Using Inquiry Hybrid Classes in Middle School

INQUIRY PROJECTS, TECHNOLOGY, AND PROBLEM SOLVING 1

Using Authentic Inquiry Projects, Technology, and Problem Solving

to Teach Information-Age Skills in Middle Schools

By Martha Rice

Texas A & M University at Texarkana


Using Authentic Inquiry Projects, Technology, and Problem Solving

to Teach Information-Age Skills in Middle Schools

Middle School Children and Technology

Introduction

Students in the information age are “digital natives” who live, work, and play online. It

is unreasonable to ask them to be educated using tools and systems developed centuries ago.

Students, especially those in middle school who are preparing for the rigors of high school,

advanced education, and work in the global competitive economy, need to be able to use

technology to learn in schools and to use that technology to solve ill-structured problems in all

classes. Teachers should be mentors and facilitators who allow students to research and learn in

order to hone problem solving skills, providing only scaffolding and feedback when necessary.

Students should use online simulation, communication, and collaboration tools to become mini-

experts in whatever they have decided to research in their quest to solve real-world authentic

problems. Students should also present their findings clearly, developing and supporting

professional arguments to defend their solutions.

Digital Natives

Children of the 21st century have never known a world without computers, cell phones,

and video games. They are multi-taskers, texting while they do homework and download

music and carry on instant messaging with friends (Spires, Lee, Turner & Johnson, 2008).

They spend an estimated 72 hours per week engaged in some form of electronic interaction.

They have constant multimedia babysitting, and have come to expect the same instant

gratification in all aspects of their lives that they receive from their cell phones, computers, and


X-Boxes (Bauleke & Herrmann, 2010). Some children are living virtual lives in virtual worlds

where they are able to pursue their own interests freely and to interact with others (Shaffer,

Squire, Halverson & Gee, 2005). When students browse the Internet to look up information on

topics that interest them, they are able to get instant definitions of words they want to know

through hyperlinked texts (Kingsley & Boone 2008).

Problems with using technology in education

When students come to school, they are often shut off from their preferred form of

information gathering: using technology. Because school administrators fear the worst, they err

on the side of caution, and hold students to a standard of linear, teacher-led learning that

belongs to past centuries. It is certainly true that students, given free access to Internets, iPods,

cell phones, and other technologies will get into mischief that is not appropriate or educational.

Students can become addicted to online gaming and inappropriately use chat rooms (Jing,

Jingye & Qiu 2009). Cyberbullying and online dangers do exist. iPods and music can be

distracting (Bauleke & Herman, 2010). Playing online games and random browsing adds no

value educationally (Johnson, 2009). These bogeys have frightened educators away from

taking advantage of the benefits of integrating technology into education, and as a result,

students are not able to use technology in coordination with 21st century skills like problem

solving to prepare themselves for higher education and the competitive global job market (Lee

& Spires 2009). Additionally, arbitrary limits on technology use in effect disenfranchises

poorer students who might not have technology at home (Hofer & Swan, 2008). Almost every

student owns, in their cell phone, a more powerful computer than those that sent man to the

moon, and yet most schools will not allow cell phones in school (Spires et al., 2008; Lee &

Spires, 2009).


Effects of technology on learning

Technology can cover a myriad of learning applications. Students can use technology to

find explanations, bridge gaps between concepts and knowledge, organize and analyze data,

collaborate in research and problem solving, and present findings professionally (Kingsley &

Boone, 2008). Technology helps students learn more efficiently (Jing, Jingye & Qiu 2009) and

remember more of what they learned. Technology can enhance students’ language and thinking

skills and can engage students’ reflection and self-monitoring behaviors (Johnson, 2009).

Students who use technology to solve problems are more engaged in learning (An & Reigeluth,

2008) and produce more professional products at the end of inquiry and problem solving tasks

(Park & Ertmer, 2008).

Problem Solving

Using real-world problems

Students in typical teacher-led classrooms are expected to solve well-structured

problems in which there are clues based on concepts recently taught in class that lead to one

correct answer. The overarching ideology behind using problem solving, however, especially

in middle school settings, is to prepare students for higher specialized education and the 21st

century world of work; therefore, teachers need to pose authentic, ill-structured problems with

real world applications. Ill-structured problems are most beneficial in helping students develop

problem solving skills because they are real-world problems like those professionals often face.

Ill-structured problems have no set answer, and have many possible answers, some of which are

more suitable or realistic than others. Ill-structured problems for students will usually require

those students to conduct inquiry research on background concepts (An & Reigeluth, 2008).


When students work to solve ill-structured problems, they can choose their own

research paths and solutions independent of teachers and other students (Hernández-Ramos &

De La Paz 2009). Developing independence in working to solve problems can empower

students’ decision making skills (Kingsley & Boone, 2008), can help students realize self-

regulated learning behavior (Shaffer et al., 2005), and can help students realize the value of

their own background knowledge. At its most effective, problem solving basically allows

students to pursue what interests them most within a real-world situation (Belland, 2010), to

solidify prior knowledge and to allow the student to learn new knowledge independent of the

teacher (Hernández-Ramos & De La Paz 2009). Problem solving is also effective when

students can use technology to research, collaborate, and prepare presentations (Spires et al.,

2008).

Authentic research

Ill-structured problems are most beneficial when students take ownership of them,

seeing that they can have ramifications into future careers (An & Reigeluth, 2008). Students

are able to become “mini-experts” on their research topics as they conduct realistic research

using technology, collaborating with experts online, and presenting their findings professionally

to their peers (Harmer & Cates, 2007). Students using technology to research topics to

investigate problems can use online applications like the National Science Foundation’s Web-

based Inquiry Science Environment (WISE). WISE allows students to explore current theories

of interest, to conduct research and organize notes online, and to conduct online science

experiments guided by professional guidelines. Interactive sites like WISE help students to

understand how scientists work and to begin to understand the patterns that professionals look

for when tackling problems (Ching-Huei & Howard, 2010). As students get more involved in


realistic applications of real-world problems, they learn more about problem solving itself

(Grant & Branch, 2005). Students using technology can also use online simulations to

understand real-world problems and to assimilate classroom knowledge. Simulations help

students to visualize problems and allow students to use multiple intelligences and learning

styles in their real-world research (Ching-Huei & Howard, 2010). Simulations help students to

live the subject, creating a sense of empathy and student ownership in the problem solving

which encourages students to become self-directed learners (Shaffer et al., 2005).

Student collaboration and communication

Students work well on problem solving tasks in small groups in collaboration (not

cooperation). Students learn best from teaching and interacting with one another, rather than

listening to teachers lecture (Hernández-Ramos & De La Paz 2009). Students using technology

to communicate findings and collaborate can work synchronously together during class or

asynchronously at different class times or after school hours (An & Reigeluth, 2008). Teachers

can work together across disciplines to present ill-structured problems and can actually model

good group collaboration through interdisciplinary problem solving. This is especially

effective when those teachers share students and can reinforce goals, vocabulary, and strategies

(Hofer & Swan, 2008). As student communicate using technology, they can collect and

analyze data together as they research, brainstorm and develop arguments for different solutions

(Oravec, 2003), and reinforce each other’s ideas or encourage each other to change what they

have misunderstood (An & Reigeluth, 2008). Getting peer feedback and evaluation is valuable

and something that traditional education does not stress. Problem solving can help students

learn to help each other, and ultimately become more self-directed learners (Grant & Branch,

2005). The culminating piece of a problem solving unit is the presentation of students’


findings, which should be done as professionally as possible. Using technology for

collaboration and ongoing feedback helps students to formulate culminating arguments and to

support those arguments with quality evidence from their research (Belland, 2010).

The teacher’s role in Problem Solving Situations

Teacher as facilitator and mentor

The teacher has a facilitator and mentor role while his or her students are working on

real-world problem solving. The students have the freedom and responsibility to teach

themselves as they research. Teachers must know the subject they are teaching and know how

to get students started on the technology they will be using. When technology problems occur,

teachers will need to be able to fix problems or get somebody to fix them. Teachers also need

to keep students on-task and model desirable outcomes as the process continues (Hofer &

Swan, 2008). Teachers can use technology to communicate with students, providing feedback

throughout the project and sharing quality links for them to use to research (Kingsley & Boone,

2008). Teachers will also need to ensure that students have the skills, technology and resources

they need (Park & Ertmer, 2008; Cook & Weiland, 2010). Students need to know that they are

in charge of their learning during problem solving, from choosing what to research, what to use

to learn, and how to present findings.

Scaffolding

The most important role of the teacher while students are researching problems,

however, is providing scaffolding for students to use to succeed. Scaffolding, like clues in a

mystery, can help students find direction as they research. Teachers can provide soft

scaffolding, human interventions, and hard scaffolding, any written documentation provided for

students. Teachers can themselves be soft scaffolding as they walk around and give direct help


to students as they work, or they can prompt other students to help each other (Xun, Ching-

Huei & Davis, 2005). Teachers can provide paper or electronic handouts of graphic organizers,

rubrics, or examples as students work (Belland, 2010). Teachers can use questioning strategies

to prompt students who are off track or confused to think critically as they research. Students

and teachers can answer questions together during class, or at different times using discussion

boards (An & Reigeluth, 2008).

Special problem solving applications for core classes

In English Language Arts classes, students can use problem solving techniques and

technology to create original products like digital storytelling projects that show mastery

(Banister & Fischer, 2010). Teachers can also use technology and scaffolding to help

struggling readers improve their reading and problem solving skills (Marino, 2009). Reading

skills figure into problem solving in science because students in science need to be reading real-

world text using technology rather than struggling with textbooks; students must be able to read

and understand difficult science writing in order to do authentic research (Fang & Wei, 2010).

Real world problem solving works very well in science classes where teachers can pose

questions that empower students to “save the world,” something that middle school students are

especially interesting in doing (Harmer & Cates, 2007). Cook and Weiland (2010) describe an

ideal real-world problem posed in a science class. Teachers asked students to find answers to

waste management problems. Teachers started students off discussing their prior knowledge

about the problem and thinking about what they would like to learn about as they started

research. Students proceeded to journal every day as they learned more, to conduct surveys of

their peers about the problem, and to conclude by presenting and defending solutions. Ill-

defined problems can be used heuristically in math to improve students’ problem solving skills


when students use evidence from problems to defend their solutions (Koichu, Berman &

Moore, 2007).

Kingsley & Boone (2008) describe social studies teachers having students research real

world history situations to explore causes and effects. Students used graphic organizers as they

researched, creating timelines, maps, illustrations, and finding and analyzing primary

documents that had to do with the historical event. The student groups culminated their

research by creating multimedia documentary websites that would teach other students about

the event. Students could create videos, songs, and interactive text for their projects. In

addition to helping students think critically about history facts, the research and projects also

helped students realize that history and civics are important for them to think about in the

information age.

Conclusion

Students enjoy challenges and are weary of time-wasting, old-fashioned worksheets and

textbooks. These students use technology, enjoy technology, and are more effective when

using technology because it is their native media. Teachers can increase students’ problem-

solving skills and prepare them more thoroughly to be workers in the information age by posing

real-world ill-structured problem solving tasks, especially in the middle school years. Teachers

need to be mentors and facilitators, making sure that students have the tools and resources they

need to be successful and independent learners. All courses can implement their own styles of

problem solving tasks, and using technology, teachers can have their students work together on

different aspects of a common interdisciplinary problem solving task. The goal is to prepare

students for the future, not remain stuck in the past.

Resources


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Using Inquiry Hybrid Classes in Middle School