Work in progress - creating cross-generational co-learning opportunities through inquiry-based curricula

Abstract

As engineers and scientists enter the social situation of the P-16 classroom to promote and demonstrate STEM curricula, we need to understand more about the mutual impact this experience has on the visitors as well as on the learning environments they encounter. In a pioneering exploratory study, PhD engineering students entered an innovative, inquiry-based high school math/science setting as "visiting experts." Without formal training as teachers, nor expectations of student interaction, the participants embarked on creating social opportunities for inquiry. Using a mixed methods case-study model, researchers documented the interaction of participants through video-media as well as surveys and interviews of participants on their experiences. By documenting the intricate levels of social context in the learning environment between "novice" learners and visiting "experts," this study hopes to advance our understanding of the inquiry role that both of these groups share and to document the co-learning opportunities that arise in the context of the STEM classroom community. This study focuses on developing a deeper understanding of the reciprocal impact of inquiry-based STEM curricula as entered into by visiting engineers/scientists.