VE-Based Geography Inquiry Teaching In Middle School

The geography inquiry teaching has been actively promoted by the academic circle in the world.Besides,geography inquiry teaching with experiments plays an irreplaceable role in cultivating students' inquiry ability in geography.There are various limitations in traditional geography experiments,which are difficult to be widely used in inquiry teaching.However,the appearance of virtual experiments(VE)to a certain extent makes up for the shortcomings of the traditional experiments,and provides a new exploring way for geography inquiry teaching.The research on VE-based geography inquiry teaching is helpful to develop geography teaching ideas and enrich geography teaching mode.This research focuses on the development of the new exploring way.With the methods of literature review,expert consultation,case analysis and classroom observation,the author constructs an analysis system of VE-based geography inquiry teaching.Based on this analysis system,this paper makes an observation and analysis on the VE-based geography inquiry teaching in middle school,and puts forward a series of teaching strategies according to the problems found.This study is divided into four stages:Stage I:On the basis of relevant literature review both at home and abroad,this paper defines the related concepts of VE-based geography inquiry teaching,and introduces the theoretical basis of this study,namely Constructivist Teaching Theory,Learning by Doing Theory,Experimental Geography Theory and Geography Teaching Theory.Stage II:On the basis of literature research,this paper firstly constructs the analysis system of VE-based geography inquiry teaching in middle school.After expert consultation,the analysis system,which included 3 first class indexes,11 second class indexes and 29 third grade indexes,was improved,determined,and formed to the classroom observation scale.Stage III:The above scale was used to analyze the present situation of VE-based geography inquiry teaching in middle school.The strengths and shortcomings are summarized:Firstly,the problems of inquiry are reasonable,appropriate,but closed.Secondly,the process of inquiry is scientific and orderly,but the cultivation of students'ability of geography inquiry is incomplete.Thirdly,the teaching is student-centered,but the degree of independent inquiry of students is lower.Fourthly,teachers attach importance to the cultivation of students' observation ability,but their consciousness of experimental norms is vague.Fifthly,students' problem-solving ability is at a general level and their creative thinking needs to be developed.Sixthly,teachers do not give full play to the advantages of virtual experiment in the combination of virtual experiment and traditional experiment.Stage IV:According to the existing problems in teaching described above,this paper puts forward the appropriate teaching strategies,which are divided into the following six parts:adding puzzlements in the problem situation,focusing on the formation of questioning thinking habits,making up for the lack of geographical exploration skills,standardizing the methods of students' geographical experimental exploration,playing to the strengths of VE and guiding students' experience from virtual return to reality.