ASSISTments Meets Inquiry

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The Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) five-year proposal addresses middle school students? need to learn science more deeply through the improvement of inquiry science assessment. An outgrowth of the WPI-developed ?ASSISTments Systems for Math?, and REC-funded ?Modeling Across the Curriculum?, the proposal?s main goal is to develop a rigorous, technology-based system for middle school standards-aligned assessment of inquiry skills (i.e., interpreting data, formulating hypotheses and predictions, conducting experiments, collecting data, mathematizing, and communicating and defending hypotheses) in six physical science content areas (i.e., Properties of Matter; Elements, Compounds, and Mixtures; Motion of Objects; Forms of Energy; and Heat Energy). Assessments will be aligned with the Massachusetts Curricular Framework and the National Science Education Standards. The innovative aspect of this proposed effort resides in its intent to both assess students? inquiry skills and to provide students with intelligent, systematic (as opposed to guessing), and explicit tutoring, providing feedback on their choices as they work with computer-based manipulative models (microworlds), thus increasing their science learning. Participants include students and teachers from the Worcester Public School System, characterized by its diverse ethnic and SES student population. Five research questions drive this research: (1) Does inquiry tutoring lead to improved inquiry skills?, (2) Does inquiry tutoring lead to increased content learning as measured by the State?s assessment system?, (3) What is the relationship of students? epistemologies of models and their inquiry with models?, (4) Do inquiry skills transfer across the six science topics as measured by better inquiry skills in each of the six skills?, and (5) What is the relationship between inquiry as measured by students? logs, and content learning as measured by pre- and post-tests on content? Anticipated products include (a) an intelligent tutoring system capable of assessing students? skills, and providing teachers with data by class and students by inquiry skill, and (b) a set of assessment items in six physical science areas. Evaluation will emphasize the overall development of the inquiry assessments and tutoring system in relation to content learning through multiple statistical methods. Dissemination includes conferences, publications in scholarly journals, and a website.