Project 2061

Technology has had a constant presence in the science classroom in the last twenty to forty years. As science has advanced the technology used to experiment and analyze results of said experiments have increased proportionally. Since technology has increased at such a rapid pace the need to understand how the technology works and the ability to interpret the results the technology yields has become critically important (Waight, 2007). Teachers in the science fields have been pushed to use technology in unison with inquiry to reach a more science literate nation instead of the traditional teaching pedagogy. This push toward inquiry aligns with a goal that is called Project 2061. In 1985, the American Association for the Advancement of Science
(2014) the teachers’ divergent levels of content readiness, pedagogical orientations, and different ability to grouping students plays an important role on the use and effectiveness of technology in an inquiry-based classroom. This journal article evaluated teachers enacting mobile technologies across a grade level. It looked at how the teachers used the planned curriculum in the classroom over an extended time. This allows one to determine the problems teachers might face during enactment that could result in outcomes other than what is desired. The teachers who had higher content readiness, pedagogical orientation, and a higher ability to group students typically had a better outcome with implementing technology and inquiry into the classroom as compared to teachers who had lower content readiness, pedagogical orientation, and ability to group students. Teachers who had constructivist pedagogical orientation typically had higher levels of student engagement and inquiry as compared to teachers who had a more traditional pedagogical orientation. This was examined in four different teachers’ classrooms who implemented the same curriculum. The study resulted in two teachers across the same grade level teaching a more constructivism pedagogy was the other two taught a more traditional pedagogy (Looi et al.,
It looks at the implementation in 19 different secondary classrooms and focuses on three areas including: gender, achievement level, and academic track. It has previously been found that students respond better to science education while working in a small collaborative group were each other the group members’ opinions are valued versus a whole-class setting. It has also been previously proved that the swapping of information and ability to ask questions via face-to-face internet instruction adds to the students’ willingness to, engage in questions, explore areas of interest , and relate ideas to their own. Web-based collaboration also gives the students added autonomy and allows the teacher implement guided inquiry. It also gives students easier access to an abundance of information that the book may not cover. (Raes, 2014).
The ability to using web-based collaboration is measured by whether it meets three different goals. First, is if it improves students’ scientific knowledge. Second, it if it improves inquiry skills. Third, is if it gets students interested in science so they may pursue a career in