Supporting Social Studies Data Literacy Education: Design of Technology Tools and Insights from Expert Teachers and Teacher Change Journeys

Abstract

This dissertation aims to contribute to the K-12 engineering education literature in a social studies context. Data literacy (DL) is the ability to understand and interpret what data means by drawing conclusions from patterns, trends, and correlations in data visualizations (DVs). DL is part of K-12 United States social studies standards making it relevant for engineering education researchers since it intersects both engineering and social studies. All K-12 students take social studies classes, yet most people are not data literate. Research suggests that social studies teachers have insufficient resources for teaching DL, so not all social studies teachers teach it. The goal of this dissertation is to shed light on the topic of K-12 DL in social studies by exploring three research questions:

1. When designing engineering tools for non-STEM social studies teachers, what design considerations should be met?

2. How do K-12 social studies teachers choose to explore data literacy in their pedagogy after participating in a data literacy professional learning opportunity (PLO)?

3. How do expert social studies teachers use and explore DVs in their pedagogy, describe their data literacy pedagogical strategies, and explore/use technology tools to support their data literacy pedagogy?

To answer my first research question (Study 1), a participatory design (PD) approach was used to learn what social studies teachers (both pre-service and in-service) want in their classrooms by testing the usability of real tools with participants. Through three design phases, pre and in-service teacher groups informed the design and development of learning tools for social studies DL. Using a Social Construction of Technology lens, I describe the scaffolding embedded in the resulting tool DV4L by considering: 1) teachers’ perceptions of usefulness and usability in the DL tools they explored, and 2) how PD sessions with pre- and in-service teacher groups evolved over time beginning with their interactions with existing tools and leading to our current DV4L prototype tools.

I addressed my second research question through a longitudinal study (Study 2) that delved into how three K-12 social studies teachers explored DL during and after a PLO. Narrative methods were used to describe how three social studies teachers changed their DL practices. The journeys began with teachers as they explored a DL focused PLO, incorporated DL in their lesson plan(s), and include their reflections after implementing the lesson(s) in their classrooms. I used Guskey’s Model for Teacher Change as my analytical lens to understand each teacher’s DL journey.

My experiences in Study 1 and 2 made me wonder how expert teachers were meeting their DL learning goals. I used Shulman’s Pedagogical Content Knowledge framework to design Study 3 and address my third research question. I looked at how expert teachers explored DVs and described their DL pedagogical strategies and technology uses through a think aloud and semi-structured interview. Findings describe how five expert teachers made meaning of data and DVs through the practices and strategies they used or described using in their pedagogy. This dissertation informs the design of curriculum, PLOs, and technology tools to support social studies teachers reach their DL learning goals. It has already informed the design of two socially constructed DL tools for K-12 social studies. Such tools provide teachers pedagogical power in their graphing activities in ways that support their DL learning goals while also promoting engineering skills and thinking.