CAREER: Computational Reconstruction of K12 Science (CoRe-Science): Integrating Computational Thinking and Modeling with School Science

这个为期五年的CAREER项目（核心科学：K12科学的计算重建）旨在解决以下研究问题：基于代理的编程语言和建模平台的设计需要如何改变，以支持计算思维、编程和建模与中学物理和生物领域的科学课程的深度整合，而不需要对学生和教师的准备进行根本性的重组？本项目有以下目标：a)开发ViMAP，一种新的、基于多智能体的可视化编程语言和建模平台，专门用于将计算编程和建模与中学运动学和生态学课程相结合；b)将ViMAP及其附带的学习活动与现有的基于项目的中学运动学和生态学课程无缝整合；c)进行实证研究，以确定学生如何在学习建模和使用模型进行调查的背景下发展计算思维（反之亦然），并确定计算思维和建模能力的发展轨迹。该小组将在几所城市公立中学进行核心科学单元的课堂实施。选择运动学和生态学的主题领域是因为它们在国家科学教育标准中具有重要意义；学习者认为它们极其困难；它们适用于基于代理的建模方法；先前的工作已经为PI准备好开发关于这些主题的高质量课程材料。除了技术创新之外，该项目的产品是研究成果，例如：a)经验检验的K12课程整合编程语言设计原则，b)计算思维在学生这两个领域概念理解发展中的过程、性质和作用。此外，运动学和生态学的课堂准备课程单元，包括ViMAP编程和建模平台，伴随的学习活动和教师支持材料将通过广泛的教育社区网络进行部署和传播。在过去的几十年里，计算思维和建模已经成为科学和工程专业知识的关键要素。以适当的方式将计算思维和计算工具的使用注入中学课程中，可以促进这种跨领域的专业知识。然而，将通用计算编程与K12课程科学相结合已被证明是具有挑战性的，CoRe-Science试图通过开发一种新的可视化编程语言和建模环境来解决这一问题，专门针对中学生的科学建模，并将其与现有的中学物理和生物科学课程无缝集成。这些产品包括可以广泛传播的新学习技术，以及基于实证研究的研究成果，这些成果应作为框架的基础，为今后类似系统的发展提供信息。

This five year CAREER project (CoRe-Science: Computational Reconstruction of K12 Science) seeks to address the following research question: How does the design of agent-based programming languages and modeling platforms need to change in order to support deep curricular integration of computational thinking, programming and modeling with middle-school curricular science in the domains of physics and biology, without necessitating a radical restructuring of student and teacher preparation? This project has following objectives: a) To develop ViMAP, a new, multi-agent-based, visual programming language and modeling platform specifically for integrating computational programming and modeling with middle school curricular science in kinematics and ecology; b) To seamlessly integrate ViMAP and accompanying learning activities with existing project-based middle-school curricula in kinematics and ecology; and c) conduct empirical studies to identify how students develop computational thinking in the context of learning to model and use models for investigation (and vice versa), and to identify trajectories towards competency in computational thinking and modeling. The team will conduct classroom implementations of the CoRe-Science units in several urban public middle schools. The topic areas of kinematics and ecology were selected because they are important in light of national science education standards; they are experienced as extremely difficult by learners; they are amenable to agent-based modeling approaches; and prior work has prepared the PI to develop high-quality curricular materials on these topics. Besides the technological innovation, the products of this project are research findings, such as: a) empirically tested design principles for programming languages for K12 curricular integration, and b) the process, nature and role of computational thinking in the development of students' conceptual understanding in the two domains. In addition, classroom ready curricular units in kinematics and ecology, including the ViMAP programming and modeling platform, accompanying learning activities, and teacher support materials will be deployed and disseminated through a broad network of educational communities.Over the past few decades, computational thinking and modeling has emerged to be a key element of scientific and engineering expertise. Infusing computational thinking and the use of computational tools into the middle school curriculum in appropriate ways can promote this cross-cutting expertise. However, integrating general purpose computational programming with K12 curricular science has been shown to be challenging, and CoRe-Science seeks to address this issue by developing a new visual programming language and modeling environment specifically for scientific modeling for middle school students, and seamlessly integrate it with an existing science curriculum for middle school physics and biology. The products include new learning technologies that can be widely disseminated, and research findings based on empirical studies, that should be the basis of a framework to inform the future development of similar systems.