Browsing by Subject "PlantingScience"
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Item Mentored Engagement of Secondary Science Students, Plant Scientists, and Teachers in an Inquiry-Based Online Learning Environment(2012-10-19) Peterson, CherylPlantingScience (PS) is a unique web-based learning system designed to develop secondary students' scientific practices and proficiencies as they engage in hands-on classroom investigations while being mentored online by a scientist. Some students' teachers had the opportunity to attend PS professional development (PD). In this dissertation, I developed a process of assessing student learning outcomes associated with their use of this system and evaluated inquiry engagement within this system. First, I developed a valid and reliable instrument (Online Elements of Inquiry Checklist; OEIC) to measure participants' (students, scientists, and teachers) engagement in scientific practices and proficiencies embedded within an inquiry cycle I collaborated with an expert-group to establish the OEIC's construct and content validities. An inter-rater reliability coefficient of 0.92 was established by scientists and a split half analysis was used to determine the instruments' internal consistency (Spearman-Brown coefficient of 0.96). Next, I used the OEIC to evaluate inquiry cycle engagement by the participants who used the PS online platform designed by the Botanical Society of America which facilitated communication between participants. Students provided more evidence of engagement in the earlier phases of an inquiry cycle. Scientists showed a similar trend but emphasized experimental design and procedures. Teachers rarely engaged online. Exemplary students' outcomes followed similar inquiry cycle trends, but with more evidence of engagement with one notable difference. Exemplary students provided evidence for extensive engagement in immersion activities, implicating immersion as a crucial component of successful inquiry cycle engagement. I also compared engagement outcomes of students whose teachers attended the PD experience to the students of teachers who did not attend PD. Differences found between the two groups occurred throughout the inquiry cycle, typically associated with experiences provided during the PD. As a result of this research I have several recommendations about revisions to the PS online platform and use of approaches to assure students development of scientific practices and proficiencies. The recommendations include additional scaffolding of the platform, explicit inquiry cycle instruction, and continued opportunities for teachers to engage in PD experiences provided by PS.Item Motivating Learners in Secondary Science Classrooms: Analysis of a Computer-Supported, Inquiry-Based Learning Environment Using Self-Determination Theory(2014-07-29) Scogin, Stephen C.In spite of generally poor student reports about science instruction in K-12 classrooms and decreasing interest in STEM careers, some curricular programs have successfully motivated and engaged students. One such program is PlantingScience, an inquiry-based, computer-supported learning curriculum developed by the Botanical Society of America. PlantingScience uniquely utilizes professional scientists who serve as online mentors to K-12 students engaged in classroom inquiry projects. In an effort to determine why PlantingScience is successful, I began this dissertation with an extensive literature review discussing how technology and mentoring affect student motivation. Additionally, I conducted two original research studies using multiple data streams including classroom observations, teacher interviews, a focus group of teachers and scientists, and online dialogues between students and scientists. In the first study, I used Elliot Eisner?s Connoisseurship/Critique model of qualitative analysis to describe, interpret, and evaluate PlantingScience. More specifically, I created a grounded theory explaining how PlantingScience motivates and engages students. I subsequently compared these findings with self-determination theory to determine how the results could be explained in regard to autonomy, competence, and relatedness. In the second study, I used mixed methods to create a rubric measuring scientists? online motivational support from the perspective of self-determination theory. I also measured student inquiry engagement using a preexisting rubric specifically designed for the PlantingScience program. Using these two measures, I investigated the associations between scientist-mentors? motivational support and student inquiry engagement. The findings in this dissertation provided evidence that students are motivated to engage in PlantingScience in part because of student empowerment, online mentor interaction, and authentic scientific experiences. In particular, the relationships developed between students and scientists in the online asynchronous environments were critical to the success of the program. As a general rule, students engaged in the inquiry projects more thoroughly as their scientist-mentors? motivational support increased. Perhaps the online mentoring partnership model offered by PlantingScience can be used on a wider scale to address the challenges of students? lack of interest in classroom science and STEM career fields.