The challenge of supporting networked personal inquiry learning across contexts

摘要: Supporting learning across different contexts can be challenging. Defining formal, informal and nonformal is the subject of continuing debate as each difficult to describe. We report on a study that evaluated effectiveness Personal Inquiry toolkit supporting personal inquiries into sustainability food cycle, carried out home an after school club in UK secondary school. The consisted web-based Sustainability Investigator could accessed from any location, together with selection data-gathering tools such environmental sensors (e.g. temperature probes) cameras. It was designed support students through process carrying within between their home. Our main focus here describing how supported students' were conceived conducted at 30 (aged 12-14 years) chose investigate storage, packaging preservation. exploring nature semi-formal context this mediated use Investigator. Analysis our field notes, log files Investigator, video audio recordings sessions interviews teachers pupils, suggest while pupils' sporadic varied students, they successfully completed personally relevant developed positive attitudes process. This predictable, sustained consistent identified previous studies when used it (again successfully) formal classroom setting (see e.g. Scanlon et al. 2009). Three features school ways which by were: 1) aims priorities, 2) affordances constraints technology, 3) institutional priorities. example implications work for potential life course.