Tracing learning about astronomy during an ICT supported inquiry

nquiry-based science education (IBSE) has been argued to prepare students for the modern world by opening up opportunities to query the natural and man-made world. Information communication technology (ICT) that allows more than collection of data and information but offers opportunities to collaborate, discuss and share information is claimed to aid this process.
However evidence to support such great expectations is still inconclusive. Assessment tools and the insights they may lend into students’ learning vary greatly and there is a danger they fail to persuade of the potential inquiry-based learning has to offer. In this presentation we examine the cases of two year 8 classes (14 year old students) who engaged in science inquiry in their science and English lessons and collaborated with a New Zealand class to explore the topic of astronomy.
To gain insight into the students’ developing ideas in astronomy we adopted a multilevel– multifaceted approach. Evidence of learning was collected at three different levels: immediate, close and proximal. We will highlight the insights we gained into students’ developing science inquiry skills and knowledge and explain how the different proximities of the assessment strategies used assisted this task.