Micro-teaching session idea
I’m considering using this image of Lázló Biró and his invention as my object for the micro-teaching session – Biros are miracle of engineering! I’ve also included here (below) an image of a piece of work I made of a tongue juxtaposed with an image of a ball-pen.
I became interested in the idea that your tongue is similar to the ball in a pen, with your thoughts being like ink in your mouth
So for my teaching activity, I could ask participants to draw to get the ball rolling – literally.. We could have a couple of minutes to deconstruct their pen and explore the mechanism. everyone could take theirs apart to note its components and compare what they have, some have spring mechanisms etc. – I wonder if this is too dull as an ice-breaker..?
We could also try different mark-making techniques including smudging the ink, trying to write with the alternative hand you’re used to, using them to press hard and emboss paper etc. I would have a couple of minutes to ask people to share their experiences.
So that would be the first five minutes. I’d also like to show an image of a biro’s nib to illustrate how clearly visible the ball is when magnified. I used this image to inspire a piece of my own work so I’d also include that to explain the choice of object.
I’m interested in why there are many objects named for their male inventors – Jacuzzi, Heimlich (Heimlich maneuver), Adolphe Sax (Saxophone)
There’s also Shirley Jackson, a theoretical physicist, was the first black woman to be awarded a Ph.D. in the USA in 1973. In the 1970s and ’80s, she conducted breakthrough scientific research with subatomic particles that enabled the inventions by others, of the portable fax, touch-tone telephone, solar cells, fiber-optic cables, and the technology behind caller ID and call waiting.
So my session would aim to create a discussion about why female inventors names are not linked to their inventions.