Addressing the Challenges of Inquiry-Based Learning through Technology and Curriculum Design

1. Abstract Inquiry experiences can provide valuable opportunities for students to improve their understanding of both science content and scientific practices. However, the implementation of inquiry learning in classrooms presents a number of significant challenges. We have been exploring these challenges through a program of research on the use of scientific visualization technologies to support inquiry-based learning in the geosciences. In this paper, we describe five significant challenges to implementing inquiry-based learning and present strategies for addressing them through the design of technology and curriculum. We present a design history covering four generations of software and curriculum to show how these challenges arise in classrooms and how the design strategies respond to them. Students at all grade levels and in every domain of science should have the opportunity to use scientific inquiry and develop the ability to think and act in ways associated with inquiry... Recent years have seen a growing call for inquiry to play an important role in science education (e. This call for inquiry-based learning is based on the recognition that science is essentially a question-driven, open-ended process and that students must have personal experience with scientific inquiry to understand this Furthermore, inquiry activities provide a valuable context for learners to acquire, clarify, and apply an understanding of science concepts. At the same time, computer technologies are receiving increased attention from the science education commmunity because of excitement about their potential to support new forms of inquiry. These two reform trends are coming together in the form of numerous projects to create designs for technology-supported, inquiry-based science learning. For example, a large number of educational research and development projects are currently exploring the use of computers and networks to collect, exchange, and analyze scientific data. In the earth sciences alone, scores of educational projects have been initiated in the last decade to provide data and analysis tools to the educational community. Other projects engage learners in the collection and exchange of scientific data. Many of these projects in the United States are the direct result of NASA and National Science Foundation funding programs designed to facilitate synergies between the scientific research and education communities. The goal of this paper is to address the needs of designers of educational experiences like these. Over the last six years, the authors have been engaged in the investigation of technology-supported inquiry learning, through the design, implementation, and evaluation of scientific visualization …