June 10, 1999

by

Rebekah K. Nix

in partial fulfillment of the requirements in SMEC-708

Curtin University of Technology

Western Australia

Although field trips are nothing new, the evolution of their delivery - from actual site visits to recorded instructional television programs to interactive multimedia CD-ROMs and on to real-time experiences via the World Wide Web - is an exciting and powerful utilization of Internet technology that enhances science education! The real world is where theory and practice come together and science becomes relevant, making sense that leads to understanding. Virtual field trips enable the principles of student-centered inquiry and constructivism to be practiced. For the purpose of this study, a virtual field trip is an inter-related collection of images, supporting text and/or other media, delivered electronically via the World Wide Web, in a format that can be professionally presented to relate the essence of a visit to a time or place.

An extensive Internet search was conducted over the second quarter of 1999 to develop and create a listing that summarizes the key content, educational and support components of virtual field trips available on the World Wide Web. To objectively compare science-related virtual field trips with respect to elements that impact the usability as a teaching tool, a new instrument was designed in collaboration with intermediate and graduate level science and math educators. The quantity and variety of World Wide Web sites dedicated to virtual field trips reflects an interest and willingness that could help move science education into a new realm.

On December 10, 1995, the TerraQuest expedition ship Livonia set out on a two-week voyage from Argentina across Drake's Passage to the continent of Antarctica. Along with daily live chats and digital dispatches via satellite, the trip made history with the first-ever live uplinks to the Internet from Antarctica, receiving over 800,000 hits to the site during its active period. Positive press and email feedback confirmed a sense of community among the real and virtual travelers. On the eve of the new millennium, another boat with digital cameras, sound recording devices and a satellite hook-up to the Internet will set out to duplicate the age-old oceanic quest of global circumnavigation. Two million hits per day are expected in the first year of the journey.

Major organizations such as IBM, Bell Atlantic, CSC, and NASA are investing significant research hours and development dollars in the emerging genre of virtual experiences that combine scientific and educational goals. Although field trips are nothing new, the evolution of their delivery - from actual site visits to recorded instructional television programs to interactive multimedia CD-ROMs and on to real-time experiences via the World Wide Web - is an exciting and powerful utilization of Internet technology that enhances science education!

Why are geology students required to complete field camp or medical students required to perform internships? Because the real world is where theory and practice come together and science becomes relevant, making sense that leads to understanding. Virtual field trips enable the principles of student-centered inquiry and constructivism to be practiced for the benefit of all styles and ages of learners (Galas, 1999).

What exactly is a virtual field trip? Think about any trip you have taken to any place for any reason. Was there a sense of awe or wonder? Can you feel the excitement of a journey or the intrigue of a new place? Do images or sounds of the visit flash through your mind even today? Which specific aspects do you remember about that personal life experience?

A virtual experience can inspire the same sensations. Webster's online dictionary defines virtual as "being such in essence or effect though not formally recognized or admitted" and field trip as "a visit (as to a factory, farm, or museum) made (as by students and a teacher) for purposes of firsthand observation" (Merriam-Webster Online, 1999). With an intentionally professional perspective, one educator suggests that teachers "start thinking about electronic field trips as an ITV (instructional television - author's clarification) model that works out with weights 30 hours a week" (Coletti, 1999). Another organization defines a virtual field trip as "a guided and narrated tour of web sites that have been selected... and arranged in a 'thread' that students can follow from site to site with the click of a single button" (Virtual Blackboard, 1999). For the purpose of this study, a virtual field trip is an inter-related collection of images, supporting text and/or other media, delivered electronically via the World Wide Web, in a format that can be professionally presented to relate the essence of a visit to a time or place. The virtual experience becomes a unique part of the participants' life experience.

Various information technology products (global collaborative projects, extensive encyclopedic reference pages and graphical on-line brochures) may include aspects of a virtual field trip. Whether actually in the field or simply visiting online, the learning outcome is that the group experiences a real-world occurrence of a place or event, making unique discoveries and independent decisions from a scientific perspective. Therefore, for effective use as a teaching tool in a science classroom, a "virtual field trip" must contain certain elements that make it possible for a teacher to independently guide students along a logical course. Presentation reflects an everyday, real-world situation with all the variables and extraneous influences. Classification of the virtual field trip depends on content, structure and purpose. The main subject matter may involve environmental issues, biological organisms, geological structures, space exploration, or oceanographic processes. The information may flow as numbered stops along a guided trail or stations at an exhibit, or the group may have the option of choosing its own path of discovery. Again, the ultimate goal is to develop an understanding of and appreciation for the "big picture", allowing the group to work through the scientific process, involving all their senses and opening their minds to limitless possibilities. Based on this definition, some sites entitled "virtual field trips" or "tours" are not included in this study as they do not meet the listed criteria.

Specifying the virtual field trip as an application centered in the experience of the student places it in the "learning technology" sector of "educational technology" as defined at a National Science Foundation workshop on the impact of information technology on undergraduate education in science, mathematics, engineering and technology. A focused group of faculty, students, academic administrators, publishers and industry professionals determined that

Effective use of information technology is characterized by applications that:

• Stimulate students and engage them with the material, such as role playing simulations.
• Illustrate the workings of complex systems by exploring cause-and-effect relationships, or demonstrate microscopic, molecular, or hypothetical scenarios.
• Encourage collaboration with other individuals, teams, or institutions to coordinate a group effort while exposing students to different ideas and perspectives (e.g., electronic mail for communicating with classmates or instructors).
• Foster development of critical thinking skills, visualization, conceptualization, integration of disparate data and resolution of patterns within data.
• Utilize the World Wide Web for research, advertising, and posting material.

(National Science Foundation, p.14)

Virtual field trips can do all of the above - and then some!

The purpose of this review is to determine the availability and feasibility of virtual field trips as classroom tools for science teachers. If you simply enter the terms "virtual field trip" (without quotation marks) in a typical Internet search engine, the results are overwhelming: Infoseek offers 19,168,175 sites; AltaVista reports 5,543,665 matches; MSN lists 15,052 potential links. Limiting the search to the exact phrase "virtual field trip" (with quotation marks) still yields voluminous results: Infoseek offers 3,680 sites; AltaVista reports 1,784 matches; MSN lists 729 potential links. Of course, not all references are relevant or appropriate, but the initial search results might be a bit intimidating for a beginning "surfer" trying to integrate technology into his/her specific curriculum. If faced with this mass of information, a teacher may never reach the secondary goal of assessing the presentation style and design elements typically included on such a site. Nor may he/she actually progress to using virtual field trip with his/her students.

Despite the proliferation of virtual field trips available on the World Wide Web, little has been published on the topic in the traditional sense. Two journal articles describing classroom technology projects (Hixson, 1996 and Barshinger, 1998) and one book, a cross-referenced description of web sites (Cooper, 1997), directly approached the subject. Informal background information was occasionally discovered on pages within major web sites.

A nationwide project to build and link geography curricula using the Internet and World Wide Web provides a possible model for science education. The program proposal (Foote, 1995) raises the issues of how technology can be developed to benefit students and society and notes the changing role of the teacher as new opportunities are explored. One of their goals is to make use of the vast repository of materials already available on the Internet and World Wide Web. Dr. Bruce Herbert of Texas A&M University has posted several presentations that discuss the design and effectiveness of using virtual field trips to improve delivery in earth science (Herbert, 1998). His initial assessment of the use of Web-based instructional materials in an introductory Physical Geology class shows positive improvement in the impact of science on students' lives and their change in geologic interest. This survey supports his statement that when the objectives are incorporated into the design phase, virtual field trips can support learning objectives.

An extensive Internet search was conducted over the second quarter of 1999 to develop and create a listing that summarizes the key content, educational and support components of virtual field trips available on the World Wide Web. Using various Internet search engines, a review of the more prominent web sites was performed to assess the scope of the project and define survey criteria. Interest in the virtual field trip concept is evident in the number of sites dedicated to providing lists of virtual field trips. Based on these results, a master list of virtual field trip links was compiled by title and address to eliminate duplicate URLs (Universal Resource Locators).

Approximately 500 sites were visited over a three-week period to verify links and assess the style and components of each site. In the process, 45 bad links and 9 changed links were encountered. The Microsoft Windows system crashed 4 times. Correct addresses have not been identified for 51 sites on the initial master list at the time of this printing. Various plug-ins were required for some sites, but technical support and download links were clearly provided more often than not. Approximately 10 web sites utilized Windows system audio and video software; 10 used QuickTime; 8 used Acrobat Reader; 6 used RealPlayer; 3 used Shockwave; and True Speech, Live Picture and chat plug-ins were also used.

A simple rating scale was defined to assess basic components of the study sites. "Excellent" ratings encouraged feedback or participation or provided thorough detail and full capabilities. "Sufficient" ratings indicate that the information or feature was available, but inquiries and comments were not solicited and supplemental information may be required for presentation. "Not applicable" means that the element was not found on the site through a typical connection. Some items were "Under Construction" implying that there was a structure in place, but no or incomplete content. In other cases (such as the site written in the German language with no translator option), certain elements within the site were "Undetermined" or the hyperlink was incorrect, noted as a "Bad link".

A questionnaire designed to help educators evaluate virtual field trips asks the question "Is the tour better in person?" (Schrock, 1998). It focuses mainly on web page navigation and construction issues. To objectively compare science-related virtual field trips with respect to elements that impact the usability as a teaching tool, a new instrument (see Appendix A) was designed in collaboration with intermediate and graduate level science and math educators.

Content-specific items (such as text, narratives, captions and images) include the title of the trip or name of the website, the source or author of the website, and the presentation format (illustrated in Appendix B). Access to all information is most often free or user registration (for marketing or update services) may be requested; however, some sites (usually live events) require purchased licenses that range from US$1 per student and $69 per teacher to $1,000 for more than 151 students. The level is a comprehensive measure based on average student experience and teacher knowledge. Educational components (such as lesson plans, teacher notes and evaluation items) are classified as teacher notes, activities, assessment, and standards. Additional support components include resources (such as pop-up glossaries and links to relevant web sites, high-level research and background), multimedia (such as audio and video supplements, display of real-time information, and animation), and support (such as technical help files or contact details for content specialists).

A total of 280 virtual field trips were identified and analyzed for this feasibility study. The results, tabulated by evaluation criteria, are presented in Appendix C. Individual data points reflect separate aspects of virtual field trips that support general trends. The majority of sites originate from college-level professors and students (graduate), followed by institutes, professional organizations and national programs. Organization is predominantly by topic or subject, followed by chronological or logistical arrangements. Access to over half of the sites is free and unrestricted. Very few sites are specifically designed for use at the lower (elementary) levels. Information focused mainly on the trip itself, offering excellent resources and multimedia, but minimal educational components.

Collectively however, the number and quality of elements available on a particular site infers its suitability for teaching purposes and provides insight into the present state of the art. The following tables present the approximate data percentages by level and evaluation criteria as described in Appendix A. Undetermined or under construction data points were extracted from the results.

The majority of web pages dealing with field studies in the classic sense are developed by and designed for use at a post-graduate level. The chronological format and limited use of multimedia features supports the more linear nature of higher-level presentation. Nearly all of the web pages dealing with museum tours and real-time, participatory events are designed by outside organizations for use at the K-12 level. The open structure with multiple path options and multimedia capabilities take advantage of the non-linear nature of web-based instruction to enhance individual interest and understanding.

Three relationships are particularly important to this study. First, over half of the high-level sites utilize a chronological format, whereas over half of the moderate-level sites are presented in a topical format. Second, more than 50% of both the moderate- and low-level sites employed some form of multimedia features beyond basic html (hyper text markup language), while little was incorporated on the high-level sites. Finally, the high-level sites decidedly originate from graduate professors and/or students, however, a surprisingly small number of moderate-level and no low-level sites were explicitly created by classroom teachers and/or students.

The dynamic nature of the World Wide Web is a key concern for Internet-based research. The search basis is unavoidably biased due to the choice of terms and engines, the technical exclusion of subscription sites by definition, the judgment of the investigator and the naming conventions used by the site author to cite a few major issues. Because of the sheer volume of resources and comprehensiveness of the research topic, it is unreasonable to believe that all pertinent sites were included in the survey. Changes to sites and disruption of links will most likely affect the data in the long-term. There is also an inherent content bias toward the earth sciences due to general nature of field trips and limitations of actual physical travel.

Time itself presented both positive (similar environment) and negative (site discovery and review) limitations. Although the evaluation criteria are subjective to a degree, the specific parameters of the study elements and consistent review methods are appropriate for an exploratory feasibility assessment. The preliminary results of this study support further investigation under a similar methodology.

Virtual field trips are indeed available on the World Wide Web and do provide feasible classroom tools for science teachers. With the current global Internet initiatives underway, they will be readily available to teachers and students as a viable application of technology. With the continually improving delivery and presentation capabilities, they will offer teachers and students a valuable structure for developing "real" science skills such as observation, inference, prediction, understanding, and problem-solving. The number and variety of sites dedicated to virtual field trips reflects an interest and willingness that could help move science education into a new realm.

The benefits of virtual field trips are numerous. Teachers gain a cross-curriculum integration strategy, a framework for addressing complex issues and an approach that supports multiple implementation and learning styles over a range of levels with a real-world relevancy. Students gain entry into environments without restrictions or distractions, a chance to discover their personal interests in a scientific context, and the opportunity to independently work ahead, catch up or review a motivational exercise. Both teachers and students benefit from the exposure to all paradigms of education (Kessell, 1999) and starting out on the same page with respect to technology and the newness of traveling to another place. Besides all that, virtual field trips are fun (tell a story) and easy (no transportation, food, lodging, waivers, or weather worries), capturing the interest of all participants - actual or virtual!

New features and capabilities will spark creativity and motivate development of effective virtual field trips, designed for use as teaching tools. Presently limited occurrences of "extreme" multimedia such as live web-cams, interactive movies, and extended scientist chats may soon be commonplace. Detailed curriculum integration strategies and the implementation of critical elements (standardized navigation tools, basic imaging options and pop-up glossaries, for example) can be added to make the tours easy to use. Focused research to determine what materials are usable in the classroom, what training needs to be offered for integration and how the design of virtual field trips can meet these specific needs will be critical to maximizing the effectiveness of virtual field trips as teaching tools in the science classroom.

The tremendous potential of field trips is not restricted to educating students, but can also be applied to training teachers in both technology and pedagogy. Actually taking teachers into the field provides a real-life experience that combines the multi-disciplinary aspects of system science. Such exposure can then be used to develop an interest in technology by encouraging teachers to create their own virtual field trip. As evidenced by the success of the Teacher Training Programs in Geosciences at the University of Texas at Dallas, the energy of the actual experience can be transferred to the classroom each time a trip is virtually experienced!

This research provides a tested instrument to gauge the value of virtual field trips as classroom teaching tools for science education. A summary statement written by a 6th grade science teacher and a 3rd grade teacher and technology specialist on teachers' perspective about using "Live from Antarctica" provides incentive to continue developing the concept and improving the content of virtual field trips: