Exercising Rats
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Approach:  Station
ACCESS
Level: Year 4 and year 8
Focus: Generating design
Resources:
Video on laptop computer (no sound); work book
frame 6.3Mb
Questions/instructions:  

This activity uses the computer.
All pets need exercise to keep them healthy. On the computer you’ll see a boy trying to get his rat to exercise. Click on the button that says Exercising Rats. (There is no sound).


[Click on graphic to enlarge.]


The rat is very fat because it does not get enough exercise. It is bored with its wheel and won’t use it.
The boy has to go to school so the rat can’t crawl on him all the time.

1. Design two pieces of equipment for the rat, to help it exercise.
2. Show what the rat would do with each piece of equipment.

Remember:
a) Rats can climb, jump, run and burrow.
b) The equipment must fit in the cage.
c) The new equipment needs to be more interesting than the wheel.
 
% responses
2008 ('04)
y4
y8
First piece of equipment:    
Met the criteria:
quite well
(had exercise potential, did fit cage
and appeared interesting)
15 (16)
31 (26)
somewhat (had some exercise potential and did fit cage)
49 (58)
53 (58)
did not meet the criteria (did not fit cage or provided wheel already given)
36 (26)
16 (16)
Clarity of use of equipment:
equipment identified and explained
13 (25)
38 (35)
 
equipment identified or explained
41 (46)
38 (49)
Clarity of the construction and
mechanisms involved:
high
9 (10)
29 (25)
moderate
34 (37)
42 (43)
low
57 (53)
29 (32)
Second piece of equipment:
Met the criteria:
quite well
(had exercise potential, did fit cage
and appeared interesting)
10 (8)
27 (17)
somewhat (had some exercise potential and did fit cage)
51 (57)
48 (58)
did not meet the criteria (did not fit cage or provided wheel already given)
40 (35)
26 (25)
Clarity of use of equipment:
equipment identified and explained
10 (19)
30 (25)
equipment identified or explained
35 (42)
38 (47)
Clarity of the construction and mechanisms involved:
high
3 (7)
20 (15)
moderate
32 (30)
39 (38)
low
65 (63)
42 (47)

Total score:

IMPORTANT NOTE:
The printed version of this task incorrectly shows the highest total score as 13
9–12
5 (9)
27 (21)
7–8
10 (13)
16 (18)
5–6
19 (24)
21 (23)
3–4
24 (20)
16 (24)
0–2
43 (35)
20 (14)
Subgroup Analysis [Click on charts to enlarge] :
Year 4
Year 8
Commentary:
Year 4 students struggled in trying to design two different pieces of equipment for exercising rats. Year 8 students showed substantially higher performance than year 4 students. Girls at year 8 performed better than boys, and Pakeha students performed better than Mäori and Pasifika students. Performance at year 4 seems to have declined slightly, with little change at year 8 between 2004 and 2008.

EXERCISING RATS EXEMPLARS [click on pictures to enlarge] –
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High Range:
ghost
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Year 4
Year 4
Year 8
Year 8
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Mid Range:
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Year 4 Year 4
Year 8
Year 8
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Year 8
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