STEM Mobile Software Design Development And Evaluation

This research designs and develops mobile software for STEM education based on the framework of cognitive Apprenticeship.Two rounds of formal experiments are being conducted through design-based research methods.The author has developed a dam-themed STEM course with a total of nine modules,which is taught with mobile software based on the cognitive Apprenticeship framework.The course background is based on the Three Gorges culture of the Yangtze River in China.It will lead students to experience the Yangtze River project,explore the knowledge of reservoir dams,hydropower generation,ship lifts,etc.,and give students corresponding engineering challenges under each engineering background.In this study,five class seven students in a school in Shanghai were selected as the research object,and two rounds of iterative experiments were conducted.The teaching process was divided into experimental groups and traditional groups.Data were collected using dam STEM subject knowledge questionnaires,engineering design performance scales,students' operating paths using software,and interviews.The research results show that mobile software developed based on the framework of cognitive Apprenticeship can promote students 'knowledge of STEM disciplines and the quality of engineering works.However,students' engineering design performance has not significantly improved.In addition,the analysis of the operating path of the students using the software found that the students can learn autonomously with the assistance of the software.In the introduction of engineering,it can focus on engineering problems,and in the module of variable exploration and scientific explanation can cause students to think more about engineering works.The step-by-step engineering support can give students better help.Finally,this study puts forward suggestions from two aspects of STEM mobile software development and teaching practice.