A Free Tutoring Service: Preparing For the Future

                       A Federal and State of California Nonprofit Corporation 

                           Lesson Review and Activities:  Feb.18, 2001 

                        Cleophas "Mike" McAlpin................ Chief Tutor

Time Line..  Mathematics Tables, if necessary!

2:00 PM Tutoring Begins...7:00PM...Tutoring ends.

                                                        The Practicality of Education

Oftentimes, students ask the question, "Why must I learn this type of stuff?" Oftentimes, it must be shown why it is necessary to learn something about math and science before qualifying for a job in the computer, electrical or electronics fields. That led us into "The Practicality of Education" with a lesson on electronic construction .

Water flow versus electrical current flow is an adequate analogy to convey the concept of electrons flowing through a copper wire.  Copper must be discussed first, however, and its position on the Periodic Table of the Elements clearly defined. Copper must be investigated for conductivity, electron configuration and physical properties before moving on to "Ohm's Law", which states that one volt can cause a current of one ampere to flow through a resistance of one ohm when one volt is applied. Perhaps, the conductor of electricity  might be copper, or it might be gold, silver and aluminum. The Periodic Table of the Elements gives us the best conductor as well as the most costly, if we want to string wires across the United States. So, one must know the relative conductivity and cost if one is an electrical engineer, or if one is an electrical worker for some City utility. At any rate, examination questions will pertain to the "order of conductivity" and that is why we must know something about the Periodic Table of the Elements.

Batteries are used everyday, but how many of us know about the internal construction? How many of us know about the carbon and the chemical reaction that produces electricity? How many of us know that electrons are under pressure to travel from the negative to the positive terminal when a conductor is strung between those terminals? How many of us know that a multi-vibrator circuit consisting of nand gates could use this voltage to send pulses of 5 volts d.c. to an npn transistor, causing a buzzer to sound with each pulse?

The electronic project was taken from our Radio Shack project book. The circuit used two quad-nand gates for the vibrator circuit and two to direct the pulses to light emitting diodes; thus the name of the circuit was..." winking diodes". We were not just satisfied to build this electronic circuit, we made modifications and additions.  We inserted other light-emitting diodes; we inserted a power npn transistor as an amplifier to magnify the output of our multi-vibrator so that the power would be there to operate a buzzer ....or our  walking dinosaur (model built by students). We made changes to the circuit by adding electrolytic capacitors to change the frequency of oscillation. We added a variable resistor (potentiometer) to change the current through resistors. We added diodes to each of the inputs and each of the outputs of transistors to see the electrical pulses of D.C. We added a relay to the circuit to see the operation of a relay.

The students received a lecture on "resistance". They were reviewed on the color code and led through examples on how to read the value of a resistor. They were introduced to the capacitor, diode, transformer, variable resistor, variable capacitor, electron tube, transistor, relay, coil, and finally integrated circuits. Each of these electronic devices was described and the role in electronics clearly defined. These electronic devices are linked to our study of math and science at every turn. Finally, our lecture ventured off into the world of computers.

We reviewed binary numbers. We reviewed the math related to exponents and dealt with the powers of 2. The binary number 11111 is equal to the decimal number of 31. Do you know why? The students now know. They can use fingers to count in binary. They will be taught more about the "off and on" states of circuits as relates to "and gates, nand gates, or gates and nor gates". They will be sufficiently taught about "truth tables" to get a job in the computer field. They were told about the inner working of a computer and how to upgrade one. They will be prepared, upon leaving High School, to get a high paying job in the electronic or electrical field, if that is their desire. (Salary range---$40,000-$100,000)

The students were taught some of the math related to electrical theory. There is a great deal of math as well as science connected to the electrical field. The study of electricity provides a practical doorway for education. It leads us unto trigonometry and calculus. It leads us into chemistry and biology (electronic signals from pace makers, i.e..) It leads us into economics. Electricity and electronics are in our future and that is why the students of ... A Free Tutoring Service... are preparing themselves for it.

What our Free Tutoring Service covered in two hours was  equivalent to one week in a trade school. I know; I went to a Trade School and paid a lot of money for it, too. The students were attentive and worked very hard, but too much technicality in too short of a time can cause the mind to "scream out" for a break.

As a reward, I took the students to Redondo Beach Pier and treated them to an ice cream cone and a game of air hockey. This trip took approximately one and one-half hours. We believe in these sorts of things; rewarding students for a job well done. Do you believe in this concept? It works!

Students returned home at 6:00PM. I took some of them to their homes in Compton...after a conference with two of the parents.