Seeing the World through a Mathematical Lens: A Place-Based Mobile App for Creating Math Walks

该奖项全部或部分由《2021年美国救援计划法案》（公法117-2）资助。数学在世界上无处不在，但年轻人可能认为数学与他们的日常生活脱节，想知道数学与他们的生活有什么关系。有证据表明，孩子们做的非正式数学是非常有效的，包括效率、灵活性和社交性。然而，我们需要更多地了解教育工作者如何在校外支持数学参与，以及这些校外经历相对于课堂和终身STEM学习可以发挥的作用。该创新与发展项目旨在研究一款基于位置的非正式数学学习移动应用程序。这项研究在9个非正式的学习地点进行，涉及迭代设计一个应用程序，学习者可以在其中查看并参与到这些地点的数学步行“站点”的交互式地图中。学习者将能够选择地点，观看简短的视频或观看带有文字的图片，这些文字描述了数学原理在他们周围的环境中是如何存在的。例如，学习者可以使用该应用程序了解当地拉丁裔艺术家的画作如何使用比例和比例，或者市中心的坡道如何设计成特定的斜坡以容纳轮椅。研究将检查增强现实（AR）覆盖的功能，学习者可以举起他们移动设备的摄像头，并在他们的摄像头馈送中看到分层在现实世界对象上的数学表示（例如，线条，正方形）。研究还将检查让学习者在当地的非正式学习站点创建自己的数学步行站的影响，上传图片，描述，并链接他们叙述的音频，在那里他们观察数学在他们周围的环境中是如何出现的，并就他们想知道的STEM思想和联系提出有趣的问题。该项目利用非正式数学学习、问题提出和文化维持教学法的研究，对技术支持的数学步行进行参与式设计研究。研究的问题是：在社区嵌入式数学散步中设置数学场景如何影响学习者对数学的态度？在现实世界的物体上体验AR叠加如何突出数学原理，并让学习者在周围的世界中看到数学？学习者和非正式教育者如何作为自己创造的内容的传播者和他人创造的数学内容的审稿人？为了回答这些问题，将进行五项研究，让学习者创建数学步行站：没有技术（研究1），有应用程序的原型版本（研究2），以及有或没有AR覆盖（研究3）。研究还将比较孩子们接受数学步行停止与自己创建停止的经历（研究4），并探索学习者回顾同龄人的数学步行停止（研究5）。该项目采用社区民族志方法，结合青少年如何使用该应用程序以及彼此之间的定性和定量过程数据，将确定如何促进数学兴趣的发展，如何构建学习者驱动的问题生成，以及在什么情况下基于应用程序的数学漫步最有效。研究结果将有助于研究兴趣发展、问题提出、非正式数学学习以及AR等STEM学习的数字支持。该项目将通过数字基础设施促进创新并产生战略影响，该基础设施可以扩大规模，以支持世界任何地方的STEM步行，同时还将在以非正式数学为重点的非正式学习场所中建立当地的STEM学习生态系统。该项目是南卫理公会大学（Southern Methodist University）、非营利组织talkSTEM和9个非正式学习提供者之间的合作项目，talkSTEM促进了社区数学步行的创建。该项目将直接为大约500名4-8年级的学习者和30-60名非正规教育工作者提供服务。该项目将在9个非正式学习地点进行能力建设，每年为数十万学生提供课程。该发展创新项目得到了推进非正式STEM学习（AISL）计划的支持，该计划旨在(a)推进非正式环境中STEM学习的设计和开发的新方法和基于证据的理解；(b)提供多种途径，以扩大获得和参与STEM学习经验的机会；(c)推进非正式环境中STEM学习的创新研究和评估；(d)让所有年龄段的公众在非正式环境中学习STEM。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。

This award is funded in whole or in part under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2).Math is everywhere in the world, but youth may see math as disconnected from their everyday experiences and wonder how math is relevant to their lives. There is evidence that informal math done by children is highly effective, involving efficiency, flexibility, and socializing. Yet, more is needed to understand how educators can support math engagement outside of school, and the role these out-of-school experiences can play relative to the classroom and lifelong STEM learning. This Innovations and Development Project seeks to conduct research on a location-based mobile app for informal mathematics learning. This research takes place at 9 informal learning sites and involves iteratively designing an app in which learners can view and contribute to an interactive map of math walk “stops” at these sites. Learners will be able to select locations and watch short videos or view pictures with text that describe how mathematical principles are present in their surroundings. For example, learners could use the app to discover how a painting by a local Latino artist uses ratio and scale, or how a ramp in downtown was designed with a specific slope to accommodate wheelchairs. Research studies will examine the affordances of augmented reality (AR) overlays where learners can hold up the camera of their mobile device, and see mathematical representations (e.g., lines, squares) layered over real-world objects in their camera feed. Research studies will also examine the impact of having learners create their own math walk stops at local informal learning sites, uploading pictures, descriptions, and linking audio they narrate, where they make observations about how math appears in their surroundings and pose interesting questions about STEM ideas and connections they wonder about. This project draws on research on informal math learning, problem-posing, and culturally-sustaining pedagogies to conduct cycles of participatory design-based research on technology-supported math walks. The research questions are: How does posing mathematical scenarios in community-imbedded math walks impact learners’ attitudes about mathematics? How can experiencing AR overlays on real world objects highlight mathematical principles and allow learners to see math in the world around them? How can learners and informal educators be engaged as disseminators of content they create and as reviewers of mathematical content created by others? To answer these questions, five studies will be conducted where learners create math walk stops: without technology (Study 1), with a prototype version of the app (Study 2), and with or without AR overlays (Study 3). Studies will also compare children's experiences receiving math walk stops vs. creating their own stops (Study 4) and explore learners reviewing math walk stops made by their peers (Study 5). Using a community ethnography approach with qualitative and quantitative process data of how youth engage with the app and with each other, the project will determine how the development of math interest can be facilitated, how learner-driven problem generation can be scaffolded, and under what circumstances app-based math walks are most effective. The results will contribute to research on the development of interest, problem-posing, informal mathematics learning, and digital supports for STEM learning such as AR. This project will promote innovation and have strategic impact through a digital infrastructure that could be scaled up to support STEM walks anywhere in the world, while also building a local STEM learning ecosystem among informal learning sites focused on informal mathematics. This project is a partnership between Southern Methodist University, a nonprofit, talkSTEM that facilitates the creation of community math walks, and 9 informal learning providers. The project will directly serve approximately 500 grades 4-8 learners and 30-60 informal educators. The project will build capacity at 9 informal learning sites, which serve hundreds of thousands of students per year in their programming.This Innovations in Development project is supported by the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program, which seeks to (a) advance new approaches to and evidence-based understanding of the design and development of STEM learning in informal environments; (b) provide multiple pathways for broadening access to and engagement in STEM learning experiences; (c) advance innovative research on and assessment of STEM learning in informal environments; and (d) engage the public of all ages in learning STEM in informal environments.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.