TEACHERS SCAFFOLDING STRATEGIES IN COMPUTER-SUPPORTED, INQUIRY-ORIENTED SCIENCE CLASSROOMS

Transcription

1 TEACHERS SCAFFOLDING STRATEGIES IN COMPUTER-SUPPORTED, INQUIRY-ORIENTED SCIENCE CLASSROOMS Alexia Sevastidou, Costas Constantinou¹, and Eleni Kyza² ¹ University of Cyprus, Learning in Science Group, Department of Educational Sciences ² Cyprus University of Technology Abstract: Recent calls for reform in science education emphasize inquiry-based science learning as a valuable pedagogical paradigm that promotes the characteristics of science as a way of knowing. Still, teachers face many challenges in transforming their pedagogy into an inquiry-oriented one. As supported in literature, a main challenge that teachers face is finding ways to support their students when engaged in inquiry-based learning. Over the last few decades, as new technological tools have come into the educational scenery, teachers face even more challenges. Even though numerous studies explored the nature and tendencies of these challenges, very limited research has focused on how teachers choose to employ tools and strategies in everyday classroom settings. The purpose of our study was to explore how five teachers, who were novices in teaching with computer-supported inquiryenvironments, used strategies and scaffolding tools in order to support their students in an inquiry-based learning manner. A main finding was that the way teachers chose to provide learners support responded to the way they approached inquiry-based learning; teachers who had a more open approach to inquiry adapted their scaffolding strategies in order to support students in doing inquiry, while teachers who approached inquiry in a more guided way, primarily focused on guiding students to complete tasks. Computer-based scaffolding tools were employed according to these tendencies. In all cases, teachers employed less computer-based scaffolding tools that they originally stated in their lesson plans. Responding to the calls for research grounded in classroom practice, our study provides insights of the way novice teachers promote inquiry-based, computer-supported learning in real classroom settings. Keywords: inquiry-based science, scaffolding, teachers BACKGROUND, FRAMEWORK, AND PURPOSE The need to explore teachers uptake of inquiry-based pedagogy has become critical, as inquiry-based science teaching and learning has been in the frontline of reform efforts in science education for the past few decades (Millar & Osborne, 1998; NRC, 2000).

2 An inquiry-oriented approach to learning and teaching requires teachers to be able to provide their students support; to guide them in making sense of their observations, using logic and reasoning, and data as evidence (Crawford, 2007). Scaffolding, however, has been proven difficult to implement in complex everyday classrooms. While numerous studies explored the nature of the challenges that teachers face in implementing inquiry-based lessons, there still is a need to examine how inquiry is being carried out in real-world, everyday classroom settings, how pedagogical strategies are used and how scaffolding technologies are employed (Kim & Hannafin, 2011). Our study, while takes in mind findings relevant to the nature of teachers challenges, aims to investigate the core practices of teachers in computer-supported, inquirybased classrooms and more specifically the way they use strategies and technological tools to support their students. In this way the study responds to calls for research in science education grounded in classroom practice that are relevant to teachers everyday reality (Luft, 2010). The pedagogical framework of inquiry-based learning and teaching The emphasis on inquiry as pedagogy stems from a general consensus among theorists for a need for science education to place an emphasis on the scientific ways and practices used to establish, extend, and refine scientific knowledge (NRC, 2000), and move in this way beyond the portrayal of science as a mere body of knowledge that reflects current understanding of the world (Grandy & Duschl, 2007; Van Joolingen, De Jong, & Dimitrakopoulou, 2007). This trend for placing an emphasis on inquiry is also reinforced by arguments about the failure of traditional science education to adequately prepare scientifically literate future citizens. Such an endeavor would require the engagement of students in reconsidering scientific ideas, making sense of persuasive messages, testing conjectures, interpreting data collected using modern technologies, and seeking more and more coherent understanding (Linn, Davis, & Bell, 2004). Inquiry, a term conventionally associated with scientific practice, describes a process that is multifaceted and complex. According to Grandy & Duschl (2007), scientific inquiry is comprised by elements such as theory development, conceptual change and model construction, while the role of experiments is situated in theory and model building, testing and revising. Inquiry-based science education has been interpreted over time in many ways throughout the science education community. In each case, the term inquiry has been associated with quality teaching and learning in science (Anderson, 2002). The present study, interprets inquiry as a teaching and learning framework that seeks to promote collaborative development of conceptual models with interpretive capacity through classroom practices and discourse that highlights some aspects of authentic science. Lessons organized in sequences that promote self-regulated learning and

3 place emphasis on active engagement, discursive argumentation and emergent student autonomy are important in maintaining this type of learning and teaching. In this framework the role of the teacher is to support students in complex tasks like framing questions, grappling with data, creating and critiquing explanations (Crawford, 2007). Accordingly, scaffolding in the inquiry based classroom is realized as the support given to students that allows them intellectual space as well as structure, and promotes the negotiation of ideas and conceptual evolution while, at the same time, introduces students to inquiry processes (Holbrook & Kolodner, 2000; van der Valk & de Jong, 2009). In doing so, teachers are expected to use tools and other scaffolds that can be distributed across the learning environment, on and off computers. METHODS The study followed a design-based research approach (Barab, 2006), as we closely studied cases of teachers, who were novices in computer-supported inquiry-based learning and teaching, as they went through multiple iterations when dealing with the design and eventually the enactment of such environments. Our research questions were: a) which types of support do novice teachers use in order to scaffold students in pursuing computer-supported inquiry-based science learning, and b) how do they embed computer-based scaffolding tools in the way they provide support to students. Participants in the study were five graduate students who enrolled in a science education course about new technologies and learning in science. One participant had a first degree in Physics and four participants had a degree in Elementary Education. Four out of five participants had some teaching experience, and two of them were at the time carrying a full teaching load. Participants background information is illustrated in Table 1. Table 1 Participants background information Teachers First degree in Andreas George Christine Alice Suzan Physics Education Education Education Education Status Pre-service Pre-service In-service In-service Pre-service Years of teaching experience <1 < <1 At first, teachers had to participate in a semester-long course about new technologies in science teaching at the University of Cyprus. The course used design-based learning in order to prepare teachers to deal with the theoretical and practical dimensions of computer-supported inquiry based learning. During this course teachers

4 developed web-based inquiry learning environments using the web-based learning platform of STOCHASMOS ( Learning environments on STOCHASMOS are problem-based; they begin by posing an overarching question, which students are asked to pursue through a series of investigations. These investigations might engage students in using various types of data, which they can handle using the platform s computer-based tools. After the course completion, teachers enacted their designs in real classroom environments as shown in Table 2. We collected data during both the design phase and the enactment phase of the environments. Data collected were: a) teachers web-based learning environments, b) written teachers guides to these environments, c) teachers reflection journals during the design and enactment, d) video recordings of lessons enactments by each teacher, e) researcher s observation notes, f) interviews with each teacher. Table 2 Subject, duration, and intended audience of teachers enactments Teachers Andrea Alice Christine Suzan, George* Subject domains Physics, geology, geography,argum entation skills Environmental education, decision making skills Biology, health education, decision making skills Biology, thinking skills Driving question Which level of seismic hazard characterizes the Cyprus region? Which measure is most suitable for dealing with water management issues in Cyprus? Is it is safe to consume aspartame? What caused the massive absences of the students in a primary school? School grade Secondary, 5th Primary, 6th Primary, 6th Primary, 6th Duration (lessons) 4*45 4*45 8*40 4*40 *Suzan and George worked collaboratively in designing a shared web-based inquiry-learning environment. We followed a case study methodology (Yin, 1994) in analyzing the data. When transcribing videotaped lessons we focused on analyzing a) the activity sequence of each lesson, b) the social structures used in each lesson, and c) nature of inquiry tasks. For describing the nature of inquiry tasks we used the five essential features of classroom inquiry rubric proposed by the NRC (2000). According to this framework, depending to what extent the lessons contain the five essential inquiry features, they can be characterized in levels, level one being the most open inquiry lesson and level four the most guided one. For identifying the types of scaffolding teachers used to support students during their interactions with each group of students, we used open coding, following grounded

5 theory analysis techniques (Strauss & Corbin, 1998). Observations notes and teacher interviews were used to triangulate findings. Also, we compared how teachers described in lesson plans the use of the various computer-based tools provided by the platform, with the actual way that they used these tools during enactments. FINDINGS We identified eight different strategies that teachers used to support their students when engaged in inquiry learning. We grouped these strategies into three categories: a) strategies that were used to support students in getting on with their work, b) strategies used to support students to reflect on their work and c) strategies used to support students understanding of concepts and processes. These are summarized in Table 3. Table 3 Emerging types of verbal prompts used by teachers Verbal prompts used by teachers Prompting students to complete specific tasks and use specific tools Leading students investigation into a predefined direction Explaining to students how to organize their investigations Prompting students to reflect on and explain their thinking Prompting students to support their thinking with evidence Explaining concepts verbally Asking students to retell information Posing questions to confirm students understanding of concepts Categories of prompts Supporting students in getting on with their work Supporting students to reflect on their work Supporting students understanding of concepts and processes Our findings were that the teachers that had a more open approach to inquiry engaged their students in tasks where they mostly needed support in reflecting on their thinking and supporting it with evidence, whereas the teachers who had a more guided approach to inquiry mostly supported students by prompting them to complete specific tasks and by posing questions to confirm their understandings. Our findings are summarized in Table 4. Addressing the question of how teachers used computer-based scaffolding tools as part of their overall support strategy our findings showed that teachers did not use the computer-based tools as they originally planned. All five teachers described the use of a wider range of tools in their lesson plans than what actually took place during teaching. Also, four out of five teachers showed a tendency to use many different templates, that they designed themselves in order to support students complete their work. The role of templates in supporting reflective inquiry on STOCHASMOS platform should be to guide students in interpreting data, externalizing their ideas, and connecting explanations to data they have collected. Teachers in the study showed a tendency to use templates in order to ensure that students would stay on track and

6 complete the tasks they have planned out for them. Also, while four teachers planned to use a peer review tool, a tool that supports students share learning products, eventually did not use it in enactments. Table 4 Teachers verbal prompts compared to the openness of inquiry as implemented in enactments Teacher Suzan George Andreas Alice Christine Types of prompts mostly used by each teacher Prompting students to reflect on and explain their thinking Prompting students to complete specific tasks and use specific tools Prompting students to complete specific tasks and use specific tools Prompting students to reflect on and explain their thinking Prompting students to support their thinking with evidence Explaining concepts verbally Asking students to retell information Prompting students to reflect on and explain their thinking Prompting students to support their thinking with evidence Level of inquiry 3 3 1,2 4 1,2 CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS By exploring the types of support that teachers used when they enacted computersupported inquiry-based lessons we can draw conclusions about: a) the way teachers understand the nature of computer-supported inquiry-based learning and b) about teachers challenges in using computer-based tools for scaffolding learners. Three teachers in our study approached inquiry-based learning in a guided way and this approach was also evident in the way that these teachers provided support to learners; they designed simple tasks and they used strategies that aimed to support students in completing these tasks. Two teachers, who had a more open approach to inquiry, supported learners in acting and thinking in an authentic science context. Since all of the teachers were novices, the use of computer-based scaffolding tools in their teaching had an experimental character. This explains the fact that all teachers planned to use more computer-based tools that they actually did. Three out of five cases of teachers in our study showed a tendency to emphasize in task accomplishment rather than in the advancement of ideas. Also, they showed the tendency to use predesigned templates in order to scaffold learners in following a

7 specific inquiry flow. Kali et al. (2011) report similar findings; novices in their study tended to focus on content hierarchy when building a lesson flow. Lakkala (2005) also reports that upon implementation of technology supported inquiry, teachers tended to turn back to conventional school tasks and assignments. Considering the importance of inquiry-based science, our study gives evidence about the challenges that teachers face when constructing their own images of inquiry pedagogy through the design of learning environments that are computer supported. It also provides insights of how to support teachers develop appropriate support strategies for promoting inquiry-based learning. REFERENCES Anderson, R. D. (2002). Reforming Science Teaching: What Research Says About Inquiry. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 13(1), Barab, S. (2006). Design-Based research: A methodological toolkit for the learning scientist. In Saywer, K. (Ed.). Handbook of the Learning Sciences. Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press. Crawford, B. A. (2007). Learning to teach science as inquiry in the rough and tumble of practice. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 44(4), Davis, E. A., Petish, D., & Smithey, J. (2006). Challenges New Science Teachers Face. Review of Educational Research, 76(4), Grandy, R., & Duschl, R. (2007). Reconsidering the Character and Role of Inquiry in School Science: Analysis of a Conference. Science & Education, 16(2), Holbrook, J., & Kolodner, J. L. (2000). Scaffolding the Development of an Inquiry- Based (Science) Classroom. Paper presented at the Fourth International Conference of the Learning Sciences. Kali, Y., Goodyear, P., & Markauskaite, L., (2011). Researching design practices and design cognition: contexts, experiences and pedagogical knowledge-inpieces. Learning, Media, & Technology, 36(2), Kim, M. C., & Hannafin, M. J. (2011). Scaffolding problem solving in technologyenhanced learning environments (TELEs): Bridging research and theory with practice. Computers & Education, 56(2), Kyza, E. A., & Constantinou, C. P. (2007). STOCHASMOS: a web-based platform for reflective, inquiry-based teaching and learning. Cyprus: Learning in Science Group. Lakkala, M., Lallimo, J., & Hakkarainen, K. (2005). Teachers' pedagogical designs for technology-supported collective inquiry: A national case study. Computers & Education, 45(3),

8 Linn, M.C., Davis, E. A., & Bell, P. (Eds.) (2004). Internet environments for science education. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Luft, J. A. (2010). Building a bridge between research and practice. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 47(7), Millar, R., & Osborne, J. F. (Eds.) (1998). Beyond 2000: Science education for the future. London: Nuffield Foundation. NRC (2000). Inquiry and the national science education standards: A guide for teaching and learning. Washington, DC: National Academy Press. Strauss, A., & Corbin, J. (1998). Basics of Qualitative Research. Techniques and Procedures for Developing Grounded Theory. London: Sage. van der Valk, T., & de Jong, O. (2009). Scaffolding Science Teachers in Open - inquiry Teaching. International Journal of Science Education, 31(6),