The purposes of this proof-of-concept project are to assist teachers in analyzing their own science inquiry skills as well as those of their students via the development of an inquiry skill analyzer (iSA); and to assist teachers in selecting, designing, developing, implementing and evaluating technology-supported learning activities to develop science inquiry skills, especially in identified weak areas through the development of an inquiry activity portal (iAP). The iSA is a non-threatening, learner-friendly environment to diagnose strengths and weaknesses in science as inquiry (both student and teacher). Teachers can use that analysis to select and adapt technology-enhanced inquiry activities found in the iAP to target specific skills development. The iSA will allow teachers to track student progress in inquiry skills and to evaluate the effects of the chosen activities to guide their future practice. The iAP will provide teachers with easily identifiable resources that target specific inquiry skills and it will also provide science teachers with a platform to share their experiences and evidence of student results from using the resources, thus building a community of practice among middle grade science teachers interested in improving inquiry skills.
