But none of these media provide interaction. They cannot ask for more details about explanations that they don't understand. They cannot satisfy their curiosity about how efficiency varies with operating temperaturesby testing the engine over range of values. Software that lets students experiment with simulations of physical systems that provides conceptual explanations as well as numerical results should enable students to learn more than from traditional simulation-based activities. Modeling, i.e., the application of principles to understanding phenomena, is at the heart of science.
Students often bring misconceptions to the classroom that can interfere with learning.
We believe that software that helps students articulate, test, and refine models can reduce such persistent misconceptions. Coaching students informing physically accurate mental models and in formulating mathematical models should help students to better understand both the phenomena being modelled and the process of science. The software will be able to explain the consequences of student's experiments in intuitive, qualitative terms, illustrating how the specific responses are ultimately governed by general laws and principles. Active Illustrations can be used as stand-alone learning tools, as a medium to include in hypermedia systems, and as virtual artifacts in shared virtual learning environments. Modeling Workbenches help students learn science by building, testing, and refining models.