This is a team-based classroom activity designed for Process-Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL). Teams of 3-4 students work together to learn about the Internet’s structure by comparing it to a city and abstracting it to graphs, comparing highways and streets to demonstrate bandwidth, and explaining what ISPs are. This is part one of a three part series on POGIL Internet. The subsequent lessons can be found here: Internet II and Internet III.
The attached files are the student versions of Internet I. Please contact the author (Clif Kussmaul, clif@kussmaul.org) for the teacher versions with solutions and additional information.
While students are working, you should circulate around the room, observe whether students follow their assigned POGIL roles, listen to how students discuss and think, and answer any questions they may have. You'll learn a lot about misconceptions and you'll get to know individual students better. This personal interaction with the instructor can be a powerful way to encourage persistence in computing.
For more info on how to implement a POGIL activity, check out Clif and Helen Hu's POGIL "Teaching Paper" in this collection. Also, please go to the CS-POGIL website and community (http://cspogil.org). For general info on POGIL, see The POGIL Project (https://pogil.org/). Also, consider attending a 1/2-day or 1-day POGIL workshop or a 3-day POGIL Summer Regional Workshop to learn more about how to effectively facilitate a POGIL classroom and develop effective POGIL activities.
Process-Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL) is a form of collaborative learning. When well-structured, as it is in POGIL, collaborative learning can help build inclusive student community. Although students work together in groups in the class, the instructor is not passive. They should circulate through the room, observe group processes, look for misunderstandings and places where students are stuck, offer encouragement, and pose questions to help students progress. These more direct interactions with faculty can help build student confidence and professional identity.