Enhancing and Assessing Spatial Cognition through Computational Craftwork

通过计算工艺增强和评估空间认知

• 批准号: 0125363
• 负责人: Michael Eisenberg
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: University of Colorado at Boulder
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2002
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2002-06-01 至 2007-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0125363&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Enhancing; Assessing; Spatial; Cognition; through

When professional mathematicians and scientists discuss the nature andorigins of their own creativity, they often mention the central roleplayed by visual and spatial thinking. But despite the apparent importanceof visual/spatial cognition in mathematics and science education, there isstill relatively little research aimed at understanding, enhancing, andassessing spatial reasoning in math and science students. Even more, thereare few efforts that seek to blend novel computational media with thesorts of spatially and mathematically rich hands-on crafting activitiesthat influenced and motivated earlier generations of scientists. Webelieve that progress can be made on both these fronts--on both basiccognitive research and pedagogical development--by an effort atintegration. That is: by designing playful, creative, and technologicallysophisticated educational materials for exercising and enhancing spatialcognition, we can use those materials as the means to explore andunderstand fundamental issues in spatial cognition as well.In the course of this project, then, we plan to:* Characterize the nature of spatial expertise in the understanding ofthree-dimensional forms, while creating flexible assessment techniques tomeasure development of that expertise;* Devise a practical spatial curriculum of materials designed to enhanceand exercise spatial cognition. This curriculum will be based on acombination of both hands-on work and creative computational papercraftingactivities.* Extend our current software research environments (HyperGami andJavaGami) to incorporate online spatial advisors that assist students inreflecting upon, understanding, playing with, and interpretingthree-dimensional polyhedral forms; and* Create new software to explore both traditional and novel realms ofmathematical papercrafting, such as pop-ups, flexagons, anamorphic art,and surface models. In exploring these areas, we seek to expand thelandscape of traditional mathematical papercrafts by exploiting thecreative potential of computational media.

当专业数学家和科学家讨论他们自己创造力的本质和起源时，他们经常提到视觉和空间思维所扮演的核心角色。但是，尽管视觉/空间认知在数学和科学教育中具有明显的重要性，但旨在理解、增强和评估数学和科学学生空间推理的研究仍然相对较少。更重要的是，很少有人试图将新颖的计算媒体与影响和激励前几代科学家的各种空间和数学丰富的动手制作活动相结合。我们相信，通过整合的努力，可以在基础认知研究和教学发展这两个方面取得进展。也就是说：通过设计有趣的、创造性的、技术先进的教育材料来锻炼和增强空间认知，我们也可以使用这些材料作为探索和理解空间认知基本问题的手段。在这个项目的过程中，我们计划：*在理解三维形式方面表征空间专业知识的本质，同时创建灵活的评估技术来衡量该专业知识的发展；* 设计实用的空间课程材料，旨在增强和锻炼空间认知。本课程将基于实践工作和创造性的计算造纸活动的结合。*扩展我们当前的软件研究环境（HyperGami 和 JavaGami）以纳入在线空间顾问，帮助学生反思、理解、玩弄和解释三维多面体形式； * 创建新软件来探索数学造纸的传统和新颖领域，例如弹出窗口、柔性边形、变形艺术和表面模型。在探索这些领域时，我们寻求通过利用计算媒体的创造潜力来扩展传统数学纸艺的景观。