Why Use Systems Thinking and System Dynamics in K-12 Education? |
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Author(s):
CLE |
Subject:
Why K12 SD |
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A brief answer to the question posed in the title. When ST/SD tools and concepts are used in conjunction with a student-centered approach, schools, students, teachers and communities benefit. As ST/SD is integrated into the culture of classrooms and schools, it creates a positive cycle of engagement and motivation for both students and their teachers. |
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Why System Dynamics? |
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Author(s):
Richard Turnock |
Subject:
Why K12 SD |
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From an online blog, this article presents clearly and concisely that the public school paradigms of "what" and "how" lack the "why." System Dynamics enables us to understand WHY systems work the way they do in order to prepare for the future. |
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When a Butterfly Sneezes Story 9: Butter Battle Book |
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Author(s):
Linda Booth Sweeney |
Subject:
Cross-Curricular |
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The Yooks and Zooks build weapons with greater and greater destructive capacity.
Complex Systems Connection: Cause within System. Mental models and established relationships within the system create an escalation over time which can be compared to other conflicts, e.g. Cold War. |
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When a Butterfly Sneezes Story 8: A River Ran Wild |
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Author(s):
Linda Booth Sweeney |
Subject:
Cross-Curricular |
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Based on a true story of the Nashua River, the book describes the river over a 7000-year period.
Complex Systems Connection: Short and Long Term Conflicts. The limits to growth archetype tells the story of how overuse of the river to meet short-term needs lead to its near death over the long-term. |
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When a Butterfly Sneezes Story 6: Annos Magic Seeds |
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Author(s):
Linda Booth Sweeney |
Subject:
Cross-Curricular |
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As Anno plants seeds each year, the number of seeds produced doubles, giving him ever increasing yields.
Complex Systems Connection: Cause within System. The nature of the system produces the results, in this case, exponential growth, which is a building block to more complex systems. |
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When a Butterfly Sneezes Story 5: The Sneeches and Other Stories |
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Author(s):
Linda Booth Sweeney |
Subject:
Cross-Curricular |
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Prejudice between two groups leads to actions which further promotes exclusivity.
Complex Systems Connection: Shifting Burden, Short and Long Term Conflicts. The burden of solving a need for exclusivity is shifted to a short-term solution that takes away focus from the more fundamental answer to the problem. |
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When a Butterfly Sneezes Story 4: Once a Mouse: A Fable Cut in Wood |
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Author(s):
Linda Booth Sweeney |
Subject:
Cross-Curricular |
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A hermit protects a mouse by turning him into bigger and bigger animals until finally he's a tiger. He becomes "too big for his britches," threatening others including the hermit. Finally, the hermit turns him back into a mouse.
Complex Systems Connection: Ineffective Action, Short and Long Term Conflicts. The hermit's solution creates a worsening problem over time. |
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When a Butterfly Sneezes Story 3: The Cat in the Hat Comes Back |
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Author(s):
Linda Booth Sweeney |
Subject:
Cross-Curricular |
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A cat causes trouble for two children by making a giant mess when their mother is away.
Complex Systems Connection: Ineffective Action, Short and Long Term Conflicts. The cat's methods for fixing the problem (spots) leads to an even bigger problem. |
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When a Butterfly Sneezes Story 2: The Old Lady Who Liked Cats |
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Author(s):
Linda Booth Sweeney |
Subject:
Cross-Curricular |
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When a mayor decides to eliminate all the cats on an island, it creates a cascading set of negative effects.
Complex Systems Connection: Ineffective Action, Short and Long Term Conflicts. By removing the cats, the system is completely pushed out of balance, creating havoc on the system as a whole. Only by bringing back the cats do the issues resolve. |
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When a Butterfly Sneezes Story 11: The Lorax |
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Author(s):
Linda Booth Sweeney |
Subject:
Cross-Curricular |
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The desire to have more and more drives the Once-ler to chop down more and more trees to create a product he sells. Eventually, the trees are gone.
Complex Systems Connection: Short and Long Term Conflicts. The short-term action of cutting down trees (taking a resource faster than it can regenerate) eventually leads (after a delay) to the disappearance of the forest. |
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