Learning Scientific Practice in Virtual Environments

9809579计算机技术在地球科学教育中发挥着越来越重要的作用，但缺乏对学生如何从虚拟环境中最好地学习的深入研究。 在先前的NSF资助下，Prothero为UCSB每季度200至300名学生的大型海洋学班的本科地球科学课程创建了一个“虚拟环境”。 PI的-认知心理学家（迈耶），科学教育研究员（凯利），和数学家（普罗瑟罗）-将合作，以确定在这个“虚拟环境”学习的有效性。研究的问题包括：1）如何利用教育技术创造一个虚拟环境，促进学生对科学的理解？2)什么是虚拟环境的必要特征，使其成为有效的学习工具？3)教育技术如何支持学生学习科学实践，如提出可研究的问题，从证据中进行辩论，权衡替代解释？ 本研究结果将被用来制作一本面向中学和大学地球科学教师的教师手册。该手册将在网上提供，并视需要以其他形式提供。

9809579 Computer technology is taking an increasingly important role in geoscience education, however in depth studies of how students can best learn from a virtual environment are lacking. With prior NSF funding, Prothero has created a "virtual environment" for an undergraduate geoscience course for UCSB's large oceanography class of 200 to 300 students per quarter. The PI's - a cognitive psychologist (Mayer), a science education researcher (Kelly), and a geophysicist (Prothero) - will collaborate to determine the effectiveness of learning in this "virtual environment". Some of the questions to be investigated include 1) how can educational technologies be used to create a virtual environment that promotes students' understanding of science?, 2) what are the necessary characteristics of a virtual environment that make it an effective learning tool?, 3) how can educational technologies support students' learning of scientific practices, such as posing researchable questions, arguing from evidence, weighing alternative explanations? The results of this research will be used to create a teacher's manual oriented toward middle school and college level teachers of earth science. The manual will be made available on the Web and in other forms as necessary.