The project makes use of technology to create timely, valid, and actionable reports to teachers by analyzing assessments and logs of student actions generated in the course of using computer-based curriculum materials. The reports allow teachers to make data-based decisions about alternative teaching strategies. The technology supports student collaborations and the assignment of different learning activities to groups, an essential function needed for universal design for learning (UDL). Initially, two curriculum units are under development to meet California 8th grade standards (60% of course). In the later years of the project this effort will be expanded to North Carolina Central University and districts in that state.
The project is a collaborative partnership that involves physical scientists, learning scientists, educators, and TELS, an established NSF-funded Center for Learning and Teaching. The project is based on an extensive body of research and development in educational technology. The project represents a significant and innovative advance in the use of technology to support formative assessment of student learning and provide feedback to teachers.
Logging Opportunities in Online Programs for Science (LOOPS) was a national project that provided innovative resources that support inquiry in the middle school science classroom. The project developed and refined technologies to provide teachers with timely, valid, and rich information about their students’ ideas and level of understanding as students progress through online inquiry science curriculum materials. The science curriculum developed for the project incorporated computational models and data-logging probes into the study of middle school physical science and chemistry. LOOPS worked with teachers to develop strategies for facilitating classroom discussions, guiding students, and customizing curriculum that takes advantage of the information gathered from student work to help students revisit and refine their ideas using evidence. We documented the impact of the LOOPS technology tools in instructional comparison studies using pretest, embedded assessments, logged computer interaction data, post tests, and student and teacher interviews. Our instructional comparison studies, conducted in collaboration with LOOPS teachers, suggest that when teachers provide guidance designed according to what we call knowledge integration design principles, students show significantly greater science learning gains than with the typical alternative forms of guidance used in middle school classrooms. The results of these studies informed the development and iterative refinement of technology-enhanced teacher tools. For example, Openers, which are introductory teacher-led classroom discussions, routinely take up classroom time each day, yet little is known about how to design these activities so that they contribute to student learning. LOOPS developed technology that enabled teachers to structure their Openers based directly on their students’ understanding: Teachers were able to use technology-based tools such as easy flagging of student work examples, automatic grading of student-created graphs, and preloaded examples of student work illustrating a range of common student ideas. Teachers and researchers used these tools to design Openers during professional development workshops. We tested the Opener design in classroom studies. Results suggest that students who participated in a LOOPS-designed Opener were more likely to revisit and refine their work and to make significant learning gains than students who did not participate in an Opener. This work was documented in a peer-reviewed publication co-authored by a LOOPS researcher and teacher. Teachers also used the tools during class in order to conduct real-time discussion, often to wrap up a lesson at the end of a class. We conducted studies that compared the trade-off between two different classroom teaching patterns: 1. conducting Openers, then letting students work independently for the rest of a class period; and 2. conducting both Openers and at least one mid-class discussion. Both classroom patterns resulted in student learning gains, with no significant differences seen between the patterns. The results suggest that the technology can be used successfully in either way: When students work independently, the technology helps teachers gauge student understanding and identify students who may need help. When teachers conduct class discussion, students gain from comparison of different approaches and use of evidence. Intellectual Merit. LOOPS incorporated cutting-edge tools and computational models and improved student assessment through sophisticated logging technology and innovative design of teacher assessment tools. Today’s classroom computers can execute sophisticated simulations of complex systems such as computational dynamics and climate models. The central challenge to wider use of these resources is that students often lack the inquiry skills to experiment meaningfully and to interpret the results, and that teachers need special talents to impart those skills. LOOPS addressed these challenges by giving teachers greater access to student thinking as students worked with complex models. Tools provided teachers with customizable assessment reports, flagging of student work, and premade comments to respond to student graphs, drawings and short essays, generated as students interacted with models and probes. Broader Impacts. Guided student inquiry with tools that scientists use, such as models and data-logging probes, offers considerable promise for student learning but requires careful study to ensure that all students benefit. To meet the needs of schools serving diverse students, we refined the teacher tools to include easy flagging of student work, real time progress monitoring, premade comments based on local populations, and preloaded examples of student work. We found that when teachers took advantage of the tools they could tailor instruction to their student needs. Reports can help teachers immediately after instruction as well as at the end of the year when they plan for the following year. Such reports should highlight progress for low pretest students to ensure they are not overlooked. To enable teachers to use computers effectively we need customizable tools such as those created for LOOPS.
