Samantha Shaffer's Education Blog: September 2008

http://find.galegroup.com.ezproxy.fgcu.edu/itx/retrieve.do?contentSet=IAC-Documents&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&qrySerId=Locale%28en%2C%2C%29%3AFQE%3D%28ke%2CNone%2C19%29virtual+field+trips%24&sgHitCountType=None&inPS=true&sort=DateDescend&searchType=AdvancedSearchForm&tabID=T002&prodId=AONE&searchId=R2&currentPosition=10&userGroupName=gale15690&docId=A107801001&docType=IAC

Title:Virtual field trips: best practices.
Author(s):E. Barbara Klemm and Gail Tuthill.
Source:International Journal of Instructional Media 30.2 (Spring 2003): p177(17). (7349 words)
Document Type:Magazine/Journal
Bookmark:Bookmark this Document
Library Links:
Abstract:
Virtual field trips provide an alternative strategy for engaging students in study of the real world. This article examines the functions of virtual field trips to either enrich or augment actual field trips, or to provide electronic field trip experiences when no actual field trips are possible. We summarize best practices from research and practice for using this form of instruction, and discuss enabling conditions to support virtual field trips as a classroom learning tool.
Full Text :COPYRIGHT 2003 Westwood Press, Inc.
INTRODUCTION
Common sense knowledge tells us that well-planned field trips benefit students in connecting school studies with real-world, local situations. From experience, teachers know that students look forward to and enjoy field trips. In 1978, Ignatiuk's study of biology students showed a significant correlation between engaging students in field trip activities and gains in student attitude toward science and certain environmental concepts. Other studies concluded with similar findings supporting the contention that field trips increase learning (Berliner & Pinero, 1985; Disinger, 1984; Krepel & DuVall, 1981). Among others who advocate field trips, especially in the sciences, are Thompson, (1982), Shepley (1986) and Fisher (2001).
The authors of this paper support and encourage well-planned, educative, field trips. However, the large majority of students today are not afforded opportunities for field trips associated with their school studies. As Krepel & DuVall (1981), Disinger (1984), Stainfield (2000), and Fisher (2001) found, teachers report logistical and instructional constraints that act against their planning and conducting of actual field trips. These include lack of administrative support, expense, liability and safety issues, and the standards-driven accountability movement, which emphasizes content performance on tests. Furthermore, the quality of the experience for learners engaged in actual field trips can vary, as for example when the experience at a site is not closely linked with the ongoing classroom curriculum or when students are not fully engaged in a field experience. We are especially concerned that the lack of school field trip experiences could be self-perpetuating because teachers tend to teach the way that they were taught.
Therefore, our present efforts examine ways to bring technology solutions to bear to support, and even extend, opportunities for K-12 students to engage field trips and field work and to do so in a manner that retains the best features of pedagogical practices associated with actual field trips. This paper examines the functional use of virtual field trips (VFT) in K-12 instruction, and the reasons for our optimism about the role of technology in general, and the Internet in particular, for supporting and encouraging study of real world. In order to examine best practices associated with VFTS, we first consider the functional ways that VFTs are used in K-12 instruction.
FUNCTIONS OF VFTS
Virtual field trips (VFTs) solve many of the instructional and logistical problems reported by teachers as associated with actual field trip excursions (Tuthill & Klemm, 2002). The term "virtual field trip" embraces a range of instructional approaches and technologies but generally denotes a multimedia presentation that brings the sights and sounds of a distant place to the learner through a computer. In our earlier paper, we described and characterized the various types of VFTS, but here we turn our attention to their function in classrooms to enrich and augment actual field trips and field studies, or to provide a virtual alternative when no actual field experience is possible.
Support of Actual Field Trips. An example of how VFTs function to support field trips is seen when teachers select and adoptively use portions of existing VFT web sites. These may be teacher-planned field trips, where the VFT is used for pre-and post-activities for actual field trips. Pre-activities include previewing an actual site, establishing the purpose of the visit, and preparing the students to engage in the actual on-site activities. Post-activities include reviewing the actual site, debriefing students, and assisting them as needed not only to process and interpret the actual experience, but also to connect learning with the ongoing class curriculum. To support such pre-and post-actual field trips, a teacher could use selected portions of an existing VFT web site. For example, in the United States, national parks and historical sites often have web sites with information and cybertours. A teacher planning an actual field trip to visit the White House in Washington, D. C. might use their web site, which is listed in Table 1, as are all the URLs for web sites discussed in this paper.
Technology tools today also make it possible for teachers to create their own VFTS. Here, the teacher pre-visits an actual site, and uses such technology as a digital camera or video to capture information for students. To this, the teacher might add information, including maps, and reference materials that students will need to maximize an actual site study. Bridges, for example, at the University of Hawaii, created a VFT to familiarize his students with plant life they will be observing during the field studies required by his course, to provide plant identification keys, and to provide a pre-excursion checklist (personal communication, 2001). After the actual trip, Bridges debriefs the activity by reviewing the VFT in class to reinforce what was learned, and to stimulate further discussion. He also supplements and extends the post-actual field trip debriefing, using examples from other remote locations, which he accesses from other web sites he has created. VFTs used in conjunction with actual field trips can also support students' processing and exchange of information from study of an actual site.
We pay particular attention to the ways that teachers are now using VFTS, especially in conjunction with actual field trips, because of the actual and potential power of these technology tools to transform our thinking about field trip possibilities. The Oz-TeacherNet Project located in Australia, for example, is a web site that supports teachers in proposing and conducting of actual field trips, and in providing a structure for posting student findings. Classroom field trips posted at this site become CyberTours for other students and teachers. The site also provides for e-mail conversations, on-line guests, cultural exchanges, collaborative problem solving projects and action research tours. Remote teachers can partner up with teachers at a local site so that the remote students collaborate with the local students to study and investigate real-world situations, and each site can potentially exchange information about their respective locales. Important to us is that with tools like VFTS, field studies need no longer be constrained by distance or time.
The Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) program is an excellent example of how the Internet supports the coupling of hands-on field studies with on-going classroom investigations. We draw here from Slattery, Mayer and Klemm (2002) who explain that GLOBE not only engages students in authentic scientific inquiry in field settings, but also in making meaningful contributions to science. Students collect data, then record their data in the GLOBE student data archive to share their information with others around the world. For example, GLOBE students have assisted in collecting information on ground cover data (the percentage of canopy cover and vegetation type) in a pixel-sized plot of land, information needed by scientists for "ground-truthing" (corroborating) the remote sensing data obtained using satellites. GLOBE international student research projects include Weather Watchers, Weather Quality, Sustainable Development, and Observing the Earth System. Globe requires that teachers complete GLOBE teacher workshops to use the program. The GLOBE program is comprehensive, It uses the Internet to provide discussion areas for students to student discussions and collaboration; access to scientists involved in GLOBE research; teacher support materials and a forum for teachers to exchange ideas; "libraries" of information, including bulletins and news and events. The technology is transparently easy to use in a classroom equipped with a computer and readily available software. The technologies that make GLOBE possible include powerful database management systems, use of Geographical Information Systems, visual imaging and spatial software, and inferencing tools. GLOBE is managed in the United States through a federal agency partnership, including the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Agency, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, National Science Foundation and Environmental Protection Agency, Department of State, and Department of Education; partnerships with educational organizations in the United States; and bilateral agreements between the U.S. and other nations.
Field studies conducted both on and off school campuses are included in defining and describing field trips (Fisher, 2001; Klemm and Avery, 2000). Thus, our contention is that the GLOBE program incorporates VFTs both to enrich actual, hands-on local fields studies, and to engage in virtual studies of sites elsewhere. To us, what is significant is that the VFT capacities within the GLOBE program are involving students in study of the real world, both actually and virtually. In fact, this is an example of how Internet technologies, including VFTs, promote and encourage teachers and students to get involved in field studies. Arguably, definitional lines have blurred between what is an actual field trip or a virtual field trip, and what's classroom-based or field studies. From our perspective, VFTs are one of the teaching tools available to engage students in problems-based, project learning. We see this as evidence of the power of using instructional technology tools, including VFTs, to integrate the teaching and learning experience.
Further, GLOBE and other similar endeavors engage students in forms of VFTs in a manner that supports broadening approaches to study of environmental problems, from studies that emphasized one area of science or social sciences, to multidisciplinary inquiries that require a number of science approaches, as well as consideration of evidence using historical, economic, cultural and other lines of inquiry.
Electronic Field Trips. For a number of reasons, mostly economic or logistical, actual field trips may not be possible. While we remain advocates of actual real-word experiences, studies we reported earlier show that many students do not have such opportunity. In the past, teachers compensated for lack of actual field trips by bringing the "real world" to students, perhaps by inviting a guest speaker who arrived with a slide show, or by using artifacts, teacher-made slides, or videos, as well as text resources such as informational pamphlets or maps. Today, instructional technology tools support building on such past practices, but have now added instructional capabilities that make an electronic field trip, a VFT-only experience, richer and more dynamic through the use of hypermedia, archived databases, and interactive instructional strategies.
Electronic field trips, entire stand-alone VFT's for use without an actual field trip, may be obtained from web sources, or developed by teachers. These can be "cybertours" to actual places that a class is unable to visit, but they can also include more active modes of learning. At the top of the line are the professionally made VFTs, available through endeavors like the JASON Project, which offer interactive exploration of the Great Lakes, the Galapagos and other locales, with opportunities for Students to interact with scientists during an actual expedition. Another example is the Field Trips Site, online education inside the class room and out, devoted to making quality VFTs in science and other areas available to teachers. The Field Trips Site provides guided and narrated tours of web sites selected by educators and threaded together so that students can travel from site to site electronically. Students interact with each other, using higher order critical thinking skills. Although electronic VFTs lack the sensory experience of a real field trip, advocates point out that they are safe and provide more expert resources on a topic than normally available to teachers conducting actual field trips. These high-quality VFTs also provide models for teachers to design, develop and use their own VFTs.
Teachers can create their own stand-alone electronic field trips to support in-class study of sites and situations to which they cannot actually take students. Characteristically, this is a teaching unit devised by the classroom teachers to specifically address curricular objectives and the learning needs of particular students. Obviously, a teacher-made VFT requires the teacher to visit and become knowledgeable about the site, and to be thoughtful about the purposes of the field trip, but this should be true of teachers who conduct actual field trips as well. VFTs allow the teacher full control over the language and information presented, plus ability to connect classroom studies to relevant local situations familiar to the students. Reasonably priced digital cameras and readily available, easy-to-use web-authoring software offer the average classroom teacher ways to create virtual field trips to sites in the local community and to tailor these virtual visits to fit the differentiated needs and interests of their students. Teachers can modify these over time, with students not only posting information to the web site, but also helping to improve the VFT site itself.
Regardless of how VFTs are used, whether to support and enrich an actual field trip, or to provide VFT-only electronic field trips or cyber tours, VFTs enable students to explore and learn about the world. We turn now to examining best practices associated with using VFTs as a learning tool.
BEST PRACTICES FOR VFTS
Technology can be used to enhance successful teaching practices. The research literature is replete with studies that inform us as to what constitutes best instructional practices. Our intention here is to identify and discuss some of the best practices associated with VFTs, which we consider here in terms of their potential for interactive, authentic learning. We begin by discussing best practices associated with field trips and field studies that apply to VFTs. Then, we look at best practices for the design of web pages to support a VFT learning experience. In doing so, we draw upon research, particularly Gillani, 2000; Lowry et al., 2000; Wulff, Hanor, & Bulik, 2000; and Woerner, 1999; our examination of web sites; our own experiences in using websites that support VFT instructional activities; our own experiences in developing and testing teacher-made VFTs (Tuthill, 2001); and our experiences in teaching teachers. From this, we developed recommendations, which we also discuss.
Best Practices for VFT Pedagogy. We believe that, in the end, what the teacher says and does with VFTs and web resources will determine the nature of the learning experience for students. Our intention here is to report on the strategies and methods available to teachers to create effective VFT experiences, and to synthesize our findings into a list of best practices. We found that the following are attributes of best practices for all field trips, whether actual or VFTs:
* Purposeful planning of the trip, with the focus on learners and learning
* Learner-centered experiences and active student learning
* Cooperative learning activities so students interact with each other, as well as with teachers and experts
* Questioning strategies that support problem-solving and higher order critical thinking
* Teachers and field trip leaders as guides who scaffold learning experiences
* Differentiated instruction that provides for the individual needs of learners, giving attention to gender, cultural diversity, language and special education needs.
* Multiple opportunities for learner success, attending to differences in learning styles, learning modalities and multiple intelligences
--Attention to the affective and psychosocial dimensions of the experience
--Authentic assessment and alternative assessment strategies
Planning. Clearly identify the purpose of the field trip, provide a pre-trip activity and orientation on what students are to learn and what is expected of the students in terms of products and performance. Provide for opportunities for student input in setting and planing the field trip. Although there are many ways to approach planning, we found the Wiggins and McTighe (1998) Understanding By Design model particularly useful, in that it advocates the following order for planning: identifying desired results, thinking through what constitutes acceptable evidence of learning, then planning the details of the learning experience, in this case, a VFT. Notably, this model requires thinking about assessment of student learning before planning the details of how instruction is to take place. Also implicit here is that the VFT connects an on-going, and standards-based classroom curriculum. This is far different than just showing up at a field site for a tour, or just using any media, including VFTs or video, without thoughtful consideration of purpose.
Learner-centered experiences and active student learning. Educational reforms have transformed thinking from teacher-centered, didactic instruction to learner-centered, active learning environments where the focus is on the learner. Students benefit from field trip activities which involve exploring, making observations, experimenting, collaborating, and collecting things (Woerner, 1999). From our own experiences, we know that actual and virtual field trips provide the opportunity for students to develop an awareness of real-world situations. However, most learners are novice observers, meaning that they are developmentally unable to observe and respond the way that experts can when investigating new situations. This suggests that to develop further knowledge and understanding, fields trips and VFTs must be combined with other learning activities that support discovery and inquiry, and must allow the learner to learn at his or her own pace and pursue needed information. We believe that field trips, virtual or actual, should serve as means to greater understanding, rather than as an end in itself. Corroborating this is that we found VFTs embedded in project-based and problem-based instruction.
Learner-centered instruction and active learning approaches. These strategies are supported by cognitive research, and constructivist philosophy, in particular the work of Piaget, Ausubel, and Vygotsky. The constructivist approach recognizes the each person learns by actively constructing his/her own ideas, tempered by prior experiences and beliefs. Teachers serve as guides, mediating learning experiences to maximize the degree of meaning that learners can construct from a learning situation (Kozulin & Presseisen, 1995). Methods classes in most subject areas today include constructivist teaching models. For science educators, constructivist approaches indicate use of inquiry teaching and guided discovery approaches. Examples are the Learning Cycle (Karplus & Their, 1974, with later refinements by others) or the 5E instructional model (Trowbridge, L. W., Bybee, R. W. & Powell, J. C., 2000). Salient here is that VFTs too can- and should-be planned and carried out using learner-centered, inquiry based instruction.
Exemplary sites like GLOBE not only model, but also actively engage students in authentic inquiry, with guidance from experts and the teacher. These sites also provide information needed by students, not only in terms of background, but also for developing and practicing skills. In fact, a strong feature is that the learners can actively control when and where they obtain information, and it is they who determine the "what for," deciding what information they need. Here information seeking is purposive and directly connected to learner needs and interests. A characteristic of effective VFTs and actual field trips is that learners actively participate, and experts help them to do so in a manner that is responsive to learner needs. This speaks against passive use of videos and unexamined use of guest speakers or field excursions that are not tailored to classroom learning and student needs.
Cooperative learning. Peer learners working together to achieve common objectives and to help each other succeed is central to cooperative learning. Teachers function here to structure cooperative learning activities so that all students are included, contribute to the experience and have the opportunity to succeed. Cooperative learning groups are especially important for students with diverse needs, provided that they are structured to support students' abilities, and not limitations.
Questioning strategies that support critical thinking and constructivist approaches to learning. Important here is the teacher's ability to scaffold or "mediate" responses and questions so that they are not so open-ended as to frustrate a learner, nor so narrow and specific that they undermine inquiry, but just right in terms of supporting individual learners in actively thinking and constructing understanding.
Differentiated instruction. Included here are numerous strategies which provide for the individual needs of learners, giving attention to gender, cultural diversity, language, and special education needs. Demographic statistics show that today's classrooms are diverse, posing teachers with the challenge of providing for differences in language background and differences in learner's proficiencies in written and oral communication. As we engage in studies of real world situations, teachers especially need to be sensitive to and provide for cultural differences in worldviews. VFTs offer several possibilities, including featuring both male and female experts as well as students, especially when they can be seen and heard engaging in exploration of the actual field sites. Additional options for exploring the world views of several cultures requires consideration of the topic, problems and issues from several perspectives, as for example, asking students to assume different roles involving views and values. VFTs also offer possibilities for exploring differences arising from geography (e.g,. whether students live in rural or urban areas) or by generation (i.e. peer learners, young adults as well as more seasoned adults). Learning is enhanced when the learning tool incorporates the suggestions, opinions, and communication style of the local culture (Kilker, 2000).
All this suggests using VFTs to augment an actual field trip, which may be of too brief a duration to accomplish the exploration of diverse views, as well as to include these multicultural dimensions in stand-alone VFTs. Possibilities include live or on-line interviews with diverse people and sounds or images depicting different dimensions of study of an actual site. We also note the possibilities for multi-disciplinary learning. Students in a science class, for example, can also explore the history, politics, economics and legal aspects of a situation as well as the underlying science and technology principles. A web site that integrate science and language arts is found at The Kids as Airborne Mission Scientists web site where students examine observations made by real-time remote sensing data of current and recent lava flows in Hawaii with the written observations made by Mark Twain over 100 years ago.
The level of difficulty of materials presented and the depth of presentation are considerations for any learning experience. The very nature of web page design, which tends to minimize the number of words on a page, provides a mechanism for providing overviews (advanced organizers) and essentialized information, while at the same time providing options for additional in-depth readings or encounters with more detailed information elsewhere. Special educators advise teachers to design learning experiences to accommodate the needs of learners with disabilities by using multi-sensory learning experiences that engage the various multiple intelligences. They also advocate including special education students in cooperative learning experiences in a way in which they can use their abilities, contribute to the group endeavor, and experience learning success. VFTs offer new multi-media possibilities, which can be used in conjunction with hands-on activities or direct field learning activities.
Multiple opportunities for learner success includes providing multiple ways for learning and multiple ways for assessing learning. Research informs us about the importance of attending to differences in learning styles, learning modalities and multiple intelligences. Thus, VFT learning experiences can be structured to provide for variety in the ways that learners engage in activities, in the nature of the performances or products expected of them, and of the ways that they are assessed. Here we include planned off-line learning activities, such as hands-on activities and conventional, interactive learning experiences such as working offline in cooperative learning groups. We found several web sites particularly informative, including Multiple Intelligences Exploration Page, and Learning Styles Links, which are listed in Table 1.
Psychosocial considerations are also important in designing the VFT. For encouraging learners to express personal views, we note the value of VFTs that have journals which are shared only with the instructor, providing opportunities for individuals to express their personal views, but not as publicly as in group discussions or threaded discussions. Journals can be entirely open-ended, or focused using prompting, guiding questions. Such questions can be structured to evoke affective (e.g. feelings, attitudes, values) as well as cognitive thinking, as for example "What I liked best ..." or "What I feel is most important in this situation is ...". Likewise, through options for group discussion or threaded discussion forums, students also have the opportunity to contribute and share their ideas toward a learning endeavor. With the availability of low-cost digital imaging and scanning technologies, student expressions need not be limited to text. But, by using group discussion features and providing for the sharing of student-generated information, VFTs also foster student interaction with others as active participants in learning communities. In science, as evidence and ideas are examined, students learn to respond to others as critical friends, a skill useful in many situations in life.
Opportunities for student input and contributions to the learning enterprise are especially exciting in VFTs connected to shared databases. Earlier we discussed several sites that provide templates or student archive databases to which students can input their work and ideas, for others to use. What is particularly notable is that now such VFTs have the capacity not only to investigate real-world situations, but also to monitor change over time, or to compare a situation at one site with those at other sites. To do this effectively, however, means that students need to learn how to use authentic inquiry tools (i.e. skills for formulating and investigating problems used by scientists, by social scientists, or others as they seek to understand the world.) They also need to learn communication skills for exchanging and testing ideas. VFTs are one way that the web can be used as a multimedia social tool that allows for cognitive development and learning through social interaction.
Authentic assessment and alternative assessment formats. Education standards today call for assessment to inform teaching and learning, and so achievement and opportunity to learn science must he addressed. Assessment is authentic when assessment tasks "are similar in form to tasks in which they [students] will engage in their lives outside the classroom or are similar to the activities of scientists" (NRC, 1996, p. 83). This means that VFT assessment of student learning ought to reflect the nature of the learner's experiences and examine whether or not learners have attained the learning goals and performance expectations set forth by the teacher. Embedded assessment strategies include providing for adequate pre-field trip briefings, checks on student understanding of purposes and expectations, formative checks during the experience and in post-field debriefings, as well as assessments of final products, performances or exhibitions.
Classroom assessments today take many forms, including performance-based assessments and criterion-referenced assessments (e.g. criteria with rubrics), as well as traditional tests and examinations. VFTs can incorporate all of these forms of student assessment, plus, with the power of multi-media technologies, add to the possibilities for students to demonstrate what they have learned. With technology now available for digital imaging graphics, 3D modeling, as well as database and statistical packages, the technology exists even for teachers who create their own VFTs in support student-created, hypermedia and hyperlinked reports and projects connected to actual or entirely virtual field trips. Such technologies open opportunities for other creative options, such as "investigative reporting" or "documentaries," and for students to have input to contribute to the immediate field trip study in ways that appeal to peer learners, yet satisfy learning performance expectations set by the teacher.
A student-centered interface reflects the diverse needs of students by using a design for the interface (the way in which students will see and interact with the computer) which will appeal to the student users. The design elements include those things which affect the look and feel of the site, such as color, placement of audio, types of video, navigational tools, etc. The site should contain opportunities for the learner to control the environment.
Interactive content presentation can be achieved using electronic media with the potential to not only deliver information, but also to create interactive communication and a community of learners who rely upon each other to gather information, experiment, and construct new knowledge. For science VFTs, the web site content must also provide tools for learners to use in carrying out their study of a site, such as observation, measurement and data recording; interpretation and synthesis of data; generation of hypotheses and predictions; and formulating evidence-based conclusion and their own explanations of phenomena.
Active participation of students includes their input into planning for a field trip, which we have already discussed, and also their active participation as part of the web design team. As students use electronic material, they can help point out problems with the site. We recommend providing a way to solicit their ideas, both about the content involved in the field studies and about the web site itself. Options include e-mail, on-line surveys, in-class surveys, or interviews, and also providing opportunities for using visual and graphic tools for student expression of ideas.
Web Page Design Considerations
Specific features of a VFT that we have already discussed include a student-centered interface, interactive content presentation, active participation of students in design of the VFT and the web site, and easy site navigation. In addition, there are other site design considerations, some of which we address here.
Site architecture refers to the way pages in a web site are linked to each other such as sequential, hierarchical grid, or web. A webbed site allows the learner greater freedom and control over the experience while a sequential ordering ensures that all students complete all parts of the virtual tour. Teaching goals should determine choice of site architecture. Other suggestions for good web site architecture are to provide easy access to a table of contents where students can easily go to another page, to always provide a way to return to the home page, and to make resident headings clear.
Gillani (2000) cautions us about the ineffectiveness of simply converting textbooks into HTML for the web. Such web sites do not take advantage of the adaptive and flexible attributes of hypermedia formats that can be nonlinear and interactive, desirable features of VFTs.
Special Considerations
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 requires that people with disabilities be offered access to the same services as offered to those without disabilities, and this law applies to Internet resources. The designer of an instructional module using computer technology needs to incorporate design features that would allow students with disabilities to participate in the learning experience (Burgstahler, 2000). Thus, site designs must accommodate the needs of such learners with mobility impairments, blindness or low vision, and specific learning disabilities.
All learners can benefit when web sites are well designed. For example, simplicity and consistency in site design benefit all site users. Language should be simple and clear; navigation should be easy to understand. Individuals with visual impairments will benefit if there is a high contrast between the background and the text and if background designs are simple. Using universally recognized HTML tags are also helpful because it allows all web browsers to be accurate in displaying the content of the pace. A nonstandard tag like will generate a blinking effect in some browsers but not all web browsers will recognize it. Navigation is easier if the layout is the same from page to page and if navigating on links and buttons are always found in the same place. Small buttons make navigation more difficult for people with limited fine motor skills so it is best to choose larger buttons (Burgstaliler, 2000). Another suggestion is to include a written transcript of audio or audiovisual portions, to enable those with hearing impairments to following the dialogue, just as an audio description of a visual image can help those with visual impairments.
The general notion in designing accessible web sites is to provide multi-sensory options for users. For example, sites containing a video clip or audio component should include captions or transcribed text to accommodate users who are hearing-impaired. Likewise, information presented in graphical form also needs descriptive text so that a voice output system can read the text aloud for users who are vision impaired and allow them to imagine and understand the meaning of the image. Embedded links in image maps also require an alternative, text-based list. Burgstahler (2000) points out that frames, tables, databases, PDF files, or other special features are especially difficult for a blind person to use. Additional assistive technologies are also available for learners who face difficulties in computer input, interpreting output, or reading and using, documents, but further discussion of these is beyond the scope of this paper. See Table 1 for on-line tools such as Bobby, which assists in recommending ways to make on-line sites more accessible for learners with special needs.
ENABLING CONDITIONS
Thus far in our discussion and advocacy of VFTs, we have presupposed that computer technology is available, and that teachers know how to use these technologies. Here, briefly, we discuss evidence that seems to indicate that conditions are favorable and getting better for using VFTs as part of the classroom teaching learning experience.
Availability of Computer Technology. Logically, computers must be available in classrooms and used by teachers and students in order for VFT or other forms of computer augmented instruction to occur. According to a National Center for Education Statistics survey, by 1999 most teachers reported at least one computer in their classrooms, and that more than half of these computers were connected to the Internet. Half of the teachers who had computers available in their schools used them for classroom instruction. Teachers were more likely to have access to the Internet in schools serving high income, low minority populations. This report suggests that use of computers in classroom settings is highly influenced by the availability of computers, and that the greater the availability, the higher the likelihood of classroom use. Seventy-eight percent of teachers report that lack of computers is an important factor impeding their use of computer technology in their classrooms. This study concludes that computer technology must be made available in the classroom, not just in computer labs, and be made available in greater numbers (Reports Assess, 2000/2001). Nevertheless, sufficient numbers of computers and Internet access are in place for serious consideration as to how best to use them in classroom settings.
A key question remains as to whether these technologies are economically available for teachers and classroom use. We do not further address this here, but do agree with Kilker who asserts that the chosen technology should be low-cost, require low maintenance costs, depreciate slowly, use available local resources, and require few and inexpensive supplies (Kilker, 2000).
Teacher Preparation and Instructional Practices. Traditionally, teachers have focused on mastering content, ways to disseminate knowledge, and the management/control of their classes. With the coming of new instructional technologies, these roles are beginning to change (Galliher et al., 1995). Whether technology creates a major restructuring of how teachers teach requires further debate and research, but our present work on VFTs suggests that teachers are indeed altering their instructional practices. Briefly, here we review research supporting some or our earlier discussions. As Paris (2002) contends, by integrating technology into the curriculum, instruction can be more student-centered and individualized, more convenient in terms of times and places for access and use, and more effective in engaging students in learning. Paris further states that the teachers' role as the "sage on stage" who dispenses knowledge will shift to a role in which teachers are facilitators of learning. Shifts transform teacher-centered classrooms into learner-centered classrooms, necessitating changes in pedagogical practices and re-examination of the purposes of schooling itself. For example, according to Wilson (1997), we are now entering an era in which traditional literacy is not enough, and that now students must also be proficient in the acquisition, interpretation, evaluation, and processing of information by means of technology.
Importantly, if teachers are to assume new roles and use new technology-supported instructional tools like VFTs, then, as Galliher et al. (1995) states, teachers need to become "resource brokers." This means that they should become familiar with a variety of instructional delivery methods, rather than rely on one "best way." Teachers need to develop their knowledge about which instructional methods best serves their students' learning needs. Technology should not be used just for the sake of the exploitation of a new tool. Bellan and Scheurman (1998) contend that the computer can be a much more effective teaching tool for offering authentic learning experience if it can be interwoven with existing curriculum. Important related considerations are whether the technology engages the students' minds, and whether it encourages them to think, to discuss issues, and to find answers to real-life problems (Galliher et al., 1999).
We do know that U.S. standards for teachers, teaching, and science education all state that teachers will have competence in using computers and instructional technologies. (see Table 1 list of URLs for these standards.) In our field of science, we also know that scientific literacy includes understanding of the natural and manmade world, and that students should be studying and learning about the real world, and to do so in a way that is authentic to the nature of science. Study of real world situations, however, is complex and "messy," involving many dimensions beyond science. We believe that VFTs provide a technological solution to the challenge of providing authentic, real-world experiences for learners, and ways to support inquiry into complex situations.
CONCLUSION
We believe that computer should be viewed as a teaching tool with the ability to weave authentic learning experiences into the existing curriculum, and that VFTs should be among these experiences. Rather than simply a textbook substitute, the computer has the potential to bring student-centered, hands-on, interactive, multi-media environments to individual learners and groups of students engaged in cooperative learning. Using interactive instructional designs VFTs engage learners in using and thinking about phenomena and not just passively receiving information. Given a contextual situation, in a VFT learners can use graphical, text, auditory and numerical information to explore in ways that suit them as learners, in keeping with new understandings about multiple intelligences (Gardner, 1993). Now, with the interactive capacities of computer technologies, instruction can transcend barriers of time or distance (e.g., events happening too fast or too slow, or too far away); space (e.g. phenomena that are too small or too large); economics and opportunity (e.g., events that are too expensive, involve endangered organisms, or happen rarely); danger (e.g., events that pose danger, even to expert observers, which might now be explored remotely) or inaccessibility (e.g. endangered organisms in protected, restricted environments). VFTs help teachers and students overcome such barriers to study of the real world.
At its best, VFTs can engage students in active learning and encourage them to think and solve real-life problems. However, fundamental to the realization of effective VFTs and other forms of web-based and computer-mediated instruction, is whether or not teachers feel adequately prepared to use these technologies and to implement new ways of thinking about teaching and learning for classroom and field settings. The need for professional development is critical in endowing teachers with a certain degree of comfort and confidence in their ability to use computer technology with their students.
We are convinced that the high potential for enhanced learning through the use of VFTs is clear and attainable, and that we know enough about best practices to reach this potential. We strongly encourage all teachers to consider creating, or adopting and using VFTs as an instructional tool. We realize that this paper reflects our views as science educators, but believe that much of what we have found and share here applies to nonscience instruction as well. TABLE 1. WEB CITATIONS

Pedagogical Considerations

Alternative Assessment Techniques
http://eric.indiana.edu/www/indexdb.html

Cognitive Learning Strategies
http://as1.ipfw.edu/2000tohe/papers/souza/cls.htm

ERIC Clearing on Assessment and Evaluation
http://ericae.net/

Learning Styles and Multiple Intelligences
http://www.ldpride.net/learningstyles.I.htm

Designing for Students with Special Needs (and compliance with the
Americans with Disabilities Act)

Bobby
http://www.cast.org/Bobby/Bobby311.com

Web Accessibility Initiative
http://www.w3.org/WAI

Teacher Education Standards

The Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium
Standards
http://www.ccsso.org/intasc.html

The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards
http://www.nbpts.org/

International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE, 1996,
1997, 1998).
Further, standards for teachers are linked to standards for students.
http://www.iste.org/standards/

VFT Web Sites Discussed

Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE)
http://www.globe.gov/

The Field Trip Site (now called Tramline TourMaker)
http://www.field-trips.org/index.htm

Historical Tour of the White House
http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/whtour

The Kids as Airborne Mission Scientists
http://www.higp.hawaii.edu/kaams/missions/construction/Lproblem.html

Jason Project
http://www.jasonproject.org/

Oz-Teacher Net
http://www.rite.ed.qut.edu.au/oz-teachernet/projects/
virtual-field-trips/index.html

VFT Web Construction
http://www.uwsp.edu/geo/projects/virtdept/vfthome.html
REFERENCES
Bellan, J. M, & Scheurman, G. (1998). Actual and virtual reality: making the most of field trips. Social Education 62 (1), 35-40.
Berliner, D., & Pinero, U. C. (1985). The field trip: Frill or essential? Instructor, 94 (9), 14-15.
Burgstahler, S. (2000). Web-based instruction and people with disabilities. In Robert A. Cole (Ed.), Issues in Web-Based Pedagogy: A Critical Primer (pp. 389-395). Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
Disinger, J. F. (1984). Field instruction in school settings. Environmental Education Digest, No. 1, 2-3.
Fisher, J. (2001). The demise of fieldwork as an integral part of science education in UK schools : a victim of cultural chance and political pressure? Pedagogy, Culture and Society 9(1) 75-96.
Galliher, R., O'Neill, P., Parks, M. B., & Wimmer, B. J. (1995). Preparing technical educators for interactive instructional technologies: A review of research and practice. Paper presented at the Annual American Vocational Association Convention, Denver, CO.
Gardner, H. (1983, Rev 1993). Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences. New York: Basic Books.
Gillani, B. B. (2000). Using the web to create student-centered curriculum. In R. A. Cole (Ed.), Issues in Web-Based Pedagogy: A Critical Primer (pp. 161-181). Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
Ignatiuk, G. T. (March 1978). Influence of the amount of time spent infield trip activities on student attitude toward science and the environment (S.S.T.A. Research Centre Report No.49). Saskatchewan, Canada, 1-9.
Karplus, R., & Their, H. (1974). SCIS Teachers Handbook. Science Curriculum Improvement Study. Berkley, CA: University of California.
Kilker, Julian (2000). When and where appropriate: lessons from "foreign" contexts for the pedagogical use of web-based technologies in the Unites States. In Robert A. Cole (Ed.), Issues in Web-Based Pedagogy: A Critical Primer (pp. 65-79). Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
Klemm, E. B. & Avery, Q. 1999. Linking reforms: Environmental education and special education. Proceedings of the 28th Annual Conference of the North American Association for Environmental Education. Cincinnati, OH.
Kozulin, A. & Presselsen, B. Z. (1995). Mediated learning experience and psychological tools: Vygotsky's and Feuerstein's perspectives in a study of student learning. Educational Psychologist, 30, 67-75.
Krepel, W. J., & DuVall, C. R. (1981). Field trips: A -guide for planning, and conducting educational experiences. Analysis and Action Series, U.S., District of Columbia, 73 31.Available:ERIC ED205526
Lowry, M., Thornam, C., & White, C. T. (2000). Preparing higher education learners for success on the Web. In Robert A. Cole (Ed.), Issues in Web-Based Pedagogy: A Critical Primer (pp. 297-316). Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
National Research Council. 1996. National Science Education Standards. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.
Paris, D. C. (2000). Is there a professor in this class? In Robert A. Cole (Ed.), Issues in Web-Based Pedagogy: A Critical Primer (pp. 95-110). Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
National Science Teachers Association. (December 2000/January 2001). NSTA Reports, 12(3), 4.Arlington, VA: The Association.
Shepley, A. V. (1986). Towards more effective field teaching. The School Science Review, 55, 6-11.
Slattery, W., Mayer, V. J., & Klemm, E. B. (2002). Using the Internet in Earth systems investigations. In Victor J. Mayer, (Ed). Global Science Literacy: Kluwer Academic Press.
Stainfield, J., Fisher, P., Ford, B, & Solem, M. (July 2000). International virtual field trips:A new direction? Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 24 (2),255
Thompson, D. B. (1982). On discerning the purposes of fieldwork. Geology Teaching,7(2), 6-11.
Trowbridge, L. W., R. W. Bybee and J. C. Powell. 2000, 7th Ed. Teaching Secondary School Science: Strategies for Developing Scientific Literacy. Englewood Cliffs:Merrill/Prentice Hall.
Tuthill, G. (2001) Virtual Field Trips in ChemCom Unpublished master's thesis, University of Hawaii, Honolulu.
Tuthill, G. & Klemm, E. B. (2002). Virtual Field Trips: Alternatives to Actual Field Trips. International Journal of Instructional Media
Wiggins, G. and McTighe, J. (1998) Understanding By Design. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
AUTHORS NOTES
E. Barbara Klemm is a professor in the College of Education at the University of Hawaii, where she teaches science education and curriculum theory, research and development. Her research interests include teaching and learning using the Internet.
Gail Tuthill is a chemistry teacher at Iolani School, a private secondary school. She is interested in using computer-mediated communication to bring local, real-world applications of chemistry to the classroom.
Direct Reprint Requests to: Dr. E. Barbara Klemm Dept. Teacher Education & Curriculum Studies College of Education, University of Hawaii 1776 University Avenue (W A 2-222B) Honolulu, HI 96822 Email: klemm@hawaii.edu
DR. E. BARBARA KLEMM
College of education, University of Hawaii
GAIL TUTHILL
Iolani School, Honolulu, HI
Source Citation:Klemm, E. Barbara, and Gail Tuthill. "Virtual field trips: best practices." International Journal of Instructional Media 30.2 (Spring 2003): 177(17). Academic OneFile. Gale. Florida Gulf Coast University. 5 Sept. 2008 .
Gale Document Number:A107801001

Samantha Shaffer's Education Blog

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Storyboarding

Friday, September 19, 2008

Week 4- Wiki

Friday, September 12, 2008

Blogging

Friday, September 5, 2008

My Blog Article for Week 2

My Virtual Field Trip Article

Blog Archive

About Me