Educating the Imagination: A Studio Design for Transformative Science Learning

TERC与波士顿艺术学院合作，为7-9年级的学生开发了一个创新的工作室学习环境。这个试点项目侧重于以对象为中心的关于水和具有地方和全球意义的与水有关的问题的调查。该项目通过多方面的研究促进学生的学习，包括水文学、历史、健康、数字媒体、基于网络的人工制品生成、现实世界的数据收集、与科学家和艺术家的互动以及学生作品的社区展览。“培养想象力”项目的主要目标是开发一种更有效的模式，以吸引和改善代表性不足的城市学生的科学学习和成就。工作室学习有意地将实验与分析、解释、作品批判和概念发展的实践相结合。在为期四周的暑期工作室项目中，学生们将在老师和科学家的指导下，制作关于水的研究项目，并制定计划，在学年期间在波士顿地区展示他们的作品。学生将从多个方面进行评估，包括他们对水科学思想的理解深度，他们提出主张和论证的能力，他们使用多种工具和表达方式的能力，以及他们的演讲质量。在两年的时间里，研究人员将收集关于工作室设计模型和学生学习的数据，以确定工作室的哪些方面有效地吸引学生参与与重要的水科学思想和问题相关的面向对象的调查。教育想象力将为工作室设计模式及其在促进科学学习中的应用提供有价值的见解。此外，该项目通过开发和测试一种创新的非传统学习模式，直接解决了学习和参与科学的机会不平等问题。这个项目的结果可能会显著改变我们对城市环境中STEM学习环境的看法和结构。

TERC, in collaboration with the Boston Arts Academy is developing an innovative studio learning environment for students in grades 7-9. This pilot project focuses on object-centered inquiry about water and water-related problems of local and global significance. The project promotes student learning through multi-faceted studies involving hydrology, history, health, digital media, web-based artifact generation, real world data collection, interactions with scientists and artists, and community exhibitions of student work. The primary goal of the Educating the Imagination project is to develop a more effective model for engaging and improving the science learning and achievement of underrepresented urban students. Studio learning intentionally integrates experimentation with practices of analysis, interpretation, critique of work and conceptual development. During a four week summer studio program, students, guided by teachers and scientists, will produce research-based projects about water and create plans to exhibit their work in the Boston area during the school year. Students will be assessed along multiple dimensions ranging from the depth of their understanding of water science ideas, their ability to make claims and arguments, their use of multiple tools and modes of representation, and the quality of their presentations. Over a two year period researchers will collect data on the studio design model and student learning to determine which aspects of the studio are effective in engaging students in object-oriented inquiry related to important water science ideas and problems.Educating the Imagination will provide valuable insights about the studio design model and its application to promote science learning. In addition, this project directly addresses the problem of inequality in opportunities to learn and participate in science by developing and testing an innovative, non-traditional learning model with underrepresented urban students. The results of this project could significantly change how we think about and structure STEM learning environments in urban settings.