PME-NA

Empowering High School Students Through Agent-Based Modeling: Bridging Everyday Experiences And Scientific Concepts

• In Event: Poster Session #1
  In Poster Session: Empowering High School Students Through Agent-Based Modeling: Bridging Everyday Experiences And Scientific Concepts

Description

This poster presentation will explore how high school students integrate everyday language and scientific concepts while modeling epidemic spread using an agent-based computer simulator. We analyzed students' use of mathematical and scientific terms over four sessions through video recordings, transcripts, and written responses. Entropy analysis revealed a shift from informal to formal language, demonstrating how agent-based modeling (ABM) fosters conceptual understanding. The qualitative analysis yielded that students initially relied on local-level explanations but gradually incorporated local-global complex system-level perspectives as their confidence with the simulator became more specialized. Our findings highlight the potential of ABM as an educational tool for developing critical thinking and interdisciplinary learning. This research contributes a mixed-method approach to analyzing language usage, providing insights into how students make sense of complex social phenomena through mathematical modeling.

Authors

• Jesus Enrique Hernandez Zavaleta, Cape Breton University

• Gustavo Carreon Vazquez, Instituto de Investigaciones Económicas, UNAM

• Vicente Carrion Vazquez, Universidad Pedagógica Nacional