EXP: CTSiM: Fostering Computational Thinking in Middle Schools through Scientific Modeling and Simulation

这个项目的研究是在科学思维，计算思维，建模作为一项研究奋进，和可视化编程工具之间的联系。PI正在为中学科学注入促进计算思维的努力，通过使建模成为科学活动中更重要的一部分来做到这一点。建模经验学习者在每个模块中变得越来越复杂，在各个模块中也变得越来越复杂，复杂性的增加是由成为计算思想者的复杂性所决定的。建模和计算思维在每个模块中都是突出的，随着时间的推移，由于在各种情况下重复越来越复杂的建模经验，每个模块都变得越来越流畅，所有这些都是相互建立的。心理模型的建立，计算思维，建模和科学教育文献都通知的奋进。技术创新包括创建和完善适合中学生的建模环境，包括适当的可视化编程语言。研究问题解决了在学习建模和使用模型进行调查的背景下学习计算思维的问题（反之亦然）和轨迹走向能力的计算思维和建模作为他们的研究问题。计算思维正在成为一个越来越重要的要求专业知识的科学家--无论是那些在计算科学和工程的高水平工作的人，还是那些支持他们并应用计算科学的人。此外，随着计算在各种学科和工作职责中变得越来越普遍，其他人也需要更擅长计算思维和使用计算工具。以适当的方式将计算思维和计算工具的使用注入课程是促进这种跨领域专业知识的正确方法。科学是课程中的一个地方，计算思维可以很容易地被整合，这样做不仅可以让更多的人为需要计算思维和使用计算工具的职业和工作做好准备，而且还可以让中学科学对更多的人来说更令人兴奋。

This project's investigation is at the nexus between scientific thinking, computational thinking, modeling as an investigative endeavor, and visual programming tools. The PIs are infusing middle-school science with efforts to promote computational thinking, doing that through making modeling a more significant part of science activities. The modeling experiences learners have become progressively more complex throughout each module and more complex across modules, with the increases in complexity informed by complexities of becoming a computational thinker. Modeling and computational thinking are foregrounded in each module, with each becoming more fluid over time as a result of the repetition of increasingly complex modeling experiences in a variety of situations, all of which build on each other. The mental model building, computational thinking, modeling, and science education literatures all inform the endeavor. The technological innovation includes creating and refining a modeling environment appropriate to middle schoolers, including an appropriate visual programming language. Research questions address issues in learning computational thinking in the context of learning to model and use models for investigation (and vice versa) and trajectories towards competency in computational thinking and modeling as their research questions.Computational thinking is becoming a more and more important required expertise of scientists -- both those who work at the high levels of computational science and engineering and those who support them and apply computational science. In addition, as computation becomes more and more ubiquitous in a whole variety of disciplines and workplace responsibilities, the rest of the population, too, needs to be more expert at computational thinking and at using computational tools. Infusing computational thinking and the use of computational tools into the curriculum in appropriate ways is the right way to promote this cross-cutting expertise. Science is one place in the curriculum where computational thinking can easily be integrated, and doing so not only holds the promise for readying more of the population for careers and jobs that require computational thinking and use of computational tools but also making middle school science more exciting to more of the population.