It’s 2033 and emergency crews are busy devising a disaster plan to provide first-aid, shelter and food to residents of “Haven,” a small Appalachian town that sits on an earthquake fault line.
That’s the scenario given to about 80 4th and 5th graders in District 47’s Extended Curriculum program for gifted education who are competing in a national contest as part of the Future Problem Solving program.
Their task is to work in teams to find solutions to a natural disaster, even when phones are knocked out. In preparation for the contest, students learned last week how wireless communication has become a valuable tool for rescue teams.
Bob Nelson, president of Cellular One’s Midwest office in Schaumburg, who also happens to be the father of a South Elementary 5th grader, told students in the Husmann School auditorium how cellular phones evolved from the World War II walkie-talkies to a two-way radio in 1962 to the first cell phone in 1982.
Cell phones have since become vital to rescue crews in emergency situations, Nelson said, adding that in 1996, 18 million calls were made to 911 from cell phones.
Students walked through a Cellular (site) On Wheels, or COW, a truck that contains micro and macro transceivers, which “talk” to the cell phones.
“It’s a complex process,” said Gisela Carlander, South School gifted education teacher. “The real focus is to teach kids problem solving and teamwork. We feel it gives them an insight into national disasters.”
Carlander invited Nelson to speak to students after he signed a parent survey on sharing expertise earlier this fall.
“Communication is one important thing when national disasters occur because people don’t always know where to go for help,” Carlander said.
Before their Dec. 12 deadline, students will complete a six-step process to identify a major underlying problem, brainstorm solutions in small teams of four and write a five-paragraph essay on how their solution would work.
Qualifying teams will go to regional, state, national and international competitions.
The contest is just one aspect of the Future Problem Solving program that these students participate in during the year.
“It’s a very useful, general tool. It’s a critical life skill,” Carlander said of problem-solving skills.
Most students said they learned a lot about communications and some were surprised at how such a small device has such a large coverage area.
