Question

Teachers are great facilitators of knowledge and skills in the 21st century teaching and learning profession (Joseph, 2015). Teachers use teaching aids to enhance classroom instruction, extract learners’ attention and create a motivation to learn. These teaching aids are devices (computer, DVD), instructional aids (book, chalk board, picture), or objects (specimen, map, globe) that help the teacher to effortlessly carry out the teaching-learning process. A lot depends on the creative abilities of the teacher. The use of teaching aids can facilitate the learning process by making it interesting and less time consuming. The use of teaching aids enables learners to use their hearing or seeing abilities and actively perform something while learning.

Uchechi Bel-Ann Ordu (2021)


In your groups of between 4 and 5 students, you are required to create/develop a teaching aid for technology which is gears . The teaching aid should be in the form of a model and should also be user friendly, durable, and appropriately sized, cheap and easy to make, and innovative.



You should also provide a real life examples of how you will use the teaching aid( Gears) in a classroom situation. The length of the discussion should not exceed 1 pages.

Answer 1

### Teaching Aid Development: Gears Model

**Teaching Aid Design:**

For the teaching aid on gears, we propose the creation of a hands-on model using readily available materials such as cardboard, plastic bottle caps, and straws. This model will illustrate different types of gear systems (e.g., spur gears, bevel gears, and worm gears) within a compact and user-friendly design.

**Materials Needed:**
- **Cardboard:** For the base and support structure.
- **Plastic bottle caps:** To serve as gear wheels.
- **Straws:** To create axles that will enable the gears to rotate.
- **Glue and tape:** For assembly.
- **Markers or paint:** To color the gears and indicate different functions.

**Construction Steps:**
1. Cut the cardboard into a sturdy base (approximately 24" x 18").
2. Use the plastic bottle caps to create gear wheels of varying sizes, ensuring that they are drilled or punctured for axle insertion.
3. Cut straws into appropriate lengths to serve as axles for the gears.
4. Secure the gears to the base using glue, ensuring they interlock appropriately to demonstrate gear interaction.
5. Optionally, use markers to label parts of the gear system and illustrate how gears work together to change speed and direction.

This model is cost-effective, as most of the materials are recycled, and it promotes creativity and innovation among students during its creation.

### Classroom Usage Example:

In a classroom setting, the gears model can be used to teach students about the principles of mechanical advantage and the function of gears in machinery.

**Scenario:**
As part of a science lesson on simple machines, the teacher will introduce the concept of gears and their function in various machines (like bicycles, cars, and clocks). The models will be displayed at different stations around the classroom.

1. **Introduction:** The teacher will present a short explanation of gears, demonstrating with the model how turning one gear affects others.

2. **Hands-On Activity:** Students will be divided into small groups and rotate between stations, where they will manipulate the gears to observe how changing the size of one gear affects the speed and direction of another. They might be tasked to change the configurations by add or remove gears and predict the outcomes based on observed interactions.

3. **Discussion:** After the hands-on activity, students will reconvene to discuss their findings, encouraging collaborative learning and critical thinking. The teacher will guide them in discussing real-life applications of gears, such as in vehicles or factory machines, thus connecting classroom learning to the real world.

By integrating the gears model into lessons, students will gain a tactile understanding of mechanical concepts while stimulating interest and engagement in STEM fields.