by Eugene McConlough
March 1998
Building circuits tends to be conceptual so many GCSE students find electricity a difficult topic. Crocodile Clips 3 mitigates these difficulties through animation and straightforward circuit construction, using a toolbar with drop-down menus of components and values.
As well as introducing many components, the new version offers the boon of a loudspeaker output. Extra facilities include the superimposition of a second wave to produce a beat, and the great advantage over our traditional techniques is that these forms, plus a/c waves or discharging capacitor traces can be frozen on screen or recorded for discussion and analysis.
In the new version it is easier to alter values which saves time and improves clarity. The result is more effective discussion and explanation. This has been particularly useful with the thermistor but I have also used the LDR and variable resistor in class.
The animations include arrows showing the direction of the current (clicking on them gives a real time reading of current/voltage), lamp bulbs becoming dimmer or brighter, bar voltmeters on electronic components and 0 and 1 displayed when using the logic gates in your circuit. The cutest animation is of exploding components whose maximum rating has been exceeded. You get an explanation for the disaster and the component is easily replaced - and at no cost to your science department!
In a perfect - fully funded - world I would install the network version and allow full science and technology class access for 25 pupils. This would allow those on the electronics module option to try before you build and provide reliable practical investigations within the science curriculum...
If you are a Design and Technology teacher and liked the earlier electronics-only versions of Crocodile Clips I am sure you'll want to upgrade to access the mechanical links. A useful booklet includes class activity worksheets while teacher notes and answers are in the readme file.
The program is better suited to the more, rather than less, able students. However, if you are tiring of loose connections, faulty components and questions such as 'is it OK to use the red wire to connect this?' you'll love Crocodile Clips 3 - and so will your students.