Science Inquiry and Students
with Visual Impairment
Tiffany Wild Ph.D.
The Ohio State University
Margilee Hilson, Ph.D.
Columbus City Schools
What is Inquiry?
Questions
 Priority to evidence
 Explanations to questions are formed
from evidence
 Evaluation of explanations in light of
scientifically–based alternatives
 Communication and justification

(NRC, 2000, p. 25)
How does inquiry fit learning
theory?

Theory of constructivism.

Mimics the knowledge acquisition process of
scientists

Knowledge is thought to be gained by applying
existing knowledge to problems and then
confirming or revising beliefs in light of new
data.
Research on Inquiry-Based
Instruction

Documented rise in test scores, greater confidence,
students likely to learn more, and ability to overcome
misconceptions (Geir, Blumenfeld, Max, Krajcik,
Fishman, Soloway, and Clay-Chambers, 2008;
Brickman, Gormally, Armstron, & Hallar, 2009; Michael,
2006)

Inquiry-based instructional techniques were beneficial
for students with disabilities (Lynch, S., Taymans, J.,
Watson, W., Ochesendorf, R., Pyke, C., & Szesze, M.,
2007)

Less behavior problems tend to result from the use
of this teaching process (Mastropieri, 2005)
Inquiry-Based Science Instruction and
Students with Visual Impairments

Science teachers utilized inquiry-based methodologies
in 61.1% of the classrooms which contained visually
impaired students (Wild & Paul, 2012)

Survey of 1,088 Science teachers found that
◦ 54% felt least prepared to teach students with visual
impairments of all disability groups
◦ 66% felt unprepared in using Assistive Technology in the
classroom
◦ 29% felt concerned about safety in the science classroom
◦ 80% felt that mandatory training should take place to
teach students with disabilities (Kahn & Lewis, 2013)
Inquiry-Based Curriculum Research
and Students with Visual Impairments

Inquiry-based instructional techniques have been
reported for teaching the concepts of scale,
environmental science, seasonal change, space, sound
and geoscience to students with visual impairment
(Jones, Taylor, & Broadwell, 2008; Rule, 2011; Wild &
Trundle, 2010a; 2010b; Wild, Hobson, & Hilson 2012;
Wild, Hilson, & Farrand, in review).

Inquiry-Based instruction has been beneficial for
students with visual impairments in overcoming
scientific misconceptions
◦ Students have many misconceptions that are different from
their sighted peer Wild & Trundle, 2010a; 2010b; Wild,
Hobson, & Hilson 2012; Wild, Hilson, & Farrand, in review)
Students’ with VI Conceptual
Understanding of Sound





Week long summer camp
Participants: aged 8-11 years-old, n=15
Integration of braille reading and writing
Inquiry opportunities for learning about sound
Results: all students developed some
scientifically accurate concepts of sound
Students’ with VI Conceptual
Understanding of Geoscience





Week long summer camp
Participants: 13-18 years old n=16
Incorporated field-based experiences and
experts in geology
Inquiry also included lab work and
Results: increased scientific responses held
simultaneously with misconceptions
Seasonal change
Conservation- turkeys!
Science Inquiry and Students with VI





Week long summer camp
Participants: aged 8-18, n=22
Student initiated inquiry projects
Included all 8 science & engineering practices
Results: students demonstrated capacity to ask
questions, collect data and create explanations
from evidence
Role of the Teacher in Inquiry-Based
Instruction

Teachers are facilitators
 Ask productive questions to help students
develop testable questions
 Structure the environment in order to help
students obtain and focus on evidence
 Provide supplies and resources
 Make connections between observed
student evidence and scientific theory
 Ensure that students communicate learning
Format of an inquiry lesson
5 E model
Adaptive tools
Audio-enabled scales
 Raised texture measurement tools

Explore with magnets
Do magnets work
through:
 Cardboard?
 Paper?
 Plastic?
 Water?
 Hands?
 Make a prediction,
test it and record the
results
Next Generation Science Standards
Next Generation Science Standards
(NGSS)
Purpose
 To provide science education for all students
K–12 that prepares them for college and
careers
 To increase scientific and technological
literacy enabling students to become
informed citizens in a democracy and
knowledgeable consumers
NGSS Partners
National Research Council
 National Science Teachers Association
 American Association for the
Advancement of Science
 Achieve

NGSS Components
Science and Engineering Practices
 Crosscutting Concepts
 Core ideas

◦
◦
◦
◦
Physical Science
Life Science
Earth and Space Science
Engineering, Technology, and Applications of
Science
Science and Engineering Practices
1.
2.
3.
4.
Asking questions and defining problems
Developing and using models
Planning and carrying out investigations
Analyzing and interpreting data
Science and Engineering Practices
5.
6.
7.
8.
Using mathematics and computational
thinking
Constructing explanations and designing
solutions
Engaging in written and oral argument
from evidence
Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating
information
Crosscutting Concepts
Patterns
 Cause and effect
 Scale, proportion, and quantity
 Systems and systems models
 Energy and matter in systems
 Structure and function
 Stability and change of systems
 Interdependence of science, engineering,
and technology

Key Shifts in Instruction

Teaching through expanded inquiry model
◦ 8 practices
Inclusion of engineering and technology
concepts
 Fewer topics-greater integration among
science domains
 Integration of literacy and mathematics
 Connections to real-world problems
 Readiness for college and career

Adoption Timeline
Under review
 Expected release early 2013
 Assessments are not yet constructed

Testing within the NGSS

Review what testing is like with NECAP
◦ Interpretation of science experiments based
upon drawings and descriptions
◦ http://education.vermont.gov/documents/EDU
NECAP_2012_Grade_8_Science_Released_It
ems.pdf
Performance-Based Portion of the
Assessments








Given a bag of materials
Told to perform and activity
Observe what is happening
Diagram and label what is happening
Record the results
Make conclusions based upon results
Decide on the next steps for possible
experimentation
http://education.vermont.gov/documents/EDUNECAP_2012_Grade_4_Science_Task_Booklet.p
df
NGSS Resource
National Research Council (2012). A
Framework for K-12 Science Education:
Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core
Ideas. The National Academy Press.
http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?rec
ord_id=13165
 Next Generation Science Standards
http://www.nextgenscience.org/

Common Core State Standards
Common Core State Standards
Purpose
 To guide K-12 instruction to ensure that
every student is college and career ready
following high school graduation
Who is involved in Common Core?
New Standards Comparison
Common Core
Curriculum Standards

English Language Arts






Reading
Writing
Speaking & Listening
Language
Literacy in Science,
Social Studies and
Technical Subjects
Mathematics
 8 practices
Next Generation
Science Standards
Science and Engineering
practices
 Cross-cutting concepts
 Core Ideas

Commonalities: NGSS and
Common Core Instruction







Rigorous preparation for college and career
Fewer topics, more depth
Integration across content areas
Constructivist teaching methods
Emphasis on students explaining and justifying
thinking
Emphasis on student collaboration
Emphasis on real-world connections
Key Shifts in ELA/Literacy





Literacy-building as a shared responsibility for all
content area teachers
Emphasis on teaching reading of informational
text
Emphasis on steadily increasing students' ability to
understand more and more complex text over
time
Integration of research skills across standards and
grades
Emphasis on writing to argue, inform, and explain
in the upper grades to prepare students for
college-level writing
Key Shifts in Mathematics

Fewer topics; more generalizing and linking of
concepts
◦ Well-aligned with the way high-achieving countries teach
math

Emphasis on both conceptual understanding and
procedural fluency starting in the early grades
◦ More time to teach and reinforce core concepts from K12
◦ Some concepts will now be taught later
Focus on mastery of complex concepts in higher
math (e.g., algebra and geometry) via hands-on
learning
 Emphasis on mathematical modeling in the upper
grades

Common Core Resources

http://www.corestandards.org/
Common Core Assessments
PARCC Partnership for Assessment of
Readiness for College and Careers
http://www.parcconline.org/parccassessment-design
 SBAC Smarter Balanced Assessment
Consortium
http://www.smarterbalanced.org/sm
arter-balanced-assessments/itemwriting-and-review/

Who has PARCC?
Who has SBAC?
Assessment formats
All assessments will be delivered online
via computer.
 Include a mix of constructed response
items, performance-based tasks, and
computer-enhanced items.
 A combination of automated scoring and
human scoring will be employed.

Accessibility

Two consortiums received grants for the
development of assessments accessible to
all students
National Center and State Collaborative
 http://www.ncscpartners.org/
 Dynamic Learning Maps
 http://dynamiclearningmaps.org/

National Center and State
Collaborative
24 states involved
 Goal: to build alternate assessments based
upon alternate achievement standards for
students with disabilities
 To support all students in increasingly
higher academic achievement in
preparation for post high school options
 Assessments will be released 2015

Accessibility Issues with Testing

According to the NECAP Accommodation Handbook
the following can be used by a student with a visual
impairment
◦ Can use an abacus
◦ Ability to use a scribe

Provides Resources
◦ APH
◦ National Agenda

Source:
http://education.vermont.gov/new/pdfdoc/pgm_assess
ment/necap/educ_necap_accommodations_guide.pdf
Contact
Tiffany A. Wild
wild.13@osu.edu
Margilee P. Hilson
mhilson1225@columbus.k12.oh.us