Zydeco: Exploring How Mobile Technology Can Scaffold Student Multimedia Data Collection and Use for Science Inquiry.

Abstract

Contemporary standards emphasize authentic inquiry experiences when students are learning to engage in scientific practices. Students should be able to collect and annotate multimedia data outside the classroom and then analyze and interpret that data, along with peer collected data, to construct a scientific explanation in the classroom. However, completing these tasks while engaging in inquiry that takes place across classroom and out of classroom contexts is difficult for students as they are working in novel environments with less teacher support. Software can provide scaffolding to students as they engage in inquiry, but there is a lack of systems and of guidelines on how to design software to support students as they perform these tasks.

This study explored how to design software scaffolds that mitigate the challenges students face surrounding the processes of collecting multimedia data outside the classroom and using large amounts of data (several hundred pieces) to construct scientific explanations. Drawing from the literature on learning, scaffolds were designed around using co-created tags as supportive features, providing stepwise guidance through the complex processes, and supporting searching through and assessing data characteristics.

These scaffolds were integrated into two tools: 1) Zydeco:CollectData, which uses a handheld device to scaffold students through engaging in multimedia data collection and annotation outside the classroom, and 2) Zydeco:UseData, which uses a tablet device to scaffold learners through using large amounts of personal and peer collected multimedia data to construct scientific explanations.

In order to evaluate the impact of the scaffolds, a field study was conducted with 54 students (27 pairs) aged 11-13. The results of the study demonstrate that, by and large, the students were able to use the scaffolds provided by Zydeco to accurately collect, annotate, and use data to construct scientific explanations.

This work contributes: 1) the design of two integrated tools that provide software scaffolding and reflect instructional practices, 2) an evaluation of how students used the scaffolds in the tools, and 3) design guidelines for other designers to use in developing scaffolds to assist learners performing similar activities.