Teaching to Learn: iPads as Tools for Transforming Physics Student Roles

TL;DR

This study explores how using iPads for student-created tutorials in a high school physics class influences student agency and attitudes towards learning science over a year.

Contribution

It introduces a novel approach of integrating iPads for teaching-to-learn experiences in high school physics, enhancing student engagement and agency.

Findings

Increased student agency and ownership of learning.

Positive shifts in attitudes toward science learning.

Effective use of iPads for peer teaching and review.

Abstract

Students who serve as Learning Assistants (LAs) and have the opportunity to teach the content they are learning, while also studying effective teaching pedagogy, have demonstrated achievement gains in advanced content courses and positive shifts in attitudes about learning science [V. Otero, S. Pollock & N. Finkelstein, Amer J Physics 78, 11 (2010)]. Although the LA experience is also valuable for high school students, the tight schedule and credit requirements of advanced high school students limit opportunities for implementing traditional LA programs at the high school level. In order to provide high school physics students with an LA-like experience, iPads were used as tools for students to synthesize screencast video tutorials for students to access, review and evaluate. The iPads were utilized in a one-to-one tablet-to-student environment throughout the course of an entire school year. This research investigates the impact of a one-to-one iPad environment and the use of iPads to create teaching-to-learn (TtL) experiences on student agency and attitudes toward learning science. Project funded by NSF grant # DUE 934921.