Role of questions in inquiry-based instruction: towards a design taxonomy for question-asking and implications for design

Many theories and models describe the various cognitive processes individuals engage in as they solve ill-structured problems. While diverse in perspectives, these theories and models uniformly agree that essential aspects of complex problem solving include iteration and inquiry. This paper further argues that an important yet overlooked component of knowledge construction during problem-solving is the ability to ask meaningful questions. What is needed, but not adequately articulated and validated, is a theoretical taxonomy of question-asking to better understand and guide a learner’s reasoning process. Based on the expert–novice literature, we proffer the following question taxonomy: shallow/simple (verification, disjunctive, concept completion), testing (example, feature specification, quantification, definition, comparison), and deep/complex questions (interpretation, causal antecedent, causal consequence, goal orientation, instrumental/procedural, enablement, expectation, and judgmental). We, therefore, build on existing theories/models of problem-solving, failure, and reflection and their implications towards a taxonomy of question-asking. Given this taxonomy, researchers and designers can better understand learners’ level of understanding and problem-solving trajectories.

     

Building face,construct, and content validity through use of a modified Delphi: adapting grounded theory to build an environmental field days observation tool

Environmental field days offer a distinct opportunity to connect students with science and the environment. The literature on field days, informed by research on field trips, provides a framework for best practices. If there are best practices, however, then presence or lack of the practice should have a discernable impact on the outcomes of the field day and should be measurable and some of them should be observable. The Delphi process was modified to ground the theory and to end the Delphi using a subset of the panel in a face‐to‐face meeting to move from consensus to instrument construction. This paper describes the process and shows a summary of the findings of each of the rounds of the Delphi. The use of a Delphi method for determining consensus around the validity of the theory emerging from the research and literature on field days was appropriate and shows that this type of testing against grounded theory can prove useful for building measures to test the emergent theoretical constructs. Modifying the Delphi to focus on the theoretical constructs emerging from the initial analysis allowed the process to function as a true Delphi and eliminated the long process of construct identification.     

Teaching about sustainability through inquiry-based science in Irish primary classrooms: the impact of a professional development programme on teacher self-efficacy,competence and pedagogy

Abstract

Research suggests that innovative and engaging professional development is instrumental in supporting teachers in developing their competence and confidence in teaching sustainability. An international initiative was developed to explore whether a competencies-oriented Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) professional development model was transferable across three different international contexts (Ireland, Germany and Mexico). This paper reports on the adaptation of this model within the Irish context, through the development of an innovative professional development programme for primary teachers. Through a mixed-methods approach which gathered data via pre- and post-programme surveys, teachers’ reflective journals and post-programme group interviews, the paper explores Irish primary school teachers’ experiences of, and attitudes towards, teaching sustainability through science education after participation in a professional development programme. The findings suggest that this programme, structured around the existing evidence for effective professional development in science education and ESD, positively influences teachers’ self-efficacy, supports teachers’ critical engagement with sustainability competencies and promotes the development of transformative pedagogies for sustainability through Inquiry-Based Science Education.     

Teacher representations of the successful use of computer-based tools and resources in secondary-school English,mathematics and science

This study investigated professional thinking about pedagogical aspects of technology use in mainstream classroom practice. It focuses on the systems of ideas which frame teacher accounts of the successful use of computer-based tools and resources in the core subjects of English, Mathematics and Science at secondary-school level. These accounts were elicited through group interviews with the relevant subject departments in six secondary schools in England. The analysis identifies seven broad themes in which teachers point to the contribution of technology use in: effecting working processes and improving production; supporting processes of checking, trialling and refinement; enhancing the variety and appeal of classroom activity; fostering pupil independence and peer support; overcoming pupil difficulties and building assurance; broadening reference and increasing currency of activity; and focusing on overarching issues and accentuating important features. Further examination of these themes shows how professional thinking about technology use is anchored in well-established representations of pupil motivation and classroom learning, and how contrasting subject profiles reflect corresponding differences in wider subject cultures.     

某大悬挑建筑的结构设计与分析

处在高空中的悬挑结构,由于所处位置的重要性和悬挑结构发生破坏时的不可挽回性,决定了设计者在安全与经济2个方面的选择上,必须把安全因素放在第一位。文章通过对某工程大悬挑结构选型和材料选用的对比分析,说明采用型钢混凝土梁柱结构并结合一些相应的构造措施,可以较好地解决大悬挑的结构设计问题。     

从远程教育系统看我国技术社会化过程的路线、体制与模式

本文以我国远程教育系统的初期解决方案为主要例证,尝试提出目前我国技术社会化过程中的现象要素,在此基础上进一步尝试提出技术社会化的路线预测和模式设计,尤其是新技术在教育领域内的应用,并希望从体制和模式上探讨改进的方案.     

DVX、SDLX和STAR Transit辅助翻译软件使用的比较研究(英文)

DVX、SDLX and STAR Transit是电脑辅助翻译领域中三种常用的辅助翻译软件,在术语管理、翻译记忆库管理和翻译管理方面各有优劣。本文从三个方面对三种翻译软件进行了对比,以便翻译者或客户做出合适的选择。     

Supporting online,non-traditional students through the introduction of effective e-learning tools in a pre-university tertiary enabling programme

The increasing number of external students enrolling at Charles Darwin University has led to the university investing in new technologies to provide better support for students studying online. Many students, however, come from non-traditional backgrounds and lack some of the skills and confidence to participate successfully in an e-learning environment at university. This article discusses the findings of a pilot study conducted in a pre-university tertiary enabling programme. Three e-learning tools were developed for external students to enhance their understanding of the learning materials and create a greater sense of connectedness between students, staff and the learning materials. Academic staff implemented the use of video clips and synchronous online tutorials and also refined their use of discussion groups to facilitate interactive engagement with learning materials.     

Pedagogical intersectionality: exploring content,technology, and student-centered learning through a problem based/project based approach

ABSTRACT

A narrative case study exploring the course design and implementation of a capstone undergraduate course for future teachers taught with a lens of pedagogical intersectionality, an integration of K-12 history-social science content, advocating for students, and technology. Four undergraduate students’ perspectives on the taught concepts of culturally sustaining pedagogies, universal design for learning and social justice through multimodal approaches resulting in the creation and facilitation of a digital one-day lesson (DODL) that incorporates course tenets and use of technology. Data was collected from course surveys, reflections, DODL lesson plan, and DODL Post microteaching reflections. Themes generated from the data sources were personal learning experiences, cultural respect and acknowledgement, pedagogical growing pains, fatigue, and synthesis occurring in DODL. Collaborators responded to student comments and reflected on course design and goals to foster independent learning of course tenets. Future research will involve additional analysis of subsequent sections of the course based on feedback and reflective modifications learned through this project.     

Doctoral dissertations in instructional design and technology, 1977 through 1988

This is a summary of data on doctoral dissertations completed in instructional design and technology programs over the period 1977–88. During this period, 1,518 dissertations were completed at 46 different institutions, with nearly half completed at only 7 institutions. The 1,518 dissertations were chaired by 286 different professors, but approximately half were chaired by just 39 professors. The number per professor ranged from 89 to 1. Output was fairly steady over the 12 years, averaging 127 per year, with a low of 106 in 1980 and a high of 149 in 1983 and 1985.     

Nature of Technology: Implications for design,development, and enactment of technological tools in school science classrooms

This position paper provides a theory-based explanation informed by philosophy of technology (PoT) of the recurrent documented patterns often associated with attempts to enact technology-supported, inquiry-based approaches in precollege science classrooms. Understandings derived from the history of technological development in other domains (e.g. medicine, transportation, and warfare) reveal numerous parallels that help to explain these recurrent patterns. Historical analyses of major technologies reveal a conglomerate of factors that interact to produce benefits, as well as intended and unintended consequences. On a macro-scale, PoT facilitates understandings of how technologies interact and are impacted by individuals, society, institutions, economy, politics, and culture. At the micro-level, and most relevant to science education, PoT engages the inherent nature of technology along a number of key dimensions: role of culture and values, notions of technological progression, technology as part of systems, technological diffusion, technology as a fix, and the notions of expertise. Overall, the present analysis has implications for the design, development, implementation, and adoption of technological tools for use in precollege science education, and highlights the role of technology as both artifact and process.     

Configuration design, energy management and experimental validation of a novel series-parallel hybrid electric transit bus

This paper aims to present the configuration design approach and the energy management strategy （EMS） of a series-parallel hybrid electric transit bus （SPHEB） jointly developed by Shanghai Automotive Industry Co. Ltd. （SAIC） and Shanghai Jiao Tong University （SJTU）, China. A major feature of this SPHEB is that a novel manual transmission is designed to switch the powertrain configuration between series and parallel types. To reduce the fuel consumption as well as sustain the battery state of charge, an EMS including seven energy flow modes is designed and applied to this SPHEB. Governed by this EMS, the engine is maintained to operate in high efficiency regions. The experimental test carded on the transit bus city driving cycle is described and analyzed. The experimental results demonstrate the technical feasibility and fuel economy of this approach.     

Technology enhanced feedback tools as a knowledge management mechanism for supporting professional growth and school reform

Attempts at school reform and improvement have experienced difficulty creating and implementing feedback systems that energize and sustain change efforts. If the call for reform at all levels of education is to be met, attention must be given to establishing effective feedback mechanisms in educational institutions as they embark on improvement efforts. The purpose of this article is to describe application of an educational design metaphor to create a Knowledge Management System that provides teachers with timely and constructive feedback about their professional practice. This system includes the way in which a corpus of professional knowledge about differentiated content and instruction, classroom grouping, evidence-based practice and classroom management can be embedded in a set of tools that provides multiple stakeholders (teachers, students, administrators) the opportunity to generate feedback about instructional practice. Use of the approach is discussed within the broader context of Knowledge Management as a vehicle to extend the role of feedback in school reform and improvement within a long term pilot application in one school.     

Using interactive content and online activities to accommodate diversity in a large first year class

As in many universities, class sizes have increased more quickly than teaching and learning resources. A related challenge is the increasing diversity of the student body in terms of socio-economic background, learning styles, English language ability and preparedness. This paper explores ways in which traditional face-to-face teaching methods (such as lectures and tutorials) can be combined with online teaching and learning activities in a “blended” learning approach to improve teaching and learning and to accommodate student diversity. Using a large first year Economics class as a case study, data were collected on student perceptions of the use of blended learning. A statistical model was used on a sample of 50 students to determine which online activities were most beneficial in improving student performance. The majority of students agreed that replacing one lecture a week with online activities and resources improved their learning, although about 20 % of the class would have preferred more lecturing and fewer online resources. Statistical finding showed that more active online resources, such as multiple choice and graphing questions, were most beneficial in improving student performance, but that more passive lecture capture was also useful in modelling the discourse of the discipline.     

Conceptualising strategic alignment between curriculum and pedagogy through a learning design framework

Abstract

Improved clarity concerning the relationship between curriculum and pedagogy in higher education is needed to address issues concerning learning and teaching quality. This paper explores the relationship between curriculum and pedagogy and argues for a stronger and more explicit link between the two. On that basis, the paper proposes a conceptual learning design framework that has the potential to act as a clarifying tool for academic developers and academics as they conceptualise and develop contemporary learning environments for effective learning. Reflections on the implication of the framework for practice are discussed.