Polar Explorer - A Virtual Learning Environment for Polar Science Education

Polar Explorer - 极地科学教育的虚拟学习环境

• 批准号: 2110775
• 负责人: Chris Mead
• 金额: $ 93.45万
• 依托单位: Arizona State University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2021-07-15 至 2026-06-30
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2110775&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Polar; Explorer; Virtual; Learning; Environment

Scientists at Northern Arizona University, Arizona State University, the University of Arizona, and the University of Colorado at Boulder will collaborate to develop a digital learning environment called Polar Explorer for this Engaged Student Learning: Level III project. In this web-based, immersive environment, students will explore inaccessible polar environments and learn about polar science from their laptops, desktops, or mobile devices. The Arctic is a remote, rapidly changing region with extreme variations in temperature and sunlight. Much of the Arctic is underlain by permafrost, a layer of soil or sediment that is perennially frozen. Over the past three decades, the Arctic has warmed at twice the rate of the rest of the world and permafrost has started to thaw. Thawing permafrost can release enormous amounts of previously frozen greenhouse gases to the atmosphere, accelerating the pace of climate change. It can also threaten the food security and clean water of local residents, lead to the erosion of landscapes, the collapse of buildings and roads, and increased risk of wildfires. Thus, climate warming is transforming the Arctic, and this transformation threatens U.S. national security through its impacts on infrastructure, global climate, and public health. It is therefore imperative for the general public to understand how the Arctic is changing and why these changes have significant consequences for the U.S. and the rest of the world. However, teaching students about permafrost and its consequences is challenging because of the remoteness and inaccessibility of the Arctic. Polar systems are also complex and changes in polar environments occur on many different scales that can be difficult for the mind to grasp. Polar Explorer’s interactive, virtual field trips will leverage intelligent tutoring systems and virtual reality technologies to allow students to do science, rather than just being told about science. Using realistic, scientifically-accurate landscapes and learning experiences, students will experience and learn about the Arctic environment much like they would if they were physically there — regardless of a student’s socioeconomic background, physical ability, or level of academic preparation. Through innovative learning design and virtual reality technologies, Polar Explorer provides a novel and transformative approach for improving STEM education; one that will cultivate a sense of curiosity and connection-to-place and will generate new knowledge about STEM teaching and learning. The goal of this project is to design, build, deploy, and evaluate the effectiveness of Polar Explorer at increasing student conceptual knowledge of permafrost, its dynamics, and the consequences of permafrost degradation on ecosystems, infrastructure, climate, and society. Polar Explorer will consist of a suite of Learning Experiences (LXs) built around interactive Virtual Field Trips (iVFTs), connected via a high-resolution rendered landscape generated from real Arctic terrain data. Seven place-based LXs will cover topics of Arctic exploration, permafrost dynamics, indigenous perspectives on changing landscapes, and impacts of permafrost thaw on infrastructure, carbon feedbacks, and human health. Students will have autonomy in choosing their learning path through the LXs, which will leverage virtual reality technology, an engaging narrative, a diverse population of real polar scientists, and real-world data and places to provide context to student learning. An intelligent tutoring system will individualize the student experience and help address conceptual gaps in knowledge. Polar Explorer’s iVFTs will effectively promote active, inquiry-based learning and resolve the substantial accessibility challenges inherent to polar science. It is predicted that students will: (1) increase their polar science disciplinary knowledge; (2) examine and differentiate multiple scales; and (3) improve their comprehension of transdisciplinary connections in polar science. Polar Explorer will run on HTML5, which has ubiquitous support. The design of the student-driven exploration will target students in critical undergraduate introductory STEM courses, such as geology, earth science, climate, and biology. Overall the project will be assessed by analyzing student learning outcomes, and by formative and summative evaluations that measure the effectiveness of the iVFT-based LXs in meeting project goals. This project will provide much needed metrics on the degree to which iVFTs and adaptive digital learning environments, and the associated approach to learning design, promote STEM learning. Specific focus will be placed on how iVFT-based learning experiences help students work across scales and understand connections across STEM concepts and disciplines. This project, jointly supported by the Office of Polar Programs and the Division of Undergraduate Education, responds to the Dear Colleague Letter (NSF 19-086) calling for efforts that support the engagement of students and the public in polar research.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

北亚利桑那大学、亚利桑那州立大学、亚利桑那大学和科罗拉多大学博尔德分校的科学家将合作开发一个名为 Polar Explorer 的数字学习环境，用于这个基于网络的沉浸式学生学习：第三级项目。在这个环境中，学生将探索人迹罕至的极地环境，并通过笔记本电脑、台式机或移动设备了解极地科学。北极是一个偏远、变化迅速的地区，北极的大部分地区都被永久冻土覆盖。过去三十年来，北极的变暖速度是世界其他地区的两倍，永久冻土层开始融化，会向地球释放大量先前冻结的温室气体。气候变暖还可能威胁当地居民的粮食安全和清洁水源，导致景观侵蚀、建筑物和道路倒塌以及野火风险增加。北极，这种转变通过其对基础设施、全球气候和公共卫生的影响威胁到美国的国家安全，因此公众必须了解北极正在如何变化以及为什么这些变化对美国和其他国家产生重大影响。然而，由于极地系统地处偏远且交通不便，而且极地环境的变化在许多不同的范围内发生，人们很难理解，因此向学生讲授有关永久冻土及其后果的知识具有挑战性。极性探索者号的交互式虚拟实地考察将利用智能辅导系统和虚拟现实技术让学生进行科学实验，而不仅仅是被告知科学知识。通过使用现实的、科学上准确的景观和学习体验，学生将体验和了解北极环境。就像他们亲自到场一样——无论学生的社会经济背景、身体能力或学术准备水平如何，Polar Explorer 都提供了一种新颖且变革性的方法来改善 STEM 教育；会培养好奇心该项目的目标是设计、构建、部署和评估 Polar Explorer 在增加学生关于永久冻土、其动力学和冻土的概念知识方面的有效性。永久冻土退化对生态系统、基础设施、气候和社会的影响将包括一套围绕交互式虚拟实地考察（iVFT）构建的学习体验（LX），通过真实北极地形生成的高分辨率渲染景观连接。七个基于地点的 LX 将涵盖北极探索、永久冻土动态、土著对景观变化的看法以及永久冻土融化对基础设施、碳反馈和人类健康的影响等主题，学生将通过 LX 自主选择学习路径。 ，它将利用虚拟现实技术、引人入胜的叙述、真实的极地科学家的多元化群体以及真实世界的数据和地点，为学生的学习提供背景。智能辅导系统将使学生体验个性化，并帮助解决知识中的概念差距。 。极地探索者的 iVFT 将有效促进积极的、基于探究的学习，并解决极地科学固有的实质性挑战。预计学生将：（1）增加他们的极地科学学科知识；（2）检查和区分多种尺度； (3) 提高他们对极地科学跨学科联系的理解。Polar Explorer 将在 HTML5 上运行，它具有无处不在的支持。学生驱动的探索设计将针对关键的本科入门 STEM 课程的学生。总体而言，该项目将通过分析学生的学习成果以及衡量基于 iVFT 的 LX 在实现项目目标方面的有效性的形成性和总结性评估来进行评估。 iVFT 和自适应数字学习环境以及相关的学习设计方法在多大程度上促进 STEM 学习将特别关注基于 iVFT 的学习体验如何帮助学生跨尺度工作并理解 STEM 概念和学科之间的联系。该项目由极地项目办公室和本科教育部共同支持，响应亲爱的同事信 (NSF 19-086)，呼吁努力支持学生和公众参与极地研究。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优点和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

项目成果

Gamifying Virtual Exploration of the Past 350 Million Years of Vertebrate Evolution

对过去 3.5 亿年脊椎动物进化的游戏化虚拟探索

• DOI: 10.3389/feduc.2022.836783
• 发表时间: 2022
• 期刊: Frontiers in Education
• 影响因子: 2.3
• 作者: Mead, Chris;Bruce, Geoffrey;Taylor, Wendy;Buxner, Sanlyn;Anbar, Ariel D.
• 通讯作者: Anbar, Ariel D.

Comparison of in-person and virtual Grand Canyon undergraduate field trip learning outcomes

面对面和虚拟大峡谷本科生实地考察学习成果的比较

• DOI: 10.1080/10899995.2023.2186067
• 发表时间: 2023
• 期刊: Journal of Geoscience Education
• 作者: Ruberto, Thomas;Mead, Chris;Anbar, Ariel D.;Semken, Steven
• 通讯作者: Semken, Steven