Verification of Learning Effects through an Activity Analysis of Mechanism Making in Technology Education

Abstract

Mechanisms are an indispensable element in manufacturing, and therefore, they are important learning contents. In Japanese education, the study of mechanisms has been incorporated into elementary school graphic arts and technology education. In making activities for mechanism learning, automata or walking robots using link mechanisms are often employed, where there is a bias in the mechanisms that can be learned through the activity. In a previous study, we practiced activities using automata. Students understood what movements could be made with mechanisms, and therefore they were able to make automata during these activities. However, they did not understand some things, how to change the speed of a driven wheel. In this study, we conducted a class practice using teaching materials developed for junior high school students and analyzed their educational effects based on students' worksheets and questionnaires. The class used friction wheels, lantern wheels, Geneva drives, cam mechanisms, lever crank mechanisms, and parallel motion linkages as teaching materials for learning about mechanisms. We clarified the educational value through an analysis of the results of a mechanisms test, explanatory materials made by the students, and a questionnaire survey.