Project Description
For this project, we were required to form teams of two and work together to model a situation in Vensim and AgentCubes. We decided to model something we're both very familiar with: high school. In our AgentCubes model, students roam around a high school, seeking out various classrooms that correspond with their grades. When a student has gone to class a sufficient number of times, they move up a grade or, in the case of seniors, graduate. Students start out as freshmen and move up to become sophomores, juniors, and seniors. In our Vensim model, students come in from middle school as freshmen and move through the grades in different amounts, affected by the rates of moves, dropouts, and expulsions.
Vensim
The system modeling software Vensim PLE is needed to download this model. The model will automatically begin to download after you click on it. To use the model, either click on the green button in the upper middle of the screen labeled 'Simulate' or the button next to it labeled 'SyntheSim.' If you click SyntheSim, a graph and a variety of slider bars will pop up. Use the slider bars to adjust the factors that affect the different graduation rates, such as dropout rates and expulsion rates. This will affect the numbers of each grade, and therefore the graph as well. Use this to explore how changing different factors changes the numbers of freshmen, sophomores, juniors, seniors, and graduates. |
AgentCubes
No software is needed to download this model. Simply click on the image to open the AgentCubes model. In the AgentCubes model, click on the green play button to begin the simulation. In the simulation, the small colorful squares moving around the world represent students in different grades. Purple corresponds to freshmen, blue corresponds to sophomores, pink corresponds to juniors, and orange corresponds to seniors. The larger green squares represent different classrooms students can learn in. Each group of classrooms can host different kinds of students; from left to right they host freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Students move throughout the hallways, heading towards the appropriate classrooms (most of the time). When they are in a classroom, they gain one credit. When a student has eight credits, they move up a grade or, in the case of seniors, graduate. Seniors who graduate simply disappear from the model. One new freshman is created every five seconds. This model represents the inner workings of a high school. |