Using the Claim, Evidence, Reasoning Framework for Supporting Idea Synthesis in STEM Lessons

• In Event: Unpacking and Enacting the Next Generation Science Standards

Abstract

The Next Generation Science Standards require students to obtain, evaluate, and communicate information including combining information from multiple sources. Students in a 5th grade engineering, computational modeling, and science integrated unit needed to do research about an engineering problem to understand how to design a solution. Within the context of this unit, students were presented with information from multiple sources and asked to use the CER Framework (McNeill & Krajcik, 2007) to combine that information into claims about science processes underlying the engineering problem. Students’ responses were often incomplete or closely resembled the information in the teacher’s guide, which revealed areas of possibility for future additional support. The CER framework seems to have potential as a support for combining information.

Authors

• Sarah Jennings Fick, Washington State University - Pullman

• Nonye M. Alozie, SRI International

• Jennifer L. Chiu, University of Virginia

• Kevin McElhaney, Digital Promise