Chris Dede | Harvard University (original) (raw)

Papers by Chris Dede

Modeling and Simulation in Science and Mathematics Education, 1999

12 Multisensory Immersion as a Modeling Environment for Learning Complex Scientific Concepts Chri... more 12 Multisensory Immersion as a Modeling Environment for Learning Complex Scientific Concepts Chris Dede Marilyn C. Salzman R. Bowen Loftin Debra Sprague The power of technology to change one's intellectual viewpoint is one of its greatest contributions, not merely to ...

Conference companion on Human factors in computing systems common ground - CHI '96, 1996

ABSTRACT ScienceSpace is a collection of immersive virtual realities designed to explore the pote... more ABSTRACT ScienceSpace is a collection of immersive virtual realities designed to explore the potential utility of physical immersion and multisensory perception to aid in the learning of science. Through the design and evaluation of ScienceSpace, we are learning lessons ...

Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on Human factors in computing systems the CHI is the limit - CHI '99, 1999

This paper describes a research study that investigated howdesigners can use frames of reference ... more This paper describes a research study that investigated howdesigners can use frames of reference (egocentric, exocentric, anda combination of the two) to support the mastery of abstractmultidimensional information. The primary focus of this study wasthe relationship between FORs and mastery; the secondary focus wason other factors (individual characteristics and interactionexperience) that were likely to influence the relationship betweenFORs and mastery.

Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 1996

Abstract. We are collaboratively designing "ScienceSpace," a collection of virtual worl... more Abstract. We are collaboratively designing "ScienceSpace," a collection of virtual worlds designed to explore the potential utility of physical immersion and multisensory perception to enhance science education. This paper describes the creation and formative evaluation of ...

One-size-fits-all educational innovations do not work because they ignore contextual factors that... more One-size-fits-all educational innovations do not work because they ignore contextual factors that determine an intervention’s efficacy in a particular local situation. Identifying variables within the intervention’s setting that represent important conditions for success and summarizing the extent to which the impact of the intervention is attenuated by variation in them can provide prospective adopters of the innovation a better sense

This National Science Foundation funded study is investigating novel pedagogies for helping teach... more This National Science Foundation funded study is investigating novel pedagogies for helping teachers infuse inquiry into a standards-based science curriculum. Using a Multi-User Virtual Environment (MUVE) as a pedagogical vehicle, teams of middle school students are asked to collaboratively solve a simulated 19th century city's problems with illness, through interaction with each others' "avatars", digital artifacts, tacit clues, and computer-based

At NASA's Johnson Space Center and George Mason University, we are using a learner-centered a... more At NASA's Johnson Space Center and George Mason University, we are using a learner-centered approach for designing and evaluating ScienceSpace, a series of virtual reality microworlds for teaching science concepts and skills that students typically have difficulty mastering. Our research goal is to examine whether virtual reality's sensorial immersion can help students remediate deeply rooted misconceptions and construct accurate mental

Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, 1999

... Fairfax, VA 22030 Chris Dede cdede@gmu.edu Graduate School of Education George Mason Universi... more ... Fairfax, VA 22030 Chris Dede cdede@gmu.edu Graduate School of Education George Mason University R. Bowen Loftin bloftin@uh.edu Virtual Environment Technology Lab University of Houston Houston, TX 77023 Jim Chen ...

Journal of Teacher Education, 2008

This article highlights key online teacher professional development (oTPD) areas in need of resea... more This article highlights key online teacher professional development (oTPD) areas in need of research based on a review of current oTPD research conducted in conjunction with an oTPD conference held at Harvard University in fall 2005. The literature review of this field documents much work that is anecdotal, describing professional development programs or "lessons learned" without providing full details of the participants, setting, research questions, methods of data collection, or analytic strategies. Until more rigorous oTPD research is conducted, developers are hard pressed to know the best design features to include, educators remain uninformed about which program will help support teacher change and student learning, and funders lack sufficient guidelines for where to direct their support. The authors believe that the recommendations in this article for a research agenda will guide oTPD scholarship toward an evidence-based conceptual framework that provides robust explanatory power for theory and model building.

Journal of Science Education and Technology, 2009

The purpose of this study was to document how teachers and students describe and comprehend the w... more The purpose of this study was to document how teachers and students describe and comprehend the ways in which participating in an augmented reality (AR) simulation aids or hinders teaching and learning. Like the multi-user virtual environment (MUVE) interface that underlies Internet games, AR is a good medium for immersive collaborative simulation, but has different strengths and limitations than MUVEs. Within a designbased research project, the researchers conducted multiple qualitative case studies across two middle schools (6th and 7th grade) and one high school (10th grade) in the northeastern United States to document the affordances and limitations of AR simulations from the student and teacher perspective. The researchers collected data through formal and informal interviews, direct observations, web site posts, and site documents. Teachers and students reported that the technology-mediated narrative and the interactive, situated, collaborative problem solving affordances of the AR simulation were highly engaging, especially among students who had previously presented behavioral and academic challenges for the teachers. However, while the AR simulation provided potentially transformative added value, it simultaneously presented unique technological, managerial, and cognitive challenges to teaching and learning.

Journal of Science Education and Technology, 2009

Page 1. Design for Scalability: A Case Study of the River City Curriculum Jody Clarke Æ Chris Ded... more Page 1. Design for Scalability: A Case Study of the River City Curriculum Jody Clarke Æ Chris Dede ... 2004; Sandoval and Bell 2004; Wang and Hannafin 2005). In this paper, we use the definition provided by the Design Based Research Collaborative (2003): ...

Journal of Science Education and Technology, 2000

This paper describes part of a project called Modeling Across the Curriculum which is a largescal... more This paper describes part of a project called Modeling Across the Curriculum which is a largescale research study in 15 schools across the United States. The specific data presented and discussed here in this paper is based on BioLogica, a hypermodel, interactive environment for learning genetics, which was implemented in multiple classes in eight high schools. BioLogica activities, data logging, and assessments were refined across this series of implementations. All students took a genetics content knowledge pre-and posttests. Traces of students' actions and responses to computer-based tasks were electronically collected (via a "log file" function) and systematically analyzed. An intensive 3-day field test involving 24 middle school students served to refine methods and create narrative profiles of students' learning experiences, outcomes, and interactions with BioLogica. We report on one high school implementation and the field test as self-contained studies to document the changes and the outcomes at different phases of development. A discussion of design changes concludes this paper.

International Journal of Gaming and Computer-Mediated Simulations, 2000

While utilizing GPS-enabled handheld computing units, we have developed and studied augmented rea... more While utilizing GPS-enabled handheld computing units, we have developed and studied augmented reality (AR) curricula to help middle school students learn literacy and math. In AR, students move around an outdoor physical environment, interacting with virtual characters and artifacts ...

Modeling and Simulation in Science and Mathematics Education, 1999

Conference companion on Human factors in computing systems common ground - CHI '96, 1996

Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on Human factors in computing systems the CHI is the limit - CHI '99, 1999

Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 1996

Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, 1999

Journal of Teacher Education, 2008

Journal of Science Education and Technology, 2009

Journal of Science Education and Technology, 2000

International Journal of Gaming and Computer-Mediated Simulations, 2000

We uncovered four engagement "types" or profiles of students (n=12,986) in Grades 5 to 8, who par... more We uncovered four engagement "types" or profiles of students (n=12,986) in Grades 5 to 8, who participated in a technology-based activity as part of a 4-day mathematics intervention to support their mathematics achievement, motivation, and intentions to pursue STEM careers. Profiles were formed based on four variables dealing with engagement (immersion, interest, utility, and connectedness), which related to students' experience with the technology-based activities. The four engagement profiles predicted students' post-intervention mathematics self-efficacy, their interest in mathematics, their mathematics utility, mathematics identity, and intentions to pursue a STEM career. The only variables that predicted membership into the engagement profiles were grade level and experimental condition. 2 Research Questions 1. What profiles of engagement with the technology emerge based on measures of immersion with the technology, interest related to the technology activity, beliefs about the usefulness of the technology activity, and feelings of connectedness to the characters in the technology activity?