Reflections on Participatory Science for TELSci2.0

Joshua Underwood, Rosemary Luckin r.luckin@ioe.ac.uk,

Hilary Smith, Kevin Walker, Duncan Rowland , Geraldine Fitzpatrick, Judith

Good, Steve Benford. LKL, Sussex, Nottingham

The Ecology of Resources Model of Context

This underpins our approach to p-science 2.0 participatory design with teachers – it might be useful when

thinking about TEL 2.0

learner

A = Zone of Available Assistance

learner

learner

Key = context category

element

Tools and People

Knowledge and Skills

Environment

learner

Key = context category

element = filter element

Tools and People

Knowledge and Skills

Environment

Filter

Filter

Filter

learner

Key = context category

element = filter element

Tools and People

Filter

Filter

Filter Knowledge and Skills

Environment

learner

Key = context category

element = filter element

Tools and People

Knowledge filter

Tools and People Filter

Environment filter Knowledge and Skills

Environment

learner

The Ecology of Resources model of context

The Ecology of Resources model represents the learner holistically with respect to the

interactions that make up his or her context

Modelling context as a set of inter-related resource elements, including people and objects, the interactions between which

integrate with their interactions with the learner to provide a particular context.

Participatory science: One example of using the Ecology of Resources to work with teachers

What’s happening in Science?

Science 2.0Open Science

mobile-Science

People Sciencee-Science

"e-Science is about global collaboration in key areas of science, and the next generation of infrastructure that will enable it."

"e-Science will change the dynamic of the way science is undertaken."

John Taylor, Director General of Research Council

openness, collaboration, participation, mobility

Related work includes: Participate , RAFT, AstroGrid, Springwatch, Ready to Learn Teachers TV experiment, Personal Inquiry Project, Science Apprenticeship Camp (SAC)

The ‘new e-science’

P-science: the need to engage practitioners in the process of design

• Technology and new approaches bring “hidden work”

• We need to engage teachers in the development of the concept of p-science for learning

• The ipod Challenge: developed through science festivals and with teachers and schools as a way to exemplify p-science characteristics and stimulate debate with teachers at subsequent design workshops.

What characteristics can new technologies facilitate?

Mobile Phones

Sensors

Instant Messaging

Video-Conferencing

Digital Video/Audio/Photography

Portable Media Players

social networking tools

Blogs

Easy publishing

Photo-sharing

CONNECTING FORMAL AND EVERYDAY

DATA CAPTURE

REPORTING

SHARING

You Tube COLLABORATION

ANALYSIS

REFLECTION

Record and replay tools

Blogger for experiment reports

You Tube for evidence

Google Docs for data capture & data sharing

flickr for sharing designs

Total of all power contributions and current battery level

Plus skype for video with power engineer

Working with Teachers: Session Design Checklist

learner

Tools and People

Filter

Filter

FilterKnowledge and Skills

Environment

What did teachers do?

FORMAL AND INFORMAL

DATA CAPTURE

SHARING

COLLABORATION

ANALYSIS

Technologies

What did teachers do?

What did teachers think?

What was different and new?

"bringing in experts", "participating with other schools", "publishing pupils work”

Contact with experts out of school came up most frequently as the aspect of the p-science approach that appeals most

What did teachers think? benefits of the approach?

Real data and having to rely on and assess the validity of others' data, and of having more data: "because you are only able to control the experiment in your school; you have to rely on other people. Often our scientists have to rely on other people out there, and get data from different people, and they have to be able to evaluate that and analyse why some of it is better than other.”

What did teachers think?

learner

Tools and People

Filter

Filter

FilterKnowledge and Skills

Environment

What did teachers think?

learner

Tools and People

Filter

Filter

FilterKnowledge and Skills

Environment

What challenges/tensions are there for making p-science happen in school?

"What I am really worried about this whole thing is I don't know how to use.. I mean I'm not... when it comes to technology but I just haven't used these things before.”

"I mean obviously we are going through this quite quickly.. our staff certainly older ones aren't that comfortable with technology and the idea of this will just... well can't you do it the old way?”

"it's the older staff that will be the problem not the young learners, I'm sure the kids will err... cotton on to it no problem at all… a lot of the students will already be using this technology for other purposes they….. sure they they feel like they are educating teachers…yeah and I think… it doesn't matter if you give them that illusion”

“We also need training on software because both of us don't know how to use any of the stuff that we're talking about. So we'd need some training.”

Assessment: "Because the course that this is based on, it's not actually that much harder to do. A lot of it is observation of how well they can do. They've actually got their video of what they've done - that covers a lot of it... Because the group I'm looking at for this is an entry level group, a lot of the written assessment has actually been removed, because they're low ability students, or restricted to what resources they have.”

What did teachers think?What challenges/tensions are there for making p-science happen in school?

learner

Tools and People

Filter

Filter

FilterKnowledge and Skills

Environment

Institutional rules and regulations: banning of mobile phones and blocking of websites are mentioned

Fit to the curriculum wasn’t really a problem – it was an integral part of discussions.

“We also need funding - not only for the software but for the actual trip to the zoo. For me, I'm in London so it's free for me. But if you're outside of London it might cost some money.”"How much does it cost? Shozu, is it free?”

P-science – what have we learnt?

• The Ecology of Resources approach was a useful device for:– Framing the participatory process and developing

activity design tools http://e-science.blogspot.com/search/label/tools

– Exploring the data

• Teachers did engage with the development of p-science activities

• But, engaging teachers in the participatory design of the p-science concept was limited – why?

What can the Ecology of Resources approach offer?

• The Ecology of Resources approach offers a way to:

• Talk about learners holistically – to sensitize us to the range of interactions that constitute their contexts

• Frame the participatory design process

• Explore data to understand more about learners’ contexts

• Identify the assistance that could be available and the way that learners’ interactions with it might be filtered and supported

• Identify situations where scaffolding might be used

Identify Participatory possibilities

• How might teachers, learners and the general public participate more widely in TEL - setting TEL research agendas, contributing hypotheses and data?

• How might we broaden access to research outcomes and the tools we build - can we design applications to bridge the gaps between TEL research and the communities we aim to serve - DIY TEL research?

• How should we involve citizens and learners in experimentation and at what stages - what should we share in terms of tools, data, methods and findings and with whom?

• What are the technical requirements for TEL components that provide ease of assembly and enable DIY TEL research?

• How can we change the Ecology of Resources available to all so as to enable broader experimentation with and understanding of technology use to support learning both at an individual and personal level and at the disciplinary level?

Identify situations where scaffolding might be used

• How might teachers, learners and the general public participate more widely in TEL - setting TEL research agendas, contributing hypotheses and data?

• How might we broaden access to research outcomes and the tools we build - can we design applications to bridge the gaps between TEL research and the communities we aim to serve - DIY TEL research?

• How should we involve citizens and learners in experimentation and at what stages - what should we share in terms of tools, data, methods and findings and with whom?

• What are the technical requirements for TEL components that provide ease of assembly and enable DIY TEL research?

• How can we change the Ecology of Resources available to all so as to enable broader experimentation with and understanding of technology use to support learning both at an individual and personal level and at the disciplinary level?

Thank you