NSF East Asia and Pacific Summer Institute (EAPSI) for FY 2013 in China

Webb Aubree M, State College PA

Investigators

Abstract

This action funds Aubree Webb of The Pennsylvania State University to conduct a research project in the Education and Human Resource area during the summer of 2013 at the Computer Network Information Center (CNIC) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, China. The project title is "Virtual Inquiry Projects in Science Classrooms: Do Grizzly Bears and 3-D Avatars Impact Students' Inquiry Skills?." The host scientist is Xiao Yun, Professor and Director of the Internet-based Science Communication Center at the Computer Network Information Center in the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Incorporating technology into the classroom is an important goal of science educators. While there are increasing numbers of studies in this area, there are not many with cross-cultural measures. Studying the cross-cultural outcomes of authentic web-based inquiry has the potential to contribute much to the field of science education. The purpose of this project is to advance the collaboration between the Computer Network Information Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Texas A&M University, and the Pennsylvania State University. This project introduces a project called Bear Cam and adapts the ongoing Virtual Ecological Inquiry project for a cross-cultural study. Bear Cam is a web-based inquiry database with images of bears. Virtual Ecological Inquiry is an immersive inquiry where students operate an avatar around the virtual Wolong Nature Reserve. In each project, students complete an inquiry project and produce a final report meeting current science standards in obtaining, evaluating, and communicating data. Broader impacts of an EAPSI fellowship include providing the Fellow a first-hand research experience outside the U.S.; an introduction to the science, science policy, and scientific infrastructure of the respective location; and an orientation to the society, culture and language. These activities meet the NSF goal to educate for international collaborations early in the career of its scientists, engineers, and educators, thus ensuring a globally aware U.S. scientific workforce. Furthermore, this study can inform software developers and teachers about the best way to reach students in highly diverse settings. Virtual and web-based inquiry also has the added benefit of increasing student interaction with other students from geographically diverse locations, an important experience in an increasingly global world. If the web-based inquiry projects increase student interest and learning outcomes in ecology across various learning settings and with diverse student populations, the next step is for the researcher to scale up and develop the technology for easy access into ecology classrooms and informal science education settings in the United States and across the world. One goal of the entire collaboration is to motivate more students from a range of backgrounds, especially those underrepresented in science, to pursue a career in one of the STEM fields. The Fellow will share results with those interested in science and technology by presenting at international and international conferences and university-level research seminars and publishing in related journals.