A lab by any other name: integrating traditional labs and computer-supported collaborative investigations in science classrooms

Among the most common form of collaborative discourse in middle school science classrooms is the carefully planned laboratory investigation, where groups of students follow prescribed procedures in order to reproduce and measure some scientifically explainable event. While there are clear pedagogical benefits to replicating scientific processes in a controlled classroom setting, students often have difficulty comprehending how such phenomena manifest on larger scales and connecting their lab results to the real world. The WorldWatcher data visualization software adds a novel dimension to classroom investigations by allowing students to investigate and discuss climate phenomena within a globally situated geographic context. This paper will discuss the design of an integrated classroom curricular unit on global warming in which WorldWatcher activities and traditional classroom labs complement each other in order to support student collaboration in classroom science investigations. Based on analyses of students collaborating in pairs and in whole-class discussions, we will argue that our two-pronged approach to curriculum design represents an effective framework for introducing innovative computer-supported inquiry tools in urban middle school science classrooms while remaining sensitive to the existing practices of teachers and students in these contexts.