Engaging students in environmental research projects: Perceptions of fluency with innovative technologies and levels of scientific inquiry abilities

Ebenezer, Jazlin; Kaya, Osman; Ebenezer, Devairakkam Luke

doi:10.1002/tea.20387

Cited by 64 publications

(51 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…In the case of a virtual laboratory with Kinect sensor technology, the implementation of NUI assists in teaching chemistry is especially successful being conducting chemical experiments. Based on this research, it can be concluded that the use of innovative technologies (Calik 2013;Ebenezer et al 2011Ebenezer et al , 2012Xie and Reider 2013), an example of which is NUI, is justified by bringing positive results in teaching. The virtual chemical laboratory with the Kinect sensor is an educational program, but may as well serve as a Serious Game.…”

Section: Summing Upmentioning

confidence: 91%

“…You can highlight five areas in which different features and capabilities of ICT are used: scientific texts and lectures, cooperation and scientific discussion; representation and data collection, scientific simulation, and, finally, modeling (Linn 2003). Depending on the context of the use of ICT technology, these various expressions are used: information technology (Xie and Reider 2013), information and communication technology (Linn 2003), technology of learning (Atwater 2000;Krajcik 2002), new technologies (Krajcik et al 2000) and innovative technologies (Calik 2013;Ebenezer et al 2011Ebenezer et al , 2012Xie and Reider 2013). ICT technology, regardless of the name, may help students and teachers to broaden their thinking horizons, better mutual communication of one another, a better understanding of scientific phenomena and conducting investigations to carry scientific research (Edelson 1998;Krajcik 2002;Zhang 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Assessment of Application Technology of Natural User Interfaces in the Creation of a Virtual Chemical Laboratory

Jagodziński

Wolski

2014

J Sci Educ Technol

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Natural User Interfaces (NUI) are now widely used in electronic devices such as smartphones, tablets and gaming consoles. We have tried to apply this technology in the teaching of chemistry in middle school and high school. A virtual chemical laboratory was developed in which students can simulate the performance of laboratory activities similar to those that they perform in a real laboratory. Kinect sensor was used for the detection and analysis of the student's hand movements, which is an example of NUI. The studies conducted found the effectiveness of educational virtual laboratory. The extent to which the use of a teaching aid increased the students' progress in learning chemistry was examined.The results indicate that the use of NUI creates opportunities to both enhance and improve the quality of the chemistry education. Working in a virtual laboratory using the Kinect interface results in greater emotional involvement and an increased sense of self-efficacy in the laboratory work among students. As a consequence, students are getting higher marks and are more interested in the subject of chemistry.

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Section: Summing Upmentioning

confidence: 91%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of Application Technology of Natural User Interfaces in the Creation of a Virtual Chemical Laboratory

Jagodziński

Wolski

2014

J Sci Educ Technol

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“…An explicit definition of a research question is only given in the study by White and Frederiksen (1998) where students should formulate 'a well-formed, investigable research question whose pursuit will advance their understanding of a topic they are curious about' (p. 10). Other studies mainly focus on one of the two characteristics, respectively, the need for research questions to be testable ebenezer, kaya, & ebenezer, 2011) or their potential to advance understanding (Cavagnetto, Hand, & Norton-Meier, 2010). A third characteristic is eventually addressed in a study by Samarapungavan, Patrick and Mantzicopoulos (2011) who focus on students' ability to use science concepts in the generation of scientific research questions.…”

Section: Identifying Research Questionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Searching for a common ground – A literature review of empirical research on scientific inquiry activities

Rönnebeck

Bernholt

Ropohl

2016

Studies in Science Education

175

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Despite the importance of scientific inquiry in science education, researchers and educators disagree considerably regarding what features define this instructional approach. While a large body of literature addresses theoretical considerations, numerous empirical studies investigate scientific inquiry on quite different levels of detail and also on different theoretical grounds. Here, only little systematic research has analysed the different conceptualisations and usages of the overarching construct of scientific inquiry in detail. To close this gap, a review of the research literature on scientific inquiry was conducted based on a widespread approach to defining scientific inquiry as activities that students engage in. The main goal is to provide a systematic overview about the range and spectrum of definitions and operationalisations used with regard to single activities of the inquiry process in empirical studies. The findings from the review first and foremost illustrate the variability in the ways these activities have been operationalised and implemented. For each activity, studies differ significantly not only with respect to the focus, explicitness and comprehensiveness of their operationalisations but also with regard to the consistency of their implementation in the form of instructional or interventional components in the study and/or in the focus of the assessment of student performance. This has significant implications regarding the validity and comparability of results obtained in different studies, e.g. in the context of discussions concerning the effectiveness of inquiry-based instruction. In addition, the interrelation between scientific inquiry, scientific knowledge and the nature of science seems to be underexplored. The conclusions make the case for further theoretical work as well as empirical research.

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“…The underlying assumption of concept mapping is that learners' existing knowledge system is like a conceptual map; as learners relate or assimilate the new knowledge/concepts into their existing knowledge system, they are actively building a conceptual relationship and the new learning becomes meaningful (Novak and Cañas, 2008). Using concept mapping to construct models has been found to be very useful in scientific inquiry (Ebenezer et al, 2011). Furthermore, students who actively seek the underlying structures (of study materials) that made sense to them were found to have better academic performance (Yang and Bliss, 2014).…”

Section: Rationalementioning

confidence: 99%

Using Leaves as a Model for Teaching Watershed Concepts in Natural Resources Science and Engineering Programs

Anandhi

Yang

Hubenthal

2017

Natural Sciences Education

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This article examines the effects of using leaves, something most students see every day and have some familiarity with, as an analogy for the concept of watersheds in an undergraduate water resources engineering course. The ultimate goal of the leaf/watershed analogy and associated instruction is to increase students' understanding of hydrology principles, which in turn may facilitate better watershed management through increased public awareness, increased adoption of appropriate best management practices, and improved policy decisions. The assessment was performed with junior and senior undergraduate students enrolled in a Water Resource Engineering course. The assessment results showed that overall, students benefitted from the leaf analogy as a tool for learning watersheds. However, this effect varied depending on students' learning style preferences. core ideas• Watershed is an important concept in science and engineering of natural resources.• Introducing watershed concept using a leaf that students see every day is novel.• Using leaf analogy, watershed concept can be taught universally. Awatershed is a natural unit of land on which water from direct precipitation and snowmelt collects in a channel and flows downhill to a common outlet (Elshorbagy, 2005). The watershed is an important concept in engineering (e.g., civil, natural resources, water resources, ecological, and environmental) and sciences (e.g., geography, geology, ecology) because watersheds are more than just drainage areas in and around our communities. In engineering, they are the basis for the design of infrastructure and its management (Ruddell and Wagener, 2015). Watersheds are necessary because they provide many of us with our drinking water supply, support habitat for plants and animals, and provide us with recreational opportunities and aesthetic beauty to enjoy nature. It is the basic unit of all hydrologic analysis and designs and has three fundamental functions: (1) collection of water, (2) storage of various amounts of water for various durations, and (3) discharge of water as runoff (Elshorbagy, 2005).However, the concept of watersheds can be challenging to teach in engineering courses for several reasons. First, like many human-defined, regional-scaled geologic features such as tectonic plates, a watershed is generally conceived at such a large spatial scale that makes it difficult for people to grasp (e.g., Libarkin, 2005). Second, the dynamic and stochastic nature of watersheds challenges teachers to teach and students to understand the concepts (Loucks et al., 2005). Understanding this nature and the uncertainties in the watersheds (e.g., incomplete process understanding) also requires systems thinking. That is, what happens at one point in the watershed can influence what we see in other parts. System thinking is a tool through which we develop a deeper understanding of the system's characteristics and behavior (Anandhi, 2017;Anandhi et al., 2016;Batzri et al., 2015). Third, students are often challenged by the land...

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Engaging students in environmental research projects: Perceptions of fluency with innovative technologies and levels of scientific inquiry abilities

Cited by 64 publications

References 32 publications

Assessment of Application Technology of Natural User Interfaces in the Creation of a Virtual Chemical Laboratory

Assessment of Application Technology of Natural User Interfaces in the Creation of a Virtual Chemical Laboratory

Searching for a common ground – A literature review of empirical research on scientific inquiry activities

Using Leaves as a Model for Teaching Watershed Concepts in Natural Resources Science and Engineering Programs

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