Abstract:
The purpose of this session is to discuss the results of a study which investigated students' development of higher-level thinking skills in a computerised learning environment which was designed to facilitate an inquiry-based approach to learning. The session will focus on the social interactions and the influence of teachers' epistemologies on the development of students' higher- level thinking skills. In the class where the teacher implemented a constructivist-oriented approach to teaching that emphasised both the personal and social construction of students' knowledge, most students developed higher-level thinking skills. The results of this study suggest that it is not the computer itself which facilitates inquiry learning; the facilitative role of the teacher is essential for students to be able to utilise the computer as a tool of scientific inquiry.