Data Explorations in Ecology Project (DEEP)

该项目评估了在高中科学课堂中使用不同类型的基于地点的生态数据的好处。这个项目将结合和评估一手(由学生收集)和实时二手数据在教学科学和批判性思维技能中的使用。该项目的指导问题是“使用基于地点的第一手生态证据，并将其与基于地点的二手数据联系起来，是否有助于提高学生的环境科学素养、对科学的本质的理解以及对生态概念的知识？”拟议的项目将探讨的其他问题包括：教师如何通过使用数据最好地让学生了解和评估关键的环境问题？在课堂上使用实时数据是否有助于将学生与科学内容和/或科学研究社区联系起来？教师需要什么知识和技能才能有效地利用国家生态观测网等生态监测网络向他们提供的数据？为了回答这些问题，将使用一个以地点为基础的生态学课程，即变化的哈德逊项目，以及由地区合作伙伴提供的数据和实地考察。在纽约哈德逊河谷中部的高中课堂上进行的一项准实验研究将比较不同的教学模式，为不同方法的相对优势和局限性提供初步证据。将使用一系列形成性评估方法来描述和评估学生对生态的理解，以及他们收集、分析和应用生态数据的参与度、动机和能力。评估将包括在同一学校的治疗教室和对照教室对学生进行的事前和事后评估。问卷、焦点小组访谈和学生档案将被用来评估学生在样本教室中的理解和倾向。这项提案涉及一个令人兴奋和感兴趣的研究领域，涉及对科学的探究方法和网络支持的科学调查的效用。许多K-12教师发现很难让学生接触到真实的环境。实地考察的费用可能很高，而且对责任的担忧让许多教师，尤其是学校管理人员，不敢让学生体验教室外的自然环境。生态学家对这一现象感到遗憾，并引发了一场让孩子们更多地走出户外的运动。令人担忧的是，正如理查德·洛夫(Richard Louv)在他的书《树林中的最后一个孩子》(Last Child In The Woods)中所说的那样，今天的学生患有自然缺陷障碍。网络学习的倡导者提出，技术提供了一种解决方案，让学生通过虚拟方式体验外部世界，他们可以在舒适的教室课桌上收集和分析生态数据。虚拟体验可能比没有体验要好，但它们与第一手体验相比又如何呢？这项建议旨在确定在理解生态概念、分析生态数据和得出科学合理、有效的结论方面，虚拟体验与现实生活体验如何比较。

This project evaluates the benefits of using different types of place-based ecological data in high school science classrooms. This project will combine and assess the use of first-hand (collected by students) and real-time second-hand data in teaching science and critical thinking skills. The guiding question for the project is "Does using place-based, first-hand ecological evidence, and relating that to place-based, second-hand data, improve students' environmental science literacy, nature of science understanding, and knowledge of ecological concepts?" Other questions the proposed project will explore include: How can teachers best engage students in understanding and evaluating critical environmental problems through the use of data? Does the use of real-time data in the classroom help connect students with science content and/or the scientific research community? What knowledge and skills do teachers need in order to make effective use of the data being made available to them by ecological monitoring networks such as National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON)? To answer these questions, a place-based, ecology curriculum, the Changing Hudson Project, will be used along with data and field trips provided by regional partners. A quasi-experimental study in high school classes in the Mid-Hudson Valley of NY will compare different instructional models, providing preliminary evidence of the relative strengths and limitations of different approaches. A range of formative assessment methods will be used to describe and assess students' understanding of ecology, and their engagement, motivation and capacity for collecting, analyzing, and applying ecological data. The evaluation will include pre-and post-assessments given to students in the treatment classrooms and in a comparison classroom in the same schools. Questionnaires, focus group interviews, and student portfolios will be used to assess student understanding and dispositions in sample classrooms. This proposal addresses an exciting and interesting area of research regarding the inquiry approach to science and the utility of cyber-enabled science investigations. Many K-12 teachers find it difficult to expose students to the real environment. Field trips can be expensive, and liability concerns scare many teachers and especially school administrators away from allowing students to experience natural settings outside of the classroom. This phenomenon is lamented by ecologists and has led to a movement to get kids outside more. The concern is that students today have a 'Nature Deficit Disorder,' as coined by Richard Louv in his book 'Last Child in the Woods.' Advocates of cyber-learning propose that technology provides a solution by allowing students to experience the outside world virtually, and that they can collect and analyze ecological data from the comfort of their classroom desks. Virtual experiences may be better than no experience at all, but how do they compare with first-hand experiences? This proposal aims to determine how virtual experiences compare to real-life experiences with regard to understanding ecological concepts, analyzing ecological data, and drawing scientifically-reasoned, valid conclusions.