Practicing Formative Assessment for Computational Thinking in Making Environments

Journal of Science Education and Technology - Making activities and environments have been shown to foster the development of computational thinking (CT) skills for students in science, technology,...     

Making Space for Place: Mapping Tools and Practices to Teach for Spatial Justice

This article presents a set of spatial tools for classroom learning about spatial justice. As part of a larger team, we designed a curriculum that engaged 10 learners with 3 spatial tools: (a) an oversized floor map, (b) interactive geographic information systems (GIS) maps, and (c) participatory mapping. We analyze how these tools supported learning using notions of politicization. The floor map fed conceptual understandings of the map as a representational text and served as the terrain for an embodied activity to support proportional reasoning about inequitable distributions of resources. The data-rich GIS maps and their zoomability allowed for coordinating across multiple variables to connect patterns in inequities to other social processes. The participatory mapping enabled learners to make discoveries about, connect, and share beyond the individual classroom counterstories from people in the lived streets of their neighborhood. In aggregate, this set of spatial tools produced a complex, hybrid view of the city’s space, which contributed to learners’ political formation.     

Thinking Aloud Together: A Test of an Intervention to Foster Students' Collaborative Scientific Reasoning

This study addressed the question of how to increase students' competencies for regulating their co‐construction of knowledge when tackling complex collaborative learning tasks which are increasingly emphasized as a dimension of educational reform. An intervention stressing the metacognitive, regulatory, and strategic aspects of knowledge co‐construction, called Thinking Aloud Together, was embedded within a 12‐week science unit on building mental models of the nature of matter. Four classes of eighth graders received the intervention, and four served as control groups for quantitative analyses. In addition, the interactions of 24 students in eight focal groups were profiled qualitatively, and 12 of those students were interviewed twice. Students who received the intervention gained in metacognitive knowledge about collaborative reasoning and ability to articulate their collaborative reasoning processes in comparison to students in control classrooms, as hypothesized. However, the treatment and control students did not differ either in their abilities to apply their conceptual knowledge or in their on‐line collaborative reasoning behaviors in ways that were attributable to the intervention. Thus, there was a gap between students' metacognitive knowledge about collaborative cognition and their use of collaborative reasoning skills. Several reasons for this result are explored, as are patterns relating students' outcomes to their perspectives on learning science. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 36: 1085–1109, 1999.     

形而上学方法是科学的思想方法——批判极左思潮对方法论的歪曲

形而上学方法是人类认识世界的科学方法,是认识过程中的必经阶段。马克思、恩格斯、列宁明确肯定形而上学方法的认识意义。感知方法是绝对的,形而上学方法和辩证方法都是相对于感知方法而言的,是相对的,是真理相对性的方法论根源。形而上学方法的成果被绝对化,才转化为形而上学世界观。思想方法的发展有自身的规律,是人类共有的。反形而上学不辨方法论与世界观的差异,辩证法被异化为变戏法与诡辩法,是极左思潮的表现之一。正确认识辩证方法与形而上学方法,是关系党的思想路线与中国人民的思想方法的大问题。改革开放需要深入到认识论与方法论。     

直觉理性:创新决策的思维路径

本文主要探讨西方著名管理学家、诺贝尔奖获得者赫伯特.A.西蒙所提出的“直觉理性”作为创新决策的思维路径及其在创新决策的问题发现、目标确立、方案抉择、实施反馈等环节中的具体作用,分析了其形成过程、性质特点。明确指出:西蒙所提出的直觉理性作为一种非理性的直觉思维模式,是以认知、经验为基础,通过洞察、顿悟、创造性思考来刻画认知世界,从而为人们创造决策的形成和实施提供重要的工具。     

Heuristic Reasoning in Chemistry: Making decisions about acid strength

The characterization of students’ reasoning strategies is of central importance in the development of instructional strategies that foster meaningful learning. In particular, the identification of shortcut reasoning procedures (heuristics) used by students to reduce cognitive load can help us devise strategies to facilitate the development of more analytical ways of thinking. The central goal of this qualitative study was thus to investigate heuristic reasoning as used by organic chemistry college students, focusing our attention on their ability to predict the relative acid strength of chemical compounds represented using explicit composition and structural features (i.e., structural formulas). Our results indicated that many study participants relied heavily on one or more of the following heuristics to make most of their decisions: reduction, representativeness, and lexicographic. Despite having visual access to reach structural information about the substances included in each ranking task, many students relied on isolated composition features to make their decisions. However, the specific characteristics of the tasks seemed to trigger heuristic reasoning in different ways. Although the use of heuristics allowed students to simplify some components of the ranking tasks and generate correct responses, it often led them astray. Very few study participants predicted the correct trends based on scientifically acceptable arguments. Our results suggest the need for instructional interventions that explicitly develop college chemistry students’ abilities to monitor their thinking and evaluate the effectiveness of analytical versus heuristic reasoning strategies in different contexts.     

MindWorks: Making Scientific Concepts Come Alive

The Southwest Regional Laboratory, through major funding from the National Science Foundation (ESI-9450235), has developed a series of eight instructional modules for use in common secondary school physical science that address three central goals of U.S. science literacy education: (1) to motivate students who have previously shown little interest in science; (2) to accomplish deep change in students' internalized conceptions of the structure and workings of the physical world; and (3) to build greater understanding, in both teachers and students, of the process and culture of scientific activity.Beginning with a discussion of the conceptual scaffolding that undergirds the project's pedagogical approach, the paper presents an overview of MindWorks' goals, the materials that have been developed to achieve these goals, and the progress of the pilot implementation and project evaluation.     

推理链：科学发现的逻辑新论

科学发现有没有逻辑的争论,由来已久.有人称其无,有人说其有,还有归纳派和演绎派的形同水火.究其实,争论是由逻辑观--传统形式逻辑和现代数理逻辑的不同引起的.其实,归纳派和演绎派各执一端,各有长短,彼此是相通的,类比、归纳和演绎整合的推理链,才是科学发现的逻辑.     

课堂论证话语的序贯分析:小学生的科学推理

科学推理是科学学科核心素养的重要组成部分,科学论证已成为课堂教学中发展学生科学推理的重要途径。然而,教师对如何开展高质量的课堂论证还很茫然。为了探究教师对课堂论证的话语塑造如何影响学生的科学推理发展,对三堂小学科学课上的科学论证话语进行了序贯分析。发现:教师明确的推动更可能引发学生相应水平的推理,复合提问和指向不明的推动则更可能导致学生较低水平的科学推理;对学生不同水平的科学推理回应,教师的反馈模式有所不同。回溯课堂情境,讨论认为:明确的低认知问题可能导致伪论证的发生,适度的劣构问题有助于科学推理的深度发展;教师同时强调科学论证的结构和过程,鼓励学生关注反向观点及其反驳,能提高科学论证的质量。     

计算思维培养之路还有多远? ——基于计算思维测评视角

随着人工智能时代人才竞争的加剧,K-12阶段计算思维的培养成为重要的抓手。其中,通过测评准确把握现阶段K-12实践开展情况可推动计算思维培养更具针对性。本文先从理论层面建构了包含培养内容、教学方式和测评方法三个维度的K-12计算思维培养框架;然后采用元分析法和内容分析法分析41个测评实践案例,揭示和讨论计算思维培养理论与实践之间的差距,展示未来可行的研究空间。分析结果表明,计算概念、计算实践、计算观念等计算思维培养内容在实践中都有体现,编程教学、跨学科课堂和独立学科三类教学形式也有一定的实践基础,题目测试法、编程测试法、作品分析法、调查法、图文分析法和观察访谈法等六种测评方式得到了使用和发展;但实践中仍存在培养内容不全面、教学形式相对单一以及多元评价意识不足等问题。文章最后提出全面掌握计算思维内容体系,关注空白研究维度,增加对非认知层面的关注,注重指标间的内部关联;尝试计算科学和编程教育范畴外的课程载体,增强个体发展的比重;研究各种测评方法的综合应用,加强对形成性评价的关注,以全面展现计算思维的发展。     

Teaching Scientific Practices: Meeting the Challenge of Change

This paper provides a rationale for the changes advocated by the Framework for K-12 Science Education and the Next Generation Science Standards. It provides an argument for why the model embedded in the Next Generation Science Standards is seen as an improvement. The Case made here is that the underlying model that the new Framework presents of science better represents contemporary understanding of nature of science as a social and cultural practice. Second, it argues that the adopting a framework of practices will enable better communication of meaning amongst professional science educators. This, in turn, will enable practice in the classroom to improve. Finally, the implications for teacher education are explored.     

计算思维评价的新途径:微认证

随着K-12教育计算思维培养的不断推进,计算思维评价的重要地位日渐凸显。鉴于计算思维由复合思维和能力构成,本研究提出以能力为导向的微认证。该方式不同于当前大多数研究采用的统合视角的评价方式,对计算思维的各构成要素分别评价和认证。本研究基于对计算思维概念的要素分解和专家认证,将计算思维从认知和操作层面以及非认知层面分解为问题识别与分解、抽象建模、算法设计、自动化、问题迁移能力以及计算观念六个子能力;讨论各子能力在K-12阶段的发展水平及适合的测评方式;展示计算思维微认证的实现过程,探讨正式与非正式学习情境下实施的差异。研究最后以41名6-8年级学生参与的教学实践为例,验证将微认证引入计算思维评价的可行性。研究结果表明,微认证作为计算思维评价的新途径,得到了师生认可,不仅能有效呈现学生计算思维层面的发展,还能激发学生参与学习和测评的积极性,实现以评促学;同时微认证存在过程性任务数据难以收集以及部分数据缺失下结果认证合理性等问题。     

让计算思维为智能时代的教育赋能--ISTE《计算思维能力标准(教育者)》解读及启示

国际教育技术学会(ISTE)于2018年发布了《计算思维能力标准(教育者)》,这是国际范围内首个以计算思维命名的标准文本,对指引智能时代的计算思维教学具有里程碑意义。《计算思维能力标准(教育者)》旨在为智能时代的教学变革提供路线图,分别从智能时代计算思维教育者的五种身份——计算思维学习者、教育公平的领导者、围绕计算的协作者、创新者与设计者、计算思维与课堂教学融合的促进者入手,围绕计算思维、公平的领导者、围绕计算的协作、创新与设计及融合计算思维,界定了教育者应具备的计算思维能力。该《标准》的启示在于:就教师专业发展而言,要明确计算思维教育者的多重身份,履行相应职能;构建教育者计算思维能力发展框架——CTPACK,在学科教学中有效落实计算思维;以计算思维为牵引,带动数据素养与人工智能素养的共同提升。就学科建设而言,在信息技术学科中有效落实计算思维,促进计算思维与学科教学的深度融合,加深跨学科活动设计,从而推进学科间的协同发展。     

科学的思维:斯坦贝克的生态"群体人"理论

纵旨在通过在科学界被誉为"现代生态思想之父"的20世纪美国著名小说家约翰·斯坦贝克的游记<科特斯海航海日记>的分析,深入阐述他的生态整体论思想:即生存与竞争的辩证关系及"我大干我细胞的总和"的"群体人"(group-man theory)理论.     

Thinking Pluralistically: Dynamic Decision Making in Kinesiology

In this age of postmodern supercomplexity, universities face increased demands from many precincts in our society to respond to such issues as broader access, graduation rates, costs, and relevance, to name just a few. The cultivation of professional conditions that will help higher education and its kinesiology professoriate to not only to survive, but flourish, in an age of supercomplexity is a necessary adaptation for the future. No obvious single, coherent moral framework exists to use as a guide for today’s (and tomorrow’s) faculty. This article argues, then, for a pluralistic way of thinking by applying reason to the diverse moral frameworks in kinesiology in higher education. The purpose of this article is to explicate a moral positioning in kinesiology based on this pluralistic approach so that decision making can extend beyond the current boundaries of pragmatic thought, now prevalent in higher education. Specific examples of this approach and some accompanying strategies are offered.     

Correction to: Computational Thinking,Between Papert and Wing

Science & Education -     

Computational Thinking from a Disciplinary Perspective: Integrating Computational Thinking in K-12 Science,Technology, Engineering,and Mathematics Education

This article provides an introduction for the special issue of the Journal of Science Education and Technology focused on computational thinking (CT) from a disciplinary perspective. The special issue connects earlier research on what K-12 students can learn and be able to do using CT with the CT skills and habits of mind needed to productively participate in professional CT-integrated STEM fields. In this context, the phrase “disciplinary perspective” simultaneously holds two meanings: it refers to and aims to make connections between established K-12 STEM subject areas (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) and newer CT-integrated disciplines such as computational sciences. The special issue presents a framework for CT integration and includes articles that illuminate what CT looks like from a disciplinary perspective, the challenges inherent in integrating CT into K-12 STEM education, and new ways of measuring CT aligned more closely with disciplinary practices. The aim of this special issue is to offer research-based and practitioner-grounded insights into recent work in CT integration and provoke new ways of thinking about CT integration from researchers, practitioners, and research-practitioner partnerships.