The purpose of this study is to explore how merging narrative, role-play, and immersive, interactive technology can support learners to participate in designerly STEM practices (e.g., posing questions, designing investigations, modeling data). Set in university pre-service teacher education courses, we contrast two problem-based units incorporating immersive, interactive projection. Elementary pre-service teachers (n=9) completed a three-day unit on arithmetic and geometric sequences embedded in a narrative of defending the Earth by testing a top-secret weapon to destroy asteroids. Secondary science pre-service teachers (n=8) completed a three-day unit that included an immersive simulation of the greenhouse effect, but lacked a narrative context. This study reports qualitative analysis of video-recorded interactions, examining how students engaged and participated. In the former, the narrative context pervaded interactions, and invited participation from students who rarely participated. In the latter, the students engaged as scientists, surfacing numerous questions and investigations. Students engaged mathematically/scientifically within the immersive environment.
- 5 views