Socio‐scientific inquiry‐based learning as a means toward environmental citizenship

This paper draws on the meta‐theory of Critical Realism providing a theoretical basis for the pedagogical approach of Socio‐Scientific Inquiry‐Based Learning (SSIBL) in supporting Education for Environmental Citizenship (EEC). We argue that while there are different configurations of EEC, inducting citizens in decision‐making needs satisfies the following criteria: (a) relevant transdisciplinary knowledge, (b) a values orientation toward both the complexity of, and the necessity for, a sustainable world and (c) a confidence for, and commitment to, socio-political action at individual and collective levels. In order to provide a rich perspective about how SSIBL has been operationalized in various national contexts through specific teacher professional development, we present four cases purposefully selected as exemplars from different European countries (the Netherlands, Spain, the UK and Cyprus). The four cases provide powerful scenarios to discuss different ways in which the SSIBL approach can be implemented in teacher education to meet the criteria identified and, thus, promote informed and responsible action in relation to socio-environmental issues. The whole picture shows a consistent theoretical foundation and interesting opportunities for teacher education, as a relevant strategy to prepare teachers in taking risks and integrating SSIBL within school curricula to foster environmental citizenship

Whose data are they? Elementary school students’ conceptualization of data ownership and privacy of personal digital data

The proliferation of information technology has enabled the emergence of different types of smart technologies, such as digitally enhanced toys and self-tracking wearable devices. Even though the rapid global spread of such devices has raised concerns about privacy, little is known about how children perceive such risks, while the children's voices on the topic are rarely heard. The broader goal of our work is to understand how children can be empowered through scaffolded inquiry experiences to reflect on their own use of smart, self-tracking devices and gain a deeper understanding of the digital infrastructure and the political economy of digital data. This study examined children's awareness of their digital data and issues of online privacy. At the same time, we examined the construct of psychological ownership in relation to children's personal digital data to further understand students’ disclosure practices. We report on data from 63 fifth and sixth grade students to investigate students’ awareness of how their tracked data could be used and their conceptualization of data ownership. To achieve this, we designed and implemented a learning module that employed the use of activity trackers by elementary school students. We collected data via individual pre- and post-implementation interviews, and group discussions during the implementations. Data were analyzed qualitatively using the theoretical lens of psychological ownership and frameworks of data literacy. Results suggest that students demonstrate ownership of self-tracked data, ignoring the shared ownership with other parties, but this is associated with their limited awareness of the complex infrastructure of the digital environment and the commercial exploitation of their personal digital data by others. Also, results showed that students employ a set of criteria to concede data ownership to others. Findings suggest that actions should be taken to help children develop a nuanced understanding of the data economy and its impact on themselves. This study provides directions for future research and can also inform efforts to design educational materials aiming to develop students’ understanding of online data privacy

Investigating the Processes of Teacher and Researcher Empowerment and Learning in Co-design Settings

Discussions about power have only recently begun to appear in the learning sciences literature. Most of this important work takes a critical perspective; the present work complements these efforts by examining power sharing as a catalyst for empowerment in teacher-researcher co-design. Even though teacher-researcher collaborations are discussed in the literature as contexts for empowerment, less is known about the processes that enable empowerment and their connection to learning. This case study examined co-design interactions to identify processes and conditions of empowerment in the context of designing a module to integrate Responsible Research and Innovation in elementary school science education. The co-design team consisted of seven in-service science teachers and one researcher. The main data corpus included ten face to face and online co-design meetings of over 13 hours of video, supplemented by co-design documentation, teacher interviews, and survey data. The analysis of the co-design interactions identified facilitating conditions for supporting power sharing during the co-design, which attended to socio-structural conditions to support the co-design activities and included the anticipation of real-world impact through classroom implementations. Findings suggest that teacher and researcher empowerment develop through power sharing which helps increase access to information and resources and the development of knowledge and skills, thus enabling teachers to make decisions on what and how to teach and researchers to provide just-in-time support

Is it just steps and calories? Elementary school students’ conceptualization of ownership and privacy of self-tracking data

Children are reported to have limited knowledge of where, why and by whom their data are being (re)used. This study examined students’ understanding of personal digital data, and the reasons they are willing to concede personal data ownership. Data were collected from an educational intervention with 63 elementary school students. Results indicate that students’ awareness of the commercial use of their personal data is not well-developed and that ownership of data varies according to context

Collaborative tools in the primary classroom: teachers’ thoughts on wikis

The purpose of this work-in-progress study is to examine the attitudes of primary school teachers in Cyprus on the use of wikis as a mean to promote collaborative learning in the classroom. A survey investigation was undertaken using 20 questionnaires and 3 semi-structured interviews. The survey results indicate a positive attitude of teachers in Cyprus to integrate wikis in primary education for the promotion of cooperation. As such collaborative learning activities among pupils are being encouraged

Collecting ecologically valid data in location-aware augmented reality settings: A comparison of three data collection techniques

Collecting data in a mobile augmented reality (AR) settings is challenging, as participants are dispersed in the physical space and move often; therefore, it is imperative that new techniques are investigated to facilitate richer and more ecologically-valid data collection. This study examined three in vivo techniques for collecting authentic data in mobile, AR learning situations: (a) tablet-based audio recording, (b) students’ researcher-led videotaping, and (c) head-mounted wearable cameras. Participants were eighteen 11th grade students, working in pairs. All students completed individual questionnaires examining their perception of the intrusiveness of the data collection technique and participated in interviews about the intrusiveness of technique. Audio and video from students’ work was also collected. Findings are used to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each data collection technique as a method for collecting data in location-aware augmented reality studies

A Cross-Sectional Study Investigating Primary School Children’s Coding Practices and Computational Thinking Using ScratchJr

There are increasing calls to introduce computational thinking in schools; the arguments in favor call upon research suggesting that even kindergarten children can successfully engage in coding. This contribution presents a cross-sectional study examining the coding practices and computational thinking of fifty-one primary school children using the ScratchJr software; children were organized in two cohorts (Cohort 1: 6–9 years old; Cohort 2: 10–12 years old). Each cohort participated in a six-hour intervention, as part of a four-day summer club. During the intervention children were introduced to ScratchJr and were asked to collaboratively design a digital story about environmental waste management actions, thus adopting a disciplinary perspective to computational thinking. Data analyses examined children’s final artifacts, in terms of coding practices and the level of computational thinking demonstrated by each cohort. Furthermore, analysis of selected groups’ storyboard interviews was used to shed light on differences between the two cohorts. Results are presented and contrasted across the two age cohorts via a developmental perspective. The findings of this study can be useful in considering the instructional support that is necessary to scaffold the development of primary school children’s coding practices and computational thinking

Obtaining rich data in augmented reality settings: A comparison of three data collection approaches

Collecting in-vivo data from location-aware, augmented reality (AR) settings is challenging. This study explored the ecological validity of three data collection approaches, based on students' perceived intrusiveness and the assessment of the technical quality of the data. Eighteen 11th grade students participated in three conditions: (a) tablet-based audio recording, (b) researcher-led videotaping, and (c) head-mounted wearable cameras. Analyses showed that the action cameras hold more promise as a method for collecting data in AR settings