From design to narrative: the development of inquiry-based learning models

The University of Nottingham and the Open University are partners in a ca. £1.2m project to help school students learn the skills of modern science. The three-year project, Personal Inquiry (PI) (funded by the UK ESRC and EPSRC research councils), is developing a new approach of 'scripted inquiry learning', where children investigate a science topic with classmates by carrying out explorations between their classroom, homes and discovery centres, guided by a personal computer. This paper describes our progress to date on the development of four models for inquiry-based learning, as part of the PI project. These are being used as the basis for the development of educational scenarios and associated scripts to explore the use of mobile technologies in supporting an inquiry-based approach to teaching Scientific thinking across formal and informal learning

Location-based and contextual mobile learning. A STELLAR Small-Scale Study

This study starts from several inputs that the partners have collected from previous and current running research projects and a workshop organised at the STELLAR Alpine Rendevous 2010. In the study, several steps have been taken, firstly a literature review and analysis of existing systems; secondly, mobile learning experts have been involved in a concept mapping study to identify the main challenges that can be solved via mobile learning; and thirdly, an identification of educational patterns based on these examples has been done. Out of this study the partners aim to develop an educational framework for contextual learning as a unifying approach in the field. Therefore one of our central research questions is: how can we investigate, theorise, model and support contextual learning

ImpacT2 project: preliminary study 1: establishing the relationship between networked technology and attainment

This report explored teaching practices, beliefs and teaching styles and their influences on ICT use and implementation by pupils. Additional factors explored included the value of school and LEA policies and teacher competence in the use of ICT in classroom settings. ImpaCT2 was a major longitudinal study (1999-2002) involving 60 schools in England, its aims were to: identify the impact of networked technologies on the school and out-of-school environment; determine whether or not this impact affected the educational attainment of pupils aged 816 years (at Key Stages 2, 3, and 4); and provide information that would assist in the formation of national, local and school policies on the deployment of IC

Intramural, collaborative learning systems

This thesis focuses on three related concepts: problem-based collaborative learning; the use of multimedia tools in learning systems; and participatory design as a software engineering methodology to create multimedia tools to be used in learning systems. A literature review of the three areas is followed by an overview of the pedagogical, technological, and business trends that affect the direction of innovation in education, including problem-based learning. A discussion of a software engineering project to develop a multimedia application that enhances the learning of geography skills and puts the programming, interface design and multimedia systems capabilities of college students into action ensues. The project results are presented, and suggestions for future research are proposed

Using Sociocultural Theory to Guide Teacher Use and Integration of Instructional Technology in Two Professional Development Schools

This article demonstrates how sociocultural theories can be used to support strategic structuring of professional development activities for preservice and practicing teachers on technology use and integration. Examples are drawn from the authors\u27 experiences with teachers in two professional development schools that participated in a four-year Preparing Tomorrow\u27s Teachers in Technology (PT3) project. After a review of sociocultural theory and their context, the authors describe three activity systems in these schools: one for practicing teachers, one for preservice teachers, and a joint preservice/practicing teacher system. Important supports for use and integration of technology built into each of these activity systems included varied activities aimed at both beginning and advanced technology users, multiple levels of assisted performance, and a collaborative culture that offered numerous opportunities for shared work. Lessons learned and implications for teacher educators involved in similar partnerships are outlined

Mobile learning: benefits of augmented reality in geometry teaching

As a consequence of the technological advances and the widespread use of mobile devices to access information and communication in the last decades, mobile learning has become a spontaneous learning model, providing a more flexible and collaborative technology-based learning. Thus, mobile technologies can create new opportunities for enhancing the pupils’ learning experiences. This paper presents the development of a game to assist teaching and learning, aiming to help students acquire knowledge in the field of geometry. The game was intended to develop the following competences in primary school learners (8-10 years): a better visualization of geometric objects on a plane and in space; understanding of the properties of geometric solids; and familiarization with the vocabulary of geometry. Findings show that by using the game, students have improved around 35% the hits of correct responses to the classification and differentiation between edge, vertex and face in 3D solids.This research was supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council Design Star CDT (AH/L503770/1), the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) projects LARSyS (UID/EEA/50009/2013) and CIAC-Research Centre for Arts and Communication.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The Role of Innovative Teaching and Learning Methods Towards the Classification of Living Things: A Review

Biology continues to present difficulties in teaching and learning. Among other biology domains classification of living things is considered to be one of the challenging subjects as different studies indicated students’ misconceptions in the test to classify both plants and animals. Inadequate teaching methods were the core source of these challenges which were also found to lead to poor performance in schools. This review paper shows the role of active teaching methods to improve learning science subjects. The article gives an insight into how adopting innovative teaching methods can help educators implement appropriate teaching strategies recommended in reforms of science education, such as the Inquiry Based Learning (IBL) using the 5Es (Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate and evaluate) instructional model. Findings of this review indicate that the instructional methods give opportunities to relieve misconceptions for learners. It is appreciated to allow students learning by doing, hence perform well in assessments and evaluation due to acquired skills and competences. This is the reason why the 5Es instructional model was recommended among other active learning instructions as a remedy that can enhance teaching and learning of biology, especially the content of classification of living things, based upon its advantages in science education

Bridging the Gap Between Schools and Non-Formal Science Institutions: Using New York City\u27s Non-Formal Resources to Teach Science

Effective science teaching and learning needs to take place in an environment in which the formal and non-formal worlds of science combine their expertise and resources. Science learning and ultimately, scientific literacy for all depends on the teaching that occurs both in schools and in non-formal settings. As we move towards the attainment of scientific literacy for all, it is becoming more imperative that we recognize and utilize the media, industry education programs, non-formal science centers, museums, and other science learning outlets as valuable segments of our nation’s science education infrastructure. This paper describes the context, rationale, and outline of the non-formal science education course developed at New York University under the auspices of New York Collaborative for Excellence in Teacher Preparation (NYCETP) and the subsequently developed non-formal science education specialization