- Email: [email protected]
Classroom processes and geography simulations
Compukrs Educ. Vol. 21, No. I/2, pp. 9-16, 1993
0360. I3 I5/93 $6.00 + 0.00 Copyright t-3 1993 Pergamon Press Ltd
Printed in Great Britain. All rights reserved
CLASSROOM
PROCESSES AND SIMULATIONS DERYN
Centre
for Educational
GEOGRAPHY
M. WATSON
Studies, King’s College London, London SE1 8TX, England
Waterloo
Road,
Abstract-Longitudinal in-depth case studies of IT use in geography classrooms were undertaken as part of the ImpacT project, a recently completed evaluation of the impact of IT on children’s achievements in primary and secondary schools in the U.K. The specific aim was to get as close as possible to the classroom processes, that is how teachers and pupils actually used IT in their geography classes. Ethnographic methods of observation, formal and informal interviewing, and examination of documents, were used to focus the research on key issues and themes that emerged during the study. One theme, the notion of increased levels of interest and enjoyment in the geographical learning during the use of simulations, is explored in this paper. Indicators such as the increased level of noise, the extended amount of focussed talk on task, the amount of interest and enjoyment displayed, are discussed. The research analysis suggests that the level of empathy that emerged and in particular the challenge provided by the process appeared to result in the pupils exploring issues at greater depth. It is suggested that these simulations provided a context for a functional learning environment that capitalised on the role of simulations to both stimulate enquiry and discourse. It is also noted that such positive process outcomes were closely related to the teachers who set up the environment, and that on the whole such teachers are still in the minority.
INTRODUCTION
The ImpacT study, an evaluation of the Impact of Information Technology on children’s achievements in primary and secondary schools was conducted in the period 1 January 1989-31 December 1991. The work commissioned by the Department of Education and Science was carried out by a team of researchers in the Centre for Educational Studies, Kings College, University of London [l]. The focus of the research was on pupils learning and classroom activity involving IT in the school age bands 8-10, 12-14, and 14-16, in the subject areas of mathematics, science, geography and English. This was the first large-scale comprehensive, longitudinal and in-depth investigation undertaken which focussed on the potential impact of IT on pupils’ achievements across a broad age band and range of school subjects. A large field study was designed involving over 2300 pupils from 87 classes in 19 Local Education Authorities, distributed geographically in England and Wales. These pupils came from matched pairs of classes. These classes were nominated for their good teaching and curriculum delivery; one of each pair was also identified as making regular use of IT and so was designated HiIT, while the other was identified as LoIT. The pupils thus divided into a matrix of 12 cells; three age groups, 8-10, 12-14, and l&16, and the four curriculum subject areas. This sample was used in a research framework that had three substantial parts. l
l
l
An assessment of pupil’s achievements of specific learning tasks and skills, through the administration of specifically designed subject-focussed assessments to the matched pairs of classes in each cell. These reasoning-in-subject assessments were supplemented by topic-specific mini-studies in some pairs and also some HiIT-only classes, and a final test for IT concepts and skills. Statistical comparisons of test performance were adjusted through the use of general ability assessments. In-depth longitudinal case studies in a few HiIT classes were focussed on classroom processes and pupil interactions. Classrooms were observed, pupils and teachers were questioned, and documentary evidence was gathered to provide illumination on classroom realities. Qualitative analysis was based on those themes and issues that emerged from the data. IT resourcing and use was monitored throughout by the regular returns of questionnaires and data sheets from the teachers and pupils in each class. Hardware and software provision,
CAE 21:1-2-B
9
DERYNM. WATSON
10
pupils’ IT use in ImpacT subject and across all subjects and pupils’ analysed descriptively by classes, age cohorts and subjects.
extra-mural
use were
This paper will consider one segment of the work in one slice of the matrix, that is, the longitudinal case-studies undertaken in geography classrooms in the 12-14 age cohort, for which the author was responsible. Within this area, the focus will be on some of the research findings of classroom activities when simulations were used.
RESEARCH
METHOD
The ImpacT project deliberately employed this range of research methods to suit the complexity and scale of the task. For the case studies, the researchers employed an ethnographic method, using qualitative data gathered from observation and recording, formal and informal interviews and documentary evidence [2]. The essence of this method lies in the refining of analysis and further exploration of the issues during the research, rather than approaching the class with a pre-conceived list of issues to question. The specific aim was to get as close as possible to the classroom processes, that is how teachers and pupils actually use IT in their classroom; Beynon [3] has subsequently identified this as a key area demanding further work in this field as a counterweight to the “scientific” methodology that has attached itself hitherto to IT and education. A total of five case studies involving nine different classes were undertaken by three researchers during the period September 1989-July 1991. A structural model was designed to accommodate the ways in which computers were used in the different subject areas and at different age levels, focusing on the classroom processes. An initial focus was devised which reflected the areas the researchers at that time thought would be useful starting points for the observations, and included: l l l
Learning outcomes: pupil-computer interactions, pupils’ conversations, and pupils’ strategies; Pedagogical strategies: teacher intervention, and use of support materials; IT and subject contexts: one microcomputer/class, computer room, subject focus, and integrated curriculum.
The case-study data were collected through regular visits to each class. The first phase of data collection involved gathering data about each class and the schools themselves. This included the class teacher’s general teaching experience and IT-specific experience, the clarification of the teacher’s aims and objectives, experience, training, curriculum plans, the background of the pupils, the software being used, and the collection of contextual data from each case-study school such as ethos, politics, and composition of staff. The second and more substantial phase involved intensive classroom observations, interviews with pupils, recording of pupil-machine interactions and teacher interventions, descriptive accounts of lesson patterns and structures. the identification of forms of use of micros and pedagogical variations, conversations with other staff in the school about the way teaching was organised, and the amount of IT being used in other lessons. Four of the case studies, primary, secondary English, secondary mathematics and secondary science, proceeded using a single class. The geography case expanded until it included two classes studied in depth and three subsidiary classes. This occurred because the researcher chose to focus on a particular aspect of classroom activity, that is the use of process skills around the keyboard [4], that formed part of her initial research question. Some interesting ideas emerged in the first term of observation. Since the opportunity to observe these pupils using a simulation was not going to recur during the rest of the period of the research, she sought out other classes within the HiIT sample who would be using the same style of simulation. The researcher had been intrigued by what had emerged during this activity and felt driven to explore further. Geography was the only case in which simulations were observed in use; they were used in four out of the five geography classes. As the research progressed, a framework for analysis was developed which reflected both the separate contexts and unique features of each individual study. This framework initially covered
Geography simulations
11
five themes: l l l l l
where and how the teacher was introduced to using IT; the teacher’s philosophy and practice of use; what IT use actually occurred in the classroom; the pupils’ views of what they were doing in the classroom; the pupils’ views about their other involvement with IT.
All the data collected, both within the classroom as well as within and outside the school, were trawled first to provide illustrative examples within the five slices listed above. These snippets taken from the slices led to analytical themes. Thus the initial experiences of a teacher with IT would lead to an analytical theme relating to confidence with the technology. As the work progressed, with the focussing down to particular areas of interest, some of the initial themes declined in importance and further ones were identified. Some emerged more strongly in association with one class, or subject of study. The research results take the form of an analytical commentary, arising from the coding of, reflection on and discussion of data. RESEARCH
CONTEXT
Geography was one of the subjects chosen for the ImpacT study because it has a history of quite extensive software development and use, and related inservice activity, over the last 15 years. This interest had been clearly expressed by the professional subject association [5]; it is important to note that this history was not confined to the U.K. The International Geography Union of geography educators had its first seminar on the issue in 1984 [6]. The researcher had been involved with this software development and so had an embedded sense of awareness of software and also the potential for use in the curriculum. This influenced both the selection of teachers and the involvement the researcher had in the study. The geography researcher was aware that this could have posed a problem; she knew some of the class teachers. However, this did not appear to influence the responses elicited in the research, one teacher in particular being quite scathing about the software that the researcher had developed. Nevertheless the researcher felt that she was not treated as if she was an unknown research assistant, in that views were sought and exchanged on the basis of colleagues with concerns in common. As with all participant observation, this career history influenced the researcher’s views of the environment observed, but also contributed to the level of analysis that could be obtained. The whole geography case covered a wide variety of issues related to teachers’ methodologies and IT policy within the department and school. This paper focusses only on the classroom processes when simulations were used. All classes involved, defined by the project as HiIT, were in co-educational comprehensive schools in different areas and social environments in southern England. The schools ranged in size from the smallest with 550 on roll, to the largest with 1350 on roll. The teachers’ ages ranged from late twenties to mid-forties. They had come to IT through a variety of routes; there was nothing consistent in their life or career histories to suggest any commonality, except that they themselves had taken the initiative to follow up the chance to use IT, and unlike their colleagues, the use of software had become an established part of their normal teaching armoury. Five sets of geography lessons, all with 12-14 yr olds, were observed in four classes when four different simulations, covering third/developing world studies, were used. The software packages were INDIAN FARMER, RICE FARMER, SANDHARVEST and NOMADS (see Appendix for sources of software). Although the context differed, the software displayed similar characteristics, that is, they engaged the pupils in role-playing activities in which they had to experience the life (of Indian farmers or African nomadic cattle herders) over several seasons or years. In each case the class was prepared beforehand with material relating to the topic. All teachers used the simulations as illustration of a response to seasonal weather patterns. Two of the classes moved to a computer room and used the simulation there all at the same time. The other two classes operated a ‘cafeteria system’, that is, groups of pupils queuing for turns on the computer, using the machines based in the geography classrooms. In all classes the pupils worked in groups, two were self-selected groups and two selected by the teacher.
DERYN M. WATSON
12
ANALYSIS
Interest
und involvement
All four different classes observed responded to these simulations with a high level of interest and involvement. There were five main indicators of involvement. Firstly, the general level of noise in the class rose, particularly in those sets in the computer rooms. This level of noise however did not disturb the teachers, all of whom had certain, lower, noise levels permitted in their geography rooms. This level of noise was sometimes disturbed by a louder exclamation when a group saw the results of a particular decision; again this was allowed. The teachers, with one exception, were moving around the class, talking to groups at the keyboard and responding to questions. Secondly, the noise factor did not disturb the teacher because the pupils were so clearly talking on task. This was reinforced by subsequent conversations between the researcher and teacher. Teachers tolerated this higher level of noise because they had expressly used the simulation in part to encourage group work and collaboration. Thus this discourse was welcomed. The only time that the researcher experienced the same level of noise and discourse in a geography class was when a group decision-making exercise was used, although it must be remembered that only two of these classes were observed over a substantial period of time. Thirdly, the involvement did not wane as the lesson progressed. In the classes in the computer room, pupils maintained the same level of involvement in the same activity throughout a l-h period. Again this did not usually occur in their geography classes, when the activities were usually broken up into different and clearly defined sections. Involvement was maintained even in the class where there were hardware problems that eventually forced a class of 18 working in six groups to reform into only three. Fourthly, this involvement was serious. The pupils were not treating the lesson as a “doddle” in which they did not have to be involved. Interestingly, in two groups using SANDHARVEST from two different classes there were incidents in which members of the group chastised one member for not taking the work seriously and not therefore thinking carefully enough about their input. In both cases it was the girls chastising a boy in the group. It seems they were particularly concerned because the casual way the boys had taken their decisions had an adverse effect upon the subsequent events. In both cases the boys then began to take part seriously. Fifthly, pupils were often reluctant to finish the session even when the bell went and the next period was lunch or break. Some pupils sighed and requested a chance to continue on another occasion. There was a significant amount of regret from the two teachers who had whole classes in the computer room that booking problems prevented them being able to do this. The classes who used one or two machines in their own classroom also had their time on the simulation reluctantly curtailed. For instance, the pupils using NOMAD could only work through one season; many wanted to stay and had to be moved off by the teacher or researcher to let others have a turn. This was particularly unfortunate in that the value of experiencing more than one season was quite clear, to both teachers and the pupils. Talk on task by the pupils occurred as they were leaving the room and going down the stairs. One class became very animated as they exchanged experiences about what had “happened to them”. For instance, “we ended up with five columns of debt. . . what about you?” Animated talk on task was not the norm amongst pupils leaving their “ordinary” lessons.
Empathy A significant amount of empathy developed during these lessons. When asked what they had learnt, one group of pupils using NOMAD, John, Sam and Kit, expressed themselves thus: J:
“How hard it is. We didn’t know you had to eat thorny scrub. We started panicking they (the cows) all started dying. We started with 20 but went down to 8.” R: “Why did you panic?” J: “Well, we would all die if the cows died, . . . it was really worrying.”
when
Geography
simulations
13
All three boys further explained the seriousness of the situation and how there was no way out if things just went on getting worse. This empathetic involvement was not just momentary but was reflected in the class writing that John did a week later on “the life of a nomad”. Pupils working on the INDIAN FARMER simulation discussed the problems of large numbers of births in an area where once a child is 8 years old, he or she can work fully in the field and productivity increases. The poverty trap and downwards spiral of health if the family was not able to harvest enough grain resulted in comments on the real differences in life for those farmers and the dilemmas they faced. Conversations during the simulation included “Oh, not another baby” and “Sir, we’ve got ourselves out of debt”. Comments afterwards included: “It really made you think about the problems they face. Getting into debt. . . the reality of children dying. . . my wife died . . . had a new wife and then there were lots more children and so more food needed”. Another
said:
“I learnt quite a lot. I didn’t realize there was a cycle in everything they do. I suppose our life has cycles, but its more like doing different things every day. . . like lessons”. The direct involvement and association with the lives they were exploring was noticeable. They particularly picked up the significance of the healthiness of their diet, reflecting the simulation model and pointed out by the teacher, as an indication of how much debt they were in and the difficulty of moving out of the poverty/debt cycle. These pupils explored two simulations in 2 weeks in December 1990. The pupils immediately after described in vivid language the reality of life of an Indian farmer. What was of particular interest was that when asked 6 months later what they remembered doing, they had a very strong recall of the simulation and could describe what “happened to them” in some detail. Thus involvement and vivid experiences were not transient. The teacher had introduced one session by saying “this is to give you a realistic impression of the life of an Indian farmer”. This goal appeared to have been achieved. It is important to note however that this level of empathy and involvement had been achieved through the efforts of the teacher, the way the simulation was integrated into their curriculum, the goals set, and the familiarity with which the teacher was able to discuss the events as they unfurled. Another geography teacher in the same school described his experiences when using the same package thus: “
. . . then I used INDIAN FARMER as an experiment and the children went absolutely wild. But I’m not sure. . . it was a very exciting lesson, they were captivated by it. This is a program where you have people dying, build up families. What was worrying, I couldn’t get them off the machine, there was long laughter, the more people died, the more laughter there was, and I almost felt I would have serious reservations about doing it again despite the fact that it actually captured them. . . because I have great suspicions that it didn’t actually capture them for the right reasons. They weren’t horrified with what was happening, they found it amusing.” The nuance of judgement between two different teachers and the activities in their classes during use of this software is quite fine. It transpired that this teacher had not contexted this lesson in work already taking place involving development studies. He did not follow the lesson up and discuss the program afterwards with his pupils because he had used it as a fill in at the end of term. His concerns about the software were real and they affected his intentions to use it again. The contrast with the case-study teacher is interesting; the most valuable point to emerge was the way that the “worthwhileness” of software is so teacher dependent. Enjoyment
in the challenge
There was such a universal sense of enjoyment and interest by both genders in the geography classes when they were using simulations that the researcher tried to probe further this notion of enjoyment and challenge.
14
DERYN M. WATSON
The pupils expressed interest in the level of detail that emerged to supplement their general understanding of the issues. In this sense the simulations provided a challenge because they taxed the pupils knowledge base by placing them in a context where the detail was greater and more complex than hitherto experienced. The emergence of the detailed implications of this complexity, such as with the complex health factor which influenced the overall progression of an Indian farmer or the choice and combination of resources and activities for an African villager, suggested that this enquiry work was inherently challenging and involved more real choice for the learner. Many pupils said in effect “I learnt more than I thought there was to learn about this topic”. In one class, although using the simulation came at the end of a substantial period of studying the savanna cycle, the cycle of life of the nomads, and the interrelationship between the two, some pupils displayed an understanding of greater detail and connectedness of factors than before. Alan, on initial questioning about whether he had learnt anything different about the nomads when using the software, said “not a lot”. But he then went on to say that he was surprised about the influence of the tsetse fly. Although he knew about them, “I didn’t know that they could sort of hurt the cows”. Graham, with whom he had worked, said he could “see now why they should go in to town as if they sold butter it meant they could buy some more cows”. Alan then said that it was a problem because “every time you moved to grass by the time you got there it was scrub because it got too hot”. Pindar “didn’t realise it rained so much in the summer, and you do get a lot (of grass) when it rains. But we didn’t eat much of this ‘cos it was in the wrong place”. Penny didn’t realize “that the food was so bad for the animals; if they stopped to graze and the grass stuff was not good then, two cows died”. Nicky and Lorraine who were working with her were surprised at how many kilometers (427) they travelled in the year. The combined effects of the impact of the seasons and travel had clearly not impinged upon them in the same way from their earlier class-based exercises. The level of supporting detail that was added to their more generalised knowledge was impressive and was reflected in their subsequent writing. This is a reflection of the richness of the overall experience and relates to the issues of purpose-driven exploration. Much of the content of the normal geography lessons. not using IT, was based on presented material, and the choices the pupils had to make tended towards how much detail, out of that already presented, to include in their own work. The choices in these simulations seemed to be different. Here, pupils were having to sift through the detail for coherence as well as choice of relevance. The overall impression gained by the researcher was that the complexity of the simulation was attractive and real to the learners. This would seem to be related to the fact that whereas in normal lessons the material was presented and discussed at the beginning of the lesson. thereby in a way setting the agenda and framework for their subsequent writing, the lessons using IT were more truly exploratory, whether of ideas or presentation. And this exploration was in the hands of the pupils, though guided by timely teacher intervention. DISCUSSlON
Although this case-study work is limited in scope and illuminative in design, some clear findings emerged. Computer simulations were found to be good motivators which heightened pupils’ interest in and enjoyment and enabled pupils to develop a high degree of empathy with the topic under study. This improved motivation was intricately linked with increased concentration and sustained effort. By giving pupils the opportunity to work in an open-ended way, simulations enabled pupils to become involved in more complex and challenging learning situations than normal. At the same time not all teachers perceive the same benefits of the same software; the worthwhileness of software is very teacher dependent. Newman [7] refers to the functional learning environment that is predicated upon the assumptions that children are intrinsically motivated to work on tasks that are meaningful to them; and that the most effective learning environment is therefore one that provides meaningful tasks. that is tasks that embody some function or purpose that children understand. A well-designed simulation that engages the pupil in the simulated world therefore can provide such a functional learning environment. Interestingly, Newman also highlights the importance of the teacher’s role in interpreting the function appropriately for the pupils. All the classes studied appeared to
Geography simulations
15
have provided that sort of environment for the pupils. Simulations are important tools for the discussion and attempts at solutions of an interesting variety of real-world problems. Third world or developing countries’ problems are high on the agenda of many teenagers today, and development studies universally appear in all geography curricula. Breuer [8] relates the attributes of simulations to the concepts of cognitive complexity and conceptual mapping. Through the opportunity of choice, simulations provide to the individual student the opportunity to search, enquire, hypothesize and try out, and to work as a member of a team. Breuer argues that meaningful learning, as opposed to root-memory learning, arises from cognitive conflicts. The language he uses matches that of geography educators [6] who have espoused the use of simulations because of the role of decision making and enquiry-based learning to their discipline. The evidence from the geography case supports the notion that simulations can provide an appropriate cognitive-conflict environment. This conflict supported the inherent probing and seeking of solutions in order to make survival possible in these worlds. All four simulations presented the dilemma and complexity faced by peoples in India and the Sahel to children in temperate urban worlds. Edwards and Mercer [9] argue that discourse, rather than being just a window upon childrens’ thought processes, is itself an educational reality. Teachers and children engage in constructing a shared account, a common interpretative framework for curriculum knowledge. Moment-to-moment construction of context and continuity provides the base upon which subsequent talk and interpretation are built through discourse. In the use of these simulations in the ImpacT classes, the discourse was less dominated by the teacher’s concerns and interpretations, as the dialogue was focused on events, decisions and activities driven by the software. The quantity and volume of the discourse, above that of the normal classroom, when these simulations were in action, points to an enhanced opportunity of ongoing interpretation and frameworking. It is important to place these positive outcomes in context, that is, the teachers had worked out how IT could support their philosophy and pedagogy and the environments thus generated created a positive learning environment for those pupils. The teachers were all experienced and confident users of IT. The conjunction of the software and the teacher is what matters. The same software in different hands and contexts was seen in the same study to have different effects. Chandler [lo] questions the value of simulations as he claims they are removed from the existential context of the human experience that they are intended to represent. He baldly states that “A computer-based simulation reduces rich, physical, sensory experiences to cold, abstract visual analogies” (p. 177). Here he is confusing assumptions of known compared with simulated environments and ignoring the evidence of empathy and involvement. He suggests that simulations mechanize experience, yet it would appear that the value of the experience to those 12-14 yr olds in this study was real. He asserts that simulations are asocial, ahistorical and amoral. This geography study however provides no support for the contention that pupils themselves are engaged in a false or mechanistic activity. The research provides us with an opportunity to contextualise the role of simulations within the overall class experience of the pupils. Since the nature of the learning environment is crucial to the pupils it is important to address further the factors that enable such an environment to emerge. The same study also indicated how difficult the teachers and indeed researchers found it to identify and define such positive learning outcomes. By being process rather than product focused, they are less likely to be reflected in assessments which test the more content-laden aspects of the curriculum. This paper reports on what is possible with dedicated IT-using geography teachers when they have available to them software that supports their curriculum. Yet such a conjunction is rare. The teachers involved here were the exception; the study in general found that despite a variety of local and national initiatives, a full use of IT in the geography curriculum was not easy to find. Further work from this research, which will be reported elsewhere, sets out to identify those characteristics in the teacher and school policy that collide to enable such an environment to grow, and why this does not appear to cascade to other geography colleagues. It is still the dedicated and interested individual who uses IT and geography; this individual is still, despite years of interest and publications in the professional journals, relatively isolated and special.
16
DERYN M. WATSON REFERENCES
I. Watson D. M. (Ed.), The ImpacT Prqjeci: An Evaluation of the Impact of Information Techno1og.v on Children’s Achieuemenrs in Primary and Secondary Schools. King’s College London, London (1993). 2. Hammersley M. and Atkinson P, Ethnography: Principles in Practice. Tavistock Publications, London (1983). 3. Beynon J, ‘Just a few machines bleeping away in the corner’: a review of naturalistic studies of computers into education in the UK. In Case Studies in Computer Aided Learning (Edited by Blomeyer R. L. and Martin D.), pp. 2777293. The Falmer Press. London (1991). 4. Watson D., The computer in the social science curricula. fnt. J. Educl Rese. 17, 5143 (1992). 5. Fox P. and Tapsfield A. (Eds), The Role and Value of Nevv Technology in Geography. The Geographical Association, Sheffield (1986). 6. Graves N. J. (Ed.), Computer Assisred Learning in Geographical Education. International Geographical Union. Institute of Education, London (1984). 7. Newman D., Functional environments for computers in education. In Mirrors qf‘ rhe Mind: Paiierns oy E.rperlence in Educufional Compufing (Edited by Pea R. D. and Sheingold K.). pp. 5746. Ablex, N.J. (1987). 8. Breuer K., Computer simulations and cognitive development. In Computers in Education (Edited by Duncan K. and Harris D.), pp. 2399244. Elsevier. Amsterdam (1985). 9. Edwards D. and Mercer N. M.. Common Kno~vledge: The Der~elopmmr of Under.r/anding in the Classroom Methuen. London (1987). IO. Chandler D.. The purpose of the computer in the classroom. In Tec~hnological Li/eraqa and the Curriculum (Edited by Beynon J. and Mackay H.), pp. 171-196. The Falmer Press. London (1992).
APPENDIX
INDIAN FARMER Computers in the Curriculum. AVP. Chepstow. Gwent (1983). RICE FARMER Computers in the Curriculum. AVP, Chepstow, Gwent (1988). SANDHARVEST Campaign for World Development Education. Longmans. Harlow NOMADS Advisory Unit for Computer Based Education. ITV. London (1985).
(1986)
0360. I3 I5/93 $6.00 + 0.00 Copyright t-3 1993 Pergamon Press Ltd
Printed in Great Britain. All rights reserved
CLASSROOM
PROCESSES AND SIMULATIONS DERYN
Centre
for Educational
GEOGRAPHY
M. WATSON
Studies, King’s College London, London SE1 8TX, England
Waterloo
Road,
Abstract-Longitudinal in-depth case studies of IT use in geography classrooms were undertaken as part of the ImpacT project, a recently completed evaluation of the impact of IT on children’s achievements in primary and secondary schools in the U.K. The specific aim was to get as close as possible to the classroom processes, that is how teachers and pupils actually used IT in their geography classes. Ethnographic methods of observation, formal and informal interviewing, and examination of documents, were used to focus the research on key issues and themes that emerged during the study. One theme, the notion of increased levels of interest and enjoyment in the geographical learning during the use of simulations, is explored in this paper. Indicators such as the increased level of noise, the extended amount of focussed talk on task, the amount of interest and enjoyment displayed, are discussed. The research analysis suggests that the level of empathy that emerged and in particular the challenge provided by the process appeared to result in the pupils exploring issues at greater depth. It is suggested that these simulations provided a context for a functional learning environment that capitalised on the role of simulations to both stimulate enquiry and discourse. It is also noted that such positive process outcomes were closely related to the teachers who set up the environment, and that on the whole such teachers are still in the minority.
INTRODUCTION
The ImpacT study, an evaluation of the Impact of Information Technology on children’s achievements in primary and secondary schools was conducted in the period 1 January 1989-31 December 1991. The work commissioned by the Department of Education and Science was carried out by a team of researchers in the Centre for Educational Studies, Kings College, University of London [l]. The focus of the research was on pupils learning and classroom activity involving IT in the school age bands 8-10, 12-14, and 14-16, in the subject areas of mathematics, science, geography and English. This was the first large-scale comprehensive, longitudinal and in-depth investigation undertaken which focussed on the potential impact of IT on pupils’ achievements across a broad age band and range of school subjects. A large field study was designed involving over 2300 pupils from 87 classes in 19 Local Education Authorities, distributed geographically in England and Wales. These pupils came from matched pairs of classes. These classes were nominated for their good teaching and curriculum delivery; one of each pair was also identified as making regular use of IT and so was designated HiIT, while the other was identified as LoIT. The pupils thus divided into a matrix of 12 cells; three age groups, 8-10, 12-14, and l&16, and the four curriculum subject areas. This sample was used in a research framework that had three substantial parts. l
l
l
An assessment of pupil’s achievements of specific learning tasks and skills, through the administration of specifically designed subject-focussed assessments to the matched pairs of classes in each cell. These reasoning-in-subject assessments were supplemented by topic-specific mini-studies in some pairs and also some HiIT-only classes, and a final test for IT concepts and skills. Statistical comparisons of test performance were adjusted through the use of general ability assessments. In-depth longitudinal case studies in a few HiIT classes were focussed on classroom processes and pupil interactions. Classrooms were observed, pupils and teachers were questioned, and documentary evidence was gathered to provide illumination on classroom realities. Qualitative analysis was based on those themes and issues that emerged from the data. IT resourcing and use was monitored throughout by the regular returns of questionnaires and data sheets from the teachers and pupils in each class. Hardware and software provision,
CAE 21:1-2-B
9
DERYNM. WATSON
10
pupils’ IT use in ImpacT subject and across all subjects and pupils’ analysed descriptively by classes, age cohorts and subjects.
extra-mural
use were
This paper will consider one segment of the work in one slice of the matrix, that is, the longitudinal case-studies undertaken in geography classrooms in the 12-14 age cohort, for which the author was responsible. Within this area, the focus will be on some of the research findings of classroom activities when simulations were used.
RESEARCH
METHOD
The ImpacT project deliberately employed this range of research methods to suit the complexity and scale of the task. For the case studies, the researchers employed an ethnographic method, using qualitative data gathered from observation and recording, formal and informal interviews and documentary evidence [2]. The essence of this method lies in the refining of analysis and further exploration of the issues during the research, rather than approaching the class with a pre-conceived list of issues to question. The specific aim was to get as close as possible to the classroom processes, that is how teachers and pupils actually use IT in their classroom; Beynon [3] has subsequently identified this as a key area demanding further work in this field as a counterweight to the “scientific” methodology that has attached itself hitherto to IT and education. A total of five case studies involving nine different classes were undertaken by three researchers during the period September 1989-July 1991. A structural model was designed to accommodate the ways in which computers were used in the different subject areas and at different age levels, focusing on the classroom processes. An initial focus was devised which reflected the areas the researchers at that time thought would be useful starting points for the observations, and included: l l l
Learning outcomes: pupil-computer interactions, pupils’ conversations, and pupils’ strategies; Pedagogical strategies: teacher intervention, and use of support materials; IT and subject contexts: one microcomputer/class, computer room, subject focus, and integrated curriculum.
The case-study data were collected through regular visits to each class. The first phase of data collection involved gathering data about each class and the schools themselves. This included the class teacher’s general teaching experience and IT-specific experience, the clarification of the teacher’s aims and objectives, experience, training, curriculum plans, the background of the pupils, the software being used, and the collection of contextual data from each case-study school such as ethos, politics, and composition of staff. The second and more substantial phase involved intensive classroom observations, interviews with pupils, recording of pupil-machine interactions and teacher interventions, descriptive accounts of lesson patterns and structures. the identification of forms of use of micros and pedagogical variations, conversations with other staff in the school about the way teaching was organised, and the amount of IT being used in other lessons. Four of the case studies, primary, secondary English, secondary mathematics and secondary science, proceeded using a single class. The geography case expanded until it included two classes studied in depth and three subsidiary classes. This occurred because the researcher chose to focus on a particular aspect of classroom activity, that is the use of process skills around the keyboard [4], that formed part of her initial research question. Some interesting ideas emerged in the first term of observation. Since the opportunity to observe these pupils using a simulation was not going to recur during the rest of the period of the research, she sought out other classes within the HiIT sample who would be using the same style of simulation. The researcher had been intrigued by what had emerged during this activity and felt driven to explore further. Geography was the only case in which simulations were observed in use; they were used in four out of the five geography classes. As the research progressed, a framework for analysis was developed which reflected both the separate contexts and unique features of each individual study. This framework initially covered
Geography simulations
11
five themes: l l l l l
where and how the teacher was introduced to using IT; the teacher’s philosophy and practice of use; what IT use actually occurred in the classroom; the pupils’ views of what they were doing in the classroom; the pupils’ views about their other involvement with IT.
All the data collected, both within the classroom as well as within and outside the school, were trawled first to provide illustrative examples within the five slices listed above. These snippets taken from the slices led to analytical themes. Thus the initial experiences of a teacher with IT would lead to an analytical theme relating to confidence with the technology. As the work progressed, with the focussing down to particular areas of interest, some of the initial themes declined in importance and further ones were identified. Some emerged more strongly in association with one class, or subject of study. The research results take the form of an analytical commentary, arising from the coding of, reflection on and discussion of data. RESEARCH
CONTEXT
Geography was one of the subjects chosen for the ImpacT study because it has a history of quite extensive software development and use, and related inservice activity, over the last 15 years. This interest had been clearly expressed by the professional subject association [5]; it is important to note that this history was not confined to the U.K. The International Geography Union of geography educators had its first seminar on the issue in 1984 [6]. The researcher had been involved with this software development and so had an embedded sense of awareness of software and also the potential for use in the curriculum. This influenced both the selection of teachers and the involvement the researcher had in the study. The geography researcher was aware that this could have posed a problem; she knew some of the class teachers. However, this did not appear to influence the responses elicited in the research, one teacher in particular being quite scathing about the software that the researcher had developed. Nevertheless the researcher felt that she was not treated as if she was an unknown research assistant, in that views were sought and exchanged on the basis of colleagues with concerns in common. As with all participant observation, this career history influenced the researcher’s views of the environment observed, but also contributed to the level of analysis that could be obtained. The whole geography case covered a wide variety of issues related to teachers’ methodologies and IT policy within the department and school. This paper focusses only on the classroom processes when simulations were used. All classes involved, defined by the project as HiIT, were in co-educational comprehensive schools in different areas and social environments in southern England. The schools ranged in size from the smallest with 550 on roll, to the largest with 1350 on roll. The teachers’ ages ranged from late twenties to mid-forties. They had come to IT through a variety of routes; there was nothing consistent in their life or career histories to suggest any commonality, except that they themselves had taken the initiative to follow up the chance to use IT, and unlike their colleagues, the use of software had become an established part of their normal teaching armoury. Five sets of geography lessons, all with 12-14 yr olds, were observed in four classes when four different simulations, covering third/developing world studies, were used. The software packages were INDIAN FARMER, RICE FARMER, SANDHARVEST and NOMADS (see Appendix for sources of software). Although the context differed, the software displayed similar characteristics, that is, they engaged the pupils in role-playing activities in which they had to experience the life (of Indian farmers or African nomadic cattle herders) over several seasons or years. In each case the class was prepared beforehand with material relating to the topic. All teachers used the simulations as illustration of a response to seasonal weather patterns. Two of the classes moved to a computer room and used the simulation there all at the same time. The other two classes operated a ‘cafeteria system’, that is, groups of pupils queuing for turns on the computer, using the machines based in the geography classrooms. In all classes the pupils worked in groups, two were self-selected groups and two selected by the teacher.
DERYN M. WATSON
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ANALYSIS
Interest
und involvement
All four different classes observed responded to these simulations with a high level of interest and involvement. There were five main indicators of involvement. Firstly, the general level of noise in the class rose, particularly in those sets in the computer rooms. This level of noise however did not disturb the teachers, all of whom had certain, lower, noise levels permitted in their geography rooms. This level of noise was sometimes disturbed by a louder exclamation when a group saw the results of a particular decision; again this was allowed. The teachers, with one exception, were moving around the class, talking to groups at the keyboard and responding to questions. Secondly, the noise factor did not disturb the teacher because the pupils were so clearly talking on task. This was reinforced by subsequent conversations between the researcher and teacher. Teachers tolerated this higher level of noise because they had expressly used the simulation in part to encourage group work and collaboration. Thus this discourse was welcomed. The only time that the researcher experienced the same level of noise and discourse in a geography class was when a group decision-making exercise was used, although it must be remembered that only two of these classes were observed over a substantial period of time. Thirdly, the involvement did not wane as the lesson progressed. In the classes in the computer room, pupils maintained the same level of involvement in the same activity throughout a l-h period. Again this did not usually occur in their geography classes, when the activities were usually broken up into different and clearly defined sections. Involvement was maintained even in the class where there were hardware problems that eventually forced a class of 18 working in six groups to reform into only three. Fourthly, this involvement was serious. The pupils were not treating the lesson as a “doddle” in which they did not have to be involved. Interestingly, in two groups using SANDHARVEST from two different classes there were incidents in which members of the group chastised one member for not taking the work seriously and not therefore thinking carefully enough about their input. In both cases it was the girls chastising a boy in the group. It seems they were particularly concerned because the casual way the boys had taken their decisions had an adverse effect upon the subsequent events. In both cases the boys then began to take part seriously. Fifthly, pupils were often reluctant to finish the session even when the bell went and the next period was lunch or break. Some pupils sighed and requested a chance to continue on another occasion. There was a significant amount of regret from the two teachers who had whole classes in the computer room that booking problems prevented them being able to do this. The classes who used one or two machines in their own classroom also had their time on the simulation reluctantly curtailed. For instance, the pupils using NOMAD could only work through one season; many wanted to stay and had to be moved off by the teacher or researcher to let others have a turn. This was particularly unfortunate in that the value of experiencing more than one season was quite clear, to both teachers and the pupils. Talk on task by the pupils occurred as they were leaving the room and going down the stairs. One class became very animated as they exchanged experiences about what had “happened to them”. For instance, “we ended up with five columns of debt. . . what about you?” Animated talk on task was not the norm amongst pupils leaving their “ordinary” lessons.
Empathy A significant amount of empathy developed during these lessons. When asked what they had learnt, one group of pupils using NOMAD, John, Sam and Kit, expressed themselves thus: J:
“How hard it is. We didn’t know you had to eat thorny scrub. We started panicking they (the cows) all started dying. We started with 20 but went down to 8.” R: “Why did you panic?” J: “Well, we would all die if the cows died, . . . it was really worrying.”
when
Geography
simulations
13
All three boys further explained the seriousness of the situation and how there was no way out if things just went on getting worse. This empathetic involvement was not just momentary but was reflected in the class writing that John did a week later on “the life of a nomad”. Pupils working on the INDIAN FARMER simulation discussed the problems of large numbers of births in an area where once a child is 8 years old, he or she can work fully in the field and productivity increases. The poverty trap and downwards spiral of health if the family was not able to harvest enough grain resulted in comments on the real differences in life for those farmers and the dilemmas they faced. Conversations during the simulation included “Oh, not another baby” and “Sir, we’ve got ourselves out of debt”. Comments afterwards included: “It really made you think about the problems they face. Getting into debt. . . the reality of children dying. . . my wife died . . . had a new wife and then there were lots more children and so more food needed”. Another
said:
“I learnt quite a lot. I didn’t realize there was a cycle in everything they do. I suppose our life has cycles, but its more like doing different things every day. . . like lessons”. The direct involvement and association with the lives they were exploring was noticeable. They particularly picked up the significance of the healthiness of their diet, reflecting the simulation model and pointed out by the teacher, as an indication of how much debt they were in and the difficulty of moving out of the poverty/debt cycle. These pupils explored two simulations in 2 weeks in December 1990. The pupils immediately after described in vivid language the reality of life of an Indian farmer. What was of particular interest was that when asked 6 months later what they remembered doing, they had a very strong recall of the simulation and could describe what “happened to them” in some detail. Thus involvement and vivid experiences were not transient. The teacher had introduced one session by saying “this is to give you a realistic impression of the life of an Indian farmer”. This goal appeared to have been achieved. It is important to note however that this level of empathy and involvement had been achieved through the efforts of the teacher, the way the simulation was integrated into their curriculum, the goals set, and the familiarity with which the teacher was able to discuss the events as they unfurled. Another geography teacher in the same school described his experiences when using the same package thus: “
. . . then I used INDIAN FARMER as an experiment and the children went absolutely wild. But I’m not sure. . . it was a very exciting lesson, they were captivated by it. This is a program where you have people dying, build up families. What was worrying, I couldn’t get them off the machine, there was long laughter, the more people died, the more laughter there was, and I almost felt I would have serious reservations about doing it again despite the fact that it actually captured them. . . because I have great suspicions that it didn’t actually capture them for the right reasons. They weren’t horrified with what was happening, they found it amusing.” The nuance of judgement between two different teachers and the activities in their classes during use of this software is quite fine. It transpired that this teacher had not contexted this lesson in work already taking place involving development studies. He did not follow the lesson up and discuss the program afterwards with his pupils because he had used it as a fill in at the end of term. His concerns about the software were real and they affected his intentions to use it again. The contrast with the case-study teacher is interesting; the most valuable point to emerge was the way that the “worthwhileness” of software is so teacher dependent. Enjoyment
in the challenge
There was such a universal sense of enjoyment and interest by both genders in the geography classes when they were using simulations that the researcher tried to probe further this notion of enjoyment and challenge.
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DERYN M. WATSON
The pupils expressed interest in the level of detail that emerged to supplement their general understanding of the issues. In this sense the simulations provided a challenge because they taxed the pupils knowledge base by placing them in a context where the detail was greater and more complex than hitherto experienced. The emergence of the detailed implications of this complexity, such as with the complex health factor which influenced the overall progression of an Indian farmer or the choice and combination of resources and activities for an African villager, suggested that this enquiry work was inherently challenging and involved more real choice for the learner. Many pupils said in effect “I learnt more than I thought there was to learn about this topic”. In one class, although using the simulation came at the end of a substantial period of studying the savanna cycle, the cycle of life of the nomads, and the interrelationship between the two, some pupils displayed an understanding of greater detail and connectedness of factors than before. Alan, on initial questioning about whether he had learnt anything different about the nomads when using the software, said “not a lot”. But he then went on to say that he was surprised about the influence of the tsetse fly. Although he knew about them, “I didn’t know that they could sort of hurt the cows”. Graham, with whom he had worked, said he could “see now why they should go in to town as if they sold butter it meant they could buy some more cows”. Alan then said that it was a problem because “every time you moved to grass by the time you got there it was scrub because it got too hot”. Pindar “didn’t realise it rained so much in the summer, and you do get a lot (of grass) when it rains. But we didn’t eat much of this ‘cos it was in the wrong place”. Penny didn’t realize “that the food was so bad for the animals; if they stopped to graze and the grass stuff was not good then, two cows died”. Nicky and Lorraine who were working with her were surprised at how many kilometers (427) they travelled in the year. The combined effects of the impact of the seasons and travel had clearly not impinged upon them in the same way from their earlier class-based exercises. The level of supporting detail that was added to their more generalised knowledge was impressive and was reflected in their subsequent writing. This is a reflection of the richness of the overall experience and relates to the issues of purpose-driven exploration. Much of the content of the normal geography lessons. not using IT, was based on presented material, and the choices the pupils had to make tended towards how much detail, out of that already presented, to include in their own work. The choices in these simulations seemed to be different. Here, pupils were having to sift through the detail for coherence as well as choice of relevance. The overall impression gained by the researcher was that the complexity of the simulation was attractive and real to the learners. This would seem to be related to the fact that whereas in normal lessons the material was presented and discussed at the beginning of the lesson. thereby in a way setting the agenda and framework for their subsequent writing, the lessons using IT were more truly exploratory, whether of ideas or presentation. And this exploration was in the hands of the pupils, though guided by timely teacher intervention. DISCUSSlON
Although this case-study work is limited in scope and illuminative in design, some clear findings emerged. Computer simulations were found to be good motivators which heightened pupils’ interest in and enjoyment and enabled pupils to develop a high degree of empathy with the topic under study. This improved motivation was intricately linked with increased concentration and sustained effort. By giving pupils the opportunity to work in an open-ended way, simulations enabled pupils to become involved in more complex and challenging learning situations than normal. At the same time not all teachers perceive the same benefits of the same software; the worthwhileness of software is very teacher dependent. Newman [7] refers to the functional learning environment that is predicated upon the assumptions that children are intrinsically motivated to work on tasks that are meaningful to them; and that the most effective learning environment is therefore one that provides meaningful tasks. that is tasks that embody some function or purpose that children understand. A well-designed simulation that engages the pupil in the simulated world therefore can provide such a functional learning environment. Interestingly, Newman also highlights the importance of the teacher’s role in interpreting the function appropriately for the pupils. All the classes studied appeared to
Geography simulations
15
have provided that sort of environment for the pupils. Simulations are important tools for the discussion and attempts at solutions of an interesting variety of real-world problems. Third world or developing countries’ problems are high on the agenda of many teenagers today, and development studies universally appear in all geography curricula. Breuer [8] relates the attributes of simulations to the concepts of cognitive complexity and conceptual mapping. Through the opportunity of choice, simulations provide to the individual student the opportunity to search, enquire, hypothesize and try out, and to work as a member of a team. Breuer argues that meaningful learning, as opposed to root-memory learning, arises from cognitive conflicts. The language he uses matches that of geography educators [6] who have espoused the use of simulations because of the role of decision making and enquiry-based learning to their discipline. The evidence from the geography case supports the notion that simulations can provide an appropriate cognitive-conflict environment. This conflict supported the inherent probing and seeking of solutions in order to make survival possible in these worlds. All four simulations presented the dilemma and complexity faced by peoples in India and the Sahel to children in temperate urban worlds. Edwards and Mercer [9] argue that discourse, rather than being just a window upon childrens’ thought processes, is itself an educational reality. Teachers and children engage in constructing a shared account, a common interpretative framework for curriculum knowledge. Moment-to-moment construction of context and continuity provides the base upon which subsequent talk and interpretation are built through discourse. In the use of these simulations in the ImpacT classes, the discourse was less dominated by the teacher’s concerns and interpretations, as the dialogue was focused on events, decisions and activities driven by the software. The quantity and volume of the discourse, above that of the normal classroom, when these simulations were in action, points to an enhanced opportunity of ongoing interpretation and frameworking. It is important to place these positive outcomes in context, that is, the teachers had worked out how IT could support their philosophy and pedagogy and the environments thus generated created a positive learning environment for those pupils. The teachers were all experienced and confident users of IT. The conjunction of the software and the teacher is what matters. The same software in different hands and contexts was seen in the same study to have different effects. Chandler [lo] questions the value of simulations as he claims they are removed from the existential context of the human experience that they are intended to represent. He baldly states that “A computer-based simulation reduces rich, physical, sensory experiences to cold, abstract visual analogies” (p. 177). Here he is confusing assumptions of known compared with simulated environments and ignoring the evidence of empathy and involvement. He suggests that simulations mechanize experience, yet it would appear that the value of the experience to those 12-14 yr olds in this study was real. He asserts that simulations are asocial, ahistorical and amoral. This geography study however provides no support for the contention that pupils themselves are engaged in a false or mechanistic activity. The research provides us with an opportunity to contextualise the role of simulations within the overall class experience of the pupils. Since the nature of the learning environment is crucial to the pupils it is important to address further the factors that enable such an environment to emerge. The same study also indicated how difficult the teachers and indeed researchers found it to identify and define such positive learning outcomes. By being process rather than product focused, they are less likely to be reflected in assessments which test the more content-laden aspects of the curriculum. This paper reports on what is possible with dedicated IT-using geography teachers when they have available to them software that supports their curriculum. Yet such a conjunction is rare. The teachers involved here were the exception; the study in general found that despite a variety of local and national initiatives, a full use of IT in the geography curriculum was not easy to find. Further work from this research, which will be reported elsewhere, sets out to identify those characteristics in the teacher and school policy that collide to enable such an environment to grow, and why this does not appear to cascade to other geography colleagues. It is still the dedicated and interested individual who uses IT and geography; this individual is still, despite years of interest and publications in the professional journals, relatively isolated and special.
16
DERYN M. WATSON REFERENCES
I. Watson D. M. (Ed.), The ImpacT Prqjeci: An Evaluation of the Impact of Information Techno1og.v on Children’s Achieuemenrs in Primary and Secondary Schools. King’s College London, London (1993). 2. Hammersley M. and Atkinson P, Ethnography: Principles in Practice. Tavistock Publications, London (1983). 3. Beynon J, ‘Just a few machines bleeping away in the corner’: a review of naturalistic studies of computers into education in the UK. In Case Studies in Computer Aided Learning (Edited by Blomeyer R. L. and Martin D.), pp. 2777293. The Falmer Press. London (1991). 4. Watson D., The computer in the social science curricula. fnt. J. Educl Rese. 17, 5143 (1992). 5. Fox P. and Tapsfield A. (Eds), The Role and Value of Nevv Technology in Geography. The Geographical Association, Sheffield (1986). 6. Graves N. J. (Ed.), Computer Assisred Learning in Geographical Education. International Geographical Union. Institute of Education, London (1984). 7. Newman D., Functional environments for computers in education. In Mirrors qf‘ rhe Mind: Paiierns oy E.rperlence in Educufional Compufing (Edited by Pea R. D. and Sheingold K.). pp. 5746. Ablex, N.J. (1987). 8. Breuer K., Computer simulations and cognitive development. In Computers in Education (Edited by Duncan K. and Harris D.), pp. 2399244. Elsevier. Amsterdam (1985). 9. Edwards D. and Mercer N. M.. Common Kno~vledge: The Der~elopmmr of Under.r/anding in the Classroom Methuen. London (1987). IO. Chandler D.. The purpose of the computer in the classroom. In Tec~hnological Li/eraqa and the Curriculum (Edited by Beynon J. and Mackay H.), pp. 171-196. The Falmer Press. London (1992).
APPENDIX
INDIAN FARMER Computers in the Curriculum. AVP. Chepstow. Gwent (1983). RICE FARMER Computers in the Curriculum. AVP, Chepstow, Gwent (1988). SANDHARVEST Campaign for World Development Education. Longmans. Harlow NOMADS Advisory Unit for Computer Based Education. ITV. London (1985).
(1986)