The ability to apply systems thinking and computational thinking when developing models to explain complex phenomena?from the coronavirus pandemic to the computational infrastructure of our interconnected world to climate change?is critical. 

Since the release of A Framework for K-12 Science Education and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), pedagogical approaches and materials have been developed to help students learn science through the integration of three dimensions of scientific knowledge: disciplinary core ideas (DCIs), science and engineering practices (SEPs), and crosscutting concepts (CCCs). Although this 3D approach to supporting learners in making sense of phenomena or solving problems is challenging, many teachers have engaged learners in more student-centered experimentation, collaborative use of modeling tools, and project-based learning. 

The sudden move to remote learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic threatened these advances. Teachers no longer had access to a physical lab space to engage students in exploration of phenomena. Many educational tools were not designed to facilitate peer interactions in a remote learning context or to engage students in making sense of phenomena using 3D learning. With school closures and uncertainty about how long or how often such disruptions will occur, the RAPID: Making the Transition to Remote Science Teaching and Learning project researched how to best support teachers in continuing to offer high-quality 3D science teaching that aligns to the vision of the Framework in virtual or hybrid contexts. 

Through prior NSF-supported work, the Concord Consortium and the CREATE for STEM Institute at Michigan State University developed the web-based SageModeler systems modeling tool for students to instantiate their conceptual understandings of phenomena through the creation of computational models and to validate their models through comparison with real-world data, all without traditional coding or the need to write complex equations. This has made the use of modeling for explaining a great diversity of phenomena much more accessible to a wide range of students. 

The project offered professional learning (PL) opportunities, including virtual workshops, ongoing Professional Learning Community (PLC) meetings, a dedicated threaded discussion venue, and individual project liaison meetings for teachers in Michigan and New York City from various grade bands (upper elementary, middle, and high schools) and various science areas.

The project developed a set of design principles reflective of both the structure and the content of the program for effective remote professional learning around three-dimensional pedagogy using SageModeler in remote learning contexts. The first six principles focus on the structure of the PL program and include: (1) Collaborative activities among researchers and teachers; (2) Individualized supports; (3) Explicit modeling of pedagogical strategies; (4) Sustained professional learning over time; (5) Active construction of tangible products (models, instructional materials); and (6) Scaffolding with learning technologies.

The content focus of the PL was on 3D learning and project-based learning (PBL) using SageModeler. PBL allows teachers and students to learn by doing, apply ideas, figure out how phenomena occur, and solve challenging, real-world problems. The project took the approach that teachers are themselves active learners and should employ the same 3D SEPs as their students, especially as they learn new technologies and learning activities to bring to their classrooms. Thus, there is overlap in the PL principles, in particular with both (5) and (6). In addition, two additional design principles focus on the content of the PL program: (7) NGSS three-dimensional learning: integrating DCIs, computational thinking practice, and system modeling and (8) Use of relevant, discipline-specific phenomena.

Overall findings supported that the teachers adopted and adapted the PL design principles to develop pedagogical strategies for their students? 3D learning. The design principles as enacted in classrooms help to build capacity for teachers to prepare students for the STEM workforce of the future who can engage in modeling using computational thinking and systems thinking.

For further information, free software, and curricula, see: https://sagemodeler.concord.org/

Last Modified: 10/22/2021
Modified by: Daniel Damelin