Decoding Urban Ecosystems: Computational Thinking Integration in Middle School STEM

由于计算在STEM学科中的强大创新和应用，STEM+C项目解决了从小学到高中（pre -12）学生对现实世界、跨学科和计算准备的迫切需求。美国自然历史博物馆（AMNH）与“科学成长思维”项目合作，将开展一项为期三年的研究项目，设计、实施和评估一项以青少年为中心的计划，该计划将吸引纽约市（NYC）中学生参与一门新的计算思维（CT）综合科学课程。在本课程中，学生将同时参与生态系统动力学，并在计算机建模和仿真的背景下使用CT实践，包括抽象，自动化（包括算法思维，调试和迭代）分析，以及通过计算机建模和仿真进行泛化。该项目研究旨在通过支持学生将计算机模型编码和解码中的CT与科学过程联系起来，加深对学生学习和积极参与真实科学实践的理解。此外，课程设计将明确地将STEM内容与该领域的专业实践联系起来，从而为有关有效方法的现有文献做出贡献。通过这个项目，125名学生将参加一个新的、整合了ct的生态系统课程。这些参与者将从主要服务于纽约市社会经济、种族和性别多样性代表的低收入家庭的学校招募。该项目还将聘请四名纽约市教师作为共同研究人员。收集的数据包括现有知识评估和调查工具的修改版本，与学生进行的基于人工制品的访谈，以及对教学的观察记录。将进行前后分析以确定学习收益，并进行数据源内部和数据源之间的改进交互分析，以阐明学生对计算模型的分析与生态系统机制理解的发展之间的关系。调查结果将广泛传播，并将为纽约市中学教师专业学习计划的设计提供信息。经过测试的课程将在“大胆量项目”开放的专业发展网络上提供。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

As a result of the powerful innovation and application of computing in STEM disciplines, the STEM+C program addresses an urgent need for real-world, interdisciplinary, and computational preparation of students from the early grades through high school (preK-12). The American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), in collaboration with Project GUTS (Growing Up Thinking Scientifically), will undertake a three-year research project to design, implement, and evaluate a youth-centered program that engages New York City (NYC) middle school students in a new computational thinking (CT)-integrated science curriculum. In this curriculum, students will simultaneously engage with ecosystem dynamics and use CT practices in the context of computer modeling and simulations, including abstraction, automation (including algorithmic thinking, debugging, and iteration) analysis, and generalization through computer modeling and simulation. The project research aims to deepen understanding of student learning and active engagement with authentic science practices when students are given supports to make connections between CT in coding and decoding of computer models and scientific processes. In addition, the curriculum design will explicitly connect STEM content to the professional practices of the field, thereby contributing to existing literature on effective approaches. Through this project, 125 students will participate in a new, CT-integrated ecosystems curriculum. These participants will be recruited from schools that predominantly serve low-income families who are representative of the socioeconomic, ethnic, and gender diversity of NYC. The project will also engage four NYC teachers as co-researchers. Data to be collected include modified versions of existing knowledge assessment and survey instruments, artifact-based interviews conducted with students, and recorded observations of instruction. Pre-post analysis will be conducted to identify learning gains, and a modified interaction analysis within and between data sources will be conducted to illuminate relationships between students' analysis of computational models and development of mechanistic understandings of ecosystems. Findings will be broadly disseminated and will inform the design of a professional learning program for NYC middle school teachers. The tested curriculum will be available on Project GUTS' open professional development network.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.