

Parts of a camera

Parts of the human eye

Function of each part

Using thin lens formula to work out maximum and

minimum focussing distances

Accommodation in the eye and how it works

Teamwork

Relating tangible concepts (camera) with more abstract ideas

(lens in the eye)

Working with lenses and ray diagrams

Module 5: Making Light

Didactic Framework: 2 worksheets, 1 factsheet, 1 Notes for Teachers, 1 video

In this module students learn the following:

This module allows students to conduct a research project wherein they are required to assess the present state of

lighting within their school, research the efficiency of the given situation and come up with better proposals. Students

also learn the different types of light sources, how the ‘colour’ of the light source when hot and cold can be a guide

to the temperature of the light source and which kinds of light sources are more energy efficient.

This module also contains a video. The video is in an animated form where the drawings on the worksheets have

been animated for students to easily make the association between the worksheet and video. The video mainly

describes the scientific concept of how different light sources generate energy and why laser light is different to other

light sources. The video will include the physical processes behind incandescent light tubes, LEDs and lasers.

the physics of different light sources

incandescence and blackbody radiation

the concept of photons

working principle of a laser

differences between types of light sources (LEDs, light bulbs,

laser)

organizing a research project

teamwork

presenting research finding with convincing arguments

Module 6 : Polarisation Didactic Framework: 1 worksheet, 1 factsheet, 1 Notes for Teachers

In this module students learn the following:

In this module, students build a polarimeter, which is a device widely used in the pharmaceutical industry as well as

in the sugar industry. Polarimeters are used to determine the concentrations of various types of sugars and chemicals.

Students perform an experiment to study how a sugar solution can rotate the polarisation of light from a laser using

two polarisers. They then relate this effect to bio-photonics applications and are given information on how some

animals can detect polarised light.

Measuring and rotating polarisation of light

Building a polarimeter

Using polarisers to measure the degree of rotation of

polarisation of light by sugar molecules

Applications of polarisation in LCD displays

Safe handling of lasers

Module 7: Diffraction and Interference Didactic Framework: 3 Worksheets, 3 Factsheets, 1 Notes for Teachers

In this module students learn the following:

In this module students discover the phenomena of diffraction and interference. They perform diffraction

experiments of laser light through a double-slit, single slit and single obstacle to view the diffraction patterns and

understand the relationship between diffracting object and diffraction pattern. They also build their own optical

spectrometer and measure the wavelengths of different colours emitted by an energy saving lightbulb with a discrete

spectrum.

The safe handling of lasers (Laser safety)

To measure the wavelength of light with the double slit (Young)

experiment.

Diffraction on a single slit and Babinet's principle

How to measure the width of a hair based on a diffraction

pattern

How the diffraction pattern of DNA lead to the discovery of its

structure

Diffraction on gratings in reflection and transmission

How an optical spectrometer works

That the spectrum of energy saving light bulbs consists of

discrete colours

Module 8: A Scientist’s Job Didactic Framework: 1 worksheet, 1 Notes for Teachers, 3 sets of statistics sheets, 1 video

In this module students learn the following:

In this module students participate in a survey within the classroom answering two typical interview questions:

‘What qualities can you offer to your career’ and ‘What do you expect from a career’. Students then conduct a

statistical survey of the answers to determine the most popular choices and if there is any significant difference

between the answers of young men and women. This leads to discussion of the ‘gender-issue’ within the classroom.

This module also contains a video designed to introduce students to the daily life of three researchers; a university

student, an industry researcher and an engineer using science for healthcare purposes. The video is shown in two

parts. In the first part (2.07 mins) the students do not see the person or hear their voice. They are only shown the

working environment, surroundings, interactions with colleagues etc. From these images students must glean the

gender of the person, the work that they do and the kind of place they work in. In the second part, students are

shown an interview where the researchers answer these questions and discuss their working life (8 mins). In this way

students get the opportunity to visualize themselves in such a research environment and think about whether or not

such a career would interest/suit them.

to identify her or his own preferences for a career

what qualities are needed to work as a scientist

whether men or women are better suited for a career in

science

the critical interpretation of statistics

what a scientist does on a day-to-day basis

what it means to study at a university