In this workshop, participants will explore the use of online resources to enhance inquiry-based teaching and learning in science. Over the course of this six session workshop, participants will become familiar with science-themed websites, online collaborative projects, science blogs and wikis, and the mapping applications Google Maps and Google Earth. Considerable attention is paid to helping participants identify ways that they can integrate these tools into their practice, and thus enrich their students’ engagement with science content. Promoting scientific inquiry is a central theme, and serves as a lens for this course. Participants consider the issue of assessment, specifically as it relates to inquiry and the use of online tools, later in the course. As a final project, participants develop plans for an inquiry-based science lesson that uses an Internet-based data source.

This course is designed to provide you with an understanding of the nature of the matter and energy from which the universe is made. These concepts are basic to the development of science literacy in both teachers and students alike. Throughout this seven-week course, you will explore and discuss the meaning of the fundamental concepts necessary for literacy in science. The course will increase foundational knowledge and understanding of the nature of science, Newton’s laws of motion, energy, atoms and bonding, and quantum mechanics. Video from Annenberg Media (www.learner.org) will be used to enhance the content. You will be facilitated through an inquiry-based approach to learning as you explore web sites and online tutorials to uncover concepts. The course is appropriate for educators of all positions and grade levels. This course is the first in a series of three courses based on “Science Matters: Achieving Science Literacy” by Robert Hazen and James Trefil (Anchor, 1991).