1. Suggestions for using data to improve science education Rajul Pandya DLESE Program Center Unidata Program Center NVODS Meeting September 2003

2. Overview Science Education should be revised NVODS/OPeNDAP can contribute technical infrastructure to that revision Technology is not enough Ideas from the Educational Research Community A framework for integrating technology and educational research: Compound Documents

3. Goals Highlight key issues regarding the educational use of data Provide a concrete illustration using cyberinfrastructure to enable meaningful educational use of data Introduce DLESE as educational cyberinfrastructure and collaborator

4. A need to improve Science Education Even after studying a phenomena in class, students had a fragile and incomplete understanding of the underlying physical processes

5. Recommendations for Reform Adopt an inquiry-based approach Emphasize scientific principles and their applicability to everyday life Use scientific tools Present an integrated, Earth-Systems perspective Recommendations from: Shaping the Future; Geoscience Education: A Recommended Strategy; Geosciences: Beyond 2000; Science for All Americans

6. More Succinctly …faculty may come to interact with undergraduates in ways that resemble how they interact with their doctoral students today… National Academy of Science November, 2002

7. Challenges in Implementing Reform Students have difficulty using scientific tools and data, especially in inquiry environments Professors encounter practical and technological hurdles when implementing reform recommendations As a result, most classes are still taught in traditional ways

8. More Challenges “A consideration of how people can use computers and the Internet to further the process of social inclusion is paramount in any effort to install new technology into an environment lacking it.” 1 Time scales of change for technology, institutions, organizations, and society differ - how to maintain synergy? 1 Mark Warschauer: Demystifying the Digital Divide, Scientific American August 2003

9. Learning Theory Revolution Behavioral View - Learning involves the transmission of fixed knowledge that can be measured precisely. Cognitive View - Learning is contextual, effortful, developmental and can only be estimated through triangulation of assessments.

10. Technology as a cognitive tool for learning. Cognitive tools enhance powers of humans during thinking, problem-solving, and learning. Written language, mathematical notation, and more recently, computer programs are examples of cognitive tools.

11. Using Data as a Cognitive Tools Data access needs to be linked to appropriate tools and guided by relevant educational context Digital Libraries can provide a vehicle for discovering and using data in educational settings. From the DLESE Developers’ Workshop, 2003

12. Compound Documents TEXT: A curriculum to model and guide inquiry TOOLS: Scientific visualization tools, data access tools Intellectual models to inform student data exploration DATA: Multiple data sets to enable student discovery (cataloged in THREDDS)

13. An Example: The VGEE Web-based environment in which students use authentic data and tools to investigate a real scientific issue It include: A learner-interface to a scientific visualization tool Concept models that support physical insight A curriculum to guide inquiry A catalog of data, with services to use that data

14. An Example: The VGEE Students notice that the Western Pacific is considerably warmer than the East. Identify Relate Explain Integrate

15. The VGEE Learners construct visualizations showing that upward motion, above average precip, and warm SST all occur together Identify Relate Explain Integrate

16. Concept models are used to explore relations in an idealized context. The VGEE Identify Relate Explain Integrate

17. The VGEE Concept models can be used to probe data. This helps students ‘see’ basic physics in real data and apply theoretical understandings to real geophysical phenomena. Identify Relate Explain Integrate

18. Classroom Testing Question Number Average Score

19. Tools in the VGEE VGEE content developers use THREDDS catalogs to serve data UNIDATA IDV reads these catalogs and then loads data from remote servers Advantages: Convenience: Avoids time-consuming data downloads Scalability: Future access to growing catalogs of research and real-time data Interoperability: THREDDS can negotiate protocols allowing IDV to visualize multiple data types

20. Advantages of Compound Documents Discovery in Digital Libraries The VGEE curriculum is catalogued in the Digital Library for Earth System Education (DLESE) Is discoverable in the National Science Digital Library (NSDL) Advantages Dissemination: DLESE has over 100000 hits a month Credibility: DLESE can serve as a “reputations broker” Collaborations: DLs include intellectual commons

21. Starting in DLESE

22. Discovery of VGEE

23. VGEE Curriculum

24. Launching the Visualization Tool

25. The IDV-based Visualization Tool

26. Using THREDDS to Access Distributed Data The IDV can read THREDDS catalogs and locate and load the cataloged data set.

27. Concept Models/Probes

28. Advantages of Compound Documents Connecting Data, Tools, and Curriculum Learners & Educators Ocean Data GIS Data Solid Earth THREDDS DLESE Images Simulations Curricula Concept Models IDV Curricula VGEE VGEE Data Concept Models Researchers

29. Advantages of Compound Documents A network of expert contributions TEXT: The inquiry curriculum implements pedagogical knowledge, integrates assessment, connects to scientific content, uses technology to launch & configure tools TOOLS: A customized interface to support discovery of specific understandings incorporates scientific knowledge, learner- centered design, pedagogical theory and classroom practice Concept models depend on scientific understanding, technological skill, instructional design DATA: Multiple data sets to enable student discovery. And also support adding domain knowledge, relevant services, etc.

30. Advantages of Compound Documents A Developers Toolkit An educational materials developer can find data sets in THREDDS thematic catalogs (in NSDL/DLESE) find related Concept Models in DLESE/NSDL modify or build a new interfaces for the IDV engine (including importing concept models) use VGEE as a scaffold to build curriculum

31. Advantages of Compound Documents Dynamic Curriculum A student or teacher can Use curriculum with chosen, static data sets (as now) Access thematic catalogs to look for the most recent related data sets Catalogs can (in the future) Contain pointers to configuration info for the IDV (including customizing the interface.

32. Summary Cyber-infrastructure provides tools for reform of science education Data access and Interoperability (e.g. NVODS) Digital Libraries Educational research provides guidance in using these tools Context, recommendations, and barriers Compound Documents apply educational guidance to cyber-infrastructure components An Example: The VGEE

33. A Cyberinfrastructure for Geoscience Education: DLESE Easy access to quality teaching and learning resources on a full range of Earth Systems topics for a wide range of learners Services to help users effectively create, use and evaluate digital learning resources Interfaces and tools to allow student exploration of Earth data A community center that fosters interaction, collaboration and sharing

34. What can DLESE offer NVODS? Connections to educational community Services to add context to data and tools Mechanisms to align to digital resources to community needs Authentic assessment opportunities

35. Acknowledgements The VGEE curriculum and concept models were developed by: Dan Bramer, Colleen Contrisciane, Ryan Deardorff, Dean Elliott, Ken Hay, Katia Issa, Mary Marlino, Rajul Pandya, Mohan Ramamurthy, Caryssa Seider, Marianne Weingroff, Robert Wilhelmson, and and John Yoder VGEE Data were prepared by Don Middleton and Tim Scheitlin of the VETS group in SCD The IDV was developed by the Unidata IDV developers: Jeff McWhirter, Don Murray, and Stuart Wier THREDDS tools are designed and maintained by Unidata THREDDS developers: John Caron, Ethan Davis, Ben Domenico, Robb Kambic, and Stefano Nativi All work supported by the National Science Foundation.

36. Links VGEE Curriculum www.dpc.org/vgee IDV Visualization Environment: www.unidata.ucar.edu/projects/metapps/webstart SCD’s Visualization and Enabling Technologies Group: http://www.vets.ucar.edu/ THREDDS: www.unidata.ucar.edu/projects/THREDDS DLESE: www.dlese.org NSDL : www.nsdl.org