Design Principles Workshop Supporting Students for Understanding; Sequencing Activities to Guide Scientific Inquiry Mimi Recker

Motto “…where before there was a spectator, let there now be a participant.” (Bruner, 1983)

Overview Introduction Designing for learning: scaffolding & sequencing Activity: analyze geoscience examples (20 mins) Distill design principles (20 mins) Activity: (re)design Web resources (20 mins) Revisit design principles (20 mins)

Introduction Learning goals Audience analysis Needs assessment ? Evaluation Student assessment

Introduction Learning goals Audience analysis Needs assessment Lectures/Topics orientation OR Learning activities orientation: problems, cases, projects, scientific inquiry, discourses, games … Evaluation Student assessment

Scientific Inquiry “Inquiry into authentic questions generated from student experiences is the central strategy for teaching science” (NRC, 1996). Involves reviewing info, posing questions, planning investigations making observations & predictions, using tools, proposing explanations, communicating results … Requires access to information resources and tools

Two Design Principles Designing for learning: Scaffolding (supporting) Sequencing

Views of Scaffolding Experts: Learner as apprentice Discussions: articulate and debate ideas Tools: provide problem solving support [next slide]

Tools as Scaffolds Provide support: Simplify task Structure, manage, monitor task Focus attention on key problem solving aspects of task Communicate task semantics

Views of Sequencing Learner as apprentice: Expert models; learner observes Expert scaffolds & guides learner Expert fades Learner reflects, synthesizes

Sequencing Guidelines Identify set of scientific inquiry problems, projects Sequence in terms of difficulty. Check for coverage Sequence in terms of worked example, prompted example, authentic project Include opportunity for reflection & synthesis

Activities Select example(s) distill scaffolding guidelines distill sequencing guidelines

URLs envirolabs/hydro6.htm gy/lab_material/field_2002.html modules/index.htm see “experimental analysis” & “home energy audit” metrock/lectures.html

Other Design Considerations Rapid cycles of design, test, analysis, redesign Design for sharing, both content and interactions Avoid ‘not-invented-here’ syndrome